Looking to getting a new camera for my birthday present.

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Mix, how using the money to take a vacation. It would due you good to get out of your neighborhood and see some new places.
 
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Instead of buying more stuff for your camera, you should buy a photography class. Or, at the very least a book on photography so you can learn how the camera works.

I'm using a Nikon D3300 which is pretty much the Nikon equivalent to your camera. And, I'm still very much in the beginning stages of learning how to work with it. But here's a few pictures I took over the weekend hiking around a local lake with a buddy of mine: Burke Lake Park | Facebook

Your camera can achieve that photo quality and better. But the stuff you post isn't close yet. It's a skill problem, not an equipment problem.
I have the 3200, I wish I would of spent the little extra and got the 3300, it just a tad bit nicer over the 3200.
 
I just came out of Unique Photo and got the prices for both the upgrade for the flash and lens. All together he said $600-700 for both. The good news is they are having an Expo on June 2nd, 3rd and 4th. My birthday is the 2nd. So I can come here that day and save some money.
 
I just came out of Unique Photo and got the prices for both the upgrade for the flash and lens. All together he said $600-700 for both. The good news is they are having an Expo on June 2nd, 3rd and 4th. My birthday is the 2nd. So I can come here that day and save some money.
What lens did they tell you you need?
 
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Mix you really need to educate yourself before you're buying random stuff. There's so many lenses out there for different needs... you can't just "upgrade". Each lens has a specific purpose, and you need to know what it is you're looking for before you just go to stores saying you need a lens upgrade. I use the camera for events and need low light capabilities... others will have different needs. The guy you spoke to probably is looking at the easiest sale of his life and what you buy will probably have little to no impact on the quality of your photos.
 
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Y'all are missing his aim - he NEEDS to buy something. He doesn't care what it is - he just needs to buy it.
 
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EVERYTHING is an upgrade from what you have now... you have a basic kit lens. The reason for upgrading lens is because you need a lens for a specific purpose. They can give you a lens that has better zoom or better quality glass... but isn't meant for low light conditions, meaning the pics at your parties will still look like crap. There are lenses that create better bokah, some are better for portraits or wide angles, there are lens that are better for distance...you can't just walk into a store and say you want a lens upgrade.

I first was the one that recommended an upgraded lens and flash but that was based on the specific needs that you may have... do you want something for your events in low light conditions... something for outdoors... something for portraits, etc. Each need has a different lens that may be more appropriate. It is EXTREMELY evident at this point with your comments that you are still in the very very ENTRY level phase of dslr knowledge. Spend some time and gain experience finding out what your camera is capable of, before spending money on things that will make no visible difference to the quality of your pictures.

It's like me giving you a pair of $5000 moving heads and you having no DMX programming experience. Yes, they're better on paper and specs, but they will look just as good as $400 heads if you don't know how to program them and bring out their full potential. This is the same concept as you and your desire for new camera equipment.
 
Mix, you are every salesperson's dream customer!
In auto sales slang, you are whats referred to as a "Lay Down".

You think so? After reading the descriptions, I'd say he's a total grape.
 
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EVERYTHING is an upgrade from what you have now... you have a basic kit lens. The reason for upgrading lens is because you need a lens for a specific purpose. They can give you a lens that has better zoom or better quality glass... but isn't meant for low light conditions, meaning the pics at your parties will still look like crap. There are lenses that create better bokah, some are better for portraits or wide angles, there are lens that are better for distance...you can't just walk into a store and say you want a lens upgrade.

I first was the one that recommended an upgraded lens and flash but that was based on the specific needs that you may have... do you want something for your events in low light conditions... something for outdoors... something for portraits, etc. Each need has a different lens that may be more appropriate. It is EXTREMELY evident at this point with your comments that you are still in the very very ENTRY level phase of dslr knowledge. Spend some time and gain experience finding out what your camera is capable of, before spending money on things that will make no visible difference to the quality of your pictures.

It's like me giving you a pair of $5000 moving heads and you having no DMX programming experience. Yes, they're better on paper and specs, but they will look just as good as $400 heads if you don't know how to program them and bring out their full potential. This is the same concept as you and your desire for new camera equipment.
Thank you. I certainly will do some more investigation before buying. What would you recommend for low light for a lens as some events they like to turn the lights down low when it's time for serious dancing? Of course I don't want to have to take out mortgage to get one. LOL.
 
I personally would recommend something with an aperture of f/2.8 or better. I have a few different ones, but always find my guys going back to the 17-55mm lens so they can zoom in and out depending on where they're standing. Keep in mind, I mostly do video so zoom is important to them and being able to be versatile based on distance. Here's an example Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM | Canon Online Store but there are other brands that are a couple of hundred dollars cheaper, but perhaps are not as well built or as good a quality lens.

Again... you really should learn the capabilities of your existing equipment. Using a 2.8 aperture reduces the range of depth for focus, and it can be extremely easy to be out of focus on your images... something you're doing already with a lens that should be easier to stay in focus.
 
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I tried to ask him what lens he currently has before giving recommendations but he didn't answer.
I wrote him off a while back but thought I would try one more time to help.......stupid me!
 
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Thank you. I certainly will do some more investigation before buying. What would you recommend for low light for a lens as some events they like to turn the lights down low when it's time for serious dancing? Of course I don't want to have to take out mortgage to get one. LOL.
Mix, I've said it before, I would get a f/1.8 50mm and maybe a f/1.8 85mm lens, both are excellent for indoor work. The 50mm you can get for around $100, the 85mm, better for portraits, is about $350. The 50mm should be a no-brainer based on its cost and usefulness.

IMO, the ideal indoor lens is the 24mm-70mm f2.8 Canon, I have one, but it's a bit pricier at around $1700, so you can get one when you go "pro".
 
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I tried to ask him what lens he currently has before giving recommendations but he didn't answer.
I wrote him off a while back but thought I would try one more time to help.......stupid me!
I'm under the assumption that since he never bought a lens before, its a basic stock lens 18-55 f.56

I second the 50mm 1.8 $100 option... but again not knowing what his needs are, a fixed lens may not be appropriate. Pretty sure he doesn't know what he really needs either.
 
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Yeah, probably is the kit lens but I wanted to make sure that whatever he was going to buy wasn't duplicating or overlapping the same zoom range unless it was going to be a significantly faster lens. Granted pretty much everything is an upgrade from the kit lens and it's not the best for low light but he could still take decent pics with it if he knew how to use it properly. I had even thought about asking him to get his current lens checked in case its a calibration problem but obviously he would rather just buy anything any salesperson will tell him will make him a better photographer.:rolleyes:
 
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