Hey, I am looking to buy an SLR for my wife.
She is looking to take up photography as a hobby. Mostly taking pictures of our kids and nature.
Only looking to spend <500

SLR or DSLR? For that price you can get a rebel.

Xsi kit or used 40D

I never really considered getting one used. Is there anything to be worried about there? You never really know how people have treated things

ofc it's a risk you are taking..
but i took that risk one month ago when I bought a Canon xsi used and so far it's working great!

Just make sure you know what to look at when you buy it
DSLR's are made to be used for a long time!
If it's a camera in the beginner segment they are said to hold for ~50000 exposures, depending on many variables this can vary from picture 2 to 100 000 ofc.

Do not buy from professional photographers. Most DSLRs have an exposure counter. As the previous post mentioned, ~50000 exposures for entry-level cameras. Look for anywhere between 5000-20000 and try craigslist for a desperate seller.

This post was edited by onepagememory on May 10 2010 11:10am

i went to sears and bought a nikon d3000
it was a little more than $500
but i like it so far! well worth it for a starting camera i'd say
but it could never hurt to look around and get a used one.
it might be better to take her shopping for one and see which one she likes best

for starting up with photography, the Canon EOS 1000D alias Xsi is a good choice. If you´re planning to spend 500 bucks, I´d buy that one ( it´s 380€ here ) and add either some helpful items like filters, a tripod, a bag or something like that, or the 50mm 1.8 lens ( for around 100 bucks ). That´d make a great gift I think. Then she already has a few things that will come in handy when it comes to photographing, and doesnt have to get them all by herself.
my opinion. good luck.

Myself I have a canon eos series 400D, I'm not sure if they are still sold but you should go for quite a simple camera that feels right in your hands. Megapixels don't really make a difference once it is like 8+

Tip!

Buy the body but don't take the kit lense, it will just cost you money and the quality of a kitlens usually isnt that good. Get some versatile lense like the sigma 18-200 which I had when I first got my camera. That type of lense is perfect to practice and just to have fun with.



This post was edited by SeaBas on May 10 2010 04:31pm