WTB DSLR, what system for hobbyist, given my current gear

[mervincm]

Budget
1000ish initialy, maybe another 1500 over the next 2 years if I have to :)

(PS I am in canada, and prices seem A LOT higher here, even counting currency exchange)
K10D body is 1100$, K100D is 700$, 800$ with 18-55 lens, Pentax 16-45 f4 is 400$, pentax 50 f1.4 is 350$
no rebates on anything that I can find

Size

mid range sized DSLR since my wife has smaller than average hands. only a max sized DSLR would be undesirable for us.

Features
megapixels:6
seems to be enough for great pictures from samples I have seen online, when would you want/NEED more?

* What optical zoom will you need?
We seem to often be wanting for more zoom, so I would eventually be wanting at least a 200 zoom

* How important is “image quality” to you?
very, both manual and auto modes

Do you care for manual controls?
yes, some are required

General Usage
What will you generally use the camera for?

1rst priority
-indoor kids and pets
-outdoor kids and pets

2nd priorities
-landscape
-nature photography long range and close ups (bugs etc)

* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not?
highly doubt it

Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos?
yes

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?
no

Are there particular brands you like or hate?
no

Are there particular models you already have in mind?
Pentax 110D, 10D
Nikon D50, Canon XT

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hotshoe, Rotating LCD)

best auto focus and IS seem to be valuable to me since I tend to take pictures that are not always well focused. My wife thinks she can live without IS, but she has never tried it :)

We also seem to take too many pictures with kids looking away and closed eyes, so I think burst mode might help here, but I don't know, I have never tried it.


I would like to give some details on what we have, how we liked it and might be able to continue to use as we move from SLR to digital SLR. The primary use of this camera will be my wife. She is the one that gets the most enjoyment from the proccess of taking the pictures and enjoying the final results. She started out with

Minolta SLR from approx 1985-1990 Maxxum 5000 (AF and built in flash)
fixed 50mm Minolta lens (I assume a kit lens)
mid sized shoe mounted flash
Minolta zoom lens (guess up to about 200)
filters etc etc

She loved this kit and it met all her needs, although when I used it It didn't really perform in my far less capable hands (blurry and nothing really said wow!).
It was ALL stolen however. :(

About 2002 I bought a Pentax camera and sigma lens together that she has never been happy with.

Sigma DL HyperZoom 28 to 300mm F3.5-6.3 Aspherical IF Filter size 72, says for Pentax AF cameras
Pentax MZ-7
Vivitar flash 730AF P Lens Coverage 28mm - 85mm, Exposure Control TTL, Zoom Manual

I suspect the dislike for this setup can be completely blamed on the inappropriate lens choice for indoor/lower light shots. I always intended to add another lens for that and maybe a macro lens.

Add that my father just donated a 1981 minolta XGM, complete with a shoe flash , 50 mm and a 75-200 F4.5 zoom
and we picked up a minolta maxxum 5000 w 35-70mm ki lens recently

The pentax type stuff I have seems like it should work well with the newer models, especially those with built in IS features K100D and K10D

Any way I have about 30 days to get something, since we are taking a once every 10 years vacation to Costa Rica, and plan on taking a pile of pictures.

options
1 Pentax K100D
A) about 799$ with a Kit 18-55 Lens (Canada)
and use my existing sigma zoom and vivitar flash. If this all worked together as they are supposed to, how would I be able to meet my priorities. I would get IS thru all lenses, that's a plus. I would spent $350 on the 50mm 1.4 (good choice???) for use indoors and in lower light situations.

Total comes to 1150 +tax
I would have in the kit
NEW Pentax K100D
NEW 18-55 Pentax lens
NEW Pentax 50mm 1.4 lens
Sigma 28-300 zoom (should be fully supported)
Vivitar 730AFP flash

B) pass on the 18-55 kit lens, and instead opt for the K100D and 16-45 f4 lens total $1100

I would have in the kit
NEW Pentax K100D
NEW 16-45 Pentax lens
Sigma 28-300 zoom
Vivitar 730AFP flash

2 K10D

A) K10D. for 1100$ blows my complete budget on body alone (till next year at this time) and I would only have the sigma lens to use. But it sounds great! Dust remover, more mega pixels, more burst shooting, image quality? It will be out in time for my trip, but maybe not long enough for many reviews.
B) K10D with 18-55 for 1200$ over the budget a little I am guessing, but I would really want the additional lens for the trip??
C) K10D with the 16-45 for 1450. A bunch over the budget, but for my priorities it really is the way to go????

3) The stuff I have is really not well suited to my needs, or can't be effectively used and I should start over.
(Heck, it would make it easier to find gifts for my wife for the next while :) )


sorry for the long book. I would appreciate any feedback on my many questions/ proposals. I will add more exact details on my existing gear after I get a chance to find the manuals.

[unix04]

well, sony bought minolta, and splashed into the dslr world with the alpha a100. the camera is very similar to the maxxum in style, so perhaps you can look in that direction?

i also heard the sony has the minolta mount, so if you still have your minolta lenses, perhaps you can use them on your sony. (if anyone else can confirm this, would be great)

the alpha also has build-in IS, and dust-reduction sytem.

the cost should be well under your initial budget as well.

[jeisner]

If you go with the k100d...

I would suggest the 16-45/4 if you want the extra wide angle (2mm makes a difference) and it is a higher quality lens than the 18-55 no doubt...

I would also think you would want a bright prime for very low light.. Something like the FA35/2 or the FA50/1.4 depending on which focal length you think would suit you best.. You could get great kid and pet portraits with either though I would lean towards the FA50/1.4 myself to start.. Its only around $210 ($169 after rebate) so even if you get the camera and the 16-45/4 and the 50/1.4 you still won't have blown your budget...

Ohh and stay away from Sigma lenses, esp the non EX or DC ones, they were pretty poor..

[ktixx]

Here's my Suggestion:

Body: Canon Rebel XT (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=371189&is=REG&addedTroughType=search) - $600
Lens - Sigma 18-50 f/2.8 (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=340169&is=REG&addedTroughType=search) - $409

This kit will be $9 + Shipping over your innitial budget, plus you will have to purchase a memory card (About $50). So your total kit price (Including shipping) will be ~$1,080. This will yield some great results as the 18mm is a nice lens for indoors. In addition the constant aperture of f/2.8 will also be great for low light. As time goes on and you decide to get more equipment look into a nice zoom (Canon 70-200 f/4L ~$600) and a flash (Canon 430ex - $240).
Hope this helps
Ken

[Rhys]

I'd say stick with what you have and get the Sony Alpha as it's the new Minolta digital SLR. Minolta sold their SLR division to Sony a while back.

[mervincm]

I added more details.

The Sony Camera here is about 1200 with the body, alone it would blow the budget, but not so much I would not do it if it really made sense.

even if they worked with the sony, all the minolta stuff I have is a
25 year old 50 MM manual lens (does not work with the Sony as far as I can tell)
25 year old 75-200 manual zoom (again, not with the sony)
25 year old flash (hehe who cares)
20 year old 35-70 mm AF kit lens (should work with the sony)

I am not sure that they really add that much to my kit do they?

[mervincm]

I found a local camera shop that was willing to give me a decent deal on K100D and 18-mm combo. I decided to go for it, since no one local stocks the 16-45 f4 anyway! as long as the next 7 days go OK, I plan on making due with this in my kit.

Pentax K100D
P DA 18-55mm
Sigma 28-300mm
1 2gig highspeed card and 2 1 GB lo speed cards
8 duracell 2650mA cells and 1HR charger
Pentax and Picassa Software for manipulation and fixing initially

soon time frame upgrades (weeks)
-50mm prime 1.4 pentax for those low light situations soon as I see a good deal (a sale, rebate or used)
-look at lens tubes or lens reversers for macro use till I clearly define what I want
-pick up some software for image manipulation once I determine what to go for.

Next fall
-ebay my 18-55 and replace it with the 16-45 f4 or the soon to be released f2.8


Thanks for your ideas and suggestions!