Looking for light but advanced DSLR

[CitS]

Hi--I'm searching for a DSLR for my wife, who I'm guessing is an intermediate photographer--she majored in it in college and even worked professionally for a few years, but very likely won't be doing any pro work again. So this is for regular photo stuff, friends and family, plus a bit to illustrate brochures, etc. but nothing very large or art-centric. My budget's $2,500 w/ the lens, but I'd love to do less. I was thinking about the Nikon D300 w/ the 18-200 lens, but I'm thinking it's too big and bulky and she'll wind up not using it as much; the D90 is also pretty big, so then i looked at the D5000, but the reviews all go into how this is for beginners only. I'm not tied to Nikon, but that's all i've been looking at. Any ideas? Thanks!

[MaxxFusion]

What about a canon T1i. You can get this kit from amazon for $729 and the 55-250 lens for $221. Then you get an instant $200 rebate.

[speaklightly]

As Maxx has pointed out, the XSi and T-1 are fairly light weight DSLR, based on the lens mounted on the XSi. Another two, small and light weight DSLRs are the Olympus E-620, and the Pentax Kx.

Sarah Joyce

[Elisha]

The D90 is not small but it is not heavy either compared to the D300 since it is plastic.

[AdamW]

I know you said "DSLR" but you should really consider the Olympus EP-2 and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1. They're really small for interchangeable lens cameras, have great image quality, shoot in RAW, and look really cool.

[JFOPie]

Hi -

With that budget, Olympus E30 + 12-60 lens. The lens is extremely hard to beat and remains relatively small and light. If you need lighter, than an E620 with that lens.

JohnF

[CitS]

for all the ideas--As I'm research man, you've given me plenty to look up. Too bad the Leica X1 isn't coming out until January.

[raven15]

I'll definitely second the Olympus option. The E-620 is the lightest image stabilized DSLR, but is more "advanced" than a Canon 50D, almost equal to a Nikon D300. The E-30 is heavier but still quite light, but even more advanced, on par or more so with a D300. The lenses are also very small and very high quality, in comparison. The 9-18mm, 50mm, 35mm, 25mm pancake, 14-54mm, 50-200mm, 70-300mm etc. are all small and not that expensive, considering their zoom ranges and quality. The Olympus EP-1 or Panasonic GF-1 are also very small and advanced, though not DSLR's.

[CitS]

Well, I did way way too much research (was absolutely convinced that I'd get either the e620 or the EP1 twice, each) then i went to a local camera store and the Nikon D90 didn't feel nearly as big as i feared. So I bought it right then, plus the 18-200mm lens (which is a beast) and the little 35mm 1.8 lens as an everyday standard. A bit extravagant (for me, anyway), but I find I can talk myself into almost anything. Thanks everyone!