Best Budget Digital SLR Camera |
Page updated: July 2008 |
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What type of person needs the best budget digital SLR? You do if you've been longing to improve the quality of the photos you take and capture moments that just aren't possible with a compact point-and-shoot, but you find the price of digital SLR cameras extreme. I'm not surprised if you find the prices daunting - film SLR cameras always cost a LOT more than their compact counterparts, and it was often hard for camera buyers to make that financial leap. Now that the minimum price for a digital SLR is right around $500, it makes ditching your compact even harder to justify. |
Having said that, I firmly believe that the additional cost is worth it when you realize that digital SLRs are able to capture a wider variety of shots than compact cameras.
Here's a question for you to consider: can you put a price tag on lost photo opportunities?
Once the frustration of missing great shot after great shot builds up, eventually a digital SLR won't seem all that expensive anymore.
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The Best Budget SLR
As of July 2008, I think that the best budget digital SLR is the Nikon D40 (originally released in December 2006).
Retailing with a lens for less than $500, the D40 is a great entry-level digital SLR that will help you get your feet wet with this type of camera.
No, it doesn't have the highest number of megapixels. No, it doesn't come with a dust control system or live view LCD (all of these technologies became popular after the D40 was released and are included in the newer - and hence more expensive - D60).
What the D40 does have going for it is a small lightweight body that is closer to the heft and bulk of a large compact camera than the bulkier SLRs.
It also has an innovative LCD that actually shows you how a camera setting will affect your image (rather than letting you guess about what changing the white balance might do).
Not only is it easy to carry, it's also quite easy to operate in both auto and manual modes.
The biggest limitation of the D40 is its compatibility with lenses: autofocus will only work with lenses that have focusing motors (designated as AF-S or AF-I), because - due to its small size - the D40 body doesn't include an autofocus drive motor.
If you have a collection of old Nikon lenses you were hoping to use, they'll be manual focus only with the D40.
However, for the photographer who is just starting out with an SLR system, the D40 comes packaged with an AF-S kit lens, and Nikon is manufacturing more and more of these lenses due in large part to the popularity of their small-size digital SLR line (that includes the D40, D40x and D60).
The Runner-Up
My definition of "budget" is the camera with an extremely low price but still with plenty of features.
However, I also realize that everyone has a different amount that they are willing to spend on a new SLR camera, and in some cases spending a bit more for some extra features might be worth it.
Since that's the case, I give you this alternative: the Olympus E-510.
For about $100 more than the Nikon D40, you get the addition of all of the following:
- 10 megapixels instead of 6
- A dust control system
- A live view LCD screen
- A built-in image stabilizer
In short, the E-510 includes a lot of advanced features for not much more than the D40. If these features are important to you, then consider spending the extra cash on a camera that you can grow with.
If they are features you can live without, then the Nikon D40 is the best budget digital SLR for you.
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