Hello, I have absolutely no experience in handling SLR's and wish to buy one now. But since I'm only a beginner, I don't want to spend more than S$500-600. What's the best alternative for me? Cud someone pls enlighten..? Thx.

-- Nav (navneetarvind@yahoo.co.uk), March 10, 2002

Answers

I'm also an amateur. These are the models which I know fall in your budget. I have a Minolta Dynax 404si. Its good value for money. However, if you don't mind spending a bit more, Canon EOS 300 would be a good model. Nikon F65 is about in the same price range as EOS 300, but feature to feature wise, it may not be as good.

Hope my 2 cents worth of advice would be of help. :)

-- Yeo Colin (yeocw@singnet.com.sg), March 20, 2002.

Hi Nav,

For a budget of $500 to $600, you could try looking out for 2nd hand stuff. Good places to try would be Peninsula Plaza and Hotel. To give you an idea of what to expect. I got a second hand FM2 for $330 and a Nikon 50mm f/1.8 Series E for $90. Granted they are second hand stuff but they're still good and will last you for a long time. Plus, when you've progressed more into the hobby, you could then consider getting an AF system, which is what I'm currently looking at after about 17 years of photography.

-- Andrew Tham (kh_drew@hotmail.com), March 22, 2002.

Agree with Andrew. I think the FM2 is a good and solid camera and would indeed last a lifetime. And because it is mostly mechanical, it is more easily repaired if spoilt. Manual camera does help you learn to understand aperture and shutter speed. It also slows you down to think about how best to compose your shots. But if you think you would want to do mostly candid, sports type of the photography, an autofocus camera would be better.

You can also get pretty OK Nikon Autofocus bodies for about S300- 400. Eg Nikon F601. If you can stretch a little more go for a F801s or F90X. Very good Nikon Bodies. Find out more at www.photographyreview.com.

-- Kong Jin (jinboy@singnet.com.sg), April 10, 2002.