Spec me a complete DSLR set up, pls

[Mr Mag00]

Hi i have lurked around for a while answered the odd thread and contributed here and there.

Well now i would like to ask a favour. I am putting together a project at work,i am work in env education in west dorset, I want to renew all our dating photographic equipment (3mpixel compacts etc) and bring in a dslr with all lens options from macro for the small wildlife to wide/zoom for landscape and distance objects birds etc. I have been taking a keen interest in the stealthcam thread and my well invest in one for our harvest mouse cage see a separate thread, but a motion sensor to add to a dslr plus ring flash or whatever is required.

Now despite this may well be a funded project there is no need to go mad, however this will be quite an investment and used by lots of people at the centre for all sorts of daily activities and courses etc I have used a d50 and enjoyed that and was happy with the results. So top notch latest kit is not necessary but kit that will not become obsolete instantly would be great. I have little experience but need somewhere to start.

If people would like to pm the shopping list i would be vv grateful, if somebody would like to sponsor the kit then even better and would be rewarded with lots of publicity

many thanks

Mr Mag00

[matt_xyz]

Well, if you want a DSLR and lenses to cover both macro and telephoto you'd be hard pushed to beat:

Canon 400D body (approx £400)
Sigma 105mm or 150mm macro lens (£250-350)
Canon 100-400mm IS lens (£800-900 if you shop around)

This covers everything except a wide angle lens (i.e. landscape). If you wanted to do that too you could go for a Sigma 10-20mm (approx £250-300 I think).

The above isn't cheap, but this is probably the cheapest way to get a high quality set-up (although by no means top of the range).

Matt

[richardkm]

The Canon 400D is a good price at present, with cash-back from Canon on the body. There are all the lenses you could possibly need to fit this camera, so it can be the centre of a very flexible outfit.

Good luck with your project.

[newt_snuggles]

this is a pretty general list but items apply to both
this year canon and nikon have anniversarys and offer cashback

id recommend a nikon d40 or d40x (£350)
or whatever bottom range canon is around

also sigma do a 28-300 lens with built in macro (£189). i have this on my DSLR. sigma do it canon fitting, nikon fitting etc etc

that may the cheapest price and the d40 reviews quite well.check out the dpreview website

hope that helps

PS - if anyone wants to sponser my photography hobby id like a nikon d2h!

[Mr Mag00]

its not a hobby, we are an independent education centre and charity and in our times of corporate responsibility there is never any harm in asking, thousands of people including hundreds of kids get a lot out of visiting us every year

thanks for input so far folks.

[eeyore]

Other options would be the nikon D40, the penax K100D or the oly E series - also remember that all the prices quoted are inc vat which i guess you claim back if you are a registered charity.

it might also be worth approaching a local camera shop to see if you can get sponsorship in kind - for example they might have second hand gear taken in part ex that they could donate or lend

[beckiscott]

I just went through a similar process for the university photographic club.
We got:
Canon 400d + kit lens
Sandisk iii 1 gb
Canon 50mm f1.8
Sigma 105mm f2.8 macro
Sigma 10-20mm f3.5-5.6
Canon 75-300 f4-5.6
plus uv protection filters for each lens
We cover the entire zoom range, but next on the list is a flash and a bag to store it all!
i had to put in a budget and luckily it all got approved, and we shopped around and used discount codes where we could - from www.hotukdeals.com or using our student staus.
I'm not convinced with the sigma lenses but they do the job. i can let you know best prices / suppliers we used if you wanna pm me!
Dont forget there are canon cashbacks on at the moment so you could make use of those!

We are going to see if any camera shops want to sponsor the club next year, but we've only got a jessops (one of the few not closed down) in the town and they arent very approachable!

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by beckiscott

IWe got:
Canon 400d + kit lens
Sandisk iii 1 gb
Canon 50mm f1.8
Sigma 105mm f2.8 macro
Sigma 10-20mm f3.5-5.6
Canon 75-300 f4-5.6
plus uv protection filters for each lens
We cover the entire zoom range, but next on the list is a flash and a bag to store it all!

Thats a decent outfit - but in mr magoos case if you also want to photograph "distant birds" I'd add something longer like the sigma 170-500 or if you can afford it a canon 100-400 IS

also dont forget the various ebay traders - some of whom do very keen prices

[tristanba]

I would consider the Tamron 90 mm macro lens which is a similar price to the Sigma 105 and also excellent.

[Blackbrook Eye]

While I would agree the other replies in the main, I notice that others will be using the equipment and wonder if rather than the admittedly excellent 400d, you might considder the 40d instead, mainly because it is a more robust camera but also the 'live lcd' feature can be of assistance should other users be uneasy with the conventional ttl viewfinder, I appreciate that this will be about double the cost of the 400d but as a percentage of the total outlay of the proposed set up, could prove to be a sound investment.