SLR Advice
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- souljar
Hi guys,
With all the quality photographers here i was wondering if i could get some advice. Im looking at getting a second hand SLR film camera. probably prefer a 35mm just due to the processing cost with a decent lens. i would like a lens that can shoot shallow depth of field.What brands or models can anyone recommend as a starting point, and what type of lens would i be looking for to shoot really nice shallow depth of field?
Probably only looking to spend about £200 on ebay etc, so i understand if im limited in what that would get me.
- bigtrick0
hm - there are a lot of film cameras that came with a 50mm lenses -usually f1.8 as standard, like the canon ae-1:
http://shop.ebay.com/canon+ae-1or pentax k1000:
http://shop.ebay.com/pentax+k-10…both solid, and cheap, cameras with good optics.
- i have the canon with a 100mm lens. have yet to shoot with it though.sherm
- +1 on the K1000 and the AE-1..classic cameras!ok_not_ok
- I have this. Look on craigs list. you'll find one for cheap.pastpastdue
- I have not seen a k1000:
in years, use it allot in collagepillhead - Learned how to take photos on my dad's K1000. Fucking loved that thing. Awesome camera!rascuache
- Someone I work with got one of those for $60. I love old cameras, but I just can't go back to film.CyBrain
- Having used both of these off and on for years, they are great! K1000 wins for me, however, because you can find K-mount lenses easily and cheaply.duckofrubber
- K-mount lenses easily and cheaply going back decades.duckofrubber
- moniker0
I'm sure I've seen Canon EOS 1n for around £200 on eBay before. That and a 50mm 1.8 for another £70 you'll be all set. Plus it's an EF system so as you get more lenses you can use them on your Canon dslr if you have one, or plan on getting one.
- souljar0
Thanks so much guys exactly the advice i was after, currently have my eye on a canon ae1 on ebay with original and extra zoom lens
- Projectile0
in case you don't know, if you want a shallow depth of field, you want a wide aperture.. so 1.4 is best but 1.8 is still pretty cool. a 50mm lens is quite zoomed in so def. worth getting a more versatile lens with some zoom so a 24-70mm lens would be good. you wont find a nice wide aperture on that kind of lens unless you spend thousands so just concentrate on having a nice range. the wider the better, you can always walk closer to things if you wanna zoom in more
- The wider the lens, the less shallow the DOF. I think he wants shallow DOF.technikiller
- vaxorcist0
Shallow Depth of field = telephoto + wide aperture + close distance
An 80's SLR with a prime(non-zoom) 135mm F2.8 lens, shot at close range, like 4 feet at F2.8 will give you good results....
the Nikon 105mm F2.5 is a classic lens for this use too...
any 85mm 1.8 is almost always really good...
almost any 90mm macro is pretty good too... and can focus closer... the Tamron 90mm macro is nice, so is the Tokina
If you don't need general use zoom, go telephoto prime...
Nikon mount lenses from AI, AIS and AF will work on their DLSR's too... so if you want to be able to switch with a DSLR...
Alternately, a used Konica or Olympus or Canon FD (non-AF) camera with almost any 135mm F2.8 lens should be good and cheap.... the meters in some may be shot, but you can meter with any digicam, and use the same aperture/shutter speed on a manual SLR....
Mechanical SLR's like a Nikkormat FTN, FT2,FT3, Nikon FM, FM2, F, FTN, F2 can work without batteries
Some old DSLR's require hard to find batteries costing $10, especially the Canon AE1 if I recall correctly...
- ItTango0
Two separate purchases I think. Most camera bodies in your price range will have similar functionality - like the Yashica above (I still have mine). For those cameras, your lens quality makes a huge difference.
I was able to outfit my Yashica with a Zeiss Contax lens. If you can find a used one that's not astronomical, buy it. You can ride that baby forever.
Good luck, btw.
- lvl_130
http://www.amazon.com/Canon-50mm…
or it's more expensive sibling:
http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Stan…
- raf0
- vaxorcist0
you will probably find a nice metal body SLR with a 50mm lens, or a mediocre zoom.... toss the zoom..... keep the 50mm....
Then you can get a 135mm F2.8 or similar prime telephoto on ebay
If you really like zooms, try an old Vivitar 70-210 Series 1 F3.5... pretty nice, made in multiple mounts, usually $100 or less.... and macro focus pretty close, hence very little depth of field, but be ready for lots of "almost sharp" images till you get used to it....
Most zooms suck... a few are pretty good...
Nikon 80-200 F4
Nikon 75-150 F3.5
Tamron 70-210 F3.5 SP
Tokina 100-300 F4avoid the 70-300 F4-5.6... and 80-200 F4-5.6... if possible, avoid any F4-5.6 lenses....