Strongly considering

[Craig.]

I have found a Canon 300D for only $899 with a good starter lense, This price roughly converts to

[Hagar]

It's none of my business Craig but for someone without a job you seem to have money to burn. Only a few months ago you purchased a digital camera which you don't seem to have used much. Judging by the excellent shots you recently posted on this forum it's far better quality than mine. I would think that with what you have planned you would be saving every penny you can get hold of. Your career is the most important & the camera can wait until you're established. It's quite possible you can getter a better deal then. That's what I think.

[Craig.]

LOL thanks for the advice. Its more a consideration than me saying i can go out and buy it now. I certainly wouldnt do so without having a job. As for my current camera, I have taken a ton of photos however the majority of them are personal shots that arnt really the sort of things that people here would be interested in:) family photos and such.
Personally i have always considered your photos of much better quality than mine, you seem to have that gift. I just try and point and shoot where possible.

[Hagar]

Personally i have always considered your photos of much better quality than mine, you seem to have that gift. I just try and point and shoot where possible.

Thanks for the compliment. This is more down to the camera than any skill I might have. For every shot I've posted here there's 10 more that I would never consider showing anyone.

It depends what you want the camera for. Fully automatic "point & shoot" suits me fine. I know full well that I will never make a decent photographer. In my case anything more complicated would be a waste of time & money.

[Craig.]

personally i want to try my hand at some of these waterfall type pictures you see, and the lightning shots like i posted before. Problem is both these types of photography require not only patience but also longer exposure time, which my current digital camera doesnt allow. And my SLR which is great and all, but you just dont know if its come out ok until you have gotten the pics processed and paid for.
Oh well like you said leave it till i am settled and then prices may have also come down.

[ozzy72]

Craig a small thought chap, but if you've got the cash, rather than blowing it on a camera you might never use to its full potential go and do an evening class on photography at your local college. That way you can take what cameras you have to their full potential.
My dad was a professional photographer for a number of years and even his holiday snaps were so good that you could blow them up and put them in a frame on the wall (he sold quite a few to Thompson Holidays for their brochures, and actually made a profit out of one of our Greek holidays ). Even when he quit photography he still did sell shots occassionally. I'm lucky to have some as momentos...
I'm not even remotely as good as my dad was, but he taught me a lot of things when I first started going to airshows and rallys about how to take good action pictures, and so I went from blurry rubbish to shots I'm proud to show people. Its probably only 30-40 quid for a ten week course, and who knows you could end up selling some of your shots and turning your hobby to profit Who knows you could end up being the internet answer to David Bailey

Mark

[Craig.]

Thank you for the reply Ozzy.
I have been looking into a course in college, i believe they run one and if i have enough free time from my main lessons, i am looking at signing up. Like you said it could really help, and it should be free and get me college credit. I honestly believe though photography is a skill most people can be good at, but to be great at it you have to be born with the talent. Its more than just an expensive camera and the best lenses money can buy.

[Scottler]

Ozzy reads my mind once again.

Craig, while an $800 camera might look cool, a trained photographer will be able to make just about any camera take beautiful pictures.

Remember this one thing.  The camera only sees what YOUR eyes see.  If there's no shot there, the best camera in the world isn't going to make it pretty.

I use a very old Yashica FX-3 35mm SLR with a Tamron 210mm zoon (among other lenses) that I sorta inherited from my grandmother while visiting her a few years ago.  I get absolutely amazing shots with that camera and I probably couldn't sell it for $50.

Point to my musings?  Once you learn how to take good shots, you'll be able to take good shots with even a small disposable Kodak.  And you'll still have $800 leftover to buy a kick a$$ video card.

[Wing Nut]

I can't speak to the camera, or wisdom of buying it, but I can tell you this;  In the tourist sections of most major cities in the US, you'll find electronics stores hawking cameras, dvd players, camcorders, etc.  The reason why some of these are so cheap is that they are gray market items.  A Japanese camera in one of these stores may not be any different than a US camera of the same make, but the warranty is Japanese and not covered by the US company.  Watch what you are buying...

[Craig.]

thanks for the warning dread. If i ever did buy one it would be through an official store or the company themself.