Digital SLR Camera Advice

[groovyone]

Originally Posted by red_5ive

Thanks everyone for the input.

groovyone, I ended up going with the A200 today (I missed out on the additional 75-300mm lens deal for an additional $100). Anyway, they were out of stock on the A300, but now I'm wondering if I should have just bought that one anyway and had it shipped as the idea of Live View does interest me. So my question then is for the extra $100 is Live View even worth it? I'm coming from a Sony DSC-F707, and even with that model I never really took full advantage of using the LCD to adjust the picture. Am I missing anything without Live View on the 200, or would it be better to put the $100 price difference toward the 75-300mm lens which I'm thinking of going back and buying today to take advantage of Circuit City's tax free sale?

And one more question, the Canon EOS XTi was on clearance for $650 ($150 more than the A200). I had an impulse to get that one instead, but for the price of the Sony the included 18-75mm lens enticed me over the XTi which is 18-55mm. Would you recommend the XTi at that price over the A200 or even the A300?

Thanks.

I personally don't think I'd use Live View much. The advantage of the A200 over the A300 is a brighter viewfinder. Sony uses a second sensor for their live view, which is great for those that use Live View, but it makes the viewfinder alittle dimmer and smaller. There is a good comparison of the 3 here: Shutterbug A200, A300 and A350 Comparison

As for the Sony 75-300, you may want to see if you can snag a used Minolta model, or better yet, find a good Minolta 'Beercan' 70-210 f4. I was able to score mine for about $150 on eBay. There have also been good Sigma 70-300 f4-5.6 APO lenses going for just over $100. I bought the Sigma as my second lens, then followed up with the beercan and Minolta 50mm f1.7 for about $60.

Currently I have 50 f1.7, 100mm f2.8 Macro D, 11-18mm f4.5-5.6 and 70-210 f4 Minoltas; 50 f1.4, 16-80 f3.5-4.5 Zeiss, 70-200 f2.8 G SSM, and 2x TC Sonys; along with 70-300 f4-5.6 and 400mm f5.6 Sigmas. I also have a HVL-F56AM Sony flash.

You can also research other Minolta, Sony and A-mount lenses here: Dyxum.com Lens Reviews. My login ID is the same there.

*forgot the Minolta 28-75 f2.8, which is a great, fast lens that can usually be had for under $400

[red_5ive]

Originally Posted by groovyone

I personally don't think I'd use Live View much. The advantage of the A200 over the A300 is a brighter viewfinder. Sony uses a second sensor for their live view, which is great for those that use Live View, but it makes the viewfinder alittle dimmer and smaller. There is a good comparison of the 3 here: Shutterbug A200, A300 and A350 Comparison

As for the Sony 75-300, you may want to see if you can snag a used Minolta model, or better yet, find a good Minolta 'Beercan' 70-210 f4. I was able to score mine for about $150 on eBay. There have also been good Sigma 70-300 f4-5.6 APO lenses going for just over $100. I bought the Sigma as my second lens, then followed up with the beercan and Minolta 50mm f1.7 for about $60.

You can also research other Minolta, Sony and A-mount lenses here: Dyxum.com Lens Reviews. My login ID is the same there.

Awesome, thanks for that input on the viewfinder. I'll def be using it 99% of the time as a DSLR and would rather not lose any clarity in the viewfinder.

And yeah, I started researching lenses and you're right, there's more out there for less. Thanks again for the information. I'm keeping the 200.

[groovyone]

No problem! Always glad to help. The brighter viewfinder is a huge help for manual focussing too. In fact, I even have a magnifier on my A700 now. I'll have to double check teh PN, but it is actually a Pentax piece that happens to fit the Sony viewfinder.