Rex Photography

What is a good camera for taking high resolution artistic photographs?

I'm a graphics designer, and I'm tired of using photos that belong to other people. My dad told me he would get me a camera for Christmas, but he doesn't know which one to get me. I'd love to take pictures that I could use to make backgrounds, banners, etc. from. Also... >.< My Myspace is in desperate need of new pictures... I'm a beginner to photography, having not ever owned a nice camera before, so what's a good camera for me?

Public Comments

1. DSLRs are now so cheap there's no excuse for buying a point-and-shoot. Nikon's D40 is great and so is the Canon Xti (450D). Start off with the kit lens and you may never need another camera. Go here: www.dpreview.com and read the extensive reviews.
2. for you the Canon XTI would be a good fit, if you want better quality photos don't get the kit lens, use one that is specified for your usage. But if you just need ok photos go with the kit lens, it will save you some thought. Canon is SO SO SO much easier to use than Nikon!!!
3. Check out the Hassleblad 39 megapixel camera. It runs about $35,000. Just kidding! The camera is real, though. Anyway, there are several catagories of cameras, point and shoot, SLR, and DSLR. DSLRs are the standard for professional photograhy. They range from entry level, prosumer, and then professional. If you're just beginning, I would not recommend going out and buying a new Nikon or Canon professional DSLR, because this will set you back $5,000-$8,000, body alone. Instead, look into a prosumer model, such as the Nikon D80, Canon Digital Rebel XTi, or Pentax K10d. The Pentax is better overall. It is newer, and is weather sealed so that you can take it out in poor conditions. The Nikon D80 would be my next choice, followed by the Canon. Remember, the camera body is only one thing. You still need a good lens. The lenses that some of the cameras come with are usually junk, so look into another one. The only exception that I know of are the Nikon kit lenses. I would suggest a prime lens, such as the 50mm 1.8. It is cheap, and well worth the price of only $100. The next would be a zoom of about X-200mm. A good one is the 55-200mm VR by Nikon; VR is vibration reduction. Optically wise, it is not the best, but this holds true for most other cheap camera lenses. If you want quality and cheap price, get the 50mm 1.8. It's has fixed lengh of 50mm, but it is one of the greatest lenses a company makes. Hope this helped.
4. Being an artist specially a graphic or digital designer you really need a high quality camera.Why not try DSLRs: like Canon Xti (450D) and Nikon D40 but I'm still prefer Canon if you have the budget. If your a starter photographer maybe you could just try the basic lenses and for sure you'll be crazy about this stuff good luck.