Which DSLR for £150 ish?

[NDA]

I'm looking to buy a DSLR as a present (I shoot with an entirely manual Leica so am a bit out of touch!). This is for my daughter and she wants 'amazing' results for, unsurprisingly, very little effort.

The choice seems a bit boggling. Recommendations would be very welcome. I could push the budget a bit further I guess.

Thanks.

[IanMorewood]

Your looking for 2nd hand stuff at that budget so condition is king.

[rasputin]

The "very little effort" bit makes me think she won't be happy. DSLRs are pretty rubbish at 'Auto' mode. The ones I've used rarely get the exposure or focus right.

£150 will get a decent P&S camera like a panasonic TZ8. That'll give her more accurate focus, exposure, very large zoom range, optical stabilisation, HD movie recording, and the ability to carry it around easily.

[GetCarter]

Good quality point & shoots are over £300, so you'll struggle to get anything DSLR at that price. Triple your budget for a new entry Nikon or Canon, or buy 'with serious caution' second hand.

[Deluded]

I haven't looked but you might be able to get a Nikon D50 for that price?

Not bad cameras but dated now.

Your not going to get a modern DSLR for that price. I would say to up your budget by atleast £100 if you want something semi modern/decent and even then it will still be second hand.

I've got an Olympus E-450 Dslr which you can have for £250. It's a great starter/entry level camera with loads of features. Pretty small for a DSLR too. I hardly use it any more so just looking to sell. Only around 6 months old.

[IanMorewood]

Pentax K series may just about fall into budget the K10/20/100's where well rated when they came out and don’t command the premium that a Canon or Nikon would (then again your upgrade path is blocked/limited if you go down this route). As I said earlier though condition is all important.

[Simpo Two]

Nikon D70?

But you're going to need lenses as well. £150 isn't going to work. If she's more interested in quick results than photography I'd suggest P&S too.

[NDA]

Very helpful advice, many thanks. I was looking at some of the Panasonic cameras and wondered about their abilities.

[melvster]

I bought a Canon EOS 350D the other week with the standard 18-55mm lens, paid £220. Camera has hardly been used by the previous owner.

[Pete Franklin]

How about a Sony A200 or similar- probably be able to pick a 2nd hand one up for around that much and then you can get cheap but reasonable minolta AF lenses that work very well with it.

[clonmult]

Pete Franklin said:

How about a Sony A200 or similar- probably be able to pick a 2nd hand one up for around that much and then you can get cheap but reasonable minolta AF lenses that work very well with it.

I'd second that; and a mate is selling his (he's just picked up a Canon EOS 60D) - A200, 18-70 and 50-200 kit. All immaculate. Reckon he's wanting around £200 for the bundle.

I don't see any reason to be rid of my A200, it did an absolutely stunning job on holiday (Orlando), and manage to get some truly excellent shots at a friends wedding.

[dougc]

NDA - what about a crossover like a Panasonic Lumix FZ30. Some SLR-esque functionality but still has the 'little effort' factor of a point and shoot.

Clonmult - could you PM me the details of your friend's Sony please??

[vtecstu]

Cheapest new DSLR I've seen recently is a Nikon D3000 for about £300 including kit lens - from reviews it's an entry level model (my dad's just bought one at that price after years shooting on film) but I thought the price for a new camera was very good.

Realise it's double your original budget, but it's probably the cheapest new Nikon / Canon you'll find. Suggest starting at Amazon or Argos if you're tempted!