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Need to buy a good beginner camera

My 15 yrold girl wants to get a good digital camera. We know nothing about it. Where should I buy? And whats good for a beginner. Will this cost alot? Lol. Thanks
 
Are you after SLR, Compact or something in the midle, do you have a rough price range and what do you intend to shoot with it, night shots, fast moving shots or just every day shots etc

If your after an SLR I would be looking at an eos550d
Compact camera I would get a lumix tz20
Or something in the middle, nex-3 etc

If you have more details of what your looking for post them below
 
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ouch

Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
The scam in regards to cameras is that the manufacturers continuously change models. They release a new model not so much as a platform to showcase new technology but as an excuse to drop equally competent existing models, thus allowing them to keep prices high.

Get a discontinued model or one that has been around for a while and you'll get a good deal. Disregard the number of pixels- at this point in time it doesn't matter and you won't know the difference. Any mid to low priced compact from a major brand-- Canon, Nikon, Olympus, etc.-- will serve you well.

Taking good pictures depends more on the photographer than the equipment.
 
ok. I'm hoping it can be done for $250 range. I would think she would be taking some action shots. she just want to take better pics and wants to step up from the cheapo target pocket things that come in all those crazy colors. doing some homework online also.
 
In that case i would get something like this

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Panasonic-Lumix-DMC-TZ5A-9-1-MP-Digital-Camera-Blue-/130576942352?pt=Digital_Cameras&hash=item1e66fe0510 (in the US its a TZ5 not a TZ15)
Or
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-Panasonic-Lumix-DMC-ZS8-TZ18-1Yr-Warttery-AUJ-/400240243206?pt=AU_Digital_Cameras&hash=item5d302d7206 TZ18 (in the US its a ZS8)

For a point n shoot the Lumix TZ15 (TZ5) and the TZ18 (ZS8) is a great camera for the price, i have played around with the TZ10, 15, 20 and all are great. There is a slight difference in picture quality in all but they all produce very nice photos.

What you want to look for.
-The sensor (the bigger the better and probably the most important factor)
-True optical zoom (not digital)
-Mega Pixels - But, i would go for a bigger sensor over Pixels in an overall choice.
-Shutter speeds - The faster the better for moving objects
-Lens Quality, Can they be changed - If your getting a point n shoot what you get is what you get
(Overall ISO Range)
-Higher ISO means better night shots but it also means more grain on the photo, it has its goods and its bads
-Lower ISO means less grain but better quality day shots

Have a flick through http://www.photographyblog.com/articles_best_digital_camera.php and http://snapsort.com/compare

Have a play on the sites and see what you can come up with!
 
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Unless she's hoping to learn advanced camera techniques, she'll probably be happiest with a point and shoot camera. Most people want the easiest means of snapping a picture without having to think about it. Modern point and shoot cameras have excellent image quality, and if she's only going to be viewing the images on a computer screen or smart phone (she doesn't plan to make actual prints) then the smaller sensor size of a point and shoot won't make any effective difference. With adequate light, using an SLR camera (as opposed to point-and-shoot) on auto mode will likely not result in better image quality. Now, if she wants to learn how to use a proper camera, manually adjusting aperture and shutter speed to suit her creative intentions, and being able to switch lenses depending upon the subject, then she'll be happier with an SLR (single lens reflex) camera. This way she can control depth of field, blur or freeze motion, use macro lenses and other specialty lenses, and many other creative techniques that can't be done using most point and shoot cameras. And she'll have access to lenses with much better optics than found in any point and shooter. Alternatively, there are some point and shoot cameras that offer manual control features. This would be a good way to introduce her to the functions of a proper camera while still allowing her the ease of use of a point and shoot.
 
Do you mind buying used? That will open up a lot of possibilities. You can buy an older DSLR for the cost of a new point and shoot.
 
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