[clevermax]

Originally Posted by kkr2k2

Wow!!! thats a fantastic deal!! Thats a mid-range DSLR!! It came with auto-HDR feature.
ebay?? was it a new one or used one!!

Yes.. Alpha 500 for just 22K INR is one heck of a deal.. Was it a new one?

Originally Posted by ashok_lat

Any one have any idea about Nicon D3100. How can you compare Nicon D3100 with EOS 550 of Canon. Which is the better one..?

This should answer your question partially.
Canon DSLR Template
Nikon DSLR Template
Sony DSLR Template

[HellwratH]

Originally Posted by Samurai

I request all the potential dSLR buyers to consider EVIL cameras first. Only if you find EVIL camera inadequate for some reason, then look at the dSLRs. I have owned SLR/dSLRs since 1989, and believe EVIL cameras to be the future.

Some reasons for rejecting the EVIL cameras are as follows:

• Want a heavy camera for steady holding.
• Want optical viewfinder.
• Want huge lens choice or very fast or very cheap lenses.
• Want either Canon or Nikon, and nothing else.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/gadge...l-cameras.html

+100000 to that!

Originally Posted by Gandhi

Frankly speaking I haven't considered mirrorless cameras so far. A friend of mine told me they come with smaller sensor and only advantage to P&Ss is inter-changeable lenses. Let me take a look at options you have given.

Honestly, EVIL cameras are awesome and as others have pointed out your friend has mis-informed you about the facts. Sure, a traditional DSLR will give you a better grip and slightly bigger sensors and I love my trusty 350D with a battery grip on it whenever I hold it. But when I am heading out, I almost always reach for the panasonic G1. It's light and fits it into my jacket pocket (with the 20mm f1.7) and the lens is outstanding! And another advantage of the m 4/3rds is the EVF. I know a lot of discussion hasn't happened on it, but it's one of the must have things. Especially, for a guy like me who shoots with old legacy lenses. It "bumps" up the display even in very low light or when the aperture is stopped down. So, I'd definitely say weigh your options well .

Originally Posted by amitk26

About your friends advice ignore it convinently and check what can be done with mirrorless and adopted lenses here

Olympus PEN E-PL1 review diary

huge thread from one of the best nature photographer in any Indian forum I have seen.

That link is definitely worth a read for anyone who is looking to get into Micro 4/3rds or even someone who wants info on macro shooting. I had discussed with NCL before he jumped into the E-PL1 bandwagon and had expressed my thoughts about why micro 4/3rds will be the way ahead for most of us. Surprisingly, he had similar thoughts and he made a very simple point: bodies are dispensable, lenses are not. And thanks to him, I am on my way of acquiring some of the best macro lenses ever made for cheap .

[srishiva]

In today's Bangalore Mirror there was a article on a Kannada movie climax being shot using a DSLR camera and how good the quality was.

I did some googling and found a lot of activity happening in this regard everywhere. Short films, documentaries etc are being shot using these cameras (mostly Canon 5D MkII). There were some cons on rolling shutter with the CMOS sensors though. Firmware updates are supposed to take care of the few drawbacks.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by srishiva

In today's Bangalore Mirror there was a article on a Kannada movie climax being shot using a DSLR camera and how good the quality was.

I did some googling and found a lot of activity happening in this regard everywhere. Short films, documentaries etc are being shot using these cameras (mostly Canon 5D MkII). There were some cons on rolling shutter with the CMOS sensors though. Firmware updates are supposed to take care of the few drawbacks.

Check magic lantern on 550D
550D - Magic Lantern Firmware Wiki

Black Swan is first full movie to be shot using BSLR.
Black Swan (2010) - IMDb

If you have watched the movie "before the rains" it looks like on DSLR with MF lenses but don't know for sure until cinematographer Santosh Sivan spill the beans.

Personally I tried making a short film ( 10 minutes) by editing several shorter scenes with movie maker but in absence of any moving trolley and novice behind the cam the result was disaster compared to camcorder so gave up.

[Jaguar]

Originally Posted by amitk26

Personally I tried making a short film ( 10 minutes) by editing several shorter scenes with movie maker but in absence of any moving trolley and novice behind the cam the result was disaster compared to camcorder so gave up.

What software do you use for editing videos? I am running windows 7 which doesn't come with movie maker. Installed movie maker for win 7 but it doesn't support the videos taken using my 500D

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by Jaguar

What software do you use for editing videos? I am running windows 7 which doesn't come with movie maker. Installed movie maker for win 7 but it doesn't support the videos taken using my 500D

Try Avidemux or Virtualdub
Here is a list of free softwares
Avidemux - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

If you want proprietry softwares, there are options from Adobe and Apple, but they cost a lot.

[srishiva]

I use Pinnacle for my HD movies. Its really nice and easy to use.

[raju2512]

Originally Posted by clevermax

Yes.. Alpha 500 for just 22K INR is one heck of a deal.. Was it a new one?

Wow!!! thats a fantastic deal!! Thats a mid-range DSLR!! It came with auto-HDR feature.

ebay?? was it a new one or used one!!

It is a brand new one with a few freebees like a 16GB card, extra battery, carry bag,a small stand, usb -card reader etc., I got it delivered in US and paid thro' paypal. The delivery was prompt and as promised

I use my 28-80 lens right now.

Minolta 50mm 1.7 AF primes can be got for less than 50 USD and 70-210 BeerCan lens for around 75 USD.

[clevermax]

Originally Posted by raju2512

It is a brand new one with a few freebees like a 16GB card, extra battery, carry bag,a small stand, usb -card reader etc., I got it delivered in US and paid thro' paypal. The delivery was prompt and as promised

I use my 28-80 lens right now.

Minolta 50mm 1.7 AF primes can be got for less than 50 USD and 70-210 BeerCan lens for around 75 USD.

Wow.. you are lucky to have such a mid range DSLR for just that much! How is the camera - initial impressions?

50mm for 50$ and a beercan for just 75$ are again killer deals. I got my beercan for 160$ (in 2009) and the prime for 4K INR. :(

[raju2512]

Camera is very good. I couldn't extensively test the camera to its limit. Lots of features and fairly easy to use. Manual focus confirm and MF live view assist are available (personally I prefer OVF) . Battery life is very good. I charged fully and took around 150 shots and the battery level is around 70%. Tiltable LV can be very useful when taking overhead or hip level shots.

Overall very happy.

Regarding lens, you need to wait and grab on ebay listings. keh.com is another good option but a bit costlier.

[aburagohain]

Originally Posted by raju2512

Minolta 50mm 1.7 AF primes can be got for less than 50 USD and 70-210 BeerCan lens for around 75 USD.

That is too good a deal if you got it for both the lenses.
However, make sure that these lenses are of the Maxxum AF mount and not SR/MC/MD Rokkor if you are planning to buy from ebay instead, you may already know of course, just a sincere reminder; those will not fit the current Sony line without an adapter.

Minolta SR mount - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cheers!

[clevermax]

Originally Posted by aburagohain

That is too good a deal if you got it for both the lenses.
However, make sure that these lenses are of the Maxxum AF mount and not SR/MC/MD Rokkor if you are planning to buy from ebay instead, you may already know of course, just a sincere reminder; those will not fit the current Sony line without an adapter.

Minolta SR mount - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cheers!

Speaking about Rokkor, last weekend I saw one gem sitting in a camera repair shop in Trivandrum - the Minolta 50mm f/1.2, manual aperture control, made in Japan. Pramodkumar had seen few Minolta lenses in that shop earlier and we together went there to check them out.



Second image courtesy: kenrockwell.com

The guy was ready to sell it for INR1000 but I did not buy it. Should have grabbed it without second thinking if it was A mount.

Another one was there 35-80 AF with Power Zoom - I mounted it on my Alpha and surprised to see even the power zoom was working.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by clevermax

Speaking about Rokkor, last weekend I saw one gem sitting in a camera repair shop in Trivandrum - the Minolta 50mm f/1.2, manual aperture control, made in Japan.

Humm tempting indeed in case you come across any macro lens which is not usable on Sony do let me know.

[aburagohain]

Originally Posted by clevermax

The guy was ready to sell it for INR1000 but I did not buy it. Should have grabbed it without second thinking if it was A mount.

Another one was there 35-80 AF with Power Zoom - I mounted it on my Alpha and surprised to see even the power zoom was working.

You might as well buy this 1.2 for 1K and give a try to convert into Alpha mount, quite a few stories on the net of people having done that and enjoying the results, need a good and patient machinist.
I would have requested you to get that one for me but I already have the 1.4 version and find that the DOF is really too narrow at 1.4 itself to use regularly, one off situations only. The good point however is that stopped down 1-2 stops, this lens can become very sharp and still you would be in the 2-2.8 territory.

Another point worth noting are the FF/BF issues with these kind of wide apertures and might require some calibration, here a Sony user in India gets beaten in that there is not much support available at this point in time.
Using manual focus is an option but slightly difficult because of very narrow DOF, I wish they would not have thrown away the split screen focus mechanism.

Regards, nice find, do keep us updated if you find something again.

[aburagohain]

Originally Posted by amitk26

Humm tempting indeed in case you come across any macro lens which is not usable on Sony do let me know.

To increase the temptation, refer links below

Minolta Rokkor 58mm f/1.2 - WOW - Canon Digital Photography Forums

Markus Keinath - Conversion of a Minolta MC Rokkor 58mm/1.2 to Canon EOS DSLR