I'm just getting into photography and have been advised to purchase a fully manual 35mm SLR camera, with appropriate lenses, and on camera flash. I'm really confused what to go in for. I don't want to buy Nikon. I'd rather go in for a Canon. But what model can I go in for? The guy at the store tried to palm off a Rebel on me. Isn't that a really old make?
He also said Canon didn't have any manual cameras and that they were all automatic. And if I wanted a fully manual one, I'd have to go in for a Nikon. Is this true?
Also, is there any other make out there that comes close to being as good as a Canon?
I hope you guys will be able to help me out here...because I'm quite lost!

Is fully manual a requirement for your photography class? What is your budget?

I'm using Canon EOS A2E and 10D. Old model is not an issue. Learning aperture, shutter and stuffs are important. Any manual or automatic ones should be okay. Rebel is not a bad choice to start with.

hope this help.

Right you are deluxar. I have an old Canon FTb and after many, many years it still works as good as the day I first bought it. With the growng change to digital cameras, the price of some film cameras has dropped quite a bit. <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Hi,

I have to wonder why you need a manual slr?

Digital cameras are available with slr and are so much more in tune with today's world.
With ease of upload to the computer and being able to edit/adjust and print on the computer and the fact that you don't have the added expense of film or developing.

If it is for a class project perhaps a used model would do?

There is nothing wrong with the 300D (Rebel).
I use him a lot on my work. Private I work with an
old professional analogue Eos- 1 with motordrive and
a Canon zoom lens EF 28-105mm 1:3-5-4.5 and Metz 54mz-3 Flash. The camera was renovated form the inside, and new golden contactpoits were put in it.
I love that camera. I only use Fujifilm slides.
Further I have a Yashica T5 with Carl Zeiss lens
(Tessar 3,5/3,5) which make very good images,
good sharpness, good natural colors. Another compactcamera I use is the Leica C1 with a Vario-Elmar zoom lens 38-105 ASPH.
The C1 ia not so lightstark, but has a very strong flash.
It is a good snapshot, social event camera.
My latest camera is the Canon IXUS 400, 4.00 mega pixels. I made 400 images with it on the finest quality.
It has not so many megapixel but it is a nice camera.
I love shoting pictures of cities (architecture, infrastructure, harbours), people and social life.

The only negative thing about the 300D and 10D is the small viewer. My Eos-1 has a better viewer.

Cannon has cameras out there that are both manual and automatic. I have a Cannon AE1 (my first for photography in college back in the stone age), AE1 program, and an F1 professional. I love them all.

What places have you tried? When do you need your camera?
Have you tried Ebay?

And to Deluxar, it's suggested that you have a manual, for the sake that you don't "cheat" when figuring out your f-stops, apts, and shutter speeds. Also, for devloping of your film. It's so easy to "cheat" with an auto, which defeats the purpose of "down home, old time" photography. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I agree that a Rebel is a good start. But may I ask why you have such a distaste for Nikon? Why do you think they aren't as good as Canon? The Pros use both, and that's all the proof I need. I have all Nikon SLR's (and 1 Pentax) and I love them very much. I see no significant difference in image quality.

Nikon is not worse. I am using it for taking pictures of my jewelry.

I bought a Canon EOS 350D SLR and it is absolutely brilliant. I tried the equivalent Nikon but it was 2 megapixels less. The Canon has a more 'plasticky feel', but I've read reports of people dropping them down staircases and then still working perfectly so I wouldn't worry about it. Picture quality is fabulous...I'd recommend it 100%

In your situation, I'd advise buying a used one until you really become familiar with different models and know what features will be most important to you.

A Pentax K1000 is very basic but excellent camera to learn on. It's all manual, so you are forced to become familiar and competent in all areas of metering and focusing.

Here's an article which may give you more information on manual SLRs:

http://shutterbug.com/equipmentreviews/35mm_cameras/0201sb_allmanual/

When you become really proficient, then you can go for what the big boys buy in 35mm: Nikon F6. It's the ultimate. A friend of mine is a fashion photographer and sells to the big rags like Vogue, Playboy, Cosmo, and so forth, and he won't use anything else.