Camera suggestions please?

Ok I know I need to get a new camera for field herping and to take pictures of my collection. I had a cheap digital camera and now I lost the cord that loads the pictures to my computer. The camera being no good to begin with, I'd rather get a better one instead of replacing the cord.
Does anyone have any suggestions? I don't have big bucks, but I do want something that will take decent quality pictures.
Thank you, Amber

I have a Cannon PowerShot SX20 IS and it can take some amazingly great pictures. Unfortunately most of the time it doesn't (could be me?). It's got all the goodies but the optical Image stabilizer doesn't seem to work that well.
It also eats batteries like I eat chicken wings.

Mmmmm....chicken wings. hehe. What's the price range? I'm technologically impaired beyond belief, so I can relate to not knowing if it's the camera or the person using it. :rofl:

deliriah said:

Does anyone have any suggestions? I don't have big bucks, but I do want something that will take decent quality pictures.
Thank you, Amber

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Not sure what qualifies as 'big bucks' but if you can stretch the budget to any sort of DSLR then I'd be willing to bet you'll be thrilled that you did.
It'll be a bit of a learning curve to use the thing properly but once you get a basic understanding of aperture, shutter speed and ISO you'll be taking pictures 100 times better than any compact camera can produce.
You can get a basic DSLR for something around US$700.00 and up from there (I know, they're pricey but SO worth it!!)

For entry-level I'd recommend either Nikon D5000 or Canon 550D

To try DSLR at an entry level I would go Nikon D40 or D70.

Nikon D40 - Needs to buy motorized lens, as the camera body does not have a motor. Ebay approx $300+

Good entry level DSLR. If you want to get a Nikon with autofocus then you need to try and get a d70/d80/d90. d70-80 run used around $450.

I have used the D40, and a D80 I liked them both. Don't get caught up in the megapixel confusion. I can show you awesome pictures taken with 6.1 megapixels against some who took a pic with 10.1 that is mediocre to bad. Point is the knowing how to use your camera properly and some practice and skill make all the difference. If I was buying a camera I would go with the D70 because the body has a lens motor and it makes it a little more versitile. But I would not pass up a great deal on a D40, D50, or D60.

Here is a comparison chart for some higher end Nikons.
http://www.nikonusa.com/Assets/Common-Assets/PDF/DSLR_Compare.pdf

This is a quick response. If you're considering Nikon and you are willing to put the effort in to learn how to use your camera and you want to take seriously good photos, get a Nikon D5000 (skip the others Rick recommended - they are 1-3 generations old, and are about to be superseded yet again). The only downside to a Nikon D5000 is that it doesn't have its own lens screw so you can't use older lenses - the ones that don't have their own lens motor.

deliriah said:

Mmmmm....chicken wings. hehe. What's the price range? I'm technologically impaired beyond belief, so I can relate to not knowing if it's the camera or the person using it. :rofl:

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Sorry... I missed this. I paid a little over 300 I think. I finally got the batteries charged and I'll be trying to get some pics of by brood so you can judge for yourself whether it's me or the camera. I've seen some AMAZING pics on here in the last couple of days.... THOSE folks need to chime in!

John you are right. I just googled the D5000 for the price and it was lower than I thought. If you are going to spend $500 why not spend the extra cash and go for the d5000.

John what would you recommend for lenses for caudates...

merk199 said:

John what would you recommend for lenses for caudates...

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This really depends on what kind of photos you want to take, how versatile a lens you want and your budget. You would be better off picking a photo and asking what lens someone used to take it, or how you would go about taking it.

My thoughts on lenses on a budget for caudates (I shoot Nikon, so that's what I'll recommend) is the Nikkor 50mm F1.8D Prime and a 4x dioptre.

The lens is absolutely wonderful for all sorts of things (portraits, low-light, arty depth-of-field) and costs around US$100
The Dioptre is basically just a little magnifying glass that screws onto the front of the lens, costs around US$30 and let's you get right up close and personal becuase it changes the focusing distance of the lens to really close.
The image below (while not being exactly a masterpiece) was taken with the above setup so if you can imagine it at full 12 megapixel size - it's not a crop, that's the whole frame - then you've got a huge image with masses of detail and really nice blurring in the depth of field.