Looking for a Camera any Suggestions?

Whether you purchase locally or o/seas will all boil down to who you, personally, feel comfortable passing on your hard earned $$'s to Devster.  I'm all for supporting local business and do, but for larger purchases I too purchased o/seas, as Reflex has mentioned.  I have used Discount Digital Photographics & Digital Rev from time to time and not had any problems whatsoever - although the internet is filled with horror stories about some o/seas retailers in regards to no after sales service etc, so I can only base this example on my own personal positive experiences with both (that is a disclaimer of sorts ).  I think dd photographics are Aus based, and import from o/seas from memory.

As one suggestion, perhaps do a bit of research yourself with your budget in mind, amongst three or four of the more well know brands out there (Canon, Nikon, Sony etc), find a forum with someone using that equipment so you can perhaps view the possibilities/performance, and then start to narrow it down.  Don't discount pre-loved (sounds so much better than second hand ) older models, as a lot of the older so-called outdated models are still up there with the newer releases, in some cases even better imo.  My suggestion would also be to settle on an older or less expensive camera body, and use the savings on that to go towards the best lens you can afford instead.  There are only so many bells and whistles you need on your camera and the difference between decent glass (lens) and bad will make a whole lot more of a difference to your shots than the camera body you choose.

 I agree and have had a bit of a look on Ebay for good second hand full-frame bodies this morning.

I think I would be going for a full-frame body.

 Edit..It should also be noted that Canon's EF-S lenses won't work at all on the company's full frame cameras.

Absolutely agree on the 400 f5.6 being a great lens, with 6D, will still be around the money.

One thing I found while researching a second body is that you sometimes have to dig deep or use the camera to find all the issues. For example I was looking at a D7100 as a second body, crop sensor. Everything was great until trying to take birds in flight. The buffer filled after 4 shots and that was the end of it for me, everything else was good. For someone not interested in BIF, or not shooting raw,then would be a good body.

Good luck Devster with a difficult decision

Sorry Devster, not meaning to hijack your thread going off on a tangent about memory cards, although that is something to consider when you choose your gear too, the faster the better, without breaking the bank that is!

O.k. after looking at what I have in my D800 & what I have in my D7100, I am now completely confused as they are different brands and slightly different speed numbering systems on them - the D7100 SD card is 100x (Lexar), whereas the other (Sandisk) has 95MB/S.  

Then to complicate it further the SD Assoc website (if I'm understanding it correctly) tells me I have the slower card in my D7100.  Aaargh, I give up, I have no business going into places that only confuse me, lol.  One thing I did finally understand a bit better, is that little number in a circle on the SD card (usually a 2, 4, 6 or 10), that's the "Speed Class", which "indicates minimum writing performance"....so I guess that makes a difference to the speed of the card too.

https://www.sdcard.org/developers/overview/speed_class/

  Yes, by all means PM me for sure.   In the meantime, apologies to Devster again, and I think I will go back to doing what I know a little better, pressing the button on the black picture taking device thing . 

Reflex,

Yes, the problem is the buffer size of the camera. Using a 95mb card instead of a 80mb card made very little difference.

In my testing with the D600 and the D7100 using the fastest class ten 95mb card resulted in maybe a one frame improvement over a class 10 80mb card before buffer fill.

I believe you were on the money to begin with Rick, small buffer in the D7xxx series.

Just for interest, read through a few more sites and if I understand it correctly, the speed noted on most cards (i.e.Sandisk Extreme PRO 95 MB/s SDHC1 class 10) is the potential upload speed at which the card can upload to your PC, not the write speed.  Even the write speed they have for some on-line is not the sustained shot to card write speed, more just a potential one.  The D7xxx record in bursts, and clear in bursts, so a buffer fill (due to a smallish buffer) is more than likely the real issue, as you said at the start Rick.   From that logic suggests a card could have the write speed of Superman but if the buffer is small/slow....

Tested out the D7100 a little more this arvo, and not surprisingly, the best sustained write speeds with continuous burst were not shot in RAW.  This is what I got just as a rough/quick test:

DX RAW - 6 continuous burst, then lag/slowdown, with an up to 6 second delay until you could do the next 6 burst

1.3 RAW - 7 burst, 4 second delay until next 7 continuous burst

DX Jpeg fine - 16 burst, then lag/slowdown, less than 3 sec delay until you could do next 16 continuous burst

1.3 Jpeg fine - 21 continuous burst, then lag/slowdown, less than 2 second delay until the next 21 continuous burst

Of course with the various delays while the buffer was clearing, you could still take shots just not the "full" burst like you could at the start.  That surprised and disappointed me - a 6 second delay (in RAW) until the buffer was cleared and the next full burst could be done is birdy bye bye time, opp missed. 

So, perhaps the D7100 not the best beast for you Devster particularly for BIF as Rick said.  

Canonguy, I think you're being overly critical of third party equipment. Most third party equipment is close to or equal to its counterparts from named brands, and for a lesser price. It's ludicrous to compare the Sigma and Canon 500mm lenses for example- the Sigma is half the price of the Canon. They're different market completely. Similar story with comparing the Sigma zooms to the Canon telephoto and superzoom lenses. Plus by all accounts the new Tamron is a stellar zoom lens. I would hope Devster doesn't factor third party equipment out of his decision, it has all come a long way from the film era.

On a different note, have you considered Pentax, Devster? It has a decent range of lenses, and its APSC cameras are the best on the market with very good value for features. Plus if you go back a generation in cameras, significant saving can be had (especially of the K-30 and the K-5/K-5 II). 

Only problem with Pentax is you wouldn't be able go get the Tamron 150-600mm, as it was not released in Pentax K-mount. 

Even though I shoot Nikon when people ask me what brand they should buy for bird photography I usually say Canon mainly because of the sutable lenses at realistic prices ,and I agree with others here glass is everything ,It doesn't matter whether you use Canon or Nikon what is more important is what lens you put on it ,I have owned and used many third party lenses and some of the short one are really good but when it comes to the longer lenses I have always been disappointed with the results ,the only exception is an old sigma 300f4  that I got for peanuts on ebay but this was more of a fluke and I have seen some others that are real shockers.

And as for SD cards I use Sandisk extreme 45mb's in 16G and 32G in my D7000 and so far no isues filling the buffer just make sure your camera will take the write speed .

Most pro level cameras have always used  CF cards and IMO these are far superior to SD cards .

I think your imput is important Araminta. You take lovely photos with your camera and post them. That makes what you have to say entirely more valid than anything I could say, as I rarely post any photos to back my opinions up.

Canonguy, I disagree with your absolutes. 

One thing you could do if you are having trouble making a decision is hire a camera and lens for a weekend. I haven't done it, so I don't know where you would go to or how expensive it might be. Don't give up on the Tamron yet, here's a rather toung in cheek review of it:

http://photographylife.com/my-one-night-stand-with-the-tamron-150-600mm

If you're looking at getting the Canon 7D, it might be worthwhile waiting until Photokina passes next month. It's one of the major camera industry tradeshows (held in Frankfurt in Germany), and quite frequently features new camera designs. As the 7D is a fairly old (but still capable; realistically, most modern cameras are pretty similar) at 5 years, it could be due for a replacement. Then, either you can get the replacement, or you can get a 7D for a better price as everyone offloads theirs. 

The problem with camera gear is that many people go through an in depth research process to decide on their gear... Much like you're doing. Hence the feeling that our camera is THE camera. I spent about three or four months agonising over which camera to get... 

Although, compared to some debates I've seen, BiBy is pretty good and neutral. Sometimes, the fanboys degenerate into flamewars. 

Lachlan, I need to ask. What did you buy in the end?

Reflex, I ended up getting a Pentax K-5 II and a DA* 300mm f4 lens to go with it for birding. It suited my needs, and backcompatibility with some of my Dad's lenses from the 70s and 80s (and even further to M42 mount- it's been around since 1949) was a bonus. It's nice to be able to go into a second hand shop and buy a functional camera lens for $10.  But it was still touch and go there for a while; I almost bought Canon for the 400mm lens. My problem is I've got a weak right wrist from breaking it once, so can't handhold the Sigma superzooms very well. I didn't like Nikon's price and can't afford (or justify) the longer supertelephotos from Canon. So that left either the Canon 400mm or Pentax with the 300mm prime, which was the real sticking point.

Now I've been sucked into the neverending pit of camera gear and am eying off Pentax's new 1.4x TC to turn my 300mm into 450mm. But it costs a bit more than I can really justify, so no TC yet. 

Thanks Lachlan.

It starts off being all about affordability although once you get hooked it starts to get easier to justify the more expensive equipment. I found myself saying to someone," I know blokes at work with $20,000+ motorbikes that only ride them six times a year" so I could (one day ) justify a 600mm Canon Lens. 

At the ANZANG nature photographer exhibitions of the last few years the overwhelming majority of winning entrants,probably 99%ish,

have been from Canon & Nikon, with Canon being clearly the most popular gear.

Are all of these incredibly skilful photographers just dupes of the Canon,Nikon duoploly, blindly following the marketing blah,blah?

I don't think so.

Congratulations Your half way there , just one more thing I have been reading a few reviews on the Tamron and the ones giving it the biggest rap seem to be using it on full frame cameras , just a thought ,Its always fun buying new gear and trying it out what ever camera you decide on I look forward to seeing some of your photos.