I'm looking to buy my first REAL 35mm camera. One of the main reasons is that I want to do macro shots with it so I also need to buy a macro lens as well. ;) If you guys and gals could tell me what ya'll use, and then throw a few names my way as far as 35mm cameras are concerned I'd appreciate it, and then while you're at it, if you could also drop the name of a good macro lens manufacturer, well, i'd sure appreciate that too! I just need to know what to look for in case I go and buy something used or new. Hopefully I can catch a good deal used.. you never know. A decent well rounded camera with a decent macro lens is pretty much all I need. Simple huh. ;) But macro shots isn't all i want to do - so i need to be able to get decent shots of sunsets, forests, maybe people,but mostly nature. Thanks in advance!! Paul

What is your budget, approximately?

Well, I can only say something about Nikon... Body: Nikon 8008 2nd hand in perfect condition for $200-$300 or Nikon F80 for $300-$400, which is much newer. Lens: Nikkor 55mm 2.8 Micro Ais 2nd hand in (at least optically/mechanically) perfect condition for $150-$200. That's the best I can come up with as far as my knowledge about these things go :) Maybe Alpha or Sue0 can give you much better info on this.

My budget is like $200, if that's unrealistic then I could go like $300 I guess. I'm not a professional, just an enthusiastic hobbyist so I'm looking for quality without a professional price if you know what I mean :)

I have a minolta dynax 600si with a 28-200 lens on it, costs around 400 second hand, but i use a 50mm lens with an adaptor for my macro - which is a semi fish eye also. The macro is a strange make - sirius - but it works very well! Best thing about it was that it was shock horror 15. Don't know if you live in the UK but if you do, jessops do great deals and have a 2nd hand section in most, if not all, of their shops. Thats where i buy most of my lenses and none of them have let me down yet =) Cheaper alternative, but really good too are Pentax SLRs - i think the MZ-M is brilliant, a good friend uses one and has had no problems at all so far. I like using Prakticas (spelling??) theyre all manual and WAY cheaper than the others. I just prefer the focus ring on them. Get one for about 50 second hand! Minolta do my favourite lenses. Heres the jessops second hand site: http://www.jessops.com/secondhand/ hope it is useful!

Ok so ignore that lol!! Darn it you're all speaking in dollars!!!!! :'(

How about trying to get a Nikon body (like a 8008) for $150 at a good photo store and a 55mm 2.8 micro for $150 also ? Maybe get the lens for $100 or less on ebay if you're lucky and look for a few days/weeks until something turns up for a small price :)

Attached Link: http://www.dpreview.com

If you're just starting out, have you thought about a digital camera with an add-on macro lens? Tiffen makes several add-on lenses (wide angle, macro, and telephoto) for digital point-n-shoot type cameras. You'll save money on film & processing as you learn and be better able to crop and touch up your photos. Really good prints will be tough though, because good printers are expensive. Everything's a trade-off :-)

I've ordered a set of Hoya macro lenses for my digital
camera and will be posting some shots taken with them
along with my impressions when they arrive (in about a
week or so). Stay tuned if you're interested.

Above is a link to DPReview.com. They do digital camera
reviews with current prices, if you're interested.

Excellent! i'm actually planning on using my shots for digital purposes and not to be printed out (at least on my end). I never knew digital cameras could have lens attachments. I'm checking out that link above, thanks for the info. Asalina - are any photos in your gallery taken with your digital camera? And how do you like your digital camera compared to a "normal" 35mm ?

audiopod: Most of the stuff in my gallery was taken with my digital camera (Canon Powershot G2). Even the "Idaho 94" series are digital photos of old 35mm prints. The Canon G2 is a pretty good digital camera, but it's still in the point-n-shoot class and just can't compare to a 35mm SLR in terms of versatility. The biggest advantage for my purposes is that "film" is free, and the images can be transferred directly to my computer for easy post processing. A digital camera with manual controls makes the learning process of photography much quicker and less expensive in the long run, IMO. I'd never suggest that digital image quality is as good as film, espcially in medium and large format, and likewise I'd never suggest that someone who has already invested in a good film outfit switch over to digital. But for web publishing and even medium sized prints (with a good printer) I think it's a viable medium.

The Nikon Coolpix series would suit. The Nikon 990 focusses down to 0.8 cm. I once made a print that included a spidermite the size of a silver dollar. Go to Nikon Mall--they've got one or two refurbished ones. Doesn't need any add-ons either. Can't remember the price.