Which Digital Camera is the Absolute Best Entry Level DSLR Camera?

Find the perfect entry-level camera for your needs!

Entry-level DSLRs are the next step up from the best Compact Digital Cameras. The most obvious difference is the ability to change the lens. But there are some other advantages from a control standpoint that differ from the basic Compact Camera.

• Exposure control and exposure compensation - you can manually change the settings on a DSLR, giving you much more control over the output.
• Shutter lag is much less on a DSLR - pressing the button gives you almost instantaneous images. Shutter lag creates problems when trying to focus on a moving child or a sports scene when using a Point and Shoot camera.
• DSLRs have a view finder. This is becoming much more difficult to find on Point and Shoot cameras. The view finder gives the photographer a much better view of the subject, especially in very high lighted areas.
• DSLRs "look" very professional. You will always draw comments and envy from those around you when you hoist your DSLR to your eye.

Olympus E-620, Nikon D5100, or Digital Rebel T3i

Olympus E-620

The Olympus E-620 just entered the market in February, '09, yet it is making a big impact on the Consumer DSLR Market, especially with Olympus fans. Olympus has always produced reputable cameras, but they have not had the marketing clout of the Big Two (Canon and Nikon).

The two major things that bring the E-620 to this page are:

1. Superior Image Quality
2. Value for $$$

Here is quote from www.imaging-resource.com:

"As it has been from the advent of the SLR -- with the brief exception of the OM-10 -- Olympus SLR quality and unique utility remains the secret of the company's longtime fans. With each new camera, though, Olympus gets harder to ignore. Considering its features against its low price, the Olympus E-620 is easy to admire, and certainly worth a closer look."

So here are the particulars:

• 12.3 Megapixel Sensor
• Image Stabilization (in the camera body, not in the lens)
• Kit Lens - 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 Zuiko Lens
• ISO 100-3200
• LCD - 2.7" with "vari-angle" tilt and swing
• 4 fps continuous capture
• 16 Scene modes

Olympus has always been known to produce high quality cameras and lenses. The E-620 fits the Olympus mold. Plus you get a camera with the ability to add extremely high quality Zuiko lenses. The camera + the lenses make this a very desirable combination.

Nikon D5100

While the Nikon D5100 is not the newest in Nikon's entry level DSLR lineup now that the D3100 has been released, it is my recommendation as of this time. The tilt and swivel LCD, along with high quality video make this camera a winner in the entry level DSLR category.

Features and specs:

• 16.2 megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor
• 3.0" tilt and swivel LCD monitor (921,000 dots)
• Movie capture at up to 1080p
• Live View with contrast-detect AF, face detection and subject tracking
• Image sensor cleaning (sensor shake)
• 11 AF points (with 3D tracking)
• IS0 100-6400 range (25600 expanded)
• 4 frames per second continuous shooting (buffer: 7 RAW, 25 JPEG fine, 100 JPEG Normal)
• Expeed image processing engine

The Nikon D5100 has taken on its Canon rival, the Rebel T3i, and the results are impressive. Nikon has a winner in the D5100 It is truly and awesome camera at a reasonable price.

Canon Digital Rebel T3i
(aka Rebel 600D)

This gem of a camera is the next generation in the Rebel linup, in terms of development. You will notice that this camera name has a numeric representation of 600D while the T2i is a 550D, and the T1i is a 500D. This only means that the 500D was released before the 550D and so on.

Does that make sense? Good.

Canon has a series of cameras in the "professional" market that are considered by many as the top cameras on the market. Canon has taken many of the features of those cameras, in particular the Canon 60D and the Canon 7D, and incorporated them into the Canon Rebel T3i (600D). The major differences in the upper end cameras are the build quality and some advanced settings. But if you are looking for an entry-level digital SLR, the T3i may be just what you need.

• 18 megapixel CMOS sensor - capable of printing HUGE pictures
• 3" swivel LCD panel, which has good quality even in high light.
• Digic 4 processor (this is how the camera processes the pictures. It is a much better processor than most point and shoot cameras, giving you a mega-advantage in the image quality)
• Kit lens is 18-55mm with IS (image stabilization - helps you take pictures that are not blurry because of camera shake). This kit lens has been a vast improvement over its predecessor which had no IS.
• Plenty of shooting modes (see camera image), including Creative Auto Mode - a brand new feature that was introduced in the 500D. Point and shoot owners will recognize as a feature in your better compact cameras. The camera makes creative decisions for the photographer.
• Video - a new feature introduced in the T1i (500D) was improved tremendously in the T2i, and now with the T3i it has advanced in terms of sound and the addition of "snapshot video". It takes Full HD video with selectable frame rates and stereo sound.

Other specificatons and benefits of the Canon Rebel T3i

• Vari-angle display
• Scene intelligent Auto Mode
• 'Basic+' creative controls in scene modes
• 'Creative Filters' can be applied to images in playback mode
• Multi-aspect ratio shooting (3:2, 4:3, 16:9, 1:1, previewable in Live View)
• Integrated Wireless flash controller with multi-flash support
• 'Video Snapshot' mode
• Auto Lighting Optimizer now adjustable in 4 levels
• Feature Guide
• Image rating (1-5 stars)
• Eye sensor for LCD display replaced by 'DISP' button

The Bottom Line:

This is a really tough call. You cannot go wrong with any of these entry-level digital SLR cameras. You might even close your eyes and throw a dart.. you can't pick a loser.

Olympus has been producing fine cameras for a long time, and their Olympus E-620, entry-level DSLR has been very well received by the photo community. And the Nikon D5100 is piling up quality points in the entry level market as well. But I am going with the Canon Rebel T3i in this market category. The technology and features in the T3i are impressing all the geek reviewers, as well as the customers at the online review sites.