what camera should i get?

[wirehead]

Originally Posted by RuGlu6

Camera body doesn't mean as much as a good lens, kit lens is usually mediocre.
get something at least 2.8 aperture, good lens clarity.

I beg to differ on that statement a wee bit. if your CMOS is mediocre then, so will your pictures. Then there is image stabilization, if your camera has it built in (Pentax) then you aren't paying for it again in all your lenses which makes them a bit more spendy. then there is weather-proofing. Pentax SLR's (at least the K series) are all dust and water resistant with over 75 o-rings protecting the guts. The body frame is important as well. I have found the only restrictive area of owning a Pentax is lens selection, but how many different lenses do you need??

[viperfish]

I have a D80 and love it. I thought about the D90 but I might wait for the next generation (spent too much on my reef). I used to be a Canon guy but I found that I got more bang for my buck with Nikon.

The CMOS sensor has to be good but without an excellent lens it's like buying a top of the line stereo reciever and putting crappy speakers on it. You don't want the lens to limit what you're camera can do. I have three lenses in my kit 28-70mm, 80-200mm, and my favourite, 85mm fixed. I can pretty much do anything I want with those.