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Any budget DSLRs for plane spotting?

AlexanderG
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Hello! I am looking to buy a DSLR for plane spotting. It should be able to record good videos (30FPS minimum), and it shouldn't be more than 400 Euros (Appx. 448 USD) as I am tight on budget. Thanks in advance!

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I'd suggest looking at a MFT (Micro Four Thirds) camera. The smaller sensor gives you a bit more reach and you can keep the focal lengths a bit smaller. The budget is a bit problematic though. Considering your budget I'd go with an older model (or maybe a used one) to have some money for a long tele lens. Imho the G7 won't make you happy since you'll be missing a long lens. The kit won't give you the reach and it costs almost $500 new.

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So.... 400 EUR (approx. 450 USD) for a body and lens for plane spotting? That's one hell of an ask. You're definitely going used and/or refurbished on that. As @bowrilla said, MFT would give you a little more reach due to "crop factor" - if you have no idea what that means, you need to study up on photography concepts before finding a body/lens combination. Otherwise, the lens is going to be more important, as you'll want a long reach and optical stabilization ("vibration reduction"). So find that first before worrying about the camera body.

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How far do you plan on being from the aircraft? Are you going to be lining up at the fence near the take-off/landing zone or do you need more reach (to get planes thousands of feet away)?

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Very difficult based upon the budget, because for plane spotting, you are going to need a telephoto lens, and those types of lenses aren't cheap.

 

Probably a decent option would be the Canon EOS 700D/Rebel T5i, with the Canon EF-S 55-250mm IS STM lens. Should be able to pick that up used at around your price point.

 

If you can eek out some more out of the budget, a used Canon EOS 750D/Rebel T6i would be a solid upgrade on the body.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

I am new to picture taking and just got a sealife dc1400- pink of course and I am open to any suggestions to get the most of my camera. I will appreciate any suggestions....Thanks Juju :bk:

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