This news got to me so hard. Too hard, in fact, that this post is all about it.
I’m in China to work AND take pictures. Simple goal, yes. Can I do it with my vintage cameras? I only bought 2 here, and I barely use them. Wouldn’t know if any local photolabs develop medium format film, and there’s the Chinese language barrier again.
The Canon A85 has served me well, but since I do have great photographic ambitions, I do want to make the upgrade to a DSLR camera. The Canon 350D is the easiest, safest choice, and with the proper adapter, my vintage Russian lenses fits well with it.
My discovery of the news was purely by chance: an ex-officemate asked me for advice on cameras. I did quick web searches, and was clearly blown away. Let me give you the obvious: in Philippine Pesos, the Canon 350D would cost around 50,000; the Pentax ist DL, 30,000.
Reviews haven’t been consistent, and there’s the usual tag of ‘beginner’s DSLR‘ to it. Do I mind? No, not really. I’m a rank-amateur photographer, and I think I’ll stay that way for some time.
A second, important facet to this dilemma is looking for the best deals. Not specifying a model, I’ve done some research, and have concluded that Shanghai isn’t the best-value place to get photo equipment. Two places always come up: Hong Kong, or the US. Pity, Pentax does have a local (Shanghai-based) outlet here. My parents are in Guam, so I may ask them to look around. Oh, and Joachim, I’m making you a candidate for this please-buy-me-camera-plea, too.
Point is, I have made the DSLR camera mission statement, even before I set foot in Shanghai. It is the personal priority.
I think I’m going to be DSLR-Sick too. I didn’t know it can be this contagious. Damn you.
Hahaha. Join the club, man!