I need some guidance, I am looking to get my girlfriend set up with her first serious camera. Can anyone point me in the right direction? We train working dogs and compete in dog sports, she is interested in photographing those events. I want to get her something nice that she can enjoy and learn with. Thanks!

Hard to go wrong with the Canon Eos Digital Rebel line.

I know some dont like them,  but look at olympus and panasonic,  youre choosing a system more than a camera.  Watch some videos about different sensor sizes,  micro four thirds, to full frame.

For any type of action photography, I say stick with a DSLR type of camera.  Mirrorless cameras are great for static subjects, but their focus systems  simply don't match the speed of the focus systems in DSLR cameras (yet).  Figure out your budget, and look at both Nikon and Canon.  Pick them up and play with the controls, as they are set up somewhat differently.  Go with the one that you like best.

Prices can range from several hundred dollars for a basic DSLR/kit lens, combo, all the way up to a camera body that costs $5K or more, and lenses that cost just as much.

Craigslist and FB Marketplace for used gear.   Camera bodies, especially, tend to depreciate fairly quickly, and you can pick up yesterday's hero camera for a fraction what the new stuff is going for.  

I  use Nikon, and you could pick up a good D700 and a "push-pull" 80-200mm f/2.8 lens for cheap and still have a great rig to learn on that would give you really good results.

Come to think of it, if you r shooting indoors, which is generally not good or much light to work with, a crop sensor refurb D7500 can be picked up for about $600. It does quite well when u have to boost the ISO.   I had one, enjoyed it, but replaced it with a D750.

Uh.  Haven't had a focus lag issue with my Sony Mirrorless cameras.  I shoot fast moving aircraft regularly with them.  


That said.. There is nothing wrong with a good DSLR,  As long as the companies continue to keep compatibility with lenses.  (Unlike Sony with their @ mounts)


As for picking them up and playing with the bodies,  I wont argue with you there.  I handled and fingered and played with many Canon,  Nikon,  Sony and other systems before I settled on a system.  Lenses are where the big money should go.  

ETA:  Not trying to be a dick. Please don't take it that way.

Like guns, how much do you want to spend? Spend the least amount, until you get a handle on what you are going to shoot(no pun intented ).

As an example, I used a APS-C/DX Nikon 7500 I often shoot children, and sometimes I use my noisless Sony A6600 camera for singing or piano recitals with no flash. Sometimes, I shoot stage plays using the harsh stage lighting, and it maybe a 100' away so I need a telephoto. Or sometimes you need a wide-angle because your normal wide-angle is not wide enough.

I need to be unobtrusive as possible and I don't intend to sell my photos so that a APS-C/DX is more than adequate, a IF you will be selling your photos you may want to think about a FX/full-frame camera.

Hope this helps.

Biggest questions would be budget and what is her willingness to learn?  Additionally, what are the lighting conditions for the competitions? If they’re indoor, the faster/fast glass needed for indoor photography can get spendy.

Just going by what I read and hear, as I don't have any personal experience with mirrorless cameras.  Maybe the Sony mirrorless cameras are better at focusing than the Nikon cameras.  Glad it works for you.

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I'm trying to figure out what a reasonable budget would be, I don't want to limit the equipment by just arbitrarily choosing a random number. Our competitions are outdoors, conditions can range from sunny days, to pouring rain. Generally she won't be able to be right up in the action and will need to take photos from the side of the field or move around the field keeping out of the way of each k9 team. Realistically $2,000 would be the max I could do for this. Was looking at the D500 as a entry body to start with from what research I've done so far, but again this is all foreign to me.

I’d honestly look at a ‘prosumer’ grade body and spend more on glass. For example, you could get a refurb D7500 and a 70-200mm f/4 for around $1600 or so. You could actually save a bit of money and get a used 1st generation 70-200mm f/2.8 for $6-700 instead of $1000 as well. Still and incredibly solid lens years later. (I use one on a D850).

Reasoning behind a prosumer body is you get all the ‘easy’ auto modes like a consumer camera, but have button controls and weather sealing similar to a pro level camera. Plenty of room to grow with it.  Pro level lenses are weather sealed as well, although a rain cover is still recommended if you’re going in serious conditions.

The D500 is an absolute beast, but is good 100% going all in on the deep side of the pool. I’d firmly say to go with excellent glass and a good body, over great body and okay glass.

You are not the only person that has said it.  Not trying to single you out.  

I just don't get it.  I have not seen it.  


A7III






A7II

This man knows what he speaks of.

For dog events, plan on spending a lot on big, fast glass.  If you're doing something like an agility trial, and the organizers are cool with you getting on the field, a 70-200 f/2.8 is fine, especially on a crop-sensor.  Other events, say, lure coursing where you need to zoom in across the entire distance of the track, a 100-400 on a crop sensor is not too much.

And mirrorless is the future.

quoted for truth!
today, you cannot go wrong with any camera, but just like a hand gun, go grab a few models and see how you like the feel and placement of buttons. Go with that.
The secret is in the lenses.  They go from "ok I can afford that" to "Oh My God!!" very quick.
That being said, my $650 Canon T6i works fantastic with my $2k 100-400 L lens.  The lenses are the investment.

So true.  

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I have (and love) a Nikon D500. It is my third DSLR body, and I have been shooting Nikon gear for over 30 years.

For a new-ish DSLR user, I would recommend a 7500 and spending the rest on glass. The refurb 7500 is available direct from Nikon for $699. In fact, the 7200 is the same price, and in many opinions is the better camera. Any of these designs is now pretty "dated" but more than capable of producing amazing photographs.

I don't get into the "always need to upgrade the body" - my D500 replaced a pretty dated (and twice repaired) D90s. I STILL love taking pictures with my D90 sometimes. It travels with me when I don't want to carry much gear - and it does fine.

If lenses weren't so expensive, I would recommend going with the 500 and picking a lens that gives you a lot of flexibility.

Now, if you look beyond the DSLRs into the mirrorless, the Z6 is an amazing camera (faster than the 500) but you can blow your budget in a hurry. I am not sure if the Z50 is really as big a value, relative to price, because I haven't followed it very closely.

ETA: Right now, Nikon has a GREAT deal on a D610 (full frame) with a "nifty-fifty" 50mm f1.8 lens for $900. It has a couple downsides v. the 500, or the others, but at that price it represents an amazing value and a chance to buy a specialized lens or two while staying under budget.

-shooter

For the record, if it weren't for the steep requirements posted, I wouldn't advise going 'all in' like this.  If things were going to stay in good lighting/weather conditions, I'd 100% recommend a lens running 1/2 the price as well.

Best bang for your buck that I can think of:

Refurbished D7500 from B&H Photo $600 They do a package that includes Adobe Photoshop Elements 2020 for $678 that is a solid deal.
Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM $1260 from B&H
Amazon Sandisk Extreme Pro 128gb SD $37 (the 32 gb was $18, so why not go huge)
Amazon $12 cleaning kit Really, you just want the lens pen and rocket blower, but it's a decent kit for the money.  
Amazon: Understanding Exposure 4th Edition $20 Hands down most recommended book around for learning photography or as a reference on something.

That's right at the ragged edge of the $2000 budget and doesn't leave much for a rain cover, camera bag, or strap, but those are minor costs in comparison.

I've been on a similar journey, and had much the same advice you're getting here.  Here's my story, so maybe it will help you.

I was looking for a good camera for my wife, similar requirements to you.  My sister bought the Nikon 7100 kit from a big box store.  I read the manual, learned the function buttons, and practiced with it.  Once I had a good idea of how to use it, I showed my wife the super simple basics.  Instantly she didn't like it because of the weight.  The kit lens was big (to get zoom) and that body is a large one (though not the biggest possible).

I went to the local camera shop (Creve Coeur Camera) and asked their opinion on all the models.  For my price and what we wanted, they suggested the Olympus XZ-2.  It had the BEST macro pics (almost no distortion at 1 cm), decent zoom for what we needed, and it had amazingly easy menu access to adjust all the exposure controls.  It was like a DSLR in a point-in-shoot.  The only downside was no ability to change lenses.  My wife used that camera a LOT and love it.  My daughter used that camera when she started 4H photography and won blue ribbons at county and state.

Since my daughter was really getting into photography, I wanted to go to the DSLR level and add the ability to try different lenses.  By now the local camera shop had closed, so our only option to handle cameras was Best Buy.  They had very limited options, but she got a chance to handle Canon and Nikon to get a feel for design, weight, and button locations.  I had done some research when trying to find the lightest DSLR for my wife, and was concerned this would be an issue for my daughter too.  The Canon SL3 fits that range: super light, DSLR function, and it has the newest software with 4K image ability.  I googled camera shops in Illinois to see how far I would need to drive to find the SL3 and compare it to other cameras.  I found one a little over an hour away, so we drove up and tried them all.

Once she actually had a real person that knew the differences in the equipment, she was able to actually try several models.  She and I both disliked the SL3.  The body is too small and cramped, and the buttons are not anywhere close to the locations on the bigger DSLR Canons.  SO GLAD I DIDN'T BUY ONE ON THE INTERNET BASED ON REVIEWS AND WEIGHT!!!  We ended up settling on the Canon EOS T7i.  We got the camera, kit lens (18-55), a bag, SD card, extra battery, and a 50mm lens with UV filter to protect lens.  She loves it and we have learned a LOT about photography.  (On a side note, I regret the 50mm lens.  Obviously I'm not a pro.  I had heard a lot about 50mm lens as a great one for indoor photos and portraits, but it sucks for everything we want to take pics of.  It's too "zoomed" for pics of family at holiday get-togethers, not "zoomed" enough for outdoor pics. We use the kit lens and get great pics in those situations.)  I recently bought her a Tamron 18-400 lens at the same camera shop.  It's amazing and she's done even more great pics with it.

Big shout out to Peoria Camera Shop!  Their staff have been great.  They hosted a Tamron rep that was extremely patient with my kid (and me) and we went through a lengthy trial of her different lenses, even comparing them to the kit lens we had and the Canon options available in the shop.  I hope they stay in business for a LONG time!  We can't afford to keep losing specialty shops with knowledgeable people to box stores that sell garbage and don't even know it!  I know this story was a bit long, and I hope it helps you narrow your search to find a great camera for her.  Key take away for us:  Let her try it in the store!

Jumping back in with you guys to let you know that all of the comments above have helped IMMENSELY and I have chosen to get her a D7500 factory refurb body so we can spend more money on glass. Should she decide this is going to be a serious hobby, then I will trust her judgement and research as she dives into it for the next camera body, lens etc. But this thread has given me a ton of info to put together a really meaningful gift that will get my girlfriend off and running. I will post some updates once the gift is given and I start seeing some photos.

congrats and I hope she likes it. If there are any questions, you know the association of nerds will be around.

Personally I shoot Pentax.  Yep they are still around.  Does she know anything about photography?  If you are going to get a DSLR a few intro courses will help reduce frustrations.  Not a mirrorless pan myself but it has more to do with the electronic viewfinder driving my eyes crazy.  Some people have issues with this, others not so much.  Newer cameras are better.  Not too much of a lag.  The best bet is to have her handle several cameras to see what fits her best.  

Does she plan on using it for video too?    

Panasonic and Olympus make some great cameras in the micro four thirds format (MFT) that are very capable.  The latest Olympus offerings are very very good.  Great lens selections too as all cameras that use the MFT have the same lens mount so you can use Panasonic lenses on the Olympus and vice versa.

Solid choice.    Now go pick up a push/pull 80-200mm Nikon f/2.8 zoom and complete the winning.    Those lenses cost a song now, yet, still deliver excellent results.    

I have a handful of really nice lenses, and the 70-200 Tamron  G2 is ALWAYS my go-to lens.......can do just about anything with that focal length.

The D7500 is a pretty serious camera in my book. That camera will last your lady friend quite a long time, unless she want to go full-frame FX camera, but that will involve more $ and weight.

Now I would think the entry-level Nikon 3xxx camera is a hobby camera, and  it do like 70-80% of what a D7500 will do, and the D5xxx, is the advance hobbyist camera.

One drawback on the D7500 for me is that it has a white-light that flashes for a second or 2 to help with the focusing in dim light, and many people find that light distracting. So in such situations, I use my D500 which uses an invisible infrared light.

ETA: My D7500 & D500 are both factory refur'bs and NEVER had a problem with either of them, I have probably put through 300,000 clicks of the shutter between the both of them. IF and when I wear out the shutter, it is time for a new body.

Canon Refurb Store... Everything I have bought appears to be brand new untouched.