Best digital SLR for beginners

By Mary Lojkine on 19 January 2007

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Plentiful features with all manner of adjustable options, entertaining gimmicks and rock-solid shooting make us like this camera a lot. If you could stick an SD card slot in there, it'd be one of the best superzooms we've seen. Sadly, it loses marks for the proprietary connections.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3

It has been about two years since Panasonic's last LX-series camera, the DMC-LX2, was launched. One of the most interesting things about that model was its 16:9 aspect ratio sensor and a good range of manual controls not usually found in digital compact cameras. We spent a day with the upcoming successor to the LX2, the DMC-LX3. Here's what we found out.
Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd

We're actually struggling to think of anything bad about the 10-megapixel zooming behemoth that is the Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd. It's a versatile and reliable camera that gets looks, features, image quality and controls right.
Fujifilm FinePix J50

The J50 is strictly for beginners who want a simple shooter to start exploring the world of photography. While the extensive modes make up for the lack of fancy features, little has been done to salvage the less-than-desired image quality.

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Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H50

Plentiful features with all manner of adjustable options, entertaining gimmicks and rock-solid shooting make us like this camera a lot. If you could stick an SD card slot in there, it'd be one of the best superzooms we've seen. Sadly, it loses marks for the proprietary connections.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3

It has been about two years since Panasonic's last LX-series camera, the DMC-LX2, was launched. One of the most interesting things about that model was its 16:9 aspect ratio sensor and a good range of manual controls not usually found in digital compact cameras. We spent a day with the upcoming successor to the LX2, the DMC-LX3. Here's what we found out.
Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd

We're actually struggling to think of anything bad about the 10-megapixel zooming behemoth that is the Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd. It's a versatile and reliable camera that gets looks, features, image quality and controls right.
Fujifilm FinePix J50

The J50 is strictly for beginners who want a simple shooter to start exploring the world of photography. While the extensive modes make up for the lack of fancy features, little has been done to salvage the less-than-desired image quality.
Olympus E-420

The Olympus E-420 is a good beginner's dSLR with an extremely compact footprint that should go well with travellers. Just don't expect any fancy features for this budget model.

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Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3

It has been about two years since Panasonic's last LX-series camera, the DMC-LX2, was launched. One of the most interesting things about that model was its 16:9 aspect ratio sensor and a good range of manual controls not usually found in digital compact cameras. We spent a day with the upcoming successor to the LX2, the DMC-LX3. Here's what we found out.
Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd

We're actually struggling to think of anything bad about the 10-megapixel zooming behemoth that is the Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd. It's a versatile and reliable camera that gets looks, features, image quality and controls right.
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H50

Plentiful features with all manner of adjustable options, entertaining gimmicks and rock-solid shooting make us like this camera a lot. If you could stick an SD card slot in there, it'd be one of the best superzooms we've seen. Sadly, it loses marks for the proprietary connections.
Canon Digital IXUS 90 IS

When a camera is this good-looking and takes respectable pictures, we'll forgive the lack of features.
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If you just want a camera that takes good shots without having to understand photographic jargon, buy the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS20.

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The Canon 400D remains a very good first dSLR, with a balance of automatic, semi-automatic and manual controls to progress through as your creative photography skills improve.
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The Fujifilm FinePix F31fd carries on the leading high ISO performance from the F30 and is a solid all-round compact camera for general photography and low-light shooting.