This post is for all you wonderful husbands that want to set your wife up for the upcoming 2007 Photography Workshops! If a new Digital SLR Camera is on her Christmas wish list, here’s what Brian and I suggest. Prepare yourself b/c we are a bit bias! 🙂

1. Purchase a Digital SLR that has interchangeable lenses ($500-$999). We’ll be talking a lot about natural light and aperture in the workshops, and if you can’t change your lense to a lower aperture you’re kind of stuck. Changing lenses takes a bit of practice, but it’s not as scary or tiresome as it may sound. It’s actually a lot of fun when you see the meaning behind it all. 🙂

2. I would purchase your camera/lenses from B&HPhotoVideo. This is the place professionals go to buy their equipment. Their prices are always competitive, and their return policy is solid. They are located in NY, and honestly, I don’t know many professional photographers that shop elsewhere.

3. If you or your wife are amateurs that want to get better (maybe even thinking professional at some point), the Canon Rebels are a great place to start. The new Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi is a great camera. Check out the hyper link for more specs and details. I used one of the older rebels for my first year of doing portraits. It was a great camera! It wasn’t until I started getting more serious and pursuing weddings that I saw the need to upgrade. So for children portrait work, I think the Rebel line is great!

4. Some people ask if they should just get the camera body without the lense. No. I would go ahead and get the package that comes with a lense. It’s the cheapest lense (in price) you can find. Totally worth it!

5. If you or your wife are semi-pro, I would go the next step up (Canon 20D, 30D or 5D). If you’re thinking of doing weddings, I would NOT suggest the 5D (but that’s just me). I used it for part of a wedding this summer, and while it had some great qualities the post process was a nightmare b/c the image files were HUGE. I personally love the Canon 20D. Light, user friendly, and fast!

6. If you’re looking to buy an extra lense, and you want to go with something cheaper than Canon, look at Sigma or Tamron. They have some great lenses. This link will take you to a whole list of Canon compatible lenses. The key to buying a lense it the F stop. The lower you can get, the better. Look at the 2.8 and lower lenses. Being able to shoot at these lower F stops gives the nice blurred background with the subject sharp and focused. Try and stay away from push/pull lenses and big zooms (ex. 24-300mm).

7. We use Lexar for our memory cards.

They are the BEST on the market. The biggest nightmare is to capture great shots and have your image data corrupt b/c the card failed you. Believe me, it’s not worth saving a few extra dollars. Go with Lexar for sure. And while you’re shopping, be sure to add the Lexar Card Reader as well.

8. Another great stocking stuffer is a lense cleaner. Hakuba has an award winning product for $9.95. You can’t go wrong with having a few of these!

So I know I’ve ticked off all my Nikon friends. 🙂 But they know Brian and I love Canon and can’t say enough about their cameras and amazing L lense line. When you start REALLY getting into photography, you’ll have to purchase one of these. 🙂 Nothing else on the market compares to glass in these lenses. This is my work-horse lense for every wedding. I love this guy! Brian is the opposite (of course :)). He uses this zoom lense for most his shots.

If you think you might get more and more into photography, why not start with the Canon operating system so the upgrade is easy as you go. (Just our opinion and what has worked well for us.)

But to be fair to my Nikon friends…Nikon came out with a great competitor to the Canon Rebel XTi. It’s the Nikon D80 DSLR. Check it out if Canon isn’t your thing.

Hope this helps! And we’ll be sure to post more “Christmas Buying Tips” this month!