It's A Shootout

Of your three contenders I would get the D80 bundle at Costco. Outside of those choices I would look at the Pentax K10D and Sony DSLR-A100 as they are a good value and offer features unavailable on the big two (Canon and Nikon).

Disclaimer: I sell these things for a living (up at the Northgate Mall Kits Cameras, which is part of the same company as Cameras West, but hopefully I don't come across as obnoxious as whoever Chris B ran into downtown)...

First answer: I _highly_ recommend following up on Chris B and Seattlest Tom's advice to stop by a camera store and actually get some hands-on time with the cameras. When I was dSLR shopping, all the reading and researching I'd done had sold me on the Rebel XT -- until I picked it up, when it was _way_ too small for my hands. A while later, I ended up coming home with a Nikon D70s, and _love_ it.

Second disclaimer: I'm a Nikon user. ;)

Second answer: Get the D80. You've gotten a lot of good pros and cons of the various cameras above, but I really think the D80 edges out the rest. It's a bit pricier, but worth it. Popular Photography thinks so too -- and I think they've got good reasoning behind their conclusion.

Interesting. I went to the Cameras West downtown (on 4th Ave) and had a positively fabulous experience. Perhaps I got the knowledgeable and friendly salesperson?

In any case, I certainly agree with Chris B. Go to a camera shop, go to several even, and play around with the different models. Pick something with the features you want, the quality you need, and with something that feels great in your hands and is a pleasure to use. People often disregard that last bit of advice but if you don't feel comfortable handling and using the thing, you are not going to use it and might as well just give me the money instead. :)

If you're an amateur, then there's really no need to spend the extra cash for the 30D. It's a great camera but it doesn't offer any real advantages to the new-comer. Plus, it's rumored that it will be the next camera line to be upgraded in the coming year, if that matters to you.

I shoot with the XTi and I love it. The kit lens is ok, but I will second the recommendation for the f2.8/50mm lens. It's not the best lens ever, but for the price, it's pretty damned miraculous, which is why it's often called the "nifty fifty" or "fantastic plastic". I've been shooting Canon for years and will vouch for it any day.

I will strongly recommend that you go to a camera shop of some renown and actually try out these models yourself. It's all well and good to hear people say that a particular camera is lightweight or bulky but until you try it out yourself, that's kind of meaningless. As far as local camera shops go, I'm a big fan of Kenmore Camera. The staff is knowledgeable and friendly and I've never had anyone try to push me to buy anything. It's worth the drive. Glazer's is more central and they're oK, but I've had far too many experiences where I felt I needed a flare gun to get a clerk's attention.

And by all means, steer clear of Camera West downtown! I went in with a broken Canon asking to see about a replacement and the clerk started talking about another model considering that I didn't have a great lens on it and so on. Never mind that the good lenses were at home because I didn't want to lug them around all the time. Avoid!

If you're an amateur, then there's really no need to spend the extra cash for the 30D. It's a great camera but it doesn't offer any real advantages to the new-comer. Plus, it's rumored that it will be the next camera line to be upgraded in the coming year, if that matters to you.

I shoot with the XTi and I love it. The kit lens is ok, but I will second the recommendation for the f2.8/50mm lens. It's not the best lens ever, but for the price, it's pretty damned miraculous, which is why it's often called the "nifty fifty" or "fantastic plastic". I've been shooting Canon for years and will vouch for it any day.

I will strongly recommend that you go to a camera shop of some renown and actually try out these models yourself. It's all well and good to hear people say that a particular camera is lightweight or bulky but until you try it out yourself, that's kind of meaningless. As far as local camera shops go, I'm a big fan of Kenmore Camera. The staff is knowledgeable and friendly and I've never had anyone try to push me to buy anything. It's worth the drive. Glazer's is more central and they're oK, but I've had far too many experiences where I felt I needed a flare gun to get a clerk's attention.

And by all means, steer clear of Camera West downtown! I went in with a broken Canon asking to see about a replacement and the clerk started talking about another model considering that I didn't have a great lens on it and so on. Never mind that the good lenses were at home because I didn't want to lug them around all the time. Avoid!

I don't think I have the vocabulary to tell you how much I love my Canon Digital Rebel. I have a not so great Sigma 28-300 but truth be told I use it all the time because it has SO much range and when I'm traveling, it's the only lens I need. Yeah, it could be faster. Yeah, it has tracking issues sometimes and the AF won't work. But this thing is so very convenient that the downsides are worth it to me.

I have use Canon cameras from the film days so for a start I would recommend the new Rebel XTI body but with the 17-85mm IS lens.(in fact any lens you buy should have IS...it will worth the extra $$)' When I got my digital 20D a few years ago i got the 17-85mm lens with it...it is an excellent all purpose lens that I use daily..The next lens after that would be 70-200mm F1.4 Zoom which is way cheaper than the F2.8 and much lighter.

Then a really good bag to protect your "stuff" I use a KARTA ..it is pricy but I consider it insurance for my gear. If you do it step by step using a great company as your resource you will be able to build a great set up over the years. Canon glass is amongst the best and as major players have they been around for many years......good luck

Last year I bought a Rebel XT and a Canon 28-135/3.5-5.6 EF IS USM Zoom Lens

The stock 18-50 lens that came with it is pure shit and I would save your money and not get it.

The image stabilization is WAY worth the money.

That lens and a nice wide angle prime lens will get you going quite nicely.

I would stick with the Canon.

They are quite nice cameras.

Not on your list, but certainly in the price range... I've been really happy with my Sony alpha 100. It, too, has the shake reduction built into the camera. It has a cool second control dial up top so that you can quickly dial and change settings. I chose against the Rebel XT last year because I read the stock lens was kinda wanky; however perhaps the XTI comes with a better lens.

Whatever you do, be sure to check out dpreview.com

for technical summaries and reviews.

i'm in the same boat. deciding between d80 and xti. leaning towards d80. it feels a bit more solid and gets great reviews. no lens recommendation other than if you get a zoom lense, make sure it's an IS (image stabilization) lens.

that's no ding dong WWII pic, it's WW1!

Go for the D80 or the Pentax k10, the Xti is very uncomfortable to hold and the body also feels like a very cheap build. But if you really want a canon, than the 30D is your one.

Nikon, let's face it, is just great. Costs more than the rest but thats what you have to pay for Nikon quality. However, I'm feeling they're reaching that border between quality and just plain greedy lately.

I'm surprised you didn't even consider the Pentax K10. Has more features than the Xti and the D80 and costs less. With the K10 you can add on any Pentax lens ever made and still be able to use the shake reduction system because it's built in to the body.

The Nikon VR lens (Nikon's Shake Reduction system, built in to the lens) can friggin' be costly and heavy.

Since your going to be carrying around the camera alot you're going to need shake reduction. Did I also mention the K10 is Weather Sealed?? Yeah seriously, take a look at the K10.

This site offers great reliable reviews and has a very active forum.

http://www.dpreview.com

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/pentaxk10d/

http://ok1000.blogspot.com/ (great lil' blog centering around k10 before it's final release)

Oh yeah, it's also got a Dust Reduction / Removal system. And it's super sexy too

I just recently bought a Sony Alpha after having used my travel companion's camera on a recent trip to Japan. I love it. One advantage that it has over the others is the steadyshot feature is built into the camera body and all lenses with the Minolta lens mount will work with it, saving a small fortune when you decide you need more than just the lense it came with.

Go with the Rebel XTI. The XTI has the new software system to reduce dust spots on your sensor. So it will keep your images looking nice. Plus I've been happy with my XT for the last couple years so thats a factor.

Lense wise I'd go with the Canon 50mm 1.8. It's a great lense for its price. Only 80 bucks on B&H. (Great Online Store by the way, if you're looking for a local store go to Glazers.) The 1.8 aperture allows it to take shots in really low lit areas and still have a good shot. Plus its superlight.

I too am only an amateur and have no real experience with other cameras, but I thought I should pass this on.

Years ago, I bought a Pentax SLR because it was the cheaper of the major brands. Later I bought a wide angle and a telephoto lens. The wide angle is a pentax make and I just love it. Anyway come this last December I decided to go digital. Since I love my current lenses, I decided to go with Pentax again and I got a K100d. This has a lot of automated features for amateurs like me, but you can also do a lot of manual stuff too. And the great thing about digital is that you learn immediatly.

So it has this thing called Shake Reduction. I can take all sorts of pictures in really low light with a really slow speed and they still turn out great. I have one portrait where the face of the person is absolutely beautiful. It's very low light, but in the lower right-hand corner you see a blur where the person moved indicating this was a slow speed. But again the face turned out great and I love the picture. I couldn't have taken it without shake reduction. Let me know if you want to see it.

A friend of mine has a Nikon and he took a look at mine. He says Nikon makes you buy a special lense for shake reduction at a premium price. Pentax doesn't.

So again, I'm no pro, but I love my Pentax. I'm so happy that the brand I chose years ago for expense has really kept with the times.

P.S. I don't work for Pentax