Should beginners start with expensive cameras? A loaded friend finally got the photography bug. Egged on by commission earning salesmen, he returned home with a semi professional mirrorless camera. As a beginner, did he do the right thing? Absolutely not. First of all, he incurred unjustified expense. By buying a simple beginner’s camera, he could have saved enough money to buy a good prime lens. Secondly, beginners tend to get overwhelmed by the cumbersome and complicated menus of high end cameras. Thirdly, the overdose of features actually inhibits learning, It is always tempting to go for the all auto option.
In the golden days of photography, there were several beginners’ cameras. The Pentax K 1000 instantly comes to mind. In today’s full frame world, Canon has the R 100 and Nikon the Z 5II.
H. S. Billimoria