What is the best beginner camera?
I have seen this question asked a million times. Whether it be on a site like Reddit, or even one of the million Facebook groups I’m in. What is the best beginner camera?
Is there a “perfect” beginner camera?
This is such a hard question to answer. There are so many cameras on the market that I can’t really just recommend any one camera. So I’m going to do my best to recommend a few that are popular among beginners. Before I do this, I need to answer the question “Is there a ‘perfect’ beginner camera?”. I would say no, not necessarily. The best camera for beginners is one that you can learn the fundamentals of photography on as these concepts can be learned using really any camera. As long as you can manually change the ISO, aperture, and shutter speed, the camera should work. You don’t need to go out and spend thousands of dollars on a new mirrorless camera and lens, especially if you don’t even know what you are wanting to photograph yet. Ideally though, you would want to get a camera that can shoot in manual mode and be able to change the lens out. At the very least, if you can’t change out the lens, you want to be able to shoot in manual. I’m not saying that you will be shooting in manual permanently. Quite the opposite actually. Manual mode is important just because it lets you adjust individual settings and you can see how each setting directly affects the photograph that you capture.
What cameras do I recommend?
As I promised, I will recommend some great cameras that are popular among beginners. I’m not favoring one ecosystem over another and will try and include a nice variety of options from each ecosystem!
Canon Rebel t7 - $580
The Canon Rebel T7 is one of the most widely used beginner cameras in photography. I consistently see this camera being purchased by beginners more than any other camera. The T7 is a DSLR camera that uses a 24.1 megapixel APS-C sensor (cropped sensor). This camera is one of the most popular due to the cheap price and ability to change out the lens. A majority of beginners who begin with this camera end up staying in the Canon ecosystem as the cameras all share similar features and are easy to transition between. There are photographers out there who will tell you to steer away from this camera. Everyone who I’ve seen use this camera love it. The model that I linked here comes with an 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens. Or optionally can be purchased with an additional 75-300mm f/4-5.6 lens for $700USD. These lenses are great for getting started and learning the fundamentals, but you will most likely hit a wall rather quickly with these lenses. They aren’t great in low light and since they are variable aperture, as you zoom in, the aperture will forcefully close down, letting in less light. See my article on kit lenses for more in depth details about kit lenses.
Sony a6400 - $1200
I know, I know. The price tag on this camera is rather high. That’s because this is one of Sony’s most popular entry level mirrorless cameras. Honestly $1200 isn’t bad at all for a mirrorless camera. This camera is rocking a 24.2 megapixel APS-C (crop) sensor but is loaded with all of the great Sony mirrorless camera features. This specific camera I linked comes with a 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 lens, which again, isn’t a fantastic lens, but will be great for general shooting and learning. This camera also uses the Sony E-mount for lenses, meaning any lenses you buy for this camera can be used for any of the other Sony mirrorless cameras as long as they use an E-mount. For example, if you purchase this camera and later decide to upgrade to a Sony A7IV, you can use all of the lenses from the A6400 on the A7IV, which saves you money in the long run. You can usually find this camera for sale for cheaper on sites like Ebay, MPB, and KEH camera. If you want to go even cheaper, you can purchase the Sony A6100, which is also a very capable camera.
Fujifilm X-m5 - $999
Now I may be a little biased here, but I absolutely love Fujifilm cameras and they’re primarily all I use. The X-M5 is a fantastic little mirrorless camera from the fujifilm ecosystem that features a 26 megapixel APS-C sensor. This camera comes with a 15-45mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens. One of the biggest downsides to this camera is that it doesn’t have a viewfinder. Meaning you have to use the screen to compose your shots. Personally this is one of the biggest reasons that I didn’t purchase the X-M5 since I love to use the viewfinder to compose all of my shots. But if you don’t care about having a viewfinder, then this camera is fantastic. Fujifilm cameras let you use film simulations that essentially replicate the look of film in your photographs. For people like me who don’t really enjoy the editing process, it’s great to have photos come out of the camera that are already processed with the look that I want. Fujifilm cameras don’t have as many lens options available as other brands but if you don’t need a wide range of lenses, then it’s nothing to worry about. I personally use the Fujifilm X-T5 and the Fujifilm X100V for all of my photography.
Of course, whatever camera you choose, it doesn’t have to be one of these ones I listed. Like I previously mentioned, as long as you can switch it into manual mode that’s really all you need. The ability to swap out lenses is a plus though.
I will continue to add more cameras to this list as I think of them.