Did the deed

[cuddy]

Yes i succumbed and bought a DSLR today, all the great shots you guys put on here proved to be a temptation too far.

I now have my grubby paws on a Canon EOS 350d and a EF-S 18-55 lens, also got a 512 card and a spare battery and its scary .

My intention is to give it a whirl before i go down the big lens route, but i would appreciate any advice as to what i should be looking at in the near future.

My interests as far as photography goes will be wildlife (mainly birds), landscapes, and butterfly/insects/and plants.

I have been digiscoping for 2 years, very basic and simple stuff, but i would like to move on and any advice will be gratefully received.

Be gentle. brian.

[KC Foggin]

Congrats Cuddy. My biggest hurdle, after digiscoping for 3 years, was learning to hold the camera steady again. I am now back to lifting weights

[greypoint]

My advice would be to get out and use it as much as possible so that everything becomes really familiar before you try anything important. That's the big advantage of 'free' images. Stick it on P mode so that you can at least change the ISO rating and click away. Plenty of time to start getting serious once the camera feels at home in your hands.

[Christine]

Cuddy do not be comparing any bird shots you may take with the 18-55 lens with any digiscoped shots you may have taken,or you may be dissappointed with the cam.I have a 350d and it is a great little camera,takes very good landscape shots.As Greypoint has mentioned,just be used to the cam,and take relatively close up shots of buildings and objects,plus some landscapes,but do not expect any greatly detailed bird shots,using the lens you have.P mode is good.I use it all the time(only because I do not understand any other settings!!!).