• My first digital SLR was a nikon d80 with the standard zoom lens (i think it was 18-105mm?). it was more than enough for me and I got some great shots with it, including ones that I printed somewhat bigger than A4 - was it A3? A2?? Anyway, point is that 10.2 megapixels is still plenty and it was a good camera and you can find it cheap online... saying that, Rockwell recommends a d90:

    (Aside: I really like his site for reviews etc)

    I also totally agree with @ad441 that a holiday is a perfect time to start - lots of time to practice. I always try to do stuff "first time" i.e. without any post-processing (takes too much time that I don't have). I recommend only using the viewfinder, too - i.e. put the camera to your face, use your eye and don't look at the screen on the back when you're taking photos. Also, experiment! that is, maybe take the same photo, but with different speed/aperture, or ISO, or whatever... that's the way to learn (for me at least).

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