Keep Sony Alpha A300 or go for a Canon (or something else)?

[LoneWolf121188]

So, long story short, I've always been interested in getting a DSLR (one of my friends has a Canon XTi and I LOVE using it) but could never justify the price. Then, all of a sudden, a Sony A300 happened to fall into my lap (my dad got it as a gift, but he knows next to nothing about photography, so he gave it to me :santa: ). Now, I've been reading some reviews on it, and it seems as though the XTi takes the crown in this entry-level catagory. Shooting speed is definitely a factor for me, and the Sony does 2.5 fps while the Rebel does 3.5. Image quality looks a little nicer on the Rebel too, IMO. So my original thought was to sell the A300 and go for an XTi. I'm also willing to chip in a bit of money and maybe get an XSi. But here's where it gets interesting.

It turns out that history repeats itself in odd ways. Specifically, the exact same thing happened to my dad about 20 years ago, before I was born. He got a Minolta SLR camera with a collection of lenses as a gift somewhere, and never really touched it. So now we have a few Minolta lenses that apparently work on the Sony Alphas! Specifically, I've found a 100-300 zoom lens and a 16mm fisheye. I have no idea how much these are worth, but I'm guessing its at least as much as the camera. We might even have a few more in storage somewhere.

So here's the question: do I keep the A300 and use the lenses I've got, or sell everything and get a nice XTi or XSi setup?

[Graphicism]

It's really in the lenses not so much the body, A300 and XT/XTi are considered entry level so the specs are going to be around the same, you need to take a look at what lenses you want to purchase in the near and far future and figure out which brand of camera would go best.

Having said that I can almost always guarantee that the Canon lenses will not only be cheaper due to demand, but will have a much wider range for you to choose from. With Canon being popular you can score some really good deals on second hand equipment, in fact I always buy second hand DSLR, it's almost like I'm borrowing it as I can sell it for the same price I buy it for. Best place to do this is on FM ~ fredmirander.com

If I were you, I'd sell the Sony before you put too many miles on it, buy a second hand Canon 30D and a prime lens; the Canon 50mm f/1.8 is about $70 and will be the best lens purchase you'll ever make. I've been through a lot of DSLR's, Canon 300D, XT, XTi, Nikon D50 & D80 and right now I'm using a Canon 10D which cost me $300 with grip.