What's the best photography camera for beginners?

I'm really interested in learning more about photography since I have been taking photos with my iphone. And I was wondering which camera is best for a beginner? Mostly I'm interested taking sunset portraits and the bokeh. And where can I get the lens too?

Since you didn't mention sports or wildlife, any APS-C or full-frame mirrorless camera or DSLR will do you fine. Both mirrorless and DSLRs are equally suited for great photos, it's just the DSLRs have the upper hand at fast moving subjects such a sports and auto racing.

Getting blurry backgrounds is easier as the sensor size increases. This is because as the sensor size increases, so does the focal length. As the focal length increases, the depth of field will become shallower. For example, take any camera with a small 1/2.3" sensor such as bridge camera. Because the sensor is so small, the lens is1/5th the focal length of a lens with the same angle of view on a full-frame camera. And because the longer the focal length, the shallower your depth of field, the larger the sensor, the more blur you'll get. However, the quality of the blur, or it's bokeh, will be heavily influence by the design of the lens. Lenses with more aperture blades such as 9 or more, will have rounder, more pleasing bokeh. To see what the bokeh looks like for various lenses, go to photozone.de (de being a German site, but in English).

Another aspect of larger sensors is that they have larger pixels. This is important for your landscapes because the larger the pixel, the better it's dynamic range and the lower amount of noise you'll get at all ISO settings. This is why images from smartphones with super-small sensors and pixels produce such a huge amount of noise with a very low dynamic range. Low dynamic range means that details in the shadows and highlights will be lost sooner in high-contrast scenes. Even on low-contrast days like when it's overcast, cameras with small sensors have difficulty in preventing the highlights from being clipped.

So with all of the tech stuff in mind, stick with at least an APS-C format mirrorless such as the Sony a5100, a6000 or a6300. Or if a DSLR is what you'd prefer, check out the Pentax K-50, which IMHO, is the best entry-level DSLR, the Canon T series or Nikon's D3xxx series. One may be best for you, one may feel better in the hand, one may have a better viewfinder for you too. Any will have great control, capabilities and image quality, so you be very happy with the results from any of them.

Pop down to your local library and bury your head in a few of the photography guide books… There's plenty online advice too… Just type digital camera buying advice into your favourite search engine.

Once you get your head around the different kit that's out there and understand what the different features and options cameras offer then you will be in a much better place to decide which kit is the right kit for your needs… Your own individual needs and personal taste affect your choice… Because I use a particular camera brand or model does not mean that you will enjoy using it too.

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