both of you have almost same specs..u can get d90 BODY only.. So i suggest d5000 with kit lens. 40D is good too...but with ur budget u can only get the body.

Both equally good...go to the shop and feel it. I 'll D3000 build quality better.

1000D better....but d60 has been replced by d3000...so u might want to check d3000 1st.

tht budget...add up a little bit to 2.8k...get Canon 500d or Nikon d5000...If u wan sony..u can check out their new A550...

if u insist 2k to 2.5k...then only 2 models, Nikon d3000 and Canon 1000d which are priced at 2k. they both with kit lens. Sony a330 is priced at 2 to 2.5k too. They all equally good. Take my advice, go to the shop and feel it yourself. I was in your situation before, so i know.

hmm..i don rly know prosumer camera. U can try look to DSLR, they don need expensive lens to take nice photo. Even shooting with kit lens is better than prosumer. Yea go feel d3000 and a330...u might like a330 more coz it is like newbie guiding DSLR.

now all the models can fit mostly all the lenses. It totally depends on the lenses and not body. Let say if i give u a:
-very good DSLR body but very poor lens: Your image wont be nice after all.
-an okok DSLR with a very nice lens: Your image will be noticeably sharper/better.

You as a beginner worries too much already, go out and start to shoot. If you found your limitation and needed a better lens, your body would be able to use 99% of all the lenses. So dont worry which body can fit and that body cant etc.

1000d or 500d? To be honest, 1000d is quite old already, rumor saying 1500d is coming out soon. Get the 500d, around 2.7 to 2.9k with kitlens 18-55mm which is quite useful. I am nt canon fan because i find their lower end cameras such as 1000d and 500d to have a very poor build. Not solid in another word. If u r not picky about this, then it should be fine. Otherwise, check d3000 or d5000...they are like 1000d and 500d equivalent.

D90 has better build- no doubt. The 500d + 18200 lens is really tempting. Coz u have the super zoom from wide to zoom, then u can discover your shooting style better and quicker. However, once u bought a brand, it would be very hard for you to jump to another brand again. I can tell you now both of the camera is equally good in terms of Picture quality. But if i were you, i will go for d90, because it has better build and a top screen. Video isnt important in DSLR, they sux anyways. 18105 is quite a good lens to start with too.

haha..thx.. Coz Nikon is always referred to the DarkSide. So i put it up.

Sony is not tht bad also, they have cheapest and most innovative flash - the f58. If you are talking about higher series, then they might lose out a bit when compared to Nikon and Canon. But we as hobbyist, we don care whts up above.

D90 biggest different with d5000 and d3000 is the top screen and the 920k pixels screen. Go for d90, u wouldnt want to be jealous of your brother's d90. Even if u go for the cheapest d3000..u only have 2k left...u cant get any lens better than 18105. If u know wht lens u going to get..pls tell me..i'll see whether it is suitable or not.
2k to 2.5k...get the Canon 1000d or Sony A300/330. They are equally good. Olympus ar? i dono much about them...i knw they are expensive la haha.

If u can still find the a200, then go for it...blur ground image depends on lens...not the camera. You need buy those lenses seperately, but the kit lens is able to produce blur background shots too, but juz tht it is not strong blur background. DSLR is cool to bring around, the trend is here....but if u r buying a DSLR juz to show off...then i think u r wrong. If u too rich, then nvm la..lol
yes focus point can be important for newbies. D3000 is d60 successor...thats why it is better. A330 is packed with lots of feature, such as wireless flash. D3000 doesnt, you need at least d90 and above to do tht. If u like the tilt screen + focus point + good build....try look at d5000...

DSLR will be outed in 3 to 5 years time..3k..go for 500d or d5000...i suggest u go for 500d because all canon lenses have built-in motor, so no need to worry whether u can autofocus with wht wht lens or not.

oh this lens is kinda great. I love the minimum focusing distance, u can focus subject which is super close. Yes this lens is going to make ur budget to go over 4k if u buy it with d90 body. This lens is good i say. The price is around 1.5k...You can also check out Tamron 1750 f2.8 which is a fixed aperture lens.

Tripod..get cheap cheap tripod to start with 1st. Good 1 cost u around 300 to 500...which i believe u will not wan to get 1st.

The choice is yours... D90 kit is around 3.9 to 4.1k. Body for 3.1 to 3.2k

Get the Minolta 50 f1.7...why? Because it is a full frame lens..it can be used on Fullframe camera if u upgrade to FF in the future. Sony 50mm f1.8 is a APSC lens...only can be used on APSC cameras.

Forget about Nikon and Canon's live view...they are just too SLOW to lock on focus! If u wan super fast live view, go for sony.

If the slow issue isnt a problem, then consider d5000 with swivel screen. But d5000 is priced at 2.6 to 2.8k... D3000 is ok too...450d is a bit old..

User friendly? Nikon definitely. But try pick a brand that most of your friends are using, so that you can share lenses. D5000 and 500d pretty similar. Just that d5000 has no built-in motor to drive some lenses. So take tht into consideration.

You want live view? Then forget Canon and Nikon, their live view sux...slow like hell!...Sony is the fastest. If your bro is using SOny...go for sony then! no point getting diff brand if you guys staying under the same roof. Get the new sony A550! it rocks! But i think u could only get the a550 body...and u have no lens to shoot with..LOL! Try to increase ur budget...and get a most basic lens. Otherwise, get A380 with kit.

Sony?Nikon?Canon? - I personally used Sony and Nikon. I prefer Nikon more. However, Sony is very good for newbies to start off with and they are cheap too. I would recommend u to go check out Sony.

d3000 and 1000d..2 most basic DSLR from Canon and Nikon. Or top up 300 more to get d5000 or 500d.

i would say d5000 noise control better than 500d. D5000 has swivel screen...500d does not. D5000 build quality better too! 500D has better display screen though...

built-in motor to auto focus lenses without motor in it. Such as the popular 50mm f1.8..it does not have motor inside the lens. So u need the body's motor to auto focus otherwise, you need to manually focus it.

All canon's DSLR have no built-in motor coz all their lenses are with motor in it. If your friend using Canon...then go canon lo..can share share mah =D

sounds ok..go Sony thread and confirm the price.

ur budget not enough for 500d... so u only left with 1000d and a230..u might want to see nikon d3000...they all equally good.