What camera do I use?

I have to laugh when people ask because I know nothing about cameras. I know nothing about aperture, ISO, shutter speed. I play around with manual settings but when it comes down to snapping shots I usually shoot in Auto mode.

Sometimes I can get a good close up shot and I like shooting those, but getting landscapes or group shots to be AMAZING even just GOOD is difficult for me (ask Maureen).

I want to take a class, and will someday. I've been looking into a few, but right now I am busy with other things and when I do take a class I want to be able to apply the things I'm learning. Right now that is not my life.

There are some really good brands but the two I compared were Canon and Nikon. I researched, looked and played with both DSLR cameras prior to making my purchase.

1. Prior Experience: My biggest reason for purchasing the Canon Rebel was that I was a prior Canon user. I'm loyal and if I like something and have good experience then I'm going to stick with it. I had a really great higher end point and shoot digital that took amazing shots. I liked the way buttons and menus were organized on the Canon. I love Canon video too.

2. How it feels in your hands: So when I held various cameras the Canon felt easy in hand ( I have read this same comment from other more experienced photographers). Lets face it, that is one of the most important things to consider, if it doesn't "set well" you won't be picking it up to use as much. You want it to feel stable and secure in your hand and you want to be able to make adjustments and manipulate setting easily. The knobs and controls on the Canon felt more intuitive and easy to use to me.

3. Extraction: When we shopped for a full size violin for McCall we wanted something that was easy to extract good sound. Even two of the same violins extract sound differently. You don't want to feel like you are pulling and working to extract a good sound. In camera's, if you know what you are doing you can get a good picture from any camera. For me between the cameras I had a better chance at extracting a good shot from the Canon - even though I know nothing! Canons are great and rate higher in low light (something I knew I'd be faced with often with kids and their shenanigans). I also read lots of reviews that Canons had better straight from camera shots and needed less editing which was important to my choice.

Ultimately, I think it depends on you and what feels right for you. Don't make your decision based on what someone else uses because it has to feel right to you. When you get into DSLR's any camera can take good photos - just as it can take crappy photos!  It's the user -- so base your decision on the user. I don't think one camera is better than another. ("Pioneer Woman" has a Canon and a Nikon and discusses the strengths of each. She is the best resource for photo info.) Really, you see professionals using various brands, why do they stick with one brand over another? It's what they are used to and familiar with.