Olympus E-410

This is a relatively low cost camera from a premium manufacturer. Good build quality but the accessories can burn a whole in your pocket.

But it is as versatile as you'd want an SLR and I've some excellent results with pics of flora and fauna. I've previously been a Canon user but I think the Olympus has matched my expectations and I think it'd match any similar priced Canon SLR in terms of quality and results.

Try to pick up one of these on ebay and you won't regret it. I would recommend ebay for buying the accessories certainly.

I was given my Olympus E-410 as a present and it is a fantastic camera. It is not too difficult to use, the range of preset 'scenes' will cover most situations and there are also the manual settings for when you want total creative control. The built in flash has a lot of settings (timed in with first curtain, second curtain, full flash, partial flash etc.) that have really added extra quality to my flash photography, so not much need for a seperate flash.

Its going to take me a while to learn how every function works,being something of an amateur, but this camera is really fun to play with.

Good quality well balanced easy to use

Good starting Camera,

but expensive gear (lenses, flash, ...)

Bought this Olympus E-410 camera after progressing from a compact digital and attending photographic tuition classes. The result has been a significant improvment in every aspect of every photo. Easy to use menu and large LCD display for reviewing.

easy for the novice, I'm the novice I should know. Compact and light which means I take it out more often. Cheap enough so not to worry about knocking it about when touring.