the best thing to get would be, a canon 5D with a 24-105 mm lens. that would b the best deal for you

You said that you “want” to use photography. I’m taking this to imply that it’s not a requirement of one of your teachers and you are not looking to move into this area professionally. If so, the idea of you shelling out tens of thousands of dollars for a Hasselblad or Mamiya is quite absurd.

For what you describe, the entry-level digital SLRs from Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony, or Olympus will serve you well. The standard kit lenses from any of these will serve too.

Also, take under advisement the claim that the Canon cameras are flawed. I don’t know where this is coming from. It certainly would be news to the hordes of professional photographers who use Canons and the hordes of Nikon professionals who — until lately — were screaming at Nikon to come out with cameras of equal quality, which they finally did when they switched to CMOS sensors this year.

Wow, this is a really tough question to answer without knowing more about you and your intentions.

Firstly, if you are pursuing this in a part time trade you don’t want to spend the money on a Hasselblad or a Mamiya. Those cameras cost tens of thousands of dollars plus the cost of lenses.

You said Canon so here we go.

If you were going full time pro I would say the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark lll which will run you around $8000.00 or so. Oh yeah and you need different lenses for different situations.

The problem you face is that fashion photography requires expensive gear because magazines, agents, and clients require very large image files. That translates to both expensive camera bodies and expensive lenses. You truly do get what you pay for.

It sounds to me, however, that you are a fashion student who just wants to create portraits as portfolio for your fashion pieces.

You don’t need the “pro” gear for that at all.

In fact I would recommend getting a used Canon 40D (maybe around $800 – $900 used?) because the 50D just came out. Save money on the body and you can spend more on the lenses. The lenses will be there if you wish to upgrade to a better camera in the future.

I suggest two lenses for fashion photography as a starter.

Get a Canon 50mm 1.4 about $400 or so as it then becomes about an 80mm with the 1.6x factor. Then I recommend the 70-200 2.8 IS for $1100.00 also by Canon. Both of these lenses will allow you to open up the aperture and blur the background which is a must for fashion photography.

The great thing is that these lenses will translate to camera body upgrades should you decide to drop bigger amounts of dough later on.

How much are you willing to spend?

Since this is your first DSLR, you may want to consider the Canon Rebel XT.

I’m a photo major at the Art Institute and I currently use the Canon Rebel XTi.

If you’re willing to spend more, the 40D, 50D, or 5D are all great choices as well.

As for lenses, a good 50mm or 85mm lens is a good choice for fashion.

Good luck!

The pro camera that fashion photographers use is either the Hasselblad H3dii50 or Mamiya 645 with digital back.

As a student, you may want to either start using a film based camera like the Hasselblad or Mamiya 645 or if you still want to use a digital camera base, buy a Nikon D3 with a 24-70 mm f/2.8 lens … that will get you started … as you take photography classes, you will be able to determine which additional equipment you will require … much of the cost of shooting fashion is in maintaining a studio and setting it up with the necessary studio lighting and staging.

It is surprising to me that your instructors do not have any suggestions on this matter, since most have been in the business before becoming instructors and many should still be in the business at some level.

What are your fellow students using to shoot fashion?

As you may have noticed I did not mention Canon in my answer. The pro level Canon 1Ds, Mark III has had some problems and after the introduction of the Nikon D3, many Canon shooters are taking a second look at their systems

NOTE: This last comment is a result of my last shoot with some of my colleagues some of whom own and use more than one Canon 1Ds, Mark III camera. The problem they are having is in the consistency from body to body of the colour saved by the cameras. While the shifts are small, they are enough to cause major problems in work flow when one sensor is ten points warmer than an other and not evenly between the colours in the shot. One user had to send her camera back and have one of her 1Ds, Mark III’s back plate replaced. There have been rumblings among the troops. It was news to me too.