Cheap Digital SLR camera models and news

Once confined to the realm of enthusiast or professional photographers, digital SLRs now have greater appeal to more-casual photographers who are looking to buy. "We're forecasting about 35 percent growth in the consumer SLR market this year," says David Haueter, an analyst at imaging market research firm InfoTrends.

IDC, another market research firm that tracks digital SLR shipments, makes similar estimates. IDC says it expects U.S. shipments of digital SLR cameras to grow to 2.2 million units this year. Furthermore, by 2011, IDC expects the market to nearly double, to 4 million units in the United States alone (about 36 percent of the total units worldwide).

And fortunately for digital SLR buyers, prices on digital SLRs continue to drop. According to InfoTrends, the average selling price of a digital SLR in 2006 was $966. Now, Haueter says, "we expect the average selling price to drop to $775 for 2007, driven by lower-priced and very popular models such as the Nikon D40x and Canon Digital Rebel XTi."

Inexpensive, and becoming cheap digital SLR camera models might be driving the market for new camera purchases, but for people looking to upgrade--or to graduate from advanced point-and-shoot cameras--the introductions this week of new midrange cameras from Nikon and Canon are significant.

Nikon's new addition is a $1799 D300 (body only); Canon's is a $1299 EOS 40D (body only).

The Canon 40D will ship by the end of the month, while the Nikon D300 will come in November, just in time for the holiday season.

Together, Canon and Nikon control 80 percent of the consumer digital SLR market, according to InfoTrends. They also continue to sell their own cheap digital SLR models. These companies' combined heavyweight market share makes it all the more noteworthy that the two are simultaneously refreshing their step-up cameras.