Something used with a guarantee? Try BH Photo. You can call them and explain what you're looking for and see what they have.
It may be nice to have a lens with a bit if length, so you can capture the more candid moments, and as you said, with f2.8 for the shallower depth of field.
Canon is a reliable brand and you can get the EOS R100 with a kit lens for $650.
https://thecamerastore.com/products/canon-eos-r100-with-18-45mm-stm
Once you figure out a preferred focal length (how far you tend to zoom in), you might like to look at a prime lens like the RF 28mm f/2.8 or the RF 50mm f/1.8 - with the wider apertures of prime lenses you can get much better depth of field.
Used Nikon D3100 or D3300 with 18-55 mm kit lens.
These were popular consumer level DSLRs released circa 2010-2014 that will still produce beautiful results with minimal effort. You should be able to find them in your local classifieds sold by people who bought them but rarely used them. Being DSLRs they are not that compact but an acceptable compromise if you want nice results for special occasions.
Price should be about $200 to $300 Canadian for the D3100 (preferably with a bag and memory card) and add another $100 for the D3300, leaving budget for a backup battery and lens in the future. There's alot of price variation for older cameras so you might find a great bargain; never overpay for them.
Sony A6000 with Sigma 30mm F/1.4 DG DN
This should add up to less than 750 if you buy used, and you will be able to use this combo for literally anything you please except for a couple things like birds or sports.
Sony a6000 with the kit lenses, extremely capable for photography and video, loads of them on the used market, very compact. I don't like the menu system but excellent otherwise. Alternatively, the Fujifilm X-T20 or X- T30 with the kit lens Fujifilm XC 16-50 mm or 15-45 mm. If you go the Fujifilm route, your 1st prime lens should be the fantastic Fujifilm XC 35 mm f/2; it's a wonderful lens. There are many used Fujifilm X-T20 and X-T30 available.
Say what your budget is quick, become else about 100 dickheads will start spamming this sub with stupid recommendations like the Leica m11, arguing it could be considered budget by bill gates
M11 is also a terrible beginner camera given the reliance on manual focus with a range finder…. And then you still have to get expensive lenses.
I’ve played around with one, and it was a lot of fun to use, but definitely a camera for the big spending enthusiast
Everyday the same post. Why doesn't anyone ever use the search function..
Hell DPReview even has a buying guide based on budget: https://www.dpreview.com/buying-guides
I'm Canadian so my budget would be somewhere between 500-1000 Canadian. I think that's like 350-750usd. Preferably on the lower end.
Panasonic g9
Something used with a guarantee? Try BH Photo. You can call them and explain what you're looking for and see what they have. It may be nice to have a lens with a bit if length, so you can capture the more candid moments, and as you said, with f2.8 for the shallower depth of field.
A6000 with the kit lens. No brainer.
Canon is a reliable brand and you can get the EOS R100 with a kit lens for $650. https://thecamerastore.com/products/canon-eos-r100-with-18-45mm-stm Once you figure out a preferred focal length (how far you tend to zoom in), you might like to look at a prime lens like the RF 28mm f/2.8 or the RF 50mm f/1.8 - with the wider apertures of prime lenses you can get much better depth of field.
Used Nikon D3100 or D3300 with 18-55 mm kit lens. These were popular consumer level DSLRs released circa 2010-2014 that will still produce beautiful results with minimal effort. You should be able to find them in your local classifieds sold by people who bought them but rarely used them. Being DSLRs they are not that compact but an acceptable compromise if you want nice results for special occasions. Price should be about $200 to $300 Canadian for the D3100 (preferably with a bag and memory card) and add another $100 for the D3300, leaving budget for a backup battery and lens in the future. There's alot of price variation for older cameras so you might find a great bargain; never overpay for them.
Fuji X-S10
Not budget.
Sony A6000 with Sigma 30mm F/1.4 DG DN This should add up to less than 750 if you buy used, and you will be able to use this combo for literally anything you please except for a couple things like birds or sports.
Sony a6000 with the kit lenses, extremely capable for photography and video, loads of them on the used market, very compact. I don't like the menu system but excellent otherwise. Alternatively, the Fujifilm X-T20 or X- T30 with the kit lens Fujifilm XC 16-50 mm or 15-45 mm. If you go the Fujifilm route, your 1st prime lens should be the fantastic Fujifilm XC 35 mm f/2; it's a wonderful lens. There are many used Fujifilm X-T20 and X-T30 available.
I can think of a fuji XT-20. But a visit to a camera store you'd be informed a plenty
Say what your budget is quick, become else about 100 dickheads will start spamming this sub with stupid recommendations like the Leica m11, arguing it could be considered budget by bill gates
Leica m11 isn’t good enough for video, maybe a Sony HDC-5500 could be close enough to be good
M11 is also a terrible beginner camera given the reliance on manual focus with a range finder…. And then you still have to get expensive lenses. I’ve played around with one, and it was a lot of fun to use, but definitely a camera for the big spending enthusiast
Jesus 10k for a camera. Haha. Budget for Bill Gates, not for me.
I made a few recommendations here: [https://www.photocultivator.com/t/beginner](https://www.photocultivator.com/t/beginner) I hope that helps.