The trouble with cameras is, the better you get, the better the camera you want
which can consume large amounts of coin of the realm
View attachment 523373
You know, I don't think that's true. Cameras have improved in recent years in three areas:
1. Low light (ISO) performance.
2. The speed they can process the images, so you can take a gazillion photos a sec.
3. Wider dynamic range (more details caught in shadows and highlights).
But if you know what you're doing you can easily work around 1 and 3 as long as you're not being too niche (like wanting to photograph bands in a nightclub). Use a tripod and/or bracket your images and combine in HDR (easy to do).
And who needs a gazillion pics a second?
I've recently given my daughter my old Canon 450D; you can pick one up for £69 from MPB. And as long as you don't want video, it'll take brilliant photos. You'd probably need about £100 on top for a decent 2nd hand lens and there's some brilliant budget Canon lenses.
55-250mm Image stabilised STM (great for those garden birds and the best budget zoom there is).
10-18mm wide angle; extremely sharp.
24mm f/2.8 (my favourite crop sensor prime lens).
Go on, treat yourself!