Digital Cameras?

[rrfield]

For some unknown reason I have yet to purchase a dig-i-tal camera and have no clue what makes a good one. Sad for a dude who spent 3 years as a PC bench tech.

Anyway, my lady friend wants one for Christmas. I've heard that something called "mega-pixles" are what you need to look at. What's an acceptable number of megapixles? I've seen them from 1 to 6 mega pixles with prices from $50 to $1000. Also, any recomendations of brands to look for or brands to avoid?

Thanks dudes and dudettes.

 

[Professur]

Flash, low-light ability, optical zoom, macro. Price of media. Vid capture with sound.

 

[Gato_Solo]

For some unknown reason I have yet to purchase a dig-i-tal camera and have no clue what makes a good one. Sad for a dude who spent 3 years as a PC bench tech.

Anyway, my lady friend wants one for Christmas. I've heard that something called "mega-pixles" are what you need to look at. What's an acceptable number of megapixles? I've seen them from 1 to 6 mega pixles with prices from $50 to $1000. Also, any recomendations of brands to look for or brands to avoid?

Thanks dudes and dudettes.

You're kidding, right? 3 to 5 megapixels are rather common. I'd suggest going with any of the Canon Powershot models.

 

[chcr]

Just got one of these. I like the 8.3X optical zoom, and I don't think any non-professional photographer really needs anything more than 4 megapixels. I got mine refurbished (that cheap bastard thing again ) for 160 bucks plus shipping and a 512 SD card. So far I'm quite impressed but I really haven't even figured out a lot of the features yet. I think I still prefer my K1000 but I've been using that for 30 years.

 

[Dave]

when i was searching for my camera a couple years back, i found that the features on the competing brands were very similar.
the higher the megapixel count, the better the picture. 3-5 megapixels will take a very decent photo and the cameras in that range are reasonably priced IMO.

i've heard good things about the lenses on the Fuji and Cannon cameras.
the media cards on the Sony's only work with Sony equiptment. i have a Kodak camera and Cannon Digicam and i can swap the card between them.

 

[Professur]

The Missus got a Fuji E550 (I think) last month for her birthday. The XD memory cards were the only thing I didn't like about is. They're as good as any, but a little harder to find, and a little more expensive.

 

[BlurOfSerenity]

The XD memory cards were the only thing I didn't like about is. They're as good as any, but a little harder to find, and a little more expensive.

crap, the fujufilm finepix a330 i adopted after some housemates left it in the basement when we kicked them out uses xd cards, lol. luckily it has one. but if i ever want more, i will be sad, lol.

by the way, i dont know id they make the fujifilm finepix a330 anymore, but it has 3.2 megapixels. it takes 1 minute video clips (might take longer ones if i had the usb cable for it or a bigger card) but no sound, and has an array of flash settings. my only complaint is that it tends to give things an unnatural vibrancy of color, but hey, in the photo world, fuji is notorious for that.

 

[Professur]

Ash, the vid duration is directly related to the card. Slap a 512M cards in there and you'll have half an hour of video. The cards aren't impossible to get. They still make them. They're just not as common as the SD and CF cards, which you can practically buy at the corner store. The Walmart in Platsburg has the 512M and 1G cards stock. Up here, getting anything bigger than the 256M requires some phoning about.

 

[Mirlyn]

Ash, the vid duration is directly related to the card. Slap a 512M cards in there and you'll have half an hour of video. The cards aren't impossible to get. They still make them. They're just not as common as the SD and CF cards, which you can practically buy at the corner store. The Walmart in Platsburg has the 512M and 1G cards stock. Up here, getting anything bigger than the 256M requires some phoning about.

Is that a Fuji thing? My Olympus would only do 30 secs no matter the memory size.

I passed a Fuji for Olympus also because of the memory. Made a bad decision there (SmartMedia is harder to find than xD now).

I second the Canon PowerShot suggestion. Camelyn got one (3mp) which was a perfect point-and-click....I think they still use CompactFlash too.

 

[Professur]

My old Kodak MC3 takes CF. I've a 512 in there and it's good for nearly an hour at hi-res. for vid. Lo-res it's almost three hours, including audio. Shame the vid quality is piss poor, but then, it's also an MP3, and there's only so much you can cram into a box that small.

Oh, and tell Cam to try using that damn camera and get us some kid-let photos.

 

[Mirlyn]

My old Kodak MC3 takes CF. I've a 512 in there and it's good for nearly an hour at hi-res. for vid. Lo-res it's almost three hours, including audio. Shame the vid quality is piss poor, but then, it's also an MP3, and there's only so much you can cram into a box that small.

Oh, and tell Cam to try using that damn camera and get us some kid-let photos.

That PowerShot is still up there.

We're putting a collection of kidlet shots on CD soon for the northerners. Will keep you posted.

 

[chcr]

Is that a Fuji thing? My Olympus would only do 30 secs no matter the memory size.

I passed a Fuji for Olympus also because of the memory. Made a bad decision there (SmartMedia is harder to find than xD now).

I second the Canon PowerShot suggestion. Camelyn got one (3mp) which was a perfect point-and-click....I think they still use CompactFlash too.

This Nikon does video however long you have space for (with sound).

 

[Gato_Solo]

This Nikon does video however long you have space for (with sound).

Nikons are also hella expensive.

 

[chcr]

Nikons are also hella expensive.

160 bucks plus shipping

 

[Gato_Solo]

The Nikon that's only $160 is, I'm assuming, one of those coolpix models? What's the resolution?

 

[greenfreak]

After all my research on my own digital camera purchase, I didn't want to purchase anything except a Canon or Nikon. Canon and Nikon hold the lion's share of profits when it comes to digital cameras.

But I was looking for a high-end semi-professional camera with interchangeable lenses. You can't change the lenses on the Coolpix models but with what most people use it for, you don't have to.

Megapixels become the most noticeable when you are enlarging photos. If you don't do that much enlarging to 8x10 or larger, you don't need as much. My camera is a 6mp and the enlargements look great.

Your best bet is to go to a camera store, hold the cameras, look through the viewfinders, take pictures, and compare feature-to-feature and price. I tried out the Minolta Maxxum 7D, the Nikon D70 and the Canon 20D and settled on the Nikon. My friend just bought the Canon 20D and I'll be honest, I still like mine better even though the Canon is a better camera megapixel-wise.

This is the list of what I purchased; the total was $1600. with a $200. rebate. If you're going to purchase online, consider Cameta Camera. I know many professional photographers and they've purchase a ton from them.

 

[Inkara1]

Taking sports photography? Avoid Nikon SLR cameras like the plague unless you like having it take the shot way too late if it will take it at all. I've been using my work's Nikon D100 since July and I've decided that if I ever buy a digital SLR it will be Canon. I don't knoow how many times I've had to answer "What a play! Did you get that?" with "No, it refused to take the shot."

 

[greenfreak]

I don't know about the D100 but the D70 (a lesser model) shoots three frames per second for a max of 144 continuous frames. Three frames per second for sports is enough to catch the action. But that requires learning about the camera, reading the manual, knowing how to use continuous mode, and practice. That much camera isn't meant to be left on "auto" all the time.

And there's a lot more to photography than just the camera. People think that buying an expensive camera is all they need to be a good photographer. And they're so quick to blame the camera when their pictures come out crappy. It's an absurd notion to those who take the time to learn about light, f-stops, shutter speeds, etc.

 

[Mirlyn]

Taking sports photography? Avoid Nikon SLR cameras like the plague unless you like having it take the shot way too late if it will take it at all. I've been using my work's Nikon D100 since July and I've decided that if I ever buy a digital SLR it will be Canon. I don't knoow how many times I've had to answer "What a play! Did you get that?" with "No, it refused to take the shot."

Using autofocus or manual? The Canon's speedshot setting constantly adjusts the AF points when the trigger is at midpoint, so the camera is always ready to take the shot (thus lowering the response time). Using manual would fix that. Also, as GF said, check aperature/fstop....could be insufficient lighting in that setting.

I recommend taking the camera out and practice at a highway or intersection at different times of the day. Try to make the cars stop in your frame. Then try making them stop at a certain point (crosswalk, signpost, etc) for refrence. Try stopping water droplets in a fountain or faucet. Then try doing it all with zoom. Note how settings change their effect.

We bought our Canon 350D in March and we're still learning.

 

[chcr]

The Nikon that's only $160 is, I'm assuming, one of those coolpix models? What's the resolution?

4 MP. Yep, it's a Coolpix 4800. Strictly a point and shoot camera, but since those are the only kind of pics I take anymore, it'll do. Note that this was a refurb and on sale, a standard one does go for 300-400. Generally Nikons are awfully high, hence my "real" camera is a Pentax K1000 (that hasn't had film in it in at least four years). Dara has a 35mm Canon Rebel that we use on vacation. I'll attach a sample pic I took outside today (on automatic).

Edit: Note that time between pics is one of the complaints with this camera.

Edit too: Inky, I would never use any kind of autamatic mode for taking action shots. In fact, I'm not sure I would use a digital camera at all, but I'm not that experienced with using one.