Selecting a new camera

if you have a "comunity college" close by , you may want to check what they have to offer .
our local college offers many courses at quite reasonable cost - and you get to meet other photographers .
even our 'senior citizens' club' offers photography courses and a weekly 'walk-in' session at $5 for a morning session .
your library should have plenty of books on that subject .
never hurts to go for 'freebies' at local stores - both camera and computer stores .
good luck !
hbg

What brands have the highest quality?

I have had nothing but sony brand cameras in one fashion or another, so I dont know about any others.

I'm not sure I agree regarding learning film first then digital.

Especially when one uses tools such as Photoshop.

You should also consider if you want features such as image stabalization.

I was speaking of "doing serious photographs".

I mean, with my more than 10 mio pixel digital-SLR-camera I can make easily prints up to 30x40 cm or even greater - but when I really intent to do so (and in some other special situations), I certainly will use my analogue/film SLR-camera as well ... and the film pics ARE usually better :wink:

what brand camera ?
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"consumer report" magazine had an extensive evaluation of digital cameras - from inexpensive to very expensive - in a recent issue .
it would be well worth a few dollars to get the issue or borrow it from the library .
i don't remember which issue it was , but no older than six months (read it at the barber's ) .
there seem to be substantial differences in reliability between various brands - the most expensive did now always seem to be the best - there were also differences within the same brand for various models .
hbg

here is the website for ...CONSUMER REPORT... camera evaluations .
have fun !
hbg

The old Nikon Coolpix were a real POS. They had a movable lens that was loosely attached to the camera body. If used heavily in the field for project records, they had a habit of disconnecting and you'd stand there with two hunks of plastic in youre hands and 100 miles from the center of nowhere. Wed then bought a bunch of Pentax 3.5 mpixel. One of my guys always carries a small 36 mm film camera and has them developed in CD form so they can be plopped into reports and notebooks.

What about the Minolta brand?

Does Minolta make a quality digital, or is Minolta simply a film brand of camera?


The link you gave Hbg, doesnt allow me to look at actual brands, just suggestions on how much to expect to pay.

Is there another website like Consumer reports, that I dont have to pay to be a member of, that I can use to browse brand names ?

Whenever I want to figure out what to buy in terms of "techie" items, I always check first with CNet. I like their reviews, and the site is very easy to navigate:

http://reviews.cnet.com/Digital_cameras/2001-6501_7-0.html?tag=glnav

Wow.. good site!

I have never heard of cnet.

WOW!!!

If my little budget allowed it, I would love this.

look at this one here

Oh my....


thats...... perfect

you guys trying to compete with ansel adams ? :wink:
(remember it's not the fancy camera but the patient photographer who makes the true picture) .
...never mind , you can dream ... :wink:
hbg

Wow.

Merry christmas to me.

So, I have been talking about a new camera for a while..

Hubby has been hustling and working like crazy the past few months to get my christmas present WICH, he could not hold on to for any longer.

Today I got home, went to lay down for a while and he handed me my box with this ::




Im afraid to touch it.

those lenses weigh almost as much as my ARM!

This thing has photoshop style picture cropping and editing right in the camera!

just............... WOW..........

Now I am intimidated by it.

My plan, wich was only begining to form, was to open a small studio, stuff it with toys, kiddie friendly paintings on the walls, and start making a living taking pictures and not cleaning houses.

I loved the idea, and as easily as I made this housecleaning business spring off the ground, I know, hands down, I can start a photography business with my eyes closed.

But, it just seemed like something that was going to stay just out of reach for what ever reason.

Now , with this camera it is a reality.

No. A camera alone does not make a person a photographer.
Photoshop alone does not make a person a good photographer.

It is the 'eye' that makes someone great.
And with my husband going through the hoops he did toget this, I am assuming, I am pretty good.

I just cant wrap my mind around it for some reason.

But........ wow.
Merry Christmas to me.

shewolf wrote: What about the Minolta brand?

I have the Monica Minolta Dimage Z5 digital camera. I bought this because it has a 12x zoom (1:2.8-4.5), 36-420mm with 5mgp, and I like to take pictures that are some distance away - such as birds and sculptures on buildings. I also carry the Olympus Stylus 800 all-weather digital camera with 8mgp. Both have non-shake feature, but some of my pictures come out blurry. The Olympus is also good for taking pictures in the dark, a nice feature for use at night.

Interesting thread.

This was taken with the Minolta zoom of a building in St Petersburg.


This was taken with the Olympus.

As do I.

I love to be able to 'make' the picture with everything that is around my subject.

Espically with kids.

If a child has a really odd look on their face, what might make a great picture is to see that they also have their hands in cold water...... or not...

Taking them from far away allows me to pick and choose what will make that picture good.

As for the 'shake factor'

Honestly, my sony mavica has less shake to it then my D80. Either that or I have not learned to use it properly yet. I am not sure wich.
But , I went on a friendly photo shoot the other day and took both.
I ended up resorting to old faithfull ( sony) because I could get in real close with out the shakiness I was causing .

The D80 takes really sharp pictures, but I have yet to learn how to get the pictures I was taking with the mavica.

I think that one would be great for pictures like you are taking CI.

what a fantastic present

You will get to grips with it - it's the sheer size and weight of these cameras that takes some getting used to re: camera shake - you will get to grips with it.

With those long lenses you will do better with a tripod or even a monopod to help steady it.

I have thought about a tripod, but I dont know how well I can get pictures of moving kiddos with it....


I get my best pictures when I am on the ground with them, or chasing them, or climbing with them.. ya know?

A tripod might keep me in one place too long

BUT- i should at least practice with one...