Photography Thread

[emopunker2004]

Originally Posted by coffeemonkey

Buy the 50D or D90 and spend the extra on better glass. That is my opinion. You'll keep the glass for much longer than the body.

I actually picked up the d60 new with 18-135 is lens from amazon for $998. I think that'll will be good for my cruise in April, a useful range if I only have one lens at the time.

[OLS]

Also do not forget to check B&H at bhphotovideo dot com, since they have a large used section and good prices
on new stuff as well, and take it from me, they are extremely fair at grading used gear. Bought at least 7 used
cameras there and if anything, sometimes they grade harsher than they should. Anything they say is an 8 or
higher is likely to be a good buy in good condition. The price is never "cheap", but always very fair. And in general
I find that you can shop all OVER the internet, but apples to apples, if they aren't the cheapest, they are within 5-10 bucks.

Smart timing on a gun sale, prices are right.

[emopunker2004]

Originally Posted by emopunker2004

I actually picked up the d60 new with 18-135 is lens from amazon for $998. I think that'll will be good for my cruise in April, a useful range if I only have one lens at the time.

DOH! I typoed! I put D60, nikon habits die hard. I actually got a Canon 60D kit

[emopunker2004]

Originally Posted by OLS

Also do not forget to check B&H at bhphotovideo dot com, since they have a large used section and good prices
on new stuff as well, and take it from me, they are extremely fair at grading used gear. Bought at least 7 used
cameras there and if anything, sometimes they grade harsher than they should. Anything they say is an 8 or
higher is likely to be a good buy in good condition. The price is never "cheap", but always very fair. And in general
I find that you can shop all OVER the internet, but apples to apples, if they aren't the cheapest, they are within 5-10 bucks.

Smart timing on a gun sale, prices are right.

Indeed. I will be looking there and Adorama for some lenses eventually.

I built an AR15 for $750. Managed to sell it for $1200 cash and 180 rds of some hard to find 12ga ammo worth at least $1/per round.

What is a decent camera for someone that wants an easy to use rig with a lot of lens options.... ?

[emopunker2004]

Originally Posted by Robulous78

What is a decent camera for someone that wants an easy to use rig with a lot of lens options.... ?

Something Canon or Nikon. Read up on it though. How much money u have to spend?

Haha... not much.... I would rather get a decent 2 or 300 dollar digital rig that can take a BUNCH of old school lens... this is just idle thought tho... I'm just in the R&D phase...

[emopunker2004]

Originally Posted by Robulous78

Haha... not much.... I would rather get a decent 2 or 300 dollar digital rig that can take a BUNCH of old school lens... this is just idle thought tho... I'm just in the R&D phase...

Why do u want a DLSR? with your budget you might be better off getting a feature rich P&S. That said with your budget I'd go used. If you get a Nikon make sure to stay away from any of the D40, D60, D3000 or D5000 series as they lack a built in focus motor and will not work with most older lenses.

hmm... sounds like good advice... IDK anything about cameras... to be honest... I LOVE my iphone 4 Camera... its really simple and easy and the results are predictable... I want a camera like that that takes other lens because changing angles and depths to me are what makes photography magical... Perhaps you know of a simple digital that has a lot of filters and options that gives this kinda feel...?

[emopunker2004]

You're not going to be able to get the shallow depth of field with your average P&S like you can a DSLR. You can get it but not to the extent.
Shallow DOF example for you. See person in focus and the background is way blurred out.


DSC_3363 by emopunker2004, on Flickr

[emopunker2004]

This is the P&S i have right now but in black.
http://www.adorama.com/ICASX260GN.html

I like it alot it takes good pictures and has several built in filters to use. If you want I can mail it to you for you to try out as long as you get it back to me by the end of March.

Nice Picture...

Yea my old roommate had a d-60 that I used to play with... It was really complicated... but with a few tries I could get a decent picture and I loved the array of lens he had for it... like 7 different ones... I like a fisheye occasionally... a lens for panorama... and a good telephoto... he also had some wide angle close up lens that took some great shots... unfortunately it wasn't and HD rig...

[OLS]

NOW, onto my own advice. If it is true what you say, I would sell the old school lenses and buy yourself a really nice
digital bridge camera to get you out of the compact point and shoot range and into the 'trying hard to be a DSLR' camera.
Some of your lenses you could likely sell here, and some you might had to work harder at, or trade them at the
Point of Sale for your new camera.

Here are some deals from the only place I shop, (sorry)... These are all used items.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...al_camera.html
(This sucker is F2.8 at BOTH ends of the long lens...amazing for a P&S)

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...era_Black.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...era_Black.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...al_camera.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...al_camera.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...al_camera.html

Keep in mind that outside of the Lumix FZ200 and that Sony Cyber 100v, these are not cameras that I would
necessarily say are the best non-DSLRs out there, they are simply the best ones in the used department at
B&H right now. There are other choices, maybe even better ones, but these are GOOD cameras every one.

ALMOST any one of those would be a great camera to rebuild your photography skills and give you almost everything
you need in hand to tackle any photographic situation. Do you really want to change lenses to achieve your photo-
graphic vision? A lot of people REALLY DO. They want that big sensor, they want the stunning results. But keep in
mind, stunning results do not come automatically dispensed from the cards out of these DSLRs. You still have to do
most of the work. So if you do not know what you are doing, you can get crap out of the best camera, and spend
an awful lot of money trying to get there.

I do not reject anyone's DSLR dreams out of hand. I stay JUST under the line with decent, used, large-body
point-and-shoots with full manual controls. I would love to have a DSLR, but I love owning cameras too much.
I need to have a bag full of CAMERAS, not a bag full of lenses. And even then, I do not buy the latest cameras
that pop up used. I stay a generation or two behind, just like with my desktop PCs. The links I gave you there are
for the most part VERY recent cameras and in good condition. The Panasonic FZ150 might be the loner in the
group, being a decently OLD camera, but still VERY functional.

Have someone here evaluate your stash of lenses, see if there are a few you REALLY need to keep for a possible
upgrade in the future, and sell the rest. Get a good bridge camera and re-learn some tricks and tips that maybe
you used to know, make all the mistakes first, then make a jump up to the dusty-sensor-having DSLR, lol.
I am still holding out, and I couldn't be happier with my current lineup of cameras....except that $75 used Fuji I bought
last week. I can order pizza between pressing the shutter and the pic being taken.

[Subvet642]

Originally Posted by emopunker2004

You're not going to be able to get the shallow depth of field with your average P&S like you can a DSLR. You can get it but not to the extent.
Shallow DOF example for you. See person in focus and the background is way blurred out.


DSC_3363 by emopunker2004, on Flickr

If you use the slowest ISO setting and use the shade to further reduce the light falling on the subject, you can do this with a P&S.

[OLS]

I agree...its all about what you know about how it all works.
You get the source to subject distance right, find yourself in
the right F-stop, you can pull this off. Maybe not always that level
of blur, but to me that's almost too much blur right there. To my own
eye, there is a threshold that is obviously not the same for everyone,
but I like a little, but not too much depth of field blur. But if I had access
to a superzoom P&S with a APS-C sensor and a nice, long, manual zoom lens,
I would prefer to have the larger sensor for sure. Like I said, to me its
about having more cameras, so a DSLR is definitely wrong for me. I can only
shoot one at a time, and mostly only TAKE one with me on any shoot, but
I like the buying and the owning as much as the shooting, haha.

[OLS]

I need to check Adorama....I have been seeing that name since I have been buying cameras,
and have never even LOOKED there. I am so loyal to B&H since that is where I buy all the gear I use
at work. I like to be loyal, especially when they are SO competitive on price. But for used gear,
I guess being 'competitive" on the latest gear is really not as much of a factor. I DO need to look
at their site.

[coffeemonkey]

Originally Posted by OLS

I agree...its all about what you know about how it all works.
You get the source to subject distance right, find yourself in
the right F-stop, you can pull this off. Maybe not always that level
of blur, but to me that's almost too much blur right there. To my own
eye, there is a threshold that is obviously not the same for everyone,
but I like a little, but not too much depth of field blur. But if I had access
to a superzoom P&S with a APS-C sensor and a nice, long, manual zoom lens,
I would prefer to have the larger sensor for sure. Like I said, to me its
about having more cameras, so a DSLR is definitely wrong for me. I can only
shoot one at a time, and mostly only TAKE one with me on any shoot, but
I like the buying and the owning as much as the shooting, haha.

I guess this is an eye of the heholder type thing. I think the background in that photo is distracting (no offense!), it draws you away from the main subject. Look at these photos for a direct comparison, the fully blurred background makes for a better shot. http://www.blacks.ca/wordpress/wp-co...Comparison.jpg

While there are things you can do to achieve bokeh with a P&S, you simply can't compete with a full framed DSLR at f1.8. The glass is better and the aperture is wider than any point and shoot can get.

[OLS]

Originally Posted by coffeemonkey

I guess this is an eye of the heholder type thing. I think the background in that photo is distracting (no offense!), it draws you away from the main subject. Look at these photos for a direct comparison, the fully blurred background makes for a better shot.

YEP, everything ABOUT art is subjective.
But I disagree with your last line. The fully blurred background makes for a different shot.
But of course if you took it to a magazine, one photographer might get paid and one would not.
That's just entrenched subjectivity, lol.

[OLS]

I also need to re-state what I droned on and on about earlier. What I meant is that if you have the right lenses,
and you do not know a lot about the science of how light and cameras work together to do what they do, then
a few decent lens sales would give you the money you needed to pick up a good used bridge camera, a good tool
to learn on while saving you your best lenses and also perhaps a great deal of money, leaving you cash and lens
assets to employ if you decide to migrate to a camera with a larger sensor and maybe a better lens.

Or you could get a DSLR tomorrow.

[emopunker2004]

Here are a couple from my pictures from our vacation to New England in October of last year.


IMG_1317 by emopunker2004, on Flickr


IMG_1547 by emopunker2004, on Flickr


IMG_0910 by emopunker2004, on Flickr