Camera gear discussions

Discussion in 'Photography and Cameras' started by Bill-P, Oct 15, 2015.

  1. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    How good is your cellphone camera? To be honest, I would say for a majority of shots, most last or current gen smartphones have cameras as good as the cheaper point and shoot cameras. I have a Canon S95 that was one of the best point and shoots of 2011 and in most shots, it is equaled by the camera in my Note 4 (which is old at this point). If you have been wanting a new phone, and you want a new camera, it could be a solid time to upgrade and get everything in one device. This is just if you want to take good pictures and aren't trying to learn photography.

    If you want to actually learn more about photography, you should get something that has full manual mode, and preferable aperture and/or shutter priority. The latter two are actually more useful for learning what the various functions can do for your pictures. Jumping straight to manual will be much harder to sort through. My S95 is also for sale for $50, but it looks like Keanex's might be a better deal at that price since it is a newer camera. You could learn how to use the various functions with either and see how much you like messing with those things when taking pictures. This is pretty important, because I thought I wanted to learn about photography and went the DSLR/expensive lens route for a little bit before realizing I just want to take good photos and videos with something that can fit into a large pocket. (kind of mirrors my path in headphones and audio).

    I don't know if either of these two point and shoots will necessarily give you the quality that you want or even the right taste for photography, but it is definitely a start. From there you can go high end point and shoot with the Sony RX100 or Panasonic LX lines (replaced my Canon DSLR and lenses with the Sony RX100M4 and haven't looked back), compact mirrorless systems from most manufacturers which are a compromise between the point and shoots and entry to mid level DSLRs, or go big with full frame DSLRs and a pack full of large lenses. But the price jump is significant to go from the low end to even the mid tier. You go from $50 to near $1000 minimum once you factor in body and lenses. You do go up in the quality you CAN get when you are talking full frames with nice lenses, but really only if you know what you are doing. If you find yourself just using auto or program modes, you probably can just stick to high end point and shoots for portability, or mirrorless to get the enthusiast feel.
     
  2. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    Yep, especially so if you just plan to share nice pictures online, in which case most websites don't support higher quality than jpeg, and most of your audiences would be viewing on screens no larger than 6 inches. I wouldn't upload my hi-res pictures either, since ownership of images is tough to defend online. I have also heard too many stories of people who think they want to pursue photography and buy a DSLR, only to leave it lying in the drybox after one or two shooting trips. In some (rare) cases they actually appreciate the increase in image quality, especially so on big screen, but find that it is too much of a hassle for their purposes and in most cases the type of images they create don't do the camera resolution justice.
    keanex and fraggler have pretty much covered the rest.
     
  3. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    Ah yes, in the event that you intend to start on DSLRs, just pick any of the entry offerings from Nikon or Canon unless you really need features like weather-resistance, since at this level image quality itself is pretty similar until you move up to full frame.
     
  4. cyloh

    cyloh New

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    So ummm... anyone shoot film here? \/
     
  5. lukeap69

    lukeap69 Pinoy Panther

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    I used to but not anymore. The labs that develop film are becoming less and less. I like the quality of digital now compared to few years ago. My film cameras and some lenses are now gathering dust in the storage bin.
     
  6. GoodEnoughGear

    GoodEnoughGear Evil Dr. Shultz‎

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    I have a very active 1 year old and wanted something mirrorless with super fast autofocus, good full auto shots for my wife and good manual control for me.

    I ended up with the Olympus OMD EM-5 MKII with the pro kit lens...so far very happy with that, maybe not top IQ but still very good. The focus is blazing fast and the lens is a sweet all-rounder. Perfect fit for my use case.
     
  7. Bobcat

    Bobcat Friend

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    I still shoot 35mm and 4x5 b&w. But I scan the negs and the rest of the processing is digital.

    Rob
     
  8. JoelT

    JoelT Friend

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    Yeah. Large format B&W, primarily 5x7 but also a bit of 4x5. I do a bit of 120 on occasion as well, when I need to shoot without a tripod. I develop it myself rather than send it out.
     
  9. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    Anyone have recommendations for lenses for architecture photography? If we get the couple of projects that we have bid on recently, I am going to try to convince my business partner to get a full frame camera for better marketing shots. Thinking one of the Sony A7 iterations.
     
  10. keanex

    keanex Martian Bounty Hunter - Friend

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    Just got my 50/1.8 WOW My photography life has changed.
     
  11. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    Generally I've heard of people mentioning tilt-shift lenses, but you can probably use short-normal zooms such as the 24-120 as well. It really depends on what you want to cover and convey. This guy uses both sorts and does fantastic pictures: http://blog.mingthein.com/?s=architecture. Disclaimer: I may be biased as I have followed his photography for two years, and a good bit of advice which I have dispensed on this thread was distilled from his articles.
     
  12. Bobcat

    Bobcat Friend

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    I have a friend who is a very successful commercial photographer and he uses Nikon D810 bodies. For the most part he's a Canon shooter but the 810 image quality is just superior. I think he's been using Zeiss manual focus lenses. Definitely worth a look.

    Rob
     
  13. Friday

    Friday Friend

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    Ah yes Zeiss are fantastic if expensive. I managed to get 35mm F2 Distagon second hand for 900 SGD, and I consider it one of my best deals. Smooth bokeh that doesn't shout it's presence, highly resolving and doesn't look flat even at smaller apertures.
     
  14. lukeap69

    lukeap69 Pinoy Panther

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    I used to be crazy with my Contax Zeiss lenses with adapter on my Canon DSLRs. The technical capabilities of these lenses are superb. Purple fringing, etc are well controlled where my other lenses including L lenses struggled in some really complex scenes. Having said that, I prefer convenience now more than technical capabilities. In fact, I rarely use prime lenses nowadays.

    For Architectural shots, the Zeiss 21 distagon gets very good praise.
     
  15. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    I just placed a bid on an Olympus EM5.

    Can you recommend a prime that withstands the elements or should I just get the 12-50mm Olympus makes?
     
  16. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    More bokeh? Please tell me you indulged in more bokehliciousness...
     
  17. keanex

    keanex Martian Bounty Hunter - Friend

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    Not so much yet, just enjoying how crisp this is!
     
  18. BioniclePhile

    BioniclePhile The Terminal Man - Friend

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    Been thinking about getting a camera for my girlfriend since she likes to take pictures and hang em on the wall. She's got a digital one and prints em out, but I was gonna look into the Impossible Project polaroid cameras. She'd definitely use it, was just wondering if anyone here had any old polaroids that print it right out.
     
  19. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    Get her a used yet in good condition Polaroid SX-landcamera with advanced controls. The rebranded ones are inflated in price for the hipsters.

    Some pros still have a few left with accessories and are no longer using them. Hunt carefully and you can find a proper set, stock up on film and you do not have to look back.
     
  20. BioniclePhile

    BioniclePhile The Terminal Man - Friend

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    'Aight, thanks, I'll see if I can find a working one. Film's pretty expensive though, feh.
     

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