Calling all photograghers

[YellowH3]

I am looking into buying a new camera. I am looking for some suggestions. The best one I found for the money was a Sony DSC-S600 6.0mp Can anyone tell me about the quality of a Sony camera. I am no photogragher. I just want it for HUMMER pics. Let me know what you guys/girls think. Thanks, Tim

[YellowH3]

I am looking into buying a new camera. I am looking for some suggestions. The best one I found for the money was a Sony DSC-S600 6.0mp Can anyone tell me about the quality of a Sony camera. I am no photogragher. I just want it for HUMMER pics. Let me know what you guys/girls think. Thanks, Tim

[wannabeH3]

i started out with sony but now i got a canon.. their flash is way better and battery life seems to be better too! but my hardwares a year old... cannon sd300

[hmrlvr]

I've got a small sony that works well. It seems to take a second or two to actually take the picture though (action shots are tough). My buddy has a Canon and loves it. I also just bought an Olympus Evolt E-500 SLR- 8.0 magapixel. Simply an amazing camera. A little big to just throw around though.

[YellowH3]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by wannabeH3:
i started out with sony but now i got a canon.. their flash is way better and battery life seems to be better too! but my hardwares a year old... cannon sd300 </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
wannabeH3, thats the kind of input I was looking for. I will check it out. Thanks for the quick reply.

[YellowH3]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by hmrlvr:
I've got a small sony that works well. It seems to take a second or two to actually take the picture though (action shots are tough). My buddy has a Canon and loves it. I also just bought an Olympus Evolt E-500 SLR- 8.0 magapixel. Simply an amazing camera. A little big to just throw around though. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
That was one of the questions I had. I have a Cannon 2.1mp now, and it is almost impossible to take an action shot. The shutter lags way behind the button.

[1COOLH3]

I'm a semi-professional photographer and I use a Sony F717 and it does a great job. The only complaint I have is sometimes red's are a little over-saturated.

Here is my website if you want to see some of the pictures I've taken with it.

MW Photography

[wannabeH3]

the sd300 takes burst pics and fits in your pocket very well, i use it for taking pics of my friends doin wheelies on the motocycle.. it also takes movies at 60fps for catching the action... like when your shooting guns.. u can catch the flames and ejecting shells nicely...

[Racer-X]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by wannabeH3:
i started out with sony but now i got a canon.. their flash is way better and battery life seems to be better too! but my hardwares a year old... cannon sd300 </div></BLOCKQUOTE>


Ditto, my sony died inside of 1.5 years. I went to Canon 2.5 years ago with no issues at all. The canon just seems to be better built when it's in your hand.

just got a pentax istDSL. my oldschool film lenses fit, but haven't found a need for them yet. certainly doesn't fit in your pocket, but the pics come out great.

[gc2488]

Have you guys seen the great camera reviews here?
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/

How about these models:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sonydscr1/
(The Sony R1 succeeds the great F828
and the earlier F717 which I have.)


http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicfz30/
(Panasonic FZ30 has great zoom with stabilization.)

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons80/
(Canon S80 which I gave as a gift as a smaller camera.
Has XGA 1024x768 movie mode, and interesting accessories
such as an underwater case for $180:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000B625H4/ref=e_deav_...ncoding=UTF8&s=photo

Sample photo of my Hummer taken with S80:
http://www.pbase.com/hummer2006a/ima...42676/original

[Fubar]

I can't say enough good things about the Canon S80 for a little point and shoot it does a GREAT job with both stills and video.

[evldave]

I agree w/the above. Canon seems to have the best point-and-shoot engine. Not superfast focus (none have that), but the image quality is great. I'm on my 3rd Canon in 3 years (S30, SD450, SD500) and loved them all until I broke them.

For a true digital SLR camera, though, the Nikon D50 is a good deal, and in the kit form can be had for almost as much as the S80 (a point-and-shoot I drool over, but is too big for me). Upgrade to a D70 and your image quality and features will be even better. Can't speak to the Canon SLRs, but I'm a Nikon SLR guy, so they can all piss off...

[f5fstop]

I use only Nikon (F5, F100, D70, D2 plus lenses), but if you are looking at point and shoots, Sony/Kodak/Canon or Nikon are all excellent picks.

As for updating from a D50 to a D70, it will not give you any better photos. In fact a D50 is later technology. Updating to a D70s won't produce any better photos, but it will give you more selections to pick from, and the D70 and D70s use the compact disc cards versus the SD cards used in the D50.
In fact, if you are looking for nature and landscape, the D50, uses the IIIa color space mode which is better, while the D70/D70s uses the Ia color space which is better for portraits.
To start getting more pixels and better resolution, color space, etc., you would have to jump to the new D200.
Just rememeber, pixels are not everything. Color space, dynamic range and sharpness is very important. The type of sensor (CCD versus CMOS) is very important too. Generally speaking, CMOS is not as good as CCD, unless you jump into the high-end (above 3K) cameras with CMOS sensors.

1COOLH3: We should get together sometime and shoot some photos. Like your site.
Here is a link to two AOL homepages, I have never gotten around to an actual dedicated website...yet. I primarily sell mine through studios.
Co/UT/AZ

TN/NC/VA/NY

[Ipedog]

I'm not a pro or semi-pro but I have been shooting for a while.

I prefer Canon. I find that the menu's and controls are easier to get to and use. I used to have a Nikon CP990 3mp cam and it was great but the shutter lag was too much. I upgraded to a canon Digital Rebel and overall I have loved it.

You can see my site at: ipedog.smugmug.com

Point & Shoots are great, but if you plan on having kids or like shooting moving targets a digital SLR is the way to go. Take a look at the Digital Rebel XT. Thats a very nice camera that will last you for years and you can definately grow into it.

Good Luck

[Ipedog]

F5 -

I just took a look at your sites and your landscapes are beautiful. You've got a great eye. You probably already know about this... Take a look at FredMiranda.com. Its a great photography site with a beautiful landscape section. You might enjoy it.

[f5fstop]

I love his waterfall on the front page; great colors, and thanks for the compliments.

To add to cameras:
They are like the old Ford versus Chevy versus Dodge; everyone will like something in a brand that another person does not like.
If a person decides to go with an DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) or SLR (Single Lens Reflect-film), make sure that if you plan on working your way up the DSLR (or SLR) line, to make sure this is the line you want.
The biggest investment in any DSLR or SLR is the lenses, they really are what make the photo; other than your eye. Canon makes great products, but their lenses have always been too soft for me. So, back in the 70s, I sold my Canon equipment and went with Nikon.
Since all my film cameras (F5/F100) are Nikon, it only made sense to jump into the Nikon digital line, since the lenses are all interchangeable between bodies.
However, the reliability of any of the brand name SLRs or DSLRs such as Nikon, Canon, Pentax, Minolta are excellent, and probably on even keel.
In addition, you don't have to purchase the manufacturers lenses. In this day-and-age, some aftermarket companies make excellent lenses such as Tamron, Sigma and especially Tokina (I like Tokina because of their strong build, and their sharpness, which is similar to Nikon lenses, and I guess this makes sense, since Tokina was started by six or eight Nikon engineers a few decades ago.
So, if you prefer a Canon over a Nikon or a Nikon over a Pentax, etc., then look at the aftermarket lenses too.
As for ease of control, that is something you will get used to with the same camera line. Again for me, the major controls (not the menus, trash can, etc., but the controls common from a DSLR to an SLR) on the Nikon digitals were more convenient. But if you have learned on another brand, then it makes sense to stay with that brand.
Nikon was slow to get into the semi- or pro-DSLR market, but they continue to use the CCD sensors in their entry level cameras. Their high-end use expensive CMOS sensors as Canon does in their high-end bodies.
Just figure out what you want to do.
Ipedog is correct, point and shoots are not the best for kids or fast moving objects. The photo lag in these will drive you nuts. You may not notice it right away, but if you have ever shot with a decent SLR with good lenses, a point and shoot will not make it.
I have a decent point and shoot (somewhere), and it was great for static images, but trying to grab photos of my dog was impossible, by the time the shutter fired, the dog was on the other side of the yard. So, for those photos, the DSLR comes out of the bag.
I'm still not totally sold on DSLRs versus film, but with the release of the new D200, I can get my 12 x 18 inch photos, and continue to obtain a good color space and dynamic range. (A Fuji Velvia slide, scanned in at 4000x4000 is the equivalent to a 23 megapixal file.)
Another great DSLR not mentioned, but can be found on eBay for pretty good prices is the Fuji S2. It takes Nikon lenses, since it is a Nikon body with Fuji innards.
Another thing to consider if jumping to a DSLR is memory cards. When any manufacturer advertises X-number of frames per second, you will see the footnote states with XXXXX memory card. Compact and SD cards have different speed ratings, and the faster the card, the more expensive. So, if you are shooting kids in sports, you will require a fast card, if shooting static object such as landscapes, like I do, then speed of a card is not that important.

I second everything F5fstop said. I am a Nikon junkie big time. Even down to their point and shoot coolpix line.

Myself and my GF are both also semi-pro photogs. We both do landscapes, abstract, architectural and fine art nudes (studio).
She was a Canon Girl for many many years. Recently she got rid of the Canon gear and bought a Nikon D200. She was blown away with the colors she is seeing out of her D200. She loves it!
I shoot with my own D200 or my D2H. I sold a D100 for the D200. I can't imagine *not* shooting Nikon.

One aftermarket lens to consider that I didnt see f5 mention is Sigma. I have a couple Sigma lenses and I really like them.

@f5- nice posts! very informative!!


EDIT: forgot to add, if you think you will be doing any flash photography (on camera and slaves- not studio strobes or hot lamps), Nikon is widely considered to have the best flash system out there. Having played with my SB-800 master on the camera and the SB-80 or whatever the model number is as a slave, I can say I agree. Amazing results are there to be had.

[Brian H]

I just purchased a Canon Digital Elph SD550. 7.1 mp, 3X optical zoom, 2.5 inch LCD. It takes awesome pics, has tons of settings. I still have much more to learn on it. The picture is of one of my blueberry pie candles.

[RubHer Yellow Ducky]

The FINEST Point and Shoot Digital Camera on the market today is the Leica D-LUX 2.

I have been a professional photographer for over 36 years photographing in formats from 35mm to 8x10 including digital. Although in most of my shoots I still use film I do use digital backs on my Hasselblad and Sinar View
Camera.

I recently obtained the Leica D-LUX 2 for fun stuff and rate it just behind GOOD WOMEN, MY
H-3's and World Class Food.

It has 8.6 MP, 3 different ratio formats, uses SD cards, LEICA LENS, Optical Image Stabilizer,
Focuses down to 2", all sorts of auto exposure modes as well as full manual... ETC, ETC, ETC

For a Street Price of under $900 nothing can touch it , NOTHING

Look into it.

RYD