Author Topic: Cameras  (Read 25694 times)

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Offline Megster

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Cameras
« on: March 06, 2006, 07:42:16 AM »
Whether you're going to explore places for the sake of photography or just having fun, it's important to document it.  Many of the places I've been to have been torn down or burned, and sometimes I only had one chance at taking photos, like when certain mills are actually on fire.

Most of the photos I posted on this site were taken before I got a decent camera--i.e. everything I took before 2005.  And if I posted anything before 2002, then it was taken with whatever film camera my family was using or a disposable.

I currently use a Kodak DM7590X, 5MP, 10x optical zoom, 3x digital zoom.  (If you don't have funds for a camera...ask for them for your birthday!  I find that works fairly well haha.  I know my mom paid roughly $500 for mine in February 2005).  I prefer optical zooms because digital zooms just make the image grainy.

Most of my pictures on the site were taken with a Sony DSC-P31, 2MP, 2x optical zoom, 3x digital zoom.  When I bought it in 2002 for $200 it really seemed like the shit...it's shit all right...haha.  I've never had a problem with it, except the quality really left something to be desired, especially when shooting from a distance. (Example: God House in the storage bunker.  You can barely read it even though it was shot from about 50ft, and that's a shame, because it's gone now.)

The best example of seeing the difference between the two cameras is my Fort Mansfield pictures.  The coloring of the photos are different; with the older pictures, the vegetation is kind of neon green vs. the newer pictures, where it looks more normal.

Decent cameras are getting cheaper and cheaper.  The camera I use now could reasonably be picked up for around $350 or maybe less.  Or if you want to get something nicer, 6.0MP cameras with 12x optical zooms are going for about $500. 

Oh, and the other nice thing about my camera is that it can take 81 minutes worth of video with sound, and the old one didn't have sound.  I use a 512mB memory card.

So what kind of cameras do you use?
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Offline undeath

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #1 on: March 06, 2006, 07:50:05 AM »
I'm using a borrowed Canon Asomething10 right now and earlier this year I was thinking about something in the Olympus line. I skipped buying a camera because I read about problems with batteries and lighting with certain cameras. Those were priced around 300.

I always recommend something above 5MP. I personally like at least 6. The only reason it matters is picture size. Then look at reviews about lighting and batteries. If the sample pictures look good and there are no problems with lighting indoors or at night and the batteries won't drain quickly, it's good.

Offline skully

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #2 on: March 06, 2006, 08:59:25 PM »
Believe it or not, I still only own the Sony P-30.  Not a bad camera for it's time although the rechargable batteries expire after two years.  Dakiel and I invested early on in these cameras.  They were small, could fit in your pocket, and take a beating.  They were worth every cent.

IMO, Pixel size only matters for two things:
1) Application- Will this be shown on the web (72 dpi) or am I looking to make posters (300dpi and huge)
2) Zooming in for detail-  Will I be zooming and cropping.

I agree about the battery, it means so much.  It sucks to be in an awesome location and to run out of batteries.

For me, some requirements:
1) Killer image.  Good clarity and color.
2) Good low light capability.
3) Good optical zoom lens
4) Good focus, even in low light
5) Flash options

So yes, I have the shitty Sony but luckily Dakiel and I have been borrowing some goodies from my work.  Dakiel has a killer little SLR too.

The Canon Rebel XT (SLR digital) complete with remote flash module:


And the Canon GL2:



But, this is my latest love (next best thing to SLR digital):

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/panasonic-lc1-prelim.shtml

Can I afford any of these things?  No way.  Can I dream?  You bet :)
« Last Edit: March 06, 2006, 09:07:11 PM by skully »
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Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #3 on: March 06, 2006, 10:35:00 PM »
Where do you work where you can borrow cameras like that?  Hell even most journalists around here have their own cameras.

I find I do a lot of zooming and cropping on my photos, so the 2mp pissed me off after a while.
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Offline undeath

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #4 on: April 07, 2006, 10:56:36 PM »
I just bought this digital camera:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicfz7/

I was supposed to have it today, but now I'll have it on Monday. Never buy anything from Abe's Of Maine. They are the only store online that calls you in the middle of the day to confirm your order when you're not there. This definitely sucks if you've just paid 40 bucks for overnight shipping (on Wednesday) and don't get it by the Friday after. If someone orders online, don't call to confirm it...

They only took off 10 bucks from the shipping even though they should refund 30 since it's now regular shipping time.

Offline skully

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #5 on: April 08, 2006, 10:47:00 AM »
Wow, that's a sweet camera.  It retains many of the features that I liked with the LC1.
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Offline elpresidente

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #6 on: May 22, 2006, 04:07:29 PM »
Believe it or not, I still only own the Sony P-30.  Not a bad camera for it's time although the rechargable batteries expire after two years.  Dakiel and I invested early on in these cameras.  They were small, could fit in your pocket, and take a beating.  They were worth every cent.

IMO, Pixel size only matters for two things:
1) Application- Will this be shown on the web (72 dpi) or am I looking to make posters (300dpi and huge)
2) Zooming in for detail-  Will I be zooming and cropping.

I agree about the battery, it means so much.  It sucks to be in an awesome location and to run out of batteries.

For me, some requirements:
1) Killer image.  Good clarity and color.
2) Good low light capability.
3) Good optical zoom lens
4) Good focus, even in low light
5) Flash options

So yes, I have the shitty Sony but luckily Dakiel and I have been borrowing some goodies from my work.  Dakiel has a killer little SLR too.

The Canon Rebel XT (SLR digital) complete with remote flash module:


And the Canon GL2:



But, this is my latest love (next best thing to SLR digital):

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/panasonic-lc1-prelim.shtml

Can I afford any of these things?  No way.  Can I dream?  You bet :)

I think you're totally on point here- but the most important thing that the photographer has skills!!  That Canon Rebel is OFF THE HOOK!
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Offline navidson

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #7 on: May 23, 2006, 11:56:56 AM »
I just replaced my Canon Rebel EOS with the Digital Rebel XT.   It took me a while to get on board with the digital thing - my old camera and I have such a history! - but I love the Digital Rebel.  All of the lenses I had for EOS work with the Digital, but the lens that came with the Digital doesn't work with EOS.  I also found  what I thought was a good deal for the camera on Amazon.
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Offline Hellion1027

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #8 on: May 23, 2006, 03:26:11 PM »
I've taken all my pics with an HP Photosmart(450 I think).  Its not a decent or professional camera, but it takes OK pics. 
My JT Bridge pics I took with my dads camera, which is a much more professional-like digicam.

Offline urban ninja

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #9 on: December 08, 2008, 09:34:09 PM »
im using a nikon d40x and i have two lenses
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Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #10 on: December 11, 2008, 11:22:17 PM »
I still have the Kodak but it's half broken.  I'm looking to upgrade to a Nikon D40 or D60 myself!
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Offline Tmac02892

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #11 on: December 13, 2008, 12:08:03 PM »
Mine is decent, but nothing insane.  I Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3.  It has a 10x optical zoom, 7 megapixels, and a good flash.   
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Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #12 on: January 15, 2009, 08:50:32 AM »
I'm awaiting the arrival of my new Canon Rebel XS!!  (Finally!!!!)
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Offline Az17

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #13 on: May 11, 2010, 08:47:32 AM »
I only have owned one camera in my life and decided to invest in a simple / advanced point and shoot camera.

Fuji Film S2000HD


http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/s/finepix_s2000hd/specifications/

It has tons of features so I can modify the quality before hand while having simple pre set selections on the scroll wheel so I don't have to mess with anything.

Offline Tendonitis

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #14 on: July 12, 2010, 12:21:11 AM »
I only have owned one camera in my life and decided to invest in a simple / advanced point and shoot camera.

Fuji Film S2000HD


http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/s/finepix_s2000hd/specifications/

It has tons of features so I can modify the quality before hand while having simple pre set selections on the scroll wheel so I don't have to mess with anything.



I use the FujiFilm FinePix S700 that I bought for a great deal on Canal St in NYC a few years back, 10x optical, good manual settings.

Most of the time I prefer film cameras, my nicest is a Canon T70 that I bought used in New Mexico, i got it with a 50mm lense but i had bought that model of camera specifically because a year earlier i had found a fixed 500 mm lense for 30 dollars and bought it without even owning the camera to attach it to (impulse buy!). but now i have it and it works great, but film cameras are a bit limiting to work with while exploring.

Offline mista.v

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #15 on: July 13, 2010, 03:13:25 PM »
An old Optio point/shoot and an Oly OM-20 film SLR. Which I just got a 28mm prime for!

Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #16 on: April 08, 2011, 10:34:43 AM »
I love coming back to this topic just to see what cameras were awesome in 2006. hahaha  I love how I thought my kodak was hot shit and it definitely served me well.

So let's update it!  What is everybody shooting with now? 

Here's my arsenal: (the irony of course is that I had to shoot this with my phone.  :rolleyes:)

Left to right, aforementioned Kodak DX7590 (which still takes video, but that's about it), the Canon Rebel XS, the Zumi I shot the NSH video with in November (that's the flat thing that looks like one of those old 110 film cameras) and my monster Canon 7D.  I swear my camera backpack must weigh like 25lbs.  And that fuschia wall to wall carpet was not my choice. hahaha.  Those other two cameras in the background are things I picked up from goodwill and the polaroid is actually just for decoration.  The kodak is something I bought to experiment with film with since I haven't shot in film since 2002 with the exception of this time I did some test shots after I fixed my grandmother's camera (and they were of a nearby abandoned mill....lol)

My original Sony that I mentioned is with my inlaws in Egypt because I never used it anymore and gave it to them, but this is what it looked like and what I started out with.
I hide in the shadows and babble about old things.  I appear to most new members of IB.  I might beat you with my cane.

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Offline Kurt

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #17 on: April 23, 2011, 05:41:44 PM »
For dSLR and SLR I have a Sony A-100, Sony A-580, and a 35mm Canon Rebel G. I also use a Canon Powershot G5 that has been converted to only shoot in the infrared spectrum. And when I feel like I shouldn't bring a good camera to a location for whatever reason I have a Sony P200 and a Panasonic FS3.. always good to have the options

Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #18 on: April 24, 2011, 07:30:12 AM »
I agree on having the variety.  I need a good point and shoot to stick in my purse--that and is the purpose of the broken Kodak.  I wish I had something better for when I'm delivering mail and see something ridiculously awesome...most of the time end up using my blackberry or that Kodak if it decides it wants to be a camera that day. lol

See also: really don't feel like schlepping around really expensive camera equipment when I could get separated from it by ending up in jail. -insert paranoia-

But...I know when I get back into it that 7D is going to be right there, it is sooooo awesome that its glory makes me stupid. haha

So: converting to infrared--I am absolutely dying to do this but I need to get a new IR filter since I dropped the other one I had on pavement at St. Mary's cemetery last September (and of course...it was a good one...).  I couldn't get the hang of it when I tried it before.  I need help with this, any suggestions?  They say you can set custom settings on a dSLR to shoot it but I'm actually having problems getting focus right (I rely mostly on auto focus due to astigmatism, I can't tell if anything is really focused or if I just think it is, and then when I see it on the screen I'm always disappointed), so usually I get it to focus before attaching the filter, and then switch to manual focus so it stays that way and attach, and it still comes out like crap.  And of course that way is more prone to accidents....
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Offline donnabhain

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #19 on: May 02, 2011, 12:49:25 PM »
I've got whatever was on sale. I've been through a dozen cameras easy, they just can't handle my awesomeness. The one I've got now sucks, all the pics looks blurry to me on the little viewscreen so I think I might bring it back. I just got it last week so I haven't had time to look at them on my computer yet so see how much it sucks.

Offline Chief

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #20 on: June 15, 2011, 06:37:40 PM »
Random photography question, is there a computer program that can edit pictures more than say just photoshop 2.5?  Most of my pics come out clear but I have one shot that would be a hall of famer for me but its just slightly off focus, aside of going back to reshoot it, are there any programs to kind of clear it up?  Thanks

Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #21 on: June 15, 2011, 08:32:27 PM »
Are you talking about photoshop elements?  Because if you had photoshop CS5 you can pretty much do anything including xray vision and flying.  haha j/k.

If a picture is out of focus or a victim of motion blur/camera shake sadly there isn't much that can be done to make it super sharp.  I use CS2 myself.  Been using some variation of photoshop (mostly 5.0 and CS2) since 2000.  It depends.  Sometimes the Unsharp Mask feature can save a picture somewhat.
I hide in the shadows and babble about old things.  I appear to most new members of IB.  I might beat you with my cane.

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Offline Chief

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #22 on: June 15, 2011, 08:40:22 PM »
Sick!  Thanks!  I'm downloading a free trial version of CS5 now 980 MB wtf!  If I can save this pic I'd be so pumped. 

Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #23 on: June 16, 2011, 05:43:40 AM »
oh yeah Photoshop is a monster but I wouldn't use anything else.  I tried Gimp way back and that was just...no.
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Offline Kurt

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #24 on: June 16, 2011, 01:02:24 PM »
oh yeah Photoshop is a monster but I wouldn't use anything else.  I tried Gimp way back and that was just...no.


I just recently started using photoshop... I just got CS5 a few weeks ago. I use PhotoScape for basic stuff and have to use Bibble Pro for my RAW images because it won't work with Adobe yet.

Bibbble is a pretty cool program though

Offline donnabhain

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #25 on: June 23, 2011, 05:47:52 PM »
save your pennies Chief . . might not help you with this one though.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/22/lytro-camera_n_882105.html

"Lytro, a Silicon Valley startup, has produced a camera that lets you focus a picture after you take it--over and over again. The camera relies on innovative new technologies that use light fields to create photographs that are manipulable post-shot."

Offline Chief

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #26 on: June 23, 2011, 06:55:02 PM »
Donna- Hey thanks a lot pal


Photoshop did not save the day, my picture sucks! Haha

Offline Megster

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Re: Cameras
« Reply #27 on: June 24, 2011, 09:13:46 AM »
yeah I was reading about that camera, it's insane.

Chief post your pic here so we can at least see what it could have been!
I hide in the shadows and babble about old things.  I appear to most new members of IB.  I might beat you with my cane.

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