acceptable camera

[frozenoak]

My cellphone's built in camera is simply not good enough, even for the most basic of pictures. I am in the market for a camera for things like showing off bonsai on these forums, but I also want a camera that would be good for taking the macros sometimes required to get fine details in close up pictures. In this vein I was also thinking about creating a small Bonsai studio. Which would basically be a box I'd put a bonsai into, light it just so, and take a photo of it.

I'm thinking a Digital SLR would be the best rout as macro photography, for photos of leaves, pests, and such, would be available with the switch of a lens. Anybody have advice? Price is of some concern but I haven't created a budget yet. This is a purchase I will have to save for.

 

[Poink88]

start your search here...

http://www.dpreview.com/

I am considering this myself...and doesn't break the bank either at $550 - $600
http://www.dpreview.com/products/panasonic/compacts/panasonic_dmcfz200
http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-DMC...TF8&colid=2WH8THK6RB5OK&coliid=I259U57VTOW6R6

Not SLR quality but pretty descent. Nikon and Canon make equally nice cameras at that price range.

Good luck hunting!

 

[Brian Underwood]

Digital SLR cameras are amazing, but you most definitely don't need one for taking good pictures of trees. For a long time I used a little Cannon Powershot, which took AMAZING macro pictures. I think it would be a better investment to get a nice point-and-shoot like the Cannon, some decent quality lights, backgrounds, and a tripod. You will end up with professional looking photos for a lot less money. That's just my take on it though. I'm sure the camera people will poo poo my idea.

This is the guide I started with; http://octavia.zoology.washington.edu/bonsai/photography/

 

[jkd2572]

I want one with wifi that I can send pics straight to my iPad. Tell me where to get one and I'm buying. It's just a hassle to down load pics ect....

 

[dpowell]

Digital SLR cameras are amazing, but you most definitely don't need one for taking good pictures of trees. For a long time I used a little Cannon Powershot, which took AMAZING macro pictures. I think it would be a better investment to get a nice point-and-shoot like the Cannon, some decent quality lights, backgrounds, and a tripod. You will end up with professional looking photos for a lot less money. That's just my take on it though. I'm sure the camera people will poo poo my idea.

This is the guide I started with; http://octavia.zoology.washington.edu/bonsai/photography/

I agree with you Brian and I shoot weddings/portraits professionally (www.dpowellphoto.com). If you're new to photography I always recommend a decent point and shoot. Even the cheap ones take great pictures anymore and if you're willing to invest a little more (something like the canon g12) you can take amazing pictures and have manual controls should you want to start learning more/taking more control.
It's also usually easier to take macro shots with these cameras as opposed to DSLR as you don't need a separate lens dedicated to just macro shots.

For the majority of cases having a clean background and good lighting will make more of a difference than upgrading your camera.

 

[Vance Wood]

I bought a Nikon 5100 for my wife last Christmas. It is really light, a lot lighter than my D70 Nikon, it's easy to use, it's SLR and capable of using an assortment of lenses. It has 13 mega pixels (that's a lot) and takes really great pictures. It has a very user friendly interface, you can basically dial in a setting for what ever shooting situation you find your self in. It also has all of the settings that allows you to tweak any special and or manual setting you happen to prefer. You can also get some pretty good macro shots if you want to photograph buds, needles and critters. The camera itself is around $600 but good equipment is not cheap. My D70 was over a thousand and the D5100 takes better pictures.

As to WIFY? I don't know of a camera outside a phone camera that has this feature. The problem here as I understand it is that Wi FY is in some way bound by the limitations of the server you happen to utilize. Your server my not be able to handle the digital weight of some of the pictures you may want to download. It seems to me that it is foolish to spend all of that money for a great camera and be stuck with second rate photographs because of the WI FY limitations. But; on this point I may be wrong.

I know that Canon makes some really great cameras but I am ignorant as to prices. I'll be happy with my Nikon for many years.

 

[edprocoat]

In reality most all new phones have everything you need for taking great pictures. They have macro modes, most are above 5 megapixels, they have flash and many have in phone editing, plus the ability to shoot a movie then capture a picture from the movie. All you would need is a decent light source, unless you used natural outdoor light such as afternoon light, never direct overhead light.

ed

 

[coh]

I've been using a Canon powershot SX130 IS for a few years now. It's got an assortment of pre-set modes and also allows full manual control of aperture, shutter speed, has a macro mode, etc. 12.1 MP. I don't remember how much it cost, definitely under $200, maybe as low as $150.

I'd agree that you can do very well by getting a camera like this and then investing in other equipment (lights, etc). So much of photography is getting the lighting right. Here are some example photos - (1) crabapple flowers, standard mode, tripod, black velvet background, side lighting (sun) (2) datura flower, macro mode, tripod (3) ponderosa pollen cones, macro mode, tripod (4) robber fly, macro mode, no tripod

Chris

 

[fredtruck]

One question you need to ask yourself is how much editing you want to do, what graphics software you have, and how familiar you are with it. Unless you already have a lot of lenses, I agree with what most have said--that you don't need a dslr. As for the point and shoots, there is a whole range price-wise and quality-wise. Getting the best for what you want and what you can pay for is not real easy, so take some time and study the market.

 

[gergwebber]

I agree with you Brian and I shoot weddings/portraits professionally (www.dpowellphoto.com). If you're new to photography I always recommend a decent point and shoot. Even the cheap ones take great pictures anymore and if you're willing to invest a little more (something like the canon g12) you can take amazing pictures and have manual controls should you want to start learning more/taking more control.
It's also usually easier to take macro shots with these cameras as opposed to DSLR as you don't need a separate lens dedicated to just macro shots.

For the majority of cases having a clean background and good lighting will make more of a difference than upgrading your camera.

take note of that last point. most people learn it after spending a good chunk of change.

I have an olympus point and shoot that is shock and water resistant, wait, shock and water resistant. It goes in the bag, pocket or glove box everywhere be it a hike in the sierra, a day at the beach or a trip to the park.

the reality is that the average $200 digital camera out there is a better camera than most of us will ever need.

 

[Ris]

panasonic DMC-z19 14MP 20X zoom it takes very nice clean pictures, its around $230I got my camera of Ebay for much less brand new. There is the z20 that I think has wifi for about $100 more.

Rishi.

 

[frozenoak]

Wow! Thanks for all the replies. I guess I should have stated that I have had quite a bit of experience with photography. I had a fully manual 35mm Cannon my father gave me as a kid that I used until it died of mold while I was in boot camp and it was in poor storage conditions. Then I had an N60 Nikon for the next 4 years when the Iraqi desert killed it. When I got back I bought an Olympus 35mm camera that I rarely use. Then I got an iPhone and now I want to upgrade. While in Iraq I took a correspondence course through New York Institute of Photography and managed to get pretty good results. I want the SLR more for the "looks professional" aspect that for it's crazy good gadgets and gizmos. I think I may look for something used. Nikon's D5100 looks pretty tempting.

 

[Vance Wood]

Wow! Thanks for all the replies. I guess I should have stated that I have had quite a bit of experience with photography. I had a fully manual 35mm Cannon my father gave me as a kid that I used until it died of mold while I was in boot camp and it was in poor storage conditions. Then I had an N60 Nikon for the next 4 years when the Iraqi desert killed it. When I got back I bought an Olympus 35mm camera that I rarely use. Then I got an iPhone and now I want to upgrade. While in Iraq I took a correspondence course through New York Institute of Photography and managed to get pretty good results. I want the SLR more for the "looks professional" aspect that for it's crazy good gadgets and gizmos. I think I may look for something used. Nikon's D5100 looks pretty tempting.

It's a great camera, it is almost as easy to use as any aim and shoot on the market with a lot of highly sophisticated functions that will please the experienced shutter-bug, as my grandfather used to call us camera nerds. You can use even the old Nikon lenses that are not cpu enabled as long as you shoot in fully manual mode.

 

[berobinson82]

As to WIFY? I don't know of a camera outside a phone camera that has this feature. The problem here as I understand it is that Wi FY is in some way bound by the limitations of the server you happen to utilize. Your server my not be able to handle the digital weight of some of the pictures you may want to download. It seems to me that it is foolish to spend all of that money for a great camera and be stuck with second rate photographs because of the WI FY limitations. But; on this point I may be wrong.

I know that Canon makes some really great cameras but I am ignorant as to prices. I'll be happy with my Nikon for many years.

Respectfully,

Wireless Fidelity = Wi-Fi

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi

Also, wifi has no limitations as far as "servers" go. Wifi has access points, a server houses and distributes data... You can, and I HAVE, moved files as large as 1.4GB over wifi. The tech to bring together cameras with wifi connectivity is out already:

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-EC-SH100-Digital-Optical-Touchscreen/dp/B004L3R136

http://www.dpreview.com/news/2011/8/26/panasoniclumixfx90


Heck, that Samsung might be a decent little point and shoot.

Regards,

-B

 

[Fangorn]

I don’t think you can go wrong with the D5100
I say this not because I’m a huge camera expert, but because I was recently where you are now with looking at new cameras. I was looking to upgrade from my old Fuji 5100 and have read a boatload of online information on DSLR’s. It came down between Nikon and Canon and I was looking mainly at the D5100 and Canon T4I.
It was a tough choice, because they both make great cameras, as do Sony and Pentax. Because they use different lenses, and I read a lot of good things about Nikon's and I also wasn't as interested in taking video with a DSLR (which the T4I is more setup to do) I decided on a Nikon D5100.
And then sold an old clock of mine at a auction, made a killing, and bought the D7000

The D5100 shares the same sensor as the D7000 and is a very good buy at half the cost as a D7000. For me, it came down to the “feel” of the camera, the more weatherproof build of the D7000 and it was something I could grow into.
But if it wasn’t for that old clock I’m sure I’d be a very happy owner of a D5100
Ken Rockwell’s site is a good place to read up on what’s out there, and he’s very high on the D5100
CLICK

 

[fredtruck]

I recently put an article online that relates my experience photographing a cork bark Japanese black pine. Most of the article (43.? megabytes) is about cameras, equipment, and software needed to do this. I'm not sure all of it relates to your camera selection situation, but it does give you a useful point of view. You can check it out here:

www.fredtruck.com/articles/Photographing a.pdf

 

[lordy]

The D5100 shares the same sensor as the D7000 and is a very good buy at half the cost as a D7000. For me, it came down to the “feel” of the camera, the more weatherproof build of the D7000 and it was something I could grow into.

I too was recently in the same position of deciding what to get. I come from a 35MM SLR background for 30 years, and my several point & shoots were just lacking for me. I read up and decided on Canon for a couple reasons. Then I went to a camera shop and tried out several. It came down to how it felt in my hands. What I got was a 60D over any of the EOS Rebels. Those had many of the good features but some really nice features just were not there. Those are a bit smaller cameras that even my average sized hands had to work to use. The 60D had controls where my fingers were, if that makes sense.
One great feature I like is the articulating screen so I can hold it above my head or down at my knees and still see what I am shooting. Another is image stabilization in the lenses.
The best thing you can do is spend a bit more than you think is enough on a good lens. I was surprised how "soft" the focus is with what they call the "kit" lenses. I got the body separate from the lens. I put the money saved on the body-only toward a better lens and I think it makes a difference.