# Camera Question



## RDH79 (Jun 25, 2010)

Some of the pitures on here are incredible. What kind of cameras are you using. I have a little point & shoot . It  will not focus on closeups. Its time to get serious. Well as serious as 2 or 3 hundred dollars will get.
Any info would be appreciated. I might take a class in photograhy at the local college this fall. So would like a good camera to start.


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## mredburn (Jun 25, 2010)

Give it a little time and you wil get several members chimeing in on this. I dont have your answer though.


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## Nikitas (Jun 25, 2010)

I use a SonyCyber Shot DSC-H3 8.1 megapixels. I use a macro setting for the pictures and they look great. I need practice for the setup for the background, but getting better....
Brian


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## Whaler (Jun 25, 2010)

Take a look at the Canon Powershot SX-200is. I bought one this spring and am very impressed with it. The macros are as good with it as with my Nikon DSLR. Amazon has it for just over $300.00.
The post in Show Your Pens titled A Jr Emperor yesterday was taken with it.


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## NewLondon88 (Jun 25, 2010)

Cameras that were $1,000 a few years ago are almost free, now.. and they took
fantastic pictures when that camera was the latest/greatest. Now that they're
considered 'dated' nobody wants them. (gee .. only 6 megapixels? No way! .. even
though you'll probably crop away 5.5 of those megapixels anyway..)

I would look for something inexpensive on CraigsList, Ebay etc..  yard sales? and look
for features that you can use. Manual focus.. manual overrides.. external flash synch,
shutter release, macro focus mode.. these are things that will allow you to explore
the camera's abilities and find out if you want to spend more for a better camera.
You might find you need some features and not others.. or you might need more. But
it's nice to know that before you spend bigger bucks on a new camera
Just my $.02 ..  need change?


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## Fred (Jun 25, 2010)

One of the best ideas I can tell you is ask around here as you have and you will get a great consensus of thoughts on everything available.

Put your camera on a tripod and either make a light tent (easily done) or buy one somewhere. Use a camera shutter release cable or the camera's timer. Then ...

[1] *Lighting* is very important, placement, type of bulbs (NO they are not all the same color rating - important) unless your camera can adjust for white balance internally. 
[2] Choice of *Background *- black pen on black background ... not a good idea unless the lighting is correct. Be careful also when photographing silver finishes and using a white background. Many pictures loose the edges of the silver parts IF they reflect the white background. Rearrange the lights and use the lighting to accentuate the parts better. A little shadow here, a little shadow there maybe will do the job.
[3] *Composure* - remember that what you see in the viewfinder is what WE see - even if you rework the photograph in an editing program. Just be sure that the object of interest is not too close to the top, bottom, left/right sides. If it should be vertical, then make it vertical in the viewfinder, same for being horizontal. Crooked pictures are troublesome to view for many of us. 
[4] *Take care and Look* before taking the picture. Do not make your background detract from your object. A zebra against a bunch of black and white poles which match the stripes of the zebra make it hard for folks to see the zebra. Of course if you are being artsy then go for it. Same thing happens when one takes a beautiful pen and places it on a board of the same material. The pen can get lost against the matching background. Again, IF you want to get artsy go for it.
[5] *Focus -* Do the best that you can. If the picture is fuzzy to you, guess what, it will be fuzzy to us to. Back up and check again. Get someone else to check for you. Learn what *DEPTH OF FIELD* is all about. (This is a really lengthly discussion topic) Simply put, use the smallest aperture your camera has available and adjust the time of exposure to make the proper exposure. A pinhole opening is way better than a larger opening (lens aperture.) Try F16, F22, F32, etc. and adjust exposure times. Then compare the pictures in order and right next to one another IF you can afford to print them out until you get it right/better!

One other suggestion ... be sure and try SEARCHING the Forum for other previous posts on PHOTOGRAPHY. This subject has been worked over many, many times! Read them ALL and then ask more questions.

Try some of this info and experiment. Pay attention to your results. Make adjustments based on your results and shoot again ... digital pixels are reusable you know. Have fun! :biggrin:


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## toolcrazy (Jun 26, 2010)

Myself, I'm kind of a amateur (very amateur) photographer. A while back, my 8 year old Epson camera wasn't giving me the photos I wanted. Don't get me wrong, the Epson Photo PC still takes very good picture. But a point and shoot camera the size of a DSLR is a little out of date. So I bought a DSLR Pentax K100D 6.1 megapixles. I love it. Interchangeable lenses and easily programed on Manual mode. I usually set the stop at f16 and adjust the shutter speed down till the light is right.


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## Toni (Jun 26, 2010)

Sony Cybershot DSC-S85 she's a bit old and I love her!! Tri-pod is a must.


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## PenMan1 (Jun 26, 2010)

Nikon D90 SLR, Home made light box here.

Fred's suggestions are right on target!


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