Looking for a good camera
#1
Nontypical Buck
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Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Where the ducks don't come no more
Posts: 4,420
Looking for a good camera
I've been doing some freelance writing for the last few years. I've found it harder and harder hear lately to make time for it, but with the economy in the can and work slowing down, I think I'm going to have some time to seriously devote to writing this late winter/spring.
The magazine I will be writing for has some pretty serious pictoral requirements. God and my Ivy League educated mother blessed me with an eye/ear/mind for writing (but not for spelling), but I know next to nothing about photography.
Put it this way... a good centerfold or cover type article in this magazine will put a $2000 check in my pocket the day the mag hits the stands. Each picture, in its own right, will fetch up to $500 if its a quarter page.. and perhaps even another $2000 for what they call "calendar quality".
I'm using a Kodak something or other right now... its about the size of my hand. Its great for hero shots and close in work... but just last week I had four longbeards try and land in the treestand with me. They were hardly 20 yards away... and even zoomed in all the way... the camera just won't pick them up.
I need a good high quality... stupid proof... digital camera. I'm not afraid to spend a grand... and I know I'm going to need a good lens. If anyone can recommend a good place to gather some information, that would be awesome. I'd like to keep the thing sorta compact so I can tote it with me to the treestand. I don't have time to just photograph and then just hunt... I have to do both at once.
The magazine I will be writing for has some pretty serious pictoral requirements. God and my Ivy League educated mother blessed me with an eye/ear/mind for writing (but not for spelling), but I know next to nothing about photography.
Put it this way... a good centerfold or cover type article in this magazine will put a $2000 check in my pocket the day the mag hits the stands. Each picture, in its own right, will fetch up to $500 if its a quarter page.. and perhaps even another $2000 for what they call "calendar quality".
I'm using a Kodak something or other right now... its about the size of my hand. Its great for hero shots and close in work... but just last week I had four longbeards try and land in the treestand with me. They were hardly 20 yards away... and even zoomed in all the way... the camera just won't pick them up.
I need a good high quality... stupid proof... digital camera. I'm not afraid to spend a grand... and I know I'm going to need a good lens. If anyone can recommend a good place to gather some information, that would be awesome. I'd like to keep the thing sorta compact so I can tote it with me to the treestand. I don't have time to just photograph and then just hunt... I have to do both at once.
#2
RE: Looking for a good camera
If you are really serious about taking good pictures, you need to look at a digital SLR (dSLR). They take some time to learn to use, but they can do so much more than a point-n-shoot. Especially for wildlife, where distance and light are often critical factors.
I have used Pentax 35mm cameras for years. However, a few weeks ago when I decided to go digital, I went with Nikon and bought a D90. I had used one, as well as a Canon and a couple others in that price range, and the D90 impressed me the most.
With a dSLR camera, you can control three critical elements in your pictures: ISO, Aperture, and Shutter Speed.
ISO is like what used to be "film-speed" on film cameras. You had 100, 200, 400, and sometimes 800 Kodak, Fuji, or whatever film. Higher ISO are more light-sensitive, but that came at the cost of "noise" in the pictures. I used a lot of 800 ISO film, and you could see some grain in the pictures. Usually at 400 or less, grain was hardly noticeable. Lowest is 100, then 200, which is twice as fast as 100, 400, which is twice as fast as 200, and so on. Most dSLRs go to 3200 or higher, but most are really not usable past maybe a 1600. Say you are shooting a picture on 400 ISO with a 1/250th shutter speed. You can take the same picture at 800 ISO with only a 1/500th shutter speed.
Aperture is the opening in your lens. It is counter-intuitive, but the smaller the number, the larger the opening and the more light is being let in. Aperture is often known as the F-stop, and your full stops are 1.0; 1.4; 2.0; 2.8; 4.0; 5.6; 8.0; 11.0; 16.0; 22.0, and 32.0. Every time you go from one number to the next, you are letting in twice as much light. So if you go from an aperture of 5.6 to an aperture of 4.0, you can double the shutter speed. Aperture also affects depth of field. The smaller the aperture, the larger your depth of field. So if I'm shooting a landscape, I'll want my aperture set at 22.0 or 32.0 so that everything appears in focus. If I am wanting to make a deer stand out from the background, I'll want my aperture set at 5.6 or smaller, depending on what my lens allows. That way, the deer is in focus, but the foreground and background are somewhat blurred, making the deer stand out.
Shutter speed is the amount of time your shutter is open. If the subject is moving, I'll want a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion. Faster shutter speeds also minimize my moving of the camera. With a tripod, it doesn't matter, but without, it can make a big difference. As a general rule, and this applies to me, if I'm using a 125mm lens, I need to be using a shutter speed of 1/125th or faster. For a 300mm lens, 1/300th or faster. The larger the zoom, the more magnified my hand motion is, so the faster shutter speed I have to use to compensate for that. When shooting wildlife, especially near dawn or dusk, I find I need a tripod or other steady rest, because even at higher ISO settings and using as large an aperture as my lenses allow, I cannot hold near steady enough for the shutter speeds that I'm having to use.
Between the camera, lenses, and accessories, you are looking at a pretty significant investment. Mine was a little over $2,000. But I can do a lot of neat stuff with it.
Most dSLR cameras come with a "green" setting. On my Pentax, it was a green smiley face. On my Nikon, it is a green camera with the word "Auto" in green. This is supposed to be the all-purpose setting for beginners, but it is generally not the best setting. I use aperture priority most of the time. I set the aperture and ISO manually, then the camera automatically selects the appropriate shutter speed.
My suggestion is go to a dedicated camera shop. Most will have Nikon and Canon cameras, and they are far and away the popular two at the moment. Pick them up, play with them and compare. Look at lenses as well. The people working at the camera shop can also give you a few pointers and help you with your selection. Some even offer free classes to customers, which can be well worth any additional money you spent purchasing the camera from them.
If and when you do decide on a digital camera set-up, take a notebook with you. When you take a picture, write down the settings you had the camera on. Then when you download them to your computer for viewing and editing, you can study each picture and determine what corrections, if any, you need to make the next time you are in the field.
I have used Pentax 35mm cameras for years. However, a few weeks ago when I decided to go digital, I went with Nikon and bought a D90. I had used one, as well as a Canon and a couple others in that price range, and the D90 impressed me the most.
With a dSLR camera, you can control three critical elements in your pictures: ISO, Aperture, and Shutter Speed.
ISO is like what used to be "film-speed" on film cameras. You had 100, 200, 400, and sometimes 800 Kodak, Fuji, or whatever film. Higher ISO are more light-sensitive, but that came at the cost of "noise" in the pictures. I used a lot of 800 ISO film, and you could see some grain in the pictures. Usually at 400 or less, grain was hardly noticeable. Lowest is 100, then 200, which is twice as fast as 100, 400, which is twice as fast as 200, and so on. Most dSLRs go to 3200 or higher, but most are really not usable past maybe a 1600. Say you are shooting a picture on 400 ISO with a 1/250th shutter speed. You can take the same picture at 800 ISO with only a 1/500th shutter speed.
Aperture is the opening in your lens. It is counter-intuitive, but the smaller the number, the larger the opening and the more light is being let in. Aperture is often known as the F-stop, and your full stops are 1.0; 1.4; 2.0; 2.8; 4.0; 5.6; 8.0; 11.0; 16.0; 22.0, and 32.0. Every time you go from one number to the next, you are letting in twice as much light. So if you go from an aperture of 5.6 to an aperture of 4.0, you can double the shutter speed. Aperture also affects depth of field. The smaller the aperture, the larger your depth of field. So if I'm shooting a landscape, I'll want my aperture set at 22.0 or 32.0 so that everything appears in focus. If I am wanting to make a deer stand out from the background, I'll want my aperture set at 5.6 or smaller, depending on what my lens allows. That way, the deer is in focus, but the foreground and background are somewhat blurred, making the deer stand out.
Shutter speed is the amount of time your shutter is open. If the subject is moving, I'll want a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion. Faster shutter speeds also minimize my moving of the camera. With a tripod, it doesn't matter, but without, it can make a big difference. As a general rule, and this applies to me, if I'm using a 125mm lens, I need to be using a shutter speed of 1/125th or faster. For a 300mm lens, 1/300th or faster. The larger the zoom, the more magnified my hand motion is, so the faster shutter speed I have to use to compensate for that. When shooting wildlife, especially near dawn or dusk, I find I need a tripod or other steady rest, because even at higher ISO settings and using as large an aperture as my lenses allow, I cannot hold near steady enough for the shutter speeds that I'm having to use.
Between the camera, lenses, and accessories, you are looking at a pretty significant investment. Mine was a little over $2,000. But I can do a lot of neat stuff with it.
Most dSLR cameras come with a "green" setting. On my Pentax, it was a green smiley face. On my Nikon, it is a green camera with the word "Auto" in green. This is supposed to be the all-purpose setting for beginners, but it is generally not the best setting. I use aperture priority most of the time. I set the aperture and ISO manually, then the camera automatically selects the appropriate shutter speed.
My suggestion is go to a dedicated camera shop. Most will have Nikon and Canon cameras, and they are far and away the popular two at the moment. Pick them up, play with them and compare. Look at lenses as well. The people working at the camera shop can also give you a few pointers and help you with your selection. Some even offer free classes to customers, which can be well worth any additional money you spent purchasing the camera from them.
If and when you do decide on a digital camera set-up, take a notebook with you. When you take a picture, write down the settings you had the camera on. Then when you download them to your computer for viewing and editing, you can study each picture and determine what corrections, if any, you need to make the next time you are in the field.
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