Good Digital Camera

DaisyChains

Dear All

Could you please recommend a good easy-to-use digital camera?

I already have a 5 year old Nikon mega pix with 3.2 megapix. I find it takes really bad indoor shots at night. I'd need to use a tripod which isn't always practical!

Any suggestions would be of great help, cheers!

AnCatDubh

Have a read here - http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055557678 (also in the stickies)

If still in doubt feel free to post back again.

Good luck with your choice.

drunkmonkey

I'm looking for a good camera as well, I've read the sticky but am still a little unsure of what to get, I want an entry level professional camera, so I guess i'm after a DSLR.
The one that's caught my eye is the Canon 500D, AnCatDubh how would you rate that camera for someone starting off in photography? Is there anything eles you would recommend? Thanks DM

Edit: it dosen't have to be new if I would be better spending the money on a good second hand one that might do as well..

AnCatDubh

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I'm looking for a good camera as well, I've read the sticky but am still a little unsure of what to get, I want an entry level professional camera, so I guess i'm after a DSLR.
The one that's caught my eye is the Canon 500D, AnCatDubh how would you rate that camera for someone starting off in photography? Is there anything eles you would recommend? Thanks DM

Edit: it dosen't have to be new if I would be better spending the money on a good second hand one that might do as well..

The 500D is an excellent camera by all reports, but as you'll find from reading back on the archive of threads here on the topic, entry level in all major branded cameras are really quite excellent with little to differentiate. This includes Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Sony, and Pentax (have I missed any?). Honestly, there isn't an entry level DSLR camera that's a howler from what we see here.

Most reviews that you will read comparing cameras will differentiate by something like 2 - 5 marks out of 100 and will vary from review to review in favour of different offering. The suspicious git inside me suspects the industry / media in some of this.

But all in all, the 500D will be well capable.

If you're not needing something in cling film then check the adverts.ie photographic equipment for sale forum. There are always great cameras coming up there, and the negotiation is a bit more real world than ebay - you probably can meet your seller and even have a try out of the camera before you buy (as I did on an older film model a month or so back).

I'm actually astounded some times how relatively little (I know all things are relative) that some of the older dSLR can be had for second hand. I'm talking things like €250 - €350. Such deals are mad good. And people that buy DSLR's invariably look after them like they were their first born child so no need to worry in most cases about the condition. Also don't be fooled by having to have 20+ megapixels. Truth is that 6 megapixels will be more than enough to get you cracking for a year ot two anyway (unless you plan on selling your work immediately to the advertising industry).

So I'd definitely have a mouch around adverts. Don't get too taken with anything as if you watch that site for a couple of weeks you'll see the old reliable's coming up time and time again.

Julesie

DaisyChains wrote: »

I find it takes really bad indoor shots at night. I'd need to use a tripod which isn't always practical!

Hi Daisy, I second everything AnCatDubh says in the posts above but I'd also like to point out that difficulty in low light conditions is something virtually all compact cameras will suffer from. Even the pinnacle of todays compact cameras (something like a Canon G11) will struggle indoors if you are not using flash and/or tripod.

Even making the jump to a DSLR doesn't rid you of the problem but offers you alternative solutions such as wider control over the camera (Shutter Speed/ISO/Aperture), proper flash units and better lenses although they all come at a cost both monetary and in terms of convenience.

Apologies if the above isn't particularly encouraging. Best advice is to pick a budget you are happy to spend and then read the reviews of all cameras in that bracket. In general the adage "you get what you pay for" holds true.

drunkmonkey

AnCatDubh wrote: »

Truth is that 6 megapixels will be more than enough to get you cracking for a year ot two anyway (unless you plan on selling your work immediately to the advertising industry).

.

thanks for the pointers, I would like the camera to be capable of producing shots good enough for media use (local paper etc), would the 500D be up to the job?

One of the problems I ran into latley was when making a dvd from pictures taken on an ordinary 5mp digital camera, all looked good on the computer but when the pictures were blow up fully on a 32 hd telly they looked terrible, I presume that the 500d would give you good clear pictures when blown up that size?

Julesie

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Pictures taken on an ordinary 5mp digital camera, all looked good on the computer but when the pictures were blow up fully on a 32 hd telly they looked terrible

The 500d is capable of taking great images that will look more than adequate on a 32" TV. As long as you are not sitting right up next to the TV and the photo hasn't been distorted in order to fill the screen.

As AnCatDubh said it really isn't the battle of the pixels anymore. 5mp doesn't tell you anything really about the quality of the image you will get. It is the size and quality of the camera's sensor that has a lot more influence and also your skill as a photographer. If you use the wrong exposure (slow shutter speed, wrong aperture, etc.) the picture will look like muck regardless of the price of the camera.

Also once you step into the land of the DSLR you will realise that the camera body is really only the first variable. Far more important is the lens you put in front of it. For example I'm awaiting the delivery of my new (2nd Hand) 80-200mm lens it is costing more than the body of my camera ever did. But I know it will allow me to take some great pictures that I otherwise would not have been able to get.

DaisyChains

Julesie wrote: »

Hi Daisy, I second everything AnCatDubh says in the posts above but I'd also like to point out that difficulty in low light conditions is something virtually all compact cameras will suffer from. Even the pinnacle of todays compact cameras (something like a Canon G11) will struggle indoors if you are not using flash and/or tripod.

Even making the jump to a DSLR doesn't rid you of the problem but offers you alternative solutions such as wider control over the camera (Shutter Speed/ISO/Aperture), proper flash units and better lenses although they all come at a cost both monetary and in terms of convenience.

Apologies if the above isn't particularly encouraging. Best advice is to pick a budget you are happy to spend and then read the reviews of all cameras in that bracket. In general the adage "you get what you pay for" holds true.

Hi Jules

Thanks for your reply. I guess I was hoping someone would just rec a nice little compact point and shoot camera that's an all rounder! I'm not a pro by any means. My budget would be €300 max. I looked over all those threads and while they were helpful I'm overloaded with information now and very confused :-/ If anyone could help me out, it would be great! Thanks.

AnCatDubh

DaisyChains wrote: »

Thanks for your reply. I guess I was hoping someone would just rec a nice little compact point and shoot camera that's an all rounder! I'm not a pro by any means. My budget would be €300 max.

Check out this thread (there's many others like them). My personal recommendation is for the Pentax M60 - as you'll see in the previous thread, I had bought the M50 and then the M60 for family members and they are fine. Other decent brands such as the Canons, the Nikon's, the Sony's, and the Olympus's all do great P&S's too.

The problem that you may have is as to your expectation of good performance in low light. It is one of the more challenging aspects of photography and in reality P&S's are going to be challenged to perform.

For low light that you mention, the Pentax M50 / M60 recommended above will be as challenged as any to be honest. With learning, effort, and practice, standard 'auto' results (rabbit in the headlights) can be improved on, but i'm just a bit reluctant to raise expectations in that regard.