need advice.. i want to buy a cam

[r_dg]

well im an amateur photographer but i think im good at it...
my sister is a make up artist and she wants me to do the shoots
for her book... so i usually use my 5.7 pixels cellphone camera lol... for real and my old digital camera that only has 4 pixels..
but i want to buy a real good camera but i dont know wich one is good...
btw in attachments i put some pictures i took with my cellphone...

[pixelzombie]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

how much of a budget do you have?...i've seen images from a canon EOS-1Ds Mrk II and the quality is outstanding but that camera is out of my price range...

[Craig Walters]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

there's lots of things to consider when buying a new camera. my first question after budget, already noted by pixelzombie above, is, what are you going to use it for and what do you want to carry around with you to get it? that's two questions, of course, but they are closely related. i've had cameras all my life, from polaroids to 35 mm slr film to digital. i love digital. and i love slr's. but, there's a point where you dont need an expensive slr and one of the near slr's will do nicely, especially if you're just starting out and on a lower budget.

you also need to know what you're going to need to know. that sounds a bit odd, but what i mean is, the better the camera, the more you're going to want to know and the more you're going to want to know your camera. you're also going to want to be treated like a pro, which means in terms of the hardware, you may not want all the 'camera for dummies' interfaces and things like auto-focus and other dumb-it-down features. me, i much prefer manual focus to these new auto-focus-auto-shoot things. you cant adjust the camera right or have to translate the dummy features into real photography... 'let's see, oh... they're changing the f-stop on that one to get a lower depth of field'. lol. and on the lower end cameras you're also going to not find features which shld be standard on any decent camera (like a manual zoom instead of that electric crap).

so, there's a big question of quality versus price here and old versus new and learning true photography versus dumbed down interface photography.

and, there's one other consideration here about film versus digital. with lots of folks moving to digital you can pick up really good film cameras and accessories for an insanely low price at times. i cant even sell my old film stuff if i wanted to because i'd have to price it too low and i'd feel too much cheated if i did. so, i'm just keeping it. it's also a better way to learn true photography, with film, especially if you set up a darkroom and find one of those older photography courses that taught the basics like they shld be taught.

anyways, one last thing. in any camera, it's all about the optics, the lenses. you can never take any picture better than the quality of your lens. know your glass and you'll generally do ok in buying the hardware.

and, one of the best places to go to study the camera market is dpreview. these guys have been around for a while now and they do a good job of covering what's out there. it's a good place to go first for comparisons and reviews.

[MatthewMarshall]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

the best question before any of us can help you choose a good camera is how much do you want to spend. If your realy tight on budget look for a used digital camera. many used digital slr cameras with at least 3 or megapixel is a good start. You can get a nice 8x10 prints from 3 megapixel or more. I saw some old digital canon slr cameras in my local camera store for 200.00. A deal for a beginner.

[r_dg]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

thank you kraellin that was a very good explanation, btw i can spend up to 600 dlls but i'd prefer something in between, like 400dlls...

[DannyRaphael]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

Since your primary interest is close-up head shots for your sister, an important consideration is the lens. The camera body only captures "what the lens sees."

"Not so good" lens + OK camera = "not so good" closeups.

"Very good" lens + OK camera = "Very good" closeups.

[r_dg]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

so what kind of lens should i buy?

[Craig Walters]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

danny is quite right. get good glass. and in that price range, i'd go for a 'near slr' rather than an slr, unless you want to buy used, as some suggested (which is fine, btw.). and again, i point you to dpreview.com. these guys know cameras and allow for side by side comparisons, plus reviews, plus a good breakdown of features.

now, the near slr i'm currently drooling over is the panasonic fz18. the 18 stands for 18x optical zoom (which is quite good). panasonic uses leica glass, which is excellent. this is NOT an slr. it's a near slr, meaning it's very close to being an slr in a lot of aspects, but isnt. the price range for the basic package is currently around $300 - 350 retail. and if you add in a few extras, like a tripod, uv filter and decent carrying case, you're right in the price range you mentioned.

but, i warn you, make up your own mind. shop around. look around. compare features and prices and basically do your homework. i WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE if you buy the fz18 and hate it

[r_dg]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

i WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE if you buy the fz18 and hate it

lol... i know i did some research and i found that panasonic and canon are some of the most used cameras in photography so im going to look at them and think wich one is
the best... and as everyone say.. the lens are the ones who do the magic lol...

[jmn]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

I would say a Nikon d300, since I got that.

But, if your low on cash....
I recommend a Kodak DCS dSLR with 14mpx.
It has a Nikon mount so you can probably get a used one with lens and accessories for about $500 on eBay.
They are discontinued, since Kodak and Nikon struck an exclusive deal for sensors and circuitry. Kodak makes the electronics...Nikon makes the software, body and optics...

I laugh at canon, making you buy a wifi adapter to plug in a gps......what are they thinking. WHY would I need/want a wifi adapter if I'm in the middle of nowhere...

[r_dg]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

I laugh at canon, making you buy a wifi adapter to plug in a gps......what are they thinking. WHY would I need/want a wifi adapter if I'm in the middle of nowhere...

i know lol!!! and why i would want a gps??? ....
im going to check that nikon you are talking about..

[willdoak]

Re: need advice.. i want to buy a cam

well im an amateur photographer but i think im good at it...
my sister is a make up artist and she wants me to do the shoots
for her book... so i usually use my 5.7 pixels cellphone camera lol... for real and my old digital camera that only has 4 pixels..
but i want to buy a real good camera but i dont know wich one is good...
btw in attachments i put some pictures i took with my cellphone...

Check out this article: it certainly calmed me down.

http://kenrockwell.com/tech/notcamera.htm

Will