Camera Help

[outta_ammo]

I use my iPhone 15 Pro Max with the Halide app for everything. Always with me and will deal with anything I point it at.
Back in the day, I was an SLR and Kodachrome guy. This is MUCH better.

 

[JohnRippert]

I prefer Canon DSLR cameras and have the model and lens I am going to point out. Looking on Ebay just now I saw a couple of used Canon 50D bodies for around $100. I also looked up the Canon 18-135 IS USM lens, which is the same lens I keep on my 50D backup camera for around the house and in the garden outside. Saw a couple at around $150. For $300 bucks or so you can get a really good and capable body/lens combination. If you wanted to get more magnification later there are 100-300 zooms that would fit the bill for that.

 

[wood714]

I started looking at the RebelT7

My use will be occasional picture taking and family photos of the grandkids. I’ve realized I have very few pictures to leave my kids. Most all are on my iPhone. Which leads to my next question.
Printing photos. Is it better to buy a photo printer or use a photo print place? Will a standard printer work or does it need to be a photo printer.
So the final question would be, should I spend the money on a digital camera,or should I just keep using my iPhone. These pictures were taken with my iPhone and an example of my photography interests.

Cell phone pictures are great for posting online. I've never printed one out thou. When you open a cell pic up in a image editor like Photoshop, that's when you see the real difference between a cell pic and a DSLR pic.

I shoot Nikon, but the Canon Rebel would suit your needs most well with the 18-55 kit lens. Amazon has them for a little over $400. You'll get good images just shooting on auto mode, but if you learn to shoot full manual mode you can get most great images.

As far as printing I have a good HP printer and stacks of glossy image paper, but I found it cheaper and better quality to have prints made from my website SmugMug.

If you're printing color photos, you'll need to make sure your printer and monitor are in sync...calibrated to get the same exact color you see on your monitor to your printer.

 

[DWalt]

Yes, the new cell phones now come with built-in cameras having features and images as good as most free-standing digital cameras. I have an older iPhone and seldom use its camera, But the few times I have used it, the images turned out well. My wife uses her iPhone camera much more than I do. I expect that free-standing cameras now have a near-term expiration date.

Speaking of technology marches on, I recently read something to the effect that DVD movies will be obsolete by sometime early next year, i.e., the big box stores will quit stocking them for sale. Just like what happened with VHS tapes. No longer any customers for them. Everyone is going to streaming. I have noticed that many of the local stores which had Redbox DVD vending machines now have them removed. I never saw why there was much of a market for selling DVDs. There can't be very many people who view them more than once or maybe a few times. Renting makes more sense.

 

[AzShooter]

I do a lot of 13 X 19 prints and can tell the difference between my Nikons and my Phone. Resolution has come a long way but it's not quite there yet plus I can't get the colors as crisp as with the Digital.

I use DataColor to check my monitor every month so what I see on my monitor is exactly what I see in my prints.

I've only had one print done at Sam's Club and I can do better but I can't do them as large, it was 34 X 26 and is pretty good.

I just got in 200 sheets of photo printing paper. Just changing paper makes a difference. I can even do canvas on my Epson. Ink gets kind of expensive, $100 covers all the colors and black and last months.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Was just looking at some of my prints.
Some look pretty good!
Like these two.
I was just messing around with a couple of pics.

 

[chief38]

I used to buy digital cameras but soon stopped. They are very quick to become obsolete and today's iPhone cameras are so terrific that unless you are a professional and take pictures for publications, a dedicated digital camera is really not needed. I have taken really great pic's with my iPhones and now they are even better!

 

[DWalt]

The problem with digital cameras is that they reached their technological pinnacle over 10 years ago.. Very, very few photographers aside from top level pros have any need for all of the bells and whistles now available, such as 60 MP image sensors, to justify using today's latest expensive digital camera offerings, so what's the reason to avoid using a good condition used Nikon, Canon, Pentax, or what have you cameras that were cutting edge in 2010 for 1/10th or less of the price of a new supercamera? It's simply overkill. And older used digital cameras are available cheap everywhere. Just look at eBay and Craigslist. If you must live large, spend the money on a high quality new lens instead. Someone mentioned Ken Rockwell's website earlier. It is probably has the most complete information on older cameras and lenses and some not so old. This location discusses the Nikon D90, and I have two N90 bodies. It came out in 2008, and is one of the better choices in a used body for a discriminating buyer living on a shoestring. Nikon D90 When I bought them, the shutter count for both was very low, like less than 5000. And for a Nikon, 5000 is essentially new, as the expected life is about 100K. I paid $100 for one and I think $85 for the other. One of them I use exclusively for copying and stills of small objects like cards, coins, and stamps. And of course guns and cartridges.

 

[JcMack]

Except when you're a Luddite like me. I have the proper cable but I can't transfer pictures from my phone to my laptop computer to save my life. My computer refuses to accept pictures from my cell phone.

Once you install cable from laptop to cell phone make sure
you go to USB transfer in setup on phone and able up file transfer.

 

[Faulkner]

I'm seeing a number of folks buying into the "iPhones are just as good as . . . " real cameras. Up close, they can indeed hold their own.

They're not once you get past spitting distances. It's the glass that makes the difference at distance.

 

[Golddollar]

Once you install cable from laptop to cell phone make sure
you go to USB transfer in setup on phone and able up file transfer.

Thanks for the advice but the machines just aren't cooperating.

 

[wood714]

I'm seeing a number of folks buying into the "iPhones are just as good as . . . " real cameras. Up close, they can indeed hold their own.

They're not once you get past spitting distances. It's the glass that makes the difference at distance.

This is most true.

First pic is the eagle nest I photographed for 5 years. I shot it at 34mm. The second picture is from the same location with some long glass. If they make a cell phone that can get a shot like that, I'll buy one.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Shot this guy with my longest lens, a 150-600 zoomed out.
With the Nikon Small Sensor, DX cameras you get a 1.5 multiplier effect.
So it’s a 900 mm shot.

 

[Dreadi]

I shoot professionally.

A decent body with a 50mm prime lens will get you a long way. I used that mostly that for many tasks for quite a while. Sometimes I use a prime 24mm. For the past two years I’ve mostly been shooting with a 24-70mm 2.8.

If you’re getting back into the hobby, there’s good deals on used mirrorless digital cameras and good used glass. All of my gear was previously owned.

 

[wood714]

Shot this guy with my longest lens, a 150-600 zoomed out.
With the Nikon Small Sensor, DX cameras you get a 1.5 multiplier effect.
So it’s a 900 mm shot.

That's the only reason I've not gone full frame.

Quick fix on your sky. That's one of the biggest pains about bird photography...a bright sky.

 

[wood714]

I shoot professionally.

A decent body with a 50mm prime lens will get you a long way. I used that mostly that for many tasks for quite a while. Sometimes I use a prime 24mm. For the past two years I’ve mostly been shooting with a 24-70mm 2.8.

If you’re getting back into the hobby, there’s good deals on used mirrorless digital cameras and good used glass. All of my gear was previously owned.

I've always thought the 3 lens that will do about anything are the 12-24, 24-70, and 70-200 all f/2.8

 

[TX-Dennis]

Rather than a DSLR, you might want to consider something like this:

Just a moment...

That is one of Canon's best "point and shoot" cameras. It doesn't use interchangeable lenses, but it has a HUGE zoom ratio. Absolute image quality isn't quite as good with a zoom as with a fixed focal length, but for pretty much anyone except a pro photographer it will do the job.

B&H Photo is a very reliable seller. They are Orthodox Jews, so they do not sell from sundown Friday until sundown Saturday (NY time) in observation of the Sabbath. Their prices are good, shipping is VERY quick. I've ordered from them several times.

As for printing, a photo printer is best. The most important part, though, is the paper. You need high quality glossy photo paper to get the best images. I like Canon photo printers, but I'm sure HP is good, too. Epson printers also make great images, but I've found that their print heads clog more than the others.

There's also nothing wrong with taking a thumb drive or memory card to CVS, Walgreens, or even WalMart to be printed. You can also order prints online from Google, Shutterfly, and a number of other places. They mostly do a pretty good job, and the cost per print may be less than purchasing a photo printer, relatively expensive photo paper, ink, etc.

 

[DWalt]

Rather than a DSLR, you might want to consider something like this:

Just a moment...

That is one of Canon's best "point and shoot" cameras. It doesn't use interchangeable lenses, but it has a HUGE zoom ratio. Absolute image quality isn't quite as good with a zoom as with a fixed focal length, but for pretty much anyone except a pro photographer it will do the job.

I spoke of my favorite Panasonic LUMIX earlier. It also has a wide-range zoom (35-420mm effective) non-removable Zeiss lens, in a remarkably small and lightweight package. Sensor resolution is somewhat lower than today's standard, but adequate fo make excellent full frame prints up to 8x10. That is plenty good enough for the typical amateur. My very first digital P&S digital camera (a Kodak) from over 20 years ago had only a 3 MP sensor, yet even that was adequate for any of my purposes. I still have that Kodak, I just don't use it these days. My opinion is that high sensor pixel counts (>12 MP) are unnecessary for most users, unless you have a frequent need to crop small areas from large images or in making very large prints. Note that a full frame (24x36mm) 35mm film image has an equivalent resolution of approximately 8 MP, so even a digital camera with an 8 MP image sensor is in about the same league as an old-fashioned 35 mm film camera.

 

[CalifEd]

Some problems I have had with the at home color printers is that over time, they fade.
Also, a drop of water or spilled coffee on them will cause you to make funny choking sounds since the ink runs..
I believe that you can take a thumb drive to CVS or Walmart and get them printed as real photos.

 

[DWalt]

Some problems I have had with the at home color printers is that over time, they fade.
Also, a drop of water or spilled coffee on them will cause you to make funny choking sounds since the ink runs..
I believe that you can take a thumb drive to CVS or Walmart and get them printed as real photos.

Unless you happen to be a pro selling prints in large quantities the money spent on equipment and consumables will be excessive. Not too far from my home is a large commercial color print lab that services most of the San Antonio pros, but they will make prints and enlargements for anyone. Then there are the drugstores and places like Sam's Club, etc. All of them can do the job cheaper than any individual, and probably produce better quality results. I have a friend in Del Rio TX who is a professional wildlife and outdoor photographer who sells to many publications and he does exactly zero printing. He has it all done for him in San Antonio.