Camera advice - the time has come

Well, I've put it off long enough, but the time has come for me to get a camera. I know the basics of what to look for - a macro function, essentially. What do the photography experts in the house recommend?

 

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Depends on how much you are looking to spend, honestly.

 

Duh, I should have thought of that. Less than $400 is the goal.

 

I shoot coins with a Cannon DSLR camera...

They are pricey... but take some great pictures. As far as point and shoot cameras go i'll have to defer to someone else.

These are pretty standard pictures for what I use.

 

I would suggest getting a DSLR with a nice lens that has macro.
Probably a bit more that $400 but it's worth it.

 

That's a beautiful picture. But the price tag is WAY too steep for me. :crying:

 

I recently went from a Sony point and shoot to a Canon XSI dslr, there is certainly a learning curve to a dslr but you can also put it in point and shoot mode and take good pictures. The point and shoots don't have much adjustment that can be made to the settings, there is also an advanced point and shoot that gives you some of the same settings of a dslr, but typically there are no lens options, the one I was looking at was around $400. I decided to spend a few hundred more and get something that I could use for anything, coins, portraits, wildlife, macros, landscapes, etc. I also bought a reversing ring (about $10) that allows you to turn your lens backwards so you can take extreme close ups (macros) without the expense of a new lens, although I plan to get a macro lens down the road.

Fred

 

This is over what you are wanting to spend but it is great. It is what I use.
http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-G9-Digital-Stabilized/dp/B000V1VG5G

 

Hello Ardatirion,

As I know you know my pictures, you will be able to judge by yourself. I shoot with a Panasonic DMC-FZ18, NOT using the macro function, but "playing with the light while shooting.

Q

 

Thanks, everyone!

Cucumbor - I like your pictures, but I'm not sure how much playing with light I'll be able to do. One question - how do you get your backgrounds uniformly black?

Freaky - Your pictures are great too. Do you do much "playing with light"? Your camera is close enough to my price range to make it possible.

 

Thanks Ardatirion,
I'm not playing that much with light. I use a white neon, or daylight, but this one is not so uniform.

As for the black background, I use a black sheet of paper and put the coin a few centimeters above so that the paper is out of focus. It needs a bit of manipulations at the begining to find the right settings : distance, obturation, speed, angle of the light (which can be very different for a dark coin with black or brown patina, or for a denarius)

Hope that helps
Q

 

Thanks. No not really. I bought some OTT light knockoffs from Costco that work pretty good and I just reflect the light at a angle to the coin. For low contrast coins I use one light and high contrast I use two. (I still think normal GE reveal bulbs work good) I dont even use a tripod. I just hold the camera and click the button. Some of the pics I have taken I just grab the camera and a flashlight, stick the camera on macro flash off and take the pic.

 

I use a Canon SD1100si for my pictures. You can get the camera for $150 - $170.

 

You should know not to post three awesome looking coins in one picture like that..it makes collectors like me drool all over the keyboard.



stainless

 

I use a canon 590IS about $109 on Amazon. I mainly bought it for use shooting through the eyepiece of my stereo scope.But here is one from tonight on macro.



and this one cropped to same size photo



and cropped a little more


and my $4.50 lighting setup



1.00 each from .99 cent store :rolling:



Jim

 

I have to agree on this 100%.
And remember asking a question like that is like asking what car should I buy, which house should I buy, who should I marry, etc. People usually recommend what they know, have or would like to have.
I suggest you go to several camera stores, Walmart, Kmart, etc. and look and ask as many questions as you can.
Then also go to Google and type in Camera Shows. Just like gun shows, coin shows, etc. there are camera shows. If any in your area you would find that most people there are from camera stores and/or are professional photographers.
Remember that the camera you choose may also be used for family photos.

 

I shoot my photos with a Sony a700 ($900.00) with a 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens ($700.00). I will be upgrading my camera to the new Sony a900($2,999.99) in the next month or so. I try to shot my photos with natural sunlight. If this is not possible then I use a copy stand with 4 lights.

I would first recomend that you figure out how much you are willing to pay for the equipment. I am willing to pay alot more than most people because I do photograhy as a hobby and as a side job. Then you need to do your research before you purchase. I would suggest that you get the best that is in you price range.

I had alot of camera'a in my lifetime and the quality of the camera and the lens makes a difference in the pictures taken. I had a Canon point and shoot camera with a decent macro function and it took very bad pictures. I could not get a good coin picture out of that camera for my life.

Just my 2 cents.
CC

 

you havent met the exception to the rule -my camera

 

I'm just sick of autofocus cameras. I need a device that fits into my Canon AE1 in the film slot and record the images digitally.

Ruben