I need a Good, Affordable Camera. Any suggestions?

RRfan Oct 12, 2012

  1. RRfan

    RRfan TrainBoard Member

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    I would like a camera that takes really good HQ pictures. And that isnt outrageously expensive. AND can take good night shots with long Manuel Exposure. I dont want an Olympus. Id perfer Cannon, Sony, and companies alike.

    Thanks for your help!!!
     
  2. TrainboySD40

    TrainboySD40 TrainBoard Member

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    Well, definitions of outrageously expensive can vary! If $500 isn't, I'd recommend looking on your local craigslist to find a Canon rebel XTi/XSi. They have pretty much all the features you could ask for and have very good image quality. Also, the definition of 'long' manual exposure makes it tricky. Most compact cameras top out at 30 seconds, which would be way too short for me, but might be within your budget. If 30 seconds is more than enough, look at Canon (ie the S90) or Panasonic (LX3 or LX5) for high quality. In general, Canon and Panasonic are the best when it comes to compact cameras. When you get into DSLRs, used Canons are the best, and for new look at Canon or Nikon depending on which one you prefer operationally - they're very close technically.
     
  3. RRfan

    RRfan TrainBoard Member

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    I would like at least on option of 60 seconds. $500 is ok. Id do at most $600
     
  4. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Something which has me wondering- There are cameras out now which seem to go upward of a zillion megapixels. Do we honestly need any more than eight or perhaps ten MP? How does this effect them, if a camera also has video capabilities?
     
  5. TrainboySD40

    TrainboySD40 TrainBoard Member

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    Short answer - no. You can print with no up-rezzing at 11x14 from a 10MP camera (If I'm recalling my numbers) and I've got a 24x36 from my 40D hanging on my wall, next to another 24x36 from my 5D Mark II. There is a difference, but you have to be within 2 feet or so to see it - those aren't exactly "stick your nose in it" sizes!

    As for the video aspect, full resolution 1080p is 1920x1080, or about 2MP, which is one reason why camcorders have smaller sensors than DSLRs.
     
  6. CNW 1518

    CNW 1518 TrainBoard Member

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  7. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    How do these abilities effect what we share here on the 'Net?
     
  8. subwayaz

    subwayaz TrainBoard Member

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    I have a Canon SX100IS I purchased it several years ago and I've taken and posted pics on here for years. Simple yet flexible. Can pick one up for around $220.
     
  9. Doug A.

    Doug A. TrainBoard Supporter

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    I'd say very little from the photo standpoint simply because super extra large photos aren't the norm.

    BUT, I do think the larger megapixels (and probably more important is bigger and better lenses) gives us better INFORMATION when you start talking about being able to get dimensional data from a freight car, for example. With a fast DSLR with a good lense and high Megapixels you can shoot multiple photos of moving freight cars to get an overall shot plus closeups of dim data, logos, graffiti, details, etc. As the specs decrease, the less chance you have of getting clear shots of those details.
     
  10. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Ok. I am most concerned with photos uploaded being crisp and clear, so everyone can enjoy a decently sharp image.

    Ah, good. This is the type of feedback I was hoping to read.
     
  11. Stourbridge Lion

    Stourbridge Lion TrainBoard Supporter

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    As folks have mentioned, the higher the MP the more detail is captured which is important when displaying them as larger prints, etc. For internet photo sharing I tend to resize my photos down to 800x600 and Lisa's who has a Canon Rebel SLR to 900x600 and then reduce the quality/sharpness to about 100K in size. So, if your main goal is to share photos you will be fine at the 8MP to 10MP range and the photos will look sharp at these smaller sizes. Here is one of my shots taken in Alaska just recently with my small 8MP Point-n-Shot Canon that I resized to 800x600 and reduced quality to 64K

    [​IMG]
     
  12. Fishplate

    Fishplate TrainBoard Supporter

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    Sounds like you had a bad experience with Olympus. I use an Olympus E-510 for everything from sports to trains and have been very happy with it, so I guess some are better than others. But I think the ingredients of good photos are 95% technique and 5% equipment.
     
  13. RRfan

    RRfan TrainBoard Member

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    My freind has an olympus and we can never figure out how to get desired settings on it. It may just be defected or something
     
  14. RhB_HJ

    RhB_HJ TrainBoard Member

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    More pixels don't mean all that much unless the size of the sensor goes up correspondingly - to full size instead of APS-C format - but then you're talking BIG bucks.

    BTW the current Canon T3 is very similar to the XSi that I bought some time ago. When it comes to video there has been a lot of progress shooting with a DSLR, but IMO a dedicated HD Camcorder is still the better solution - at least for me it is - and that was the deciding factor when I bought the XSi .... I didn't need the video feature.

    Going for a compact camera? I bought a Panasonic DMC-TZ5 many moons ago, I don't leave home without it. It's my walk-around camera and certainly outdoes any smart phone or other contraption by a country mile. On the other end it is a lot handier than lugging around my Canon.

    BTW when you decide on a DSLR, plan to get a 18-250 mm lens like a Sigma 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS HSM
     
  15. Seated Viper

    Seated Viper TrainBoard Member

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    My first DSLR was a Canon. It failed twice under guarantee and I changed it for a Nikon D90, after I'd read reviews of the latter. Reviewer took it on a station platform at night, wound it up to the 6400 ISO rating and fired away. No flash, no tripod. I took some views of the Christmas lights in Winchester, on a wet night, and it stopped the movement of folk walking past.

    It's also good for photographing models . . .

    Regards,

    Pete Davies
     
  16. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    This is a picture I took just over a week ago. Fairly decent, but to my eye, it could have a bit more clarity. That is why my interest in this topic. The camera is an eight year old Fuji 4MP. Good enough back when new, but long ago surpassed:

    [​IMG]
     
  17. fitz

    fitz TrainBoard Member

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    Ken, there is nothing wrong with that photo. I zoomed in on it on your website and can read the car name, numbers, everything. 4MP is fine. I shoot with a 6MP Nikon and am very happy with it. BTW, folks, if you haven't looked at Ken's website, you should. He has some excellent photos of several roads and subjects, such as the one above.
    :happy:
     
  18. paperkite

    paperkite TrainBoard Member

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    I work from home and some times it ain't so busy and Ken's site is just perfect to spend some time admirering his camera work .. and speaking of which ... I have a bone to pick with you guys, earlier today I was reading the post and all the talk about the new electronic focus etc. got me to thinking of selling my cool pix 6100 and getting an up grade . Well about that time the Mrs. yells at me that she is off to the blue borg .... yep, the light comes on and when we got back I had a Canon EOS T3 ( she loves me veryyyy much :teeth:) . Now the cruix of the matter is I can keep it if my older AE-1p FD lenses will fit on the dslr body and save me about 800$ over the ES lenses and I know that they will be manual focus. So does anyone know if they make an adapter to fit the FD lenses to the ES / EOS body ? If so I get to keep the new camera and sell my AE-1P body... for...:rolleyes: oh proaly about a dollar ....
    thanks
    Paul
     
  19. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Interesting question, Paul. I have 3-4 lenses from my old Minolta XG-7, (Rokkor MD series), and now I wonder if those could be used with any DSLR body? Without a major project to find adaptors... If so, I could have a pretty nice setup.
     
  20. RhB_HJ

    RhB_HJ TrainBoard Member

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    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 15, 2012

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