Cameras- What do YOU look for in one?

Started by SOawesomeness, February 26, 2008, 06:04:48 PM

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SOawesomeness

:P I know almost nothing about cameras, and I really want to buy one that isn't so bleh like mine. But anyways, I wanted to know what you look for in cameras. :3
(All I look for in one is if it is reasonably priced and high-ish megapixel. >.> )
Ellie S.
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VictimX

For the most part I go for name brands and as far as megapixels 6 does it unless you want to do large blow up shots and print out full page photos then an 8 or higher is great I have a Sony something 8.1 mega pixel came which was only like $150 but I think it was less..? Anyway what will you be using the camera for?

SOawesomeness

The only occasion I would use a pretty darn expensive camera would probably be at conventions that I attend ( which would be... 4-ish a year? >.> ). My camera right now makes blurry pictures like no other, and I like having really nice looking photos, especially when it comes to exceptional costumes.
And it would be really nice for future things, too. ^^
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XpHoBiaX

I have a vivitar "vivicam 5386" with 5.0 mega pixel/3x optical zoom.

What I like about this camera is that it works as a video camera and also has a lot of wonderful features! Like panorama, black and white, sepia, a feature that blurs the backround, and automatice image inhancing features. Including the red eye removal on most images taken. It also has a big screen so I can see what the hell I am taking a picture of. XD BUT what I love the most is the memory card I got with it. XD 1GB!

DemonLordZabuza

I was going to ask the same thing >.<.  Mother is buying me one, and she wants to know what specs and what not.  But yea :P


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Stormfalcon

I have to agree with VictimX that 6-8 Megapixels will do just fine.  Anything more is simply overkill at this point, unless you expect to do a lot of cropping and blowing-up of your pictures.  What you might want to look for is a good optical zoom range (digital zoom is next to useless), around 4x-6x or so for most uses.  8x or more and you'll be needing some form of image stabilization to counter even the small shakes your hands might bring into play (longer zooms are more vulnerable to vibrations, which would bring on blurriness).  I don't know how advanced you are as a photographer, but if you're on the more advanced side (or wanting to get really serious about it), you may want to see how many shooting modes it offers, especially manual and priority modes.  If you're just wanting something basic, then advanced modes would only serve to overwhelm you.

I hope this helps.
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Golden State Warrior

I'm not very technical, but all I want from a camera is clear, crisp pictures. I guess that's a high megapixel count or something like that. Which reminds me... I need to buy one for Fanimecon 2008.

mDuo13

Definitely look for image stabilization, then. I think a growing number of modern cameras have it as a standard feature, where they've got some sort of gyro or something in it that keeps the lens stable even if your hands are shaking.

But you can also improve the quality of your pictures just by using proper technique - holding the camera at arm's length is going to make your arms wobblier and your pictures crappier; if you hold it up to your face and use the viewfinder instead of the screen, like with a pre-digital camera, you'll have a much more stable grip and therefore your pictures will be less blurry.

Also, most cameras have a pre-focus feature, where if you hold down the shutter button halfway, it'll focus without taking the picture, so you can do that before having your subjects say, "Cheese!". Of course, if you're really serious, you'd want manual focus, but that's an entirely different level, and really hard to find these days except on super-expensive cameras. The nice thing is that if you pre-focus, the camera will take less time to shoot once you've actually pressed the button all the way down -  and we all know how abominably long some digital cameras can take.

Moonblossom

Choice of lenses is a primary one for me, but I don't buy point-and-shoots anymore >< I've fallen victim to the evil siren call of the digital SLR and I ain't nevah goin' back.

T_T My poor wallet.

SOawesomeness

The one I have right now is 6.0 mp, canon point-and-shoot.
But yeah, I was thinking about a digital SLR, although I'm still not sure. So far, the ones I have seen are either 6.1 mp or 10.2 mp =.=;;
And then there's that random spec/technical stuff that I claim am too busy to look into. @.@
I hope I don't take 3-ish months to just figure all that stuff out like I did for a computer... >.<
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Moonblossom

If you want, at some point during Fanime you can look at mine and take a few pics with it to get the feel for it :)

SOawesomeness

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Barnes

Quote from: mDuo13 on February 27, 2008, 10:29:20 AMBut you can also improve the quality of your pictures just by using proper technique - holding the camera at arm's length is going to make your arms wobblier and your pictures crappier; if you hold it up to your face and use the viewfinder instead of the screen, like with a pre-digital camera, you'll have a much more stable grip and therefore your pictures will be less blurry.

I wish I knew that sooner.  :-[
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G.I.R

I'm going to throw out a few things here:  What not to get in a camera.

Don't buy a camera that uses a manufacturers own rechargeable battery.  If it goes bad it will cost you a small fortune to replace, and in a pinch, you can't just pop in a new battery.  Buy a camera that takes AA or AAA cells instead.  If you want something rechargeable, go out and get something like these.

Second (and I'll catch some heat for this, but...)  Stay away from Kodak, and Sony cameras.  It's not that they're bad cameras, but one:  See above.  Two:  Both brands are kinda funky when it comes to "Plug and Play".

Personally, I use a Fuji Five megapixle camera.  It has a 3X optical zoom, Image stabilization,  and I've been happy with it for the last two years.  I have several friends that also have Fuji cameras and are happy with them.  Several other friends of mine have Olympus cameras and swear by them as well.

Moonblossom

Personally, I don't agree with the battery info. It's a useful tip to keep in mind but don't let it deter you from getting a camera you otherwise love. My camera comes with a dedicated LiON box and while it might cost $50 to replace, I've only had to charge it twice since I got the camera in November. I take at least a dozen photos every single day unless I'm very ill, and I've only had to charge the damned thing two times in nearly four months (first week of Nov to last week of Feb).

Also, something like a DSLR would -eat- through regular batteries, since there are a lot of moving parts to control.

ININ

My opinion.  Buy Canon.  My family and I have only positive experiences.

AbsolutelyCursed

Quote from: Moonblossom on February 29, 2008, 07:40:05 AM
Personally, I don't agree with the battery info. It's a useful tip to keep in mind but don't let it deter you from getting a camera you otherwise love. My camera comes with a dedicated LiON box and while it might cost $50 to replace, I've only had to charge it twice since I got the camera in November. I take at least a dozen photos every single day unless I'm very ill, and I've only had to charge the damned thing two times in nearly four months (first week of Nov to last week of Feb).

Also, something like a DSLR would -eat- through regular batteries, since there are a lot of moving parts to control.

My first digital camera (Fuji Finepix) just sucked the life out of my rechargeable AA batteries. The battery I use with my DSLR (Nikon) last a long time and I am able to take hundreds of pictures with it.

Stormfalcon

Personally, I lean towards standardized batteries (meaning AAs and AAAs) since it's easy to snag replacements in an emergency and they're not overpriced due to the manufacturer having an effective monopoly on them.  However, if you're going to get rechargeable AAs and AAAs, get ones with a high mAH (milliamp-hour) rating, minimum being 2000mAH.  The higher the rating, the more of a charge they'll hold and the longer they'll last.

Another tip for battery longevity (whatever the type of battery the camera uses) is to reduce the amount of flash used if possible, since they eat up battery power.  LCD screens also eat up battery power, but sometimes that can't be helped because the optical viewfinder on some point-and-shoots are practically useless, and some don't even have them at all.
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