Camera advice
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- slappy0
I would try stretch for a proper 1:1 macro. Something like the canon 60mm f2.8 or nikon eqivalent.
You want the least amount of barrel distortion and sharpest image possible at close distances.
I used to use my 70-200 for larger items and 50mm for smaller stuff but recently bought a canon 100mm and its made such a difference.
- epigraph0
When I did this for my portfolio, I got the best results using a scanner. And I hated that because I was a photo buff at the time. I really wanted photos to be the way to go.
- autoflavour0
invest in a decent lens.
i thought the lenses i had were doing a good job, then i saved up and got a 24-70 L..then i realized the difference..
- ok_not_ok0
Daddy like!
- robotron3k0
my gf has the 5D, it weighs so much she can barely pick it up. I've got the GH2 with the driftwood hack that is incredible. the hack is easy, just copy to the sd card and reboot and its done. now i really can pust my 14mm pancake in low light. here is a video sample of the hack, it's pretty unbelievable.
- can you zoom in and out while recording video?74LEO
- what exactly does the hack do?74LEO
- yes, during recording. also will track auto focus. the hack allows you to control settings for light, speed etcrobotron3k
- 5D is nice but well out of my price range is it the eos technology that makes it more than the sx30?74LEO
- there are many varieties of hack, some push to area of red camera, you can also defaut back to org settings.robotron3k
- great thanks!74LEO
- 23kon0
I THOROUGHLY recommend the Sony Nex 5N
After researching the market I went for this.
Believe me, you WONT be dissapointed if you buy this camera.
I've been shooting for a few weeks and never fail to be amazed at what this camera is capable of and the light situations it can handle beautifully!My Dad has a Canon 5D MkII and knows his shit about photography and has been wowed by what i've shown him.
Next time i'm back at their house i'm going to challenge him to a shooting duel and see what the difference is.Lenses are large but they are light! and Sony have announced a map of new lenses for over the coming year.
- 74LEO0
My Canon A80 first got the pink screen of death and just last week got the infamous E18 error. Great little camera but no longer serviceable and parts aren't worth it. I am looking at this model"PowerShot SX30"http://a.img-dpreview.com/n... to replace it. Anyone got advise on this model or a comparable model in the same price range?
- Hombre_Lobo0
ps november 3rd, Canon are making an announcement in Hollywood!
I hope its a mirrorless camera, but being the fact its in Hollywood they might be unveiling some competitor to the RED cameras.And there should be a RED competitor, I've been expecting a digital 4k resolution video camera for a while now. The GH2 can take 40 pics a second at 4mp, thats RED resolution, it just needs a big enough buffer + processor and cooling to sustain it for long periods of filming.
im a ranting machine tonight.
- Hombre_Lobo0
^lol, thanks for the kind words!
I actually only own the GF1, plus the 20mm pancake, and some manual focus 1980's lenses like a canon FD 50mm macro, an Olympus OM 50mm 1.8 and an Olympus OM 135mm 3.5.
"I don't understand how someone who knows so much about cameras can stick with the one camera"
lol i see your point. In all honesty i'm kinda waiting for my perfect camera.My perfect DSLR -
APS-C sensor, lightweight, decent manual video.The sony SLT a55 was nearly it, but it has this translucent mirror that doesn't move which means it sucks up 30% of the light. without the mirror and manual video, it would be fantastic.
The 550d and 600d for me weren't it. I find their view finders very small and actually hard to see through. The new electronic viewfinder systems seem much better to me. And in addition it amazes me that with professional equipment you still have to make changes (exposure etc) > take the shot > review > make changes until desired outcome is achieved.
Electronic view finders show changes on screen, which is surely more practical. I think its the future and the current market seems to be heading that way.
I still think there is a gap in the market for a lightweight DSLR with a standard mount (canon nikon sony etc), again the sony a55 was nearly it, lightest DSLR i know of. Stupid sony with their crazy see through mirror tech.
I also think the olympus pen is great, i just wish it had APS-C sensor and good video. because modular systems are the best. Have a small body, add pancakes for compactness, or add big lenses and a view finder for serious shooting.
My perfect modular system -
APS-C sensor, lightweight, decent manual video and attachable electronic view finder.Which is why im very excited about this -
Sony nex 5n.
Sure it looks strange, but its high iso is only a tiny bit worse than a 5d mk II (sounds ridiculous but do some research), its video seems as good as the canon's for video (despite a current teething problem with the audio), attachable view finder.Shame the nex lenses are so large. samsung nx range proved you can have an aps-c sensor with small lenses, sony need to learn from them.
Camera rant over!
- Atkinson0
Hombre, your knowledge astounds me.
How many cameras do you own? I don't understand how someone who knows so much about cameras can stick with the one camera [in a good way] - says a LOT for the GF1! I love cameras / process but find myself with a new camera every week, only to return it. Not really sure what I'm looking for but none have been right so far!
- Hombre_Lobo0
@sea sea! :D
Canon compacts are known for great macro, most of them can focus at 1 cm away from the lens! its insane.
Low light, excellent pics compacts -
olympus xz1 (f1.8)
canon s95 (f2)
lumix lx5 (f2)
EX1 / tl500(f1.8)Wide apertures so you can get the best DOF and low light pics you can with a compact camera sensor. The lumix lx5 and tl500 go to 24mm which gives them the widest lens of the bunch, which is nice.
Canon g10 is gorgeous, but for low light it has an f2.8 aperture so the other compacts will be much more beneficial.
Another thing people rarely mention is the aperture throughout the zoom range. The LX5 is the great for this, at full zoom the lx5 is f3.3 far better than the s95 f4.9, thats a huge amount more light the LX5 gets in at full zoom. It also means the lx5 will give a shallower DOF throughout the zoom range.
The Lx5 is slightly larger than the s95 though, but it has manual video control which the canon does not. I! between them is arguable.
The new olympus XZ1 trumps even the LX5 though.
My personal fave is the LX5, manual video, wide angle lens, wider apertures though the zoom (not as wide as the xz1 though), and its older so its quite a bit cheaper than the XZ1.
The XZ1 is great and you can attach the excellent Electronic viewfinder to it, which is also compatible with your E-pl1!
I hope that helps! :)
- how do you know so much about cameras hombre? HOW???goldieboy
- LOL goldie! i dont really know why. Im an novice snapper, and i research my purchases thoroughly. (forever alone!)Hombre_Lobo
- sea_sea0
dear camera bible man,
i want the bestest pocket camera my small budget can afford.
i hate flash, so must shoot nice low light pics, have awesome macro capabilities and shoot decent video.i'm looking at the canon S95 or G10 cause i like the controls and plus i like bracketing.
any help will be much appreciated, thank you.
yours truly,
indecisive camera gurl.(hombre's da camera mang!)
- G10's a great camera but it won't fit in your pocket. Well, unless you have huge pockets ;)goldieboy
- but, I'm not the camera bible man so I'll keep quiet from now...goldieboy
- it's cool goldie, thanx i'll take it. i keep wanting to get the G10, it's small enough for me. i just want good decent pics, but inevitably someone will always say get the S95 instead. so still trying to make up my mind i guess.sea_sea
- someone will always say get the S95 instead. so still trying to make up my mind i guess.sea_sea
- plus i like the G10's chunkie body type. :)sea_sea
- just get one and exchange it if you hate it.... thinvaxorcist
- think of all the shots you missed while worrying and reading too much and not shooting enoughvaxorcist
- oh i'm still shooting, i just want a better quality semi pocket camera to swap the one i have with.sea_sea
- the G10 feels good and it's body is solid (have dropped mine way too many times).goldieboy
- HAYZ1LLLA0
@hombre
The GH1 is about 1,300 quid? I was looking at a camcorder thing really for about £300? I realize I forgot to actually post the link I was referring to apologies.- ahh your looking at the kit with the 14-140mm lens. get used body only and buy some cheap lenses, or the 14-42mm kit...Hombre_Lobo
- in terms of the camcorders im gonna have to concede, i have no idea dude, sry :/Hombre_Lobo
- I'd ask at this forum though -
http://forums.dprevi…
good luck dude!Hombre_Lobo
- vaxorcist0
Honestly, while I'm a DSLR guy, I think a 4/3rds camera with RAW and a flash shoe and an ability to shoot tethered can be perfectly usable for this sort of thing. If you have a fixed budget, don't blow it all on a "rockstar" camera, things like manual strobes and tripods may matter more....
- Hombre_Lobo0
@hayzilla,
I know a fair bit about hybrid video cameras, but not about camcorders so ill try.
£300?
For that kind of money i'd go for a Lumix GH1. They can be had for about £350+ so you would have to stretch your budget a bit.Its great quality, more resolution and sharpness than the 5D mkII / 7D and 550d and once you hack the firmware (very easy to do) it gets even better. You can record at stupidly high 'mbps', by default its around 17 but the hack gets it to 50+.
Bear in mind its an entirely different system to DSLR, it has no internal mirror, the view finder is electronic (a small LCD display), the lens family is entirely different. BUT one major advantage is you can use a multitude of old manual focus lenses, like 1980's one which are very cheap, you just need an adapter to use them (they are about £20). you can get a canon fd 50mm f1.2 for about £90 and combined with a GH1, its a tasty combo.
The sensor size is different too, its smaller which means the crop factor is bigger (its x2 rather than x1.5/1.6) and depth of field is marginally less shallow due to the smaller sensor.
Other than that...i dunno what to recommend, a 550d is a big stretch more in terms of price. not sure dude, but hope that helps!
- ItTango0
+10 on the manual flash advice. I have a couple of Vivitars (283/285) that are wildly versatile and cost very little. I use them off camera, mostly, controlling them with a couple of Cowboy wireless triggers. I also have a couple of on flash soft boxes. Really compact and adaptable set up.
- Hombre_Lobo0
oh yeh and in response to your lens question.
The 50mm f1.8 -
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-EF…
is a decent lens, excellent value, good focal length for studio work. Obviously its good for shallow depth of field stuff, but for studio shots if you stop it down to f5.6 its very sharp.- I just picked this up for my 60D and am in love with it.elahon
- vaxorcist0
If you use a Canon, and you're shooting flat artwork on a tripod, you might consider a lens mounting adapter, so you can use old manual focus prime lenses that can often be had for cheap on ebay.... Tamron and Tokina made some amazingly good 90mm macro lenses that can be had pretty cheap for Nikon Manual Focus, with a $20 adapter they can be made to work on Canon and they're waaay cheaper than a brand new AF lens of similar focal length and quality...
Some older Pentax manual focus prime lenses are great.... and cheaply can be made to work on a Canon body with an adapter
lens tests at:
www.photodo.com
http://www.photodo.com/browse-le…NOTE, that I would use the color card here again, and be careful with color consistency, as old manual focus lenses may have a slightly different color cast, with systematic use of a color card, you can easily batch correct.
