MarineFlake
Member
buy a cheap slr and rent stellar lenses http://www.lensrentals.com
Suggestions needed for good but cheap camera
- Thread starter Jeff
- Start date
TitusvileSurfer
New member
I love how they rent just about every brand out there, but all of the main page link icons are Canon!
I know you're not looking for a DSLR, but for those that are reading this who are looking, the Nikon D40 is a great starter SDLR. I have had mine for about 2 years now, and I love it. It is possibly the smallest, and lightest weight DSLR with this much functionality. I know I sound like a commercial for Nikon, but it really has served me well, and now they have kits with a lens for around $400 - really cheap as far as DSLRs go!
Jeff
Premium Member
The D40 does look like a great deal but I am really stretching the budget here considering the Canon SX10 or Panasonic FZ28. Either one will run me around $340 but will give me a small camera. The Panasonic shoots in Raw modeand both seem very easy to use. Keep in mind I am not a photo buff like some of you , I just want to be able to take out a camera and take a pic quickly.
I do appreciate the input.
, I just want to be able to take out a camera and take a pic quickly.I do appreciate the input.
TitusvileSurfer
New member
The Sx10 is pretty big ??
TitusvileSurfer
New member
Well I suppose the Sx10 IS could be classified as a DLSR by the most basic and technical definitions. For all practical purposes the Sx10IS is very far removed from a real DSLR though, and it is one of the largest point and shoots made.
TitusvileSurfer
New member
I don't get why this camera being big, clunky, and virtually only portable around your neck is what you like about it aside from price?? The G10 I mentioned isn't super small, but it's easier managed than an SX series...which the largest camera you could possibly buy anywhere near your price range. I also by the way would not want to have to shoot a reef with an SX10 IS. This camera is made for football games, air shows, deer across the field, birds flying around...not fish tanks.
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TWallace
New member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14355646#post14355646 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TitusvileSurfer
I love how they rent just about every brand out there, but all of the main page link icons are Canon!
I think they randomly redirect you to Canon/Nikon pages when you visit the site. It will either redirect you to http://www.lensrentals.com/for-nikon or http://www.lensrentals.com/for-canon, each having only Nikon icons or only Canon icons. When I first visited the link, it had all Nikon images and I couldn't figure out what you were talking about
.
TitusvileSurfer
New member
Re: Suggestions needed for good but cheap camera
Well first lets peek at your criteria again.
Why aren’t you looking into underwater cameras? You could buy a setup which could take photographs of things reasonably close as well or better than an SX10 IS with the added benefit of being water resistant!
Enter the Olympus Stylus 1050SW, self proclaimed “World’s toughest cameraâ€Â. It is in your price range. It was literally made to take pictures of your corals at the bottom of your tank. What more can you ask for?
Well first lets peek at your criteria again.
There are a lot of cameras out there which fall in this price range, but reef tanks chew most up and spit them out in a blurry mess.
Suitable for reef pictures including macros usually includes a price well over your budget.
This just isn't going to happen in your budget. Your pictures are going to be bluish with the SX10 IS or just about any lesser camera. A G10 however will allow you to shoot true color with its glorious RAW mode.
I really think you are going about this all wrong. Your main goal (as no others have been stated) is to take decant images of your reef tank. You are looking into two cameras which are built for taking images of subject that are faaaaaaarrrrrrr away from you. Unless your tank is 20 feet wide, these cameras just aren’t built for your intended subject.
Why aren’t you looking into underwater cameras? You could buy a setup which could take photographs of things reasonably close as well or better than an SX10 IS with the added benefit of being water resistant!
Enter the Olympus Stylus 1050SW, self proclaimed “World’s toughest cameraâ€Â. It is in your price range. It was literally made to take pictures of your corals at the bottom of your tank. What more can you ask for?
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TitusvileSurfer
New member
Ahh that makes sense I guess. I've tried " http://www.lensrentals.com" at least 20 times on 5 different computers sitting around my house and haven't seen the Nikon version once without specifically typing in "for-nikon" though!<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14364186#post14364186 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TWallace
I think they randomly redirect you to Canon/Nikon pages when you visit the site. It will either redirect you to http://www.lensrentals.com/for-nikon or http://www.lensrentals.com/for-canon, each having only Nikon icons or only Canon icons. When I first visited the link, it had all Nikon images and I couldn't figure out what you were talking about
When I specifically typed in the Nikon dedicated site their in-house banner "Need something? No problem." still shows a big Canon lens though.
bmwardo
New member
Yea, those fish are crazy, I didn't notice the three until you just mentioned it Here is my thread with a shot where they aren't so fake looking:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1571134
The firmware is nice because it only installs and runs from your SD card and leaves the camera the same (and you can always go back to the original firmware).
I am not sure about your white balance question, do/have you used Lightroom 2? Unfortunately LR2 would not support the native RAW file on the firmware so I got a free program that they recommended, which is VERY similar to LR2 called RAW Therapee. In that program, and LR2, handling the white balance is a matter of using two sliders, temperature and tint. At least that is how I do it, it takes about 15 seconds to find the right combination.
Here is my thread with a shot where they aren't so fake looking:http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1571134
The firmware is nice because it only installs and runs from your SD card and leaves the camera the same (and you can always go back to the original firmware).
I am not sure about your white balance question, do/have you used Lightroom 2? Unfortunately LR2 would not support the native RAW file on the firmware so I got a free program that they recommended, which is VERY similar to LR2 called RAW Therapee. In that program, and LR2, handling the white balance is a matter of using two sliders, temperature and tint. At least that is how I do it, it takes about 15 seconds to find the right combination.
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