 BetterPhoto Member |
Lenses and speed I was told that the lense and the speed of the camera are whats really important when buying a camera. He said that Nikon has the glass lense which will take a better picture because of that. Is this true and where can I find the speed of the camera? and what speed will take good pictures I take pictures of my family and I download and print pictures all the time up to 8 x 10. Can you point me in the right direction when purchasing my new camera? Thank you,
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Sharon Day |
There are many different important aspects to consider when buying a camera. Will you be buying a film camera or digital camera? Compact digital camera or DSLR? I have a Nikon D70 with the 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5 and it does nicely. I just had an 8x10 print made of a scene and was quite pleased with the results.
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John G. Clifford Jr |
If you're looking for a digital camera for family pictures and general snapshot photography, you want one of the 'point-and-shoot' class of digital cameras, also referred to as 'digicams.' For 8x10 prints of excellent quality, a 6 MP camera is all you'll need. I strongly recommend the Fuji F10 and F11, as these little cameras take great pictures, work great in low light, and are very easy to use. Figure on spending about $350 for the F10 or around $400 for its updated brother the F11. These Fuji digicams are very fast in that they have no shutter lag (delay from the time you press the shutter until the time the picture is taken). They have good lenses, but when you're spending this kind of money on a major brand of camera it's hard to get a bad camera and the lenses are roughly equivalent in quality (the Fujis have excellent lenses). Most camera salespeople at large stores don't know any more about cameras than you do. I think you'll be very happy with the Fuji F10 or F11.
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John P. Sandstedt |
I'm not certain a camera body has any "speed," except that which might be described by its fastest shutter speed. Of course, many folks have described the "lag" they've encountered after pressing the shutter of a digital camera - this is associated with the time it takes for the computer to save the image. With more expensive SLRs, lag time between images has been reduced to the inconsequential. Lens speed is identified by f/stop. The smaller the number [like f/2.8]the faster the lens. In this instance, faster also relates to the lens's ability to let more light reach the film/media card. If you buy an SLR, regardless of manufacturer, buy the best lenses [speed and quality (read reviews such as those published in Pop Photo, Shutterbug and by several of BP's staffers).] As speed and quality increase, so does cost, however. You need to assess the kinds of pictures you'll shoot. If you plan to send images via the Internet, you really only need a 3 MP camera. That you say you make 8X10s suggests to me that you really need to consider whether you'll shortly want to make even larger prints. If so, you're at the starting point with the 6 MP digicams John C. has suggested. That's not to suggest he's incorrect in his recommendation. In fact, he's on target as too many folks buy way-too-much camera, filled with features they'll never use. And, because of this, manufacturers will continue to tweak their products, charging more in the offing. One of the BPs members, in a thread appearing in June or July [2005,] asked for advise on upgrading his Nikon D70 to something bigger and better. This camera body was rated Camera of the Year by Pop Photo in December 2004. Fortunately, most of the responses I saw appropriately recommended the member stick with the camera he has. Proponents of a given manufacturer will argue that its camera is best. Actually, all of the major manufacturers produce pretty decent equipment. You need to go to your local photo shop and "handle" the models in which you're interested. Some shops might let you rent one to try it - a good practice. Get the feel of it in your hands! Buy the camera with the features you want and try to think of what you'd like in the relatively near future [and add those] - as your skills grow. Don't buy the biggest or most expensive just because it's available. That's the most expensive thing to do and won't improve your image-making.
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