| General > General Technical Chat |
| Budget Camera Recomendation |
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| admiralk:
I am hoping I will be fine with the standard lens. I do not need super high detail, but it does need to be clear. In this case it is for a construction manual for a kit I am working on. It is probably going to take me a while to understand what all the numbers mean. Once things open back up, it would be nice to get some good pictures of concerts I record audio at. My phone is totally useless for that. |
| DrG:
--- Quote from: admiralk on April 21, 2020, 01:55:28 am ---I am hoping I will be fine with the standard lens. I do not need super high detail, but it does need to be clear. In this case it is for a construction manual for a kit I am working on. It is probably going to take me a while to understand what all the numbers mean. Once things open back up, it would be nice to get some good pictures of concerts I record audio at. My phone is totally useless for that. --- End quote --- Well, I am not sure what you mean by the standard lens. The Canon EF-S 18–55mm was offered in a lot of kits (in contrast to just buying the body, for example). I had not realized this myself until recently, but there were/are NINE iterations of the lens https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canon_EF-S_18%E2%80%9355mm_lens Basically it is a cheapish lens but I noticed that the most recent version has image stabilization. I think you will use it and like it but inevitably be faced with getting a macro lens and a telephoto lens...but either will be well over the $100 price tag and that is the rub. On the other hand if it is in good shape a $100 investment is not terribly risky. I used my XTi (10MP) with the 18-55mm, 60mm macro and a 55-250mm zoom (w/IS). I still use all three lens' with the SL-2 (24MP). I hope it works out and be sure to post a few shots along with your impressions. |
| admiralk:
yes, it is the 18-55mm lens. It is coming from a college A/V classroom and there are several, compared to just the one pictures were taken of. There are at least 3 different bags it could come with, for example. The one pictured does not look like the IS ones in your link though. I am sure I will end up getting different lenses, as I learn more. A big part of my decision to go the DSLR route instead of point and shoot is the expandability, as opposed to complete replacement. That theory has served me well in my audio recording and let me develop a high end rig from very humble beginnings. |
| vk6zgo:
I have had two inexpensive digital cameras. The first one was quite basic, but was really good for taking screenshots of analog 'scopes, & reasonable for everyday use. I would have been happy with it, but it disappeared. The replacement had "delusions of grandeur", in that it was a very basic DSLR, but without an interchangeable lens system. That worked pretty well, but it disappeared, too! I'm fairly sure that if I tear the house apart I will eventually find both, complete with nice corroded batteries. Meanwhile, my old Minolta SRT101 film camera sits exactly where I left it years ago. I am sorely tempted when I need a camera, to drag the old beast out, buy some film (it's still available), then get the resulting image converted to digital by a lab. At least the Minolta has real optics! My phone is a "dumb" one, it has a "sort of" camera, & the camera on the iPad is horrible & clunky. |
| helius:
I used the XTi for years and years (however, at around 1 year it developed an electrical fault and needed to be repaired. I expect any unit you buy today will be outside the "infant mortality" period but it should be kept in mind that these are complex machines that are hard to service.) Recently I've "side-graded" to a Nikon D90s, which being F-mount can use hundreds of old manual focus lenses without adapters. That's great for artistic stuff but I don't think it helps much for documentation purposes like you mentioned. Oh, one point. If you do need to document very small objects you can do it easily with the Nikon system, by using a reverse-L39 adapter to attach an enlarging lens. That is far better and cheaper than using a macro lens. |
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