Camera?

[rosscrazyelk]

I will say that I am not very knowledgeable in the hole photography thing. I mostly get good pictures by taking a mass amount and onlya couple bing good. I learn from mistakes and now I have learned by another mistake. I have a sony digital  that i thought was a good camera. I have ben collecting pictures for awhile now and i went to go have them blown up only to look a little grainy. I was told my resolution was to low, But I have it on the max on my camera. So I need to go buy a new one Any Suggestions? I am really starting to love taking pictures.

[kitsap]

There are several photography oriented web sites that make new camera recommendations.  Do some search on this board for new cameras.  There have been several discussions.

Here is one such site, but by no means the only one -   http://www.kenrockwell.com

[boneaddict]

Depends how much money you want to spend and how much you want to get into it.  For point and shoot like your Sony I would go with the Panny FZ18.  There is also a new one but I haven't seen it.  FZ28 I believe.  I know nothing of it but the 18 takes pretty good pics.   If yuo are serious about spending some dough then there is the Nikon and Canon line up.  Any of the D80 and Canon 30D and under are good bodies and are pretty cheap compared to the new line up.  You can get a 40D body now for about $600 I think.  Lenssssssss well, sky is the limit from a shooter at $200 to big ones upward of 10 grand. 

[rosscrazyelk]

Thanks Bone

[huntnphool]

Ross, I would add one thing to Bones reply, if you are going to go with a point and shott camera, make sure it takes pics in RAW format. If it won't just walk away or you are likely to have a whole new batch of pics that you cant do much with. FWIW, I would take the money you planned on spending on a point and shoot and wait another month or two and get a pre-owned Canon 20D, 30D, you will have loads more options with a DSLR

[boneaddict]

The FZ18 does shoot in RAW in case you were wondering Ross.

By the way, Huntnphool shoots with a 20 or 30D Canon,Timber a 30D I believe and Pope shoots a 40D as well as myself.  If you are seriosu about photography at all, the DSLR is the way to go.  Though a Canon man, you can't go wrong with Nikon, (elkman, Javman both shoot with those I believe, along with TFinalshot.   

[jackelope]

I would take the money you planned on spending on a point and shoot and wait another month or two and get a pre-owned Canon 20D, 30D, you will have loads more options with a DSLR

wow....do i ever wish i did this. the fz18 takes great pictures of my kid and it takes great landscape pics, but it takes mediocre wildlife pics. it works fine for taking pics to document critters, and has a great zoom but does not take great quality pics compared to any of the DSLR's. my wife has a 1st generation digital rebel and even that takes a lot higher quality pics than the FZ. i do think it's a great camera for the $$ and for the right applications...just know what you're getting.

[rosscrazyelk]

O.k like I said i am new to this thing so call me a idiot,, What does it mean when you say Raw? I know what the word means just not sure i understand in this context

[huntnphool]

Most digital cameras process and compress the pictures you take immediately after capturing the image. This can be helpful, as it keeps the file sizes low (using JPEG compression) and takes care of color correction, including white-balance, tint, and exposure, so you don't have to. However, some people, such as professional photographers, prefer to have more control over how each image is processed. Therefore, many high-end cameras have the ability to shoot in RAW mode. This mode does not compress the images at all and leaves them completely unprocessed.

Because Camera RAW files are uncompressed, they take up more space than typical JPEG images. In fact, RAW files often require 2 to 3 times more space for each image captured. So, you'll want to have an extra-large memory card in your camera if you plan on shooting in RAW mode. But since RAW photos are not compressed, you maintain the full quality of each image. This can make a noticeable difference when printing images, especially for large prints.

Camera RAW files are also unprocessed, meaning all the photo processing is done on the computer. It is like taking a film negative to a dark room to be developed. The RAW file is the negative and the computer serves as the dark room. With a RAW file, you have complete control over the temperature adjustments (for white-balance), tint, hue, and exposure. However, since Camera RAW files are not typical images, most image-viewing programs will not open them. Therefore, most camera companies include Camera RAW editing software with their high-end cameras. These programs allow you to open RAW files, do the necessary processing, and save them in common image formats such as bitmap, TIFF, and JPEG.

While shooting in Camera RAW mode offers a lot of control over your photos, it takes additional software and extra time to open and edit each picture you take. For most casual photography, using the camera's built-in processing is the most suitable option. Think of your RAW image as the digital equivalent of a photo negative.

[boneaddict]

Well said. 

[rosscrazyelk]

Thanks alot Phool that was very detailed and easy to understand . I appreciate it emmensly I wish you all a Happy Holidays. Hopefully Santa will be good to me.Otherwise I will just have to go pick one out myself. Now if somehow I could get my Boss to give me a really big bonus for all the wine I sold I will be set.