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General discussion

Need help in switching from old to new technology!

Jul 13, 2004 5:14AM PDT

Like many of the other Digital Cameras Forum readers, I am researching the purchase of my first digital camera, and need advice. For the last 25 years, I?ve used a Pentax 35mm camera with two lenses, one being a zoom lens, and have always got excellent pictures from it. However, the processing of film and scanning pictures has just gotten too laborious, so I want to go digital.

However, and this may sound really weird, I?m concerned about losing the ?intangible? part of TAKING pictures in switching to a digital camera. I am NOT a professional photographer, and probably not even a very good amateur one, but I enjoy the PROCESS of taking pictures. I like being able to hold the camera up to my face, look through the viewfinder, do my own focusing, and shoot. So, that being said, here?s what I need advice on (my starting ballpark is around $500, but if there were a camera that were ideal, I?d certainly consider spending more):

1) As opposed to getting a digital camera that is as small as possible, I?d prefer one that is similar in size (but not as heavy) as my Pentax ? one that I can grab onto with both hands, with a viewfinder to look through. However, my wife will also be using the camera, and she?d prefer the simple ?point n? shoot? flat display screen to look through, without holding it up to her face.

2) On my old Pentax, I don?t use the zoom lens often, but enjoy using it when the occasion warrants. How do digital cameras handle this? Separate lenses, or built into the camera?

3) As I mentioned, I really enjoy doing my own focusing. However, my wife will prefer just the opposite (story of our marriage!). I know all the digital cameras have millions of controls, but are any EASY to switch back and forth between manual focus and auto-focus?

4) One of the things that I really enjoy about my Pentax is that once I?ve got my subject focused, when I click, that?s the picture I get. I?ve heard horror stories about the ?lag? time for digital cameras between click and image captured. A recent post from Helen1 said that she found very few cameras that even list their click-to-capture speed in their literature ? how would I research this (it sounds like she already has)?

Thanks so very much for any responses to this! It?s harder than buying a car! - Dougbert

Discussion is locked

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 13, 2004 5:29AM PDT

Hi dougbert. I'm sure you will get a lot of helpful replies in this forum, but while you are waiting, may I suggest you take a look at www.dpreview.com.

I have no connection with that site other than as a computer/photo enthusiast. The site has reviews (with 15>30 sample pics) and details of many different makes of camera.

Also they have forums for each camera within those makes, so if you pose your question there as well, you will get a lot of useful information from both amateurs and professionals. I am always learning lots of new things on both sites.

Have fun....

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 13, 2004 12:22PM PDT

For years I have used a Canon AE1 SLR film camera and still do from time to time.

The digital camera gives you a lot more freedom to experiment with photography because you don't have the expense of film and its development.

It is easy to get the photo into a computer and have more fun manipulating and improving the photos with software.

It took over a hundered years for the film camera to become what it is today. The digital camera is still fairly new and has not solved all the problems that a new medium generates.

It is hard to find a bad digital camera. But there is no perfect digital camera.

With your history with cameras you may want to look at one of the following cameras:

Canon G5
Olympus 5060
Sony V1

These are two steps above the point-and-shoot camera.
But they can be put in "auto" mode and function as a point-and-shoot camera.

....

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 22, 2004 8:34PM PDT

One of the most forgotten element in selecting a Digital Camera is the high quality of our existing SLR's with featured lenses. I am going thru the same process and decided to stay with my Pentax and Nikon series of lenses and add just the body. Yes, it remains (physically) heavy but quality comes with this price.

Have fun with your new toys.

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 22, 2004 10:47PM PDT

dougbert, I would suggest using the cnet reviews and using the compare option. I have had 3 Olympus digital cameras and have been very happy with all of them. I just keep getting newer ones to get more megapixels or more zoom. :o) My newest camera is the Olympus 765 Ultra Zoom with a 10X optical zoom. It has the ability to to switch back and forth between manual focus and auto-focus so that both you and your wife can enjoy it. It also has the option of using the viewfinder or the LCD panel. The price of this camera is around $400. Once you get a digital camera, you'll love it! You will want to buy an extra battery and extra storage cards so that you don't miss any photo opportunities. Good Luck!

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 22, 2004 11:12PM PDT

Hello Dougbert,
I have upgraded to a "prosumer" style camera. I have used Nikon film cameras and bought a D70 nikon digital SLR. Pentax has similar level of digital. In this style of camera you will be able to use your old lenses in manual and possibly in program and auto modes depending on the lens type you have now. The camera will come with a lens in the 18mm to 70 mm zoom range for general photos. The shutter delay can be mimimized by 3 features.
1. Set the camera to continous focus, this will help eliminate the camera from having to focas on the image in frame at the time you push the shutter button.
2. Turn off the image review on the lcd screen. It takes time on less expensive models and will tie up the camera on follow up shots untill the camera is done updating the screen.
3. Use a memory card that matches the cameras write speed. If the camera writes at 20x speed get a card that will store data at least that fast. There is no advantage to getting a 60x card if your camera can only write at 20x. the buffer in the camera is very limited on most cameras in how many shots it will hold while writing to your memory card. when the buffer is full you have to wait for the image to transfer to the memory card before you can take another shot. Image size and quality greatly affects this speed also. Better quality and higher resolution takes more time. If you have to shoot fast action, sometimes it is better to have lower resolution ang be able to get the shot.
This is not a problem if you spend around $2,000.00 on a camera. They will be very close to film speeds if not better.
As far as the Wife is concerned, I have the same issue. Mine is a POINT AND SHOOTER! All the SLR versions have an auto setting that is just a click of a button or a turn of a knob away. She will love it other than the weight and size. It wont fit in her purse.
For information I agree with an earlier post. WWW.DPREVIEW.COM is a great site for digital camera review from point and click to Professional models costing thousands. Phil will document just about every feature you could possibly imagine. Check out the site!!!
Hope this helps.
Take nothing but pictures, Leave nothing but footprints!!

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 23, 2004 12:04AM PDT

Dougbert:

I shot with a variety of Nikon equipment for over 20 years. Now, I have an Olympus C5050 Zoom, which is the precursor to the C5060. This camera features top-notch optics and an excellent metering system. You can switch between several automatic exposure modes, as well as manual metering. Manual focusing is available, although I have not found it very easy to use. The small size of the camera has been wonderful.

You can minimize the shutter lag by pressing the shutter release halfway down to pre-focus and meter before you actually take the shot. Most of the shutter lag time is devoted to pre-focusing. Switching to manual focus should also reduce the shutter lag. I am not aware of any digicam that will shoot as immediately as a manual SLR, though.

You can certainly use your collection of lenses by purchasing the Nikon digital SLR, but this would be well above your stated budget. One other great site for digital camera reviews is http://www.steves-digicams.com/. (I have no affiliation with this site, I have just used it frequently.)

Shooting as much as you like without any concerns about the cost of film is wonderful. Just be careful that you do not blow your budget by printing too many of your digital shots. Have fun!

Dave

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 23, 2004 12:29AM PDT

Hi dougbert
You'll be pleased to hear that most digital cameras are faily light, and most - from about

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 23, 2004 12:31AM PDT

I use both 35mm and small digital cameras (I have a compact Cannon S400 "ELF-like" that my wife prefers). If you really want to manually focus, you will probably find yourself looking into digital SLRs, which will cost you 2-3 times more ($900-1500) than a good 4 or 5 megapixel "point and shoot" digital camera. Digital cameras in that range actually allow quite a few control features, some of which are extremely easy to set up while others may be a bit more obscure. They take very good pictures and allow you to use them in a macro mode for those flowers. These will all come with some 3x or so optical zoom, which may be all you are looking for. The digital zoom isn't really worth using, in my opinion. I find 4 megapixel to be good even for enlarging to 8x10 size.

Shutter lag time seems to be mostly a problem of focusing speed, and many digital cameras will let you "pre-focus" by depressing your shutter release button halfway down. You can hold this position until ready to capture the picture you want. Look at the camera specs for its shutter lag time and autofocus time.

You can get a digital SLR to give you total control like with your current Pentax 35mm SLR. If you want to usee your existing Pentax lenses, you can consider the Pentax *ist D, which is also the lightest weight and smallest of the semi-pro digital SLRs and a very fast autofocus. It will set you back maybe $1,200 or so. Cannon and Nikon also make very good digital SLRs, but you would have to invest in their lenses.

Should your existing Pentax lenses not be autofocus, you might want to consider purchasing one or two. Pentax has some very good and affordable 50mm lenses, and some zooms that should fit your need.

When you buy flash memory cards for your camera, try and get those that have fast transfer rates (usually not the bargain cards you see on sale). Also, you will be happier downloading pictures directly from your camera if it has an IEEE 1394 firewire or USB 2 port on it (of course, your PC will need to support these as well). USB 1 is a little slow for me, but I use a card reader attached to my PC instead of downloading through the camera.

You have many choices to consider, and you will probably get as many opinions and advisements as there are responses to your questions. Good luck.

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 23, 2004 12:35AM PDT

I recommend you visit www.dpreview.com and read reviews
of various digital cameras. Some newer cameras have
far less lagtime than older models. That website has
exhaustive information and reviews written by people who have bought various digital cameras as well as the
reviews written by the extremely knowledgeable host.
Good luck.

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 23, 2004 1:08AM PDT

Hello dougbert,
I would like to give you some advice out of my 25 years of experience with analog and digital imaging and photography. I myself am a passionate and very active semi-professional photographer, physicist by education and have worked in senior management positions for companies like Leica, Zeiss and Gretag.
To your questions - yes I know this feeling and how nice it is to take the picture and if you go for one of the better digital cameras, you can have this feeling again. These good and more sophisticated cameras are designed like film cameras with the main difference of the receiving material - a chip instead of the film.
Regarding the size and handling - again, you need to look for a camera which already reminds you to a film camera and not to an electronic gadget. There are several very good ones out there - and as you mentioned Pentax, they also have got their digital SLR which is very attractive and good. As you have been using zoom lenses on your film camera, I would go for a digital SLR with a zoom lens - this gives you, despite all their automation, still the most photographic feeling.
Regarding AF and MF - well, here I think that again a digital SLR would give you the best possible compromise between what is state-of-the-art and what makes sense. I word it that way, because I have the opinion, that 99.9% of all AF systems do not focus at exactly the details I want them to focus. That is the reason why I still take most of my pictures with film cameras and not with digital AF cameras. But if you want to go digital, you need to digest this feature of AF and make the best out of it. And with digital SLRś, most of them allow you to switch the AF off anyway.
Regarding the lag between depressing the shutter and the actual taking of the image - yes, this has been a major problem for almost all digital cameras in the past but it is getting much much better. Current digital SLR cameras are pretty fast and have short lag time. Try the Pentax digital SLR or if you like Nikon, the D-70 and see if they fit your expecations.
If you like to know more, email me at gnnyman@comcast.net.

Greetings from Colorado - George N.Nyman PhD.
http://www.gnyman.com

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 23, 2004 3:11AM PDT

First some background. I am not an expert and I've been taking pictures since the late '40s. My all time favorite cameras are my Olympus Pen FTs. That being said, my 35mm cameras are an Olympus OM2 and Minolta Maxxum 5. All cameras are equipped with a long lens or long zoom lenses. The Pen FT and OM2 are able to use my 500mm mirror lens.

I now have four digital cameras. The first ever was a Sony MVC-FD7. This particular camera uses floppy disks for storage media. The reason that I purchased this camera over all the others available was its 10x digital zoom and the fact that the floopy media could be used in any computer without the need for additional software. Because of storage limitations you do not want to buy a floppy disk-based camera.

You do not want to go from a 35mm camera with long zoom to a digital camera with less than 8x zoom. You will not be happy. I can guarantee it.

I have an Olympus C-2100 2.1 megapixel digital ultrazoom camera. It has a 10x optical zoom lens with image stablization. The camera is shaped like a 35mm with 75-300mm zoom attached. That is you have a long snout rather than having a zoom lens that can be attached and detached. This particular camera has auto focus assist. That is, in very low light, a red beam is activated which lets the camera focus. It also has a remote control. This particular camera has been discountinued, but I mention it because it is the camera that I base my decisions on when looking at the latest digitals.

Your desire for manual focusing can only be met with a few digital cameras that are not dSLRs (digital Single Lens Reflect). Besides the majority of dSLRs are way outside of your price range. However, the Canon EOS Digital Rebel and the Nikon D70 are in the low $1K range.

Many digital cameras let you switch to manual focus, but it is electronic and not hand focusing. It is very easy, on some cameras, to switch between manual and auto focusing. There are two cameras that I know of that have manual focusing rings. One is a Fuji FinePix (S5000 or S7000, I don't remember which) and the other is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ10. The Fuji FinePix S5000 is a 3.1 megapixel 10x optical zoom camera and the S7000 is a 6.3 megapixel 6x optical zoom camera. The DMC-FZ10 is a 4 megapixel 12x optical zoom camera.

Except for the low end of the camera scale, many digital cameras allow you to view the image and take the picture with either the eyepiece viewfinder or the LCD. Not both. Some cameras will immediately show you the image taken on the LCD. Others you have to push a button to view the image.

How many megapixels will you need? Considering the price range you are looking at 2 to 5. You may read in various places that you need more than 2 megapixels to print images at 8x10. This is not entirely accurate. It depends on many factors, including the lens and camera manufacturer. Nikon and one or two others, at their Web sites, indicate that you can print 8x10s with their 2 megapixel cameras. I have what I consider to be great prints at 8.5x12 from my 2 megapixel camera. If you are going to be cropping, after shooting, then the more pixels the better. You should then be looking at the 8 megapixel cameras. They will set you back more than $500 though. Always shoot at the highest quality JPEG setting. If you are taking pictures of a static scene you can use TIFF or RAW (if the camera provides such settings). TIFF and RAW take a long time to write to the card.

You also want to buy a camera that takes AA NiMH rechargeable batteries. Many digital cameras come with proprietary batteries and chargers. Buying a spare is expensive. You also want to be aware of the media the camera uses. The Smart Media (SM) cards have reached their maximum storage limit of 128MB. Compact Flash (CF) and Secure Digital (SD) are now being produced with gigabyte ranges. Regardless of the number of megabytes the card has that comes with the camera, I recommend that you buy at least a 256MB card. If you plan on using TIFF or RAW you will need at least a 512MB card.

Camera manufacturers are now listing the speed at which the camera is ready for picture taking and from shutter release to writing on the media. In order to find this data you would have to visit the various camera manufacturer Web sites. Some of them are very frustrating when trying to find precise information. Besides CNET, your best bet is to visit a couple of Web sites that provide detail reviews of digital cameras. You might want to try Digital Camera Review at http://www.dpreview.com/ or Steve's Digicams at http://www.steves-digicams.com/. There are others, but I religiously read these two.

To take outstanding pictures with a digital camera you must be aware that it is a two stage affair. There is no getting around it except possibly with the $5K and above dSLRs (I do not keep track of the Canon EOS 10D, Fuji FinePix S2 Pro, Kodak DCS Pro 14n, etc).

You have to depress the shutter half way for the camera to focus and then press all the way to take the picture. I take pictures of hummingbirds and I am happy with my results although there is plenty of room for improvement. I do not use flash or additional lighting. In many cases I prefocus on the area where the hummingbird will appear. With the both 35mm and digital cameras I have had disasters. Once I've prefocused I do not worry about the two stage process. I've had disasters here too, but more good shots than bad.

With a digital camera you can see immediately the image you've taken. As they say, you can shoot over. There are times when you cannot shoot over because the precise image you were trying to take is gone. Also be aware that what you view on the LCD screen may not be what you see when you load the images into your computer or have them printed from the media card. The LCDs are notorious for showing you a good image, in low light situations, when in fact the image is underexposed.

I added a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1 to my arsenal. This camera has a 12x optical zoom with image stabilization.
It has a longer zoom range than the Oly C-2100. It does not have low light focus assist. It has fast write times and flash recycling. I used it for an indoor fashion show assignment. I like this camera very much but I cannot trust it for taking indoor shots at distances beyond its flash range or in low light.

You will find that many of the digital cameras that have zooms, the lens retracts when the camera is turned off. That means that you have to zoom again once you turn it back on. It is a time waster even though some cameras have very fast zoom times.

The ideal digital camera is the one that you eventually end up with. You have to go to a camera store and play with different cameras. I don't mean Wal-Mart.

Konica Minolta has just released a Z3. This camera is 12x optical zoom. Give their Web site a visit. I recently added a Minolta DiMAGE X20 to my arsenal. It is a 2 megapixel camera with internal zoom lens. It is a shirt pocket camera, but I wear it on my belt with a small camera case. It goes wherever I go. It does not have eyepiece focusing. LCD only.

I still use my 35mm cameras. When I have the film developed I have Kodak CDs made. That gives me prints and digital images. With my digital cameras I make my own prints at home.

If you decide to have CDs made of your 35mm shots make sure that the prints are on smooth glossy paper. As I understand the process, the developing/finishing equipment takes images of the prints and puts them on the CD. If you go to a place that uses a linen type finish your CD images will look like they are full of dust and scratches.

When possible you want to immediately save your images to CD or a hard drive. You also want to have backups. Do not erase your images from the media until you have a couple of backups.

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Re: Need help in switching from old to new technology!
Jul 23, 2004 3:42PM PDT

Dougbert -

I have been using a Canon D60 since they came out. Great camera. Shutter lag time is fast. The new Canon digital Rebel, if you care to spend the money, has even less shutter lag and would provide all of the features that you're looking for plus more. I don't believe that many, if any, point-and-shoots will allow you to focus manually. Add Tamron's 28-300 zoom (not expensive for what it is) and you'd have a very flexible, efficient system. One of the things that I like about digital is that I really have time to compose my image now. And if I don't like the image, I can dump it and re-shoot if the image was not an action shot. For fast-moving sports photography, the Rebel is also excellent - continually focuses on the moving subject until your image is shot. I don't believe that you'd be happy with a point-and-shoot. Read Digital Photography's and others' reviews on SLR digitals and I believe that you might get the Rebel and love it, especially if you intend to make large prints. The 6.3 meg CMOS sensor in Canon's Rebel and 10D is marvelous, provides wonderful color, contrast, and sharpness, and consumes very little power compared to a CCD sensor. Your wife would love it on full auto. Post your decision when you reach it. I'd like to follow-up!

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pENTAX and Olympus
Mar 1, 2005 9:49PM PST

We have used a Pentax K1000 for many years, but I purchased an Olympus digital camera a few years ago. Then being happy with that one, I upgraded to a newer better Olympus with 10x zoom. I'm very happy with it also.