Back from my first ever desert vacation

WillCAD
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

Post by WillCAD »

Plays In The Dirt wrote:
WillCAD wrote:Yes, I shoot a Canon Digital Rebel 300D. Although it's obsolete technology by today's standards, it still takes a pretty good picture, and has proven itself fairly tough and very reliable over the 5 or so years that I've had it.
The main thing is to have fun with it. Many of the older models perform quite well, and much of the new technology is just bells and whistles and gadgets to keep the everyday consumer buying new upgrades.
Some of the new technology is more than just bells and whistles. Newer cameras in the Digital Rebel series have much better high ISO performance and quicker focusing than my camera, and of course they have more resolution.

When I upgrade my camera, however, I won't go with a newer Digital Rebel; all other cameras in that series after the 300D have a new, smaller, body design that is uncomfortable for people with big hands like me. Instead, I'll step up to the next higher line of Canon DSLRs, the 20-30-40-50D series. It'll be some time before I can afford that, though, even if I go for a used camera body from an older model.
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Apache Devil
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

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When camera shopping be sure to avoid that cheap Fuji 100SD that all the department stores have been pushing in their sales sheets. It is a pile of crap. It is supposed to be a 10 megapixel camera, but the old Sony Mavica 3.2 megapixel I had that used mini cd's far outperformed it in color and clarity.
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Plays In The Dirt
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

Post by Plays In The Dirt »

Apache Devil wrote:When camera shopping be sure to avoid that cheap Fuji 100SD that all the department stores have been pushing in their sales sheets. It is a pile of crap. It is supposed to be a 10 megapixel camera, but the old Sony Mavica 3.2 megapixel I had that used mini cd's far outperformed it in color and clarity.
If you wish to deal with a Professional - Honest and Dependable online retailer for your Photography gear I would strongly suggest B&H Photo: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/. There are a few others out there but I buy almost all of my gear from them and have never had any problems. BEWARE, there are many scams out there and if a deal looks too good it almost never is. And no, I have no affiliation with them, I'm just one of many satisfied customers. Also, most of the department stores have salesmen that have no clue what they're talking about.
Desert Cruiser
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

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Willcad: I had a 300D and really liked it for most things including photo quality -- it took great photos. I now have a 350D that I like more (not because of the 2 more megapixels; but because it takes great photos too and is very quick. Almost no start-up time and focus is pretty much instantaneous. It's great for good exposures too. After taking over 11,000 shots with it it still works great. When you taking photos of animals, birds, reptiles it is nice to have something that's ready when you need it instantaneously! I like the Rebels cause they are small and weigh less when your carrying it all day with a couple of lenses. I had a couple of EOS digital cameras and their nice but do add some weight and don't necessarily add quality. Your camera is doing a nice job for you and apparently you know how to use it.

Gregg: I was just kidding around about the Camera model with Willcad --- I went and read his site and saw that he was using a 300D. Read his site!

As for a good place to buy cameras -- I've always had good luck with Samy's camera in Los Angeles. Their return policy was always great and they were nice to deal with; with a large inventory
http://www.samys.com/ Looks like you had fun

Don....
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reptilist
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

Post by reptilist »

I have a Canon Rebel xti...I like it except for one thing....It does not tether to my laptop. It seems that ability was omitted from this camera even though the prior version and the latter version both have it. Tethering would be very handy for doing portraits, team pics, etc...
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

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Tethering for portraits on inside shoots is ok but have you ever tried to use your laptop outside? Just seeing the LCD is almost impossible. The viewfinders on the Rebels are small and dim and take some getting used to. Nice camera, I think Gregg has one too.
Don....
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Space Cowboy
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

Post by Space Cowboy »

Tell you where I'm at, I went to Samy's Photo and found myself lusting for the Horseman
45FA 4x5" Field Camera.

That would come with a stock lense, wouldn't it?
WillCAD
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

Post by WillCAD »

Desert Cruiser wrote:Tethering for portraits on inside shoots is ok but have you ever tried to use your laptop outside? Just seeing the LCD is almost impossible. The viewfinders on the Rebels are small and dim and take some getting used to. Nice camera, I think Gregg has one too.
Don....
Very true. Plus, I would never take my laptop into the field with me; it's not ruggedized or sealed, and the dust and heat in a place like Red Rock would fry it in an hour. Heat, moisture, and dust are the biggest enemies of computers.
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

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Willcad: That post about the laptop was directed to Reptilist but I agree with you on the use of them in the desert. However I built a case out of an Aluminum case with foam padding (with nipples) for the inside and it has a good seal. We have used it in the desert and on trips but now have a 40gig Epson storage and viewer unit that runs on rechargeable Lithium Ion battery and AC for storing photos on a trip. Plus nowdays memory cards are so cheap you can have 6 - 1 gig. cards of for next to nothing. Back to the cameras -- the most important thing is a good lens. And for the Canons I really like the 17 - 40 L f4 and the 300 f4 IS lens the most. I have a 70 - 200 f4 L and 50 f1.4 and hardly every use them. The 17 - 40 is a great walk around lens, and nice for landscapes.

As for the 4x5 camera, I don't know what comes with that. Call their 800 number and ask? But that would be a brick to haul around. Getting prints done wouldn't be cheap either. There are no negatives with digital!

Don....
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Space Cowboy
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Re: Back from my first ever desert vacation

Post by Space Cowboy »

Which is why everyone is going digital. If you do 4x5, you're doing it for the fine art, and you should have your own darkroom, IMHO. Fine art with a camera, for me, is like recorded music. Unless you're truly an audiophile, its hard to appreciate it. I had a buddy back in college that found an 8x10 camera buried in a storage building at Grossmont College, and he used to drive around with it in the bed of his mini-truck, a Hilux, or something like that, Nissan now. Someone would have to maneuver the truck following his directions, while he composed the shot. He could point out the depth and texture of the picture, the nuances that would have been lost with a 35mm. I couldn't bring myself to tell him the shots were boring. No Ansel Adams here.

Truth be told I'd have to be a whole lot more wrapped up in the art of photography than I've ever been, but none-the-less, an old man can dream -- or is that 'see visions'?
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