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| 7/9 |
| 2006/11/7-8 [Consumer/Camera] UID:45240 Activity:high |
11/7 looking for an entry level digital slr camera. canon eos
digital rebel xt with lens selling at $590 with shipping.
good deal? thanks!
i am new to slr camera. i just want to get something
cheap to start with. will the price come down for
thanksgiving?
\- my one piece of advice: for similarly priced camera [like
the entry level nikon dSLRs] rather than focusing on small
technical details, pick on interface. things like location of
exposure copensation or focus lock ... or does one camera have
something on a 1-deep menu that another has on a 3 deep menu ...
this stuff really ends up matting in practice. for example
one of the really annoying thins on the Nikon D70 is dual
purposing the ISO change button ... that is something i do a
lot and it is annoying that if the preview display is active
the button changes picture preview type. this stuff ends up
mattering more than a few pixels here and there or other stuff
that will be mostly a wash.
\_ Nikon D70 or or the Rebel XT. If you can afford it, get the 400D
instead of the 350D, but there's no huge difference. I don't like
the Nikon's size. More important: get a decent lens (I have a
350D with an 17/85) and a UV or polarization filter or something
similar to protect it with. The kit lenses are usually kind of
crap. If money's an issue, go for the lesser model with the
better lens and a big memory card and shoot RAW. As for the ISO
button, I shoot in ISO 100 unless it's absolutely not possible, so
YMMV. If you want really specific info, http://dpreview.com -John
\- you do not get a polarizing filter to "protect" the lens:
1. they actually do something 2. they are expensive. the kit
lenses are going to be reasonable but not great ... they
will have distiortion at the ends of the zoom range, but
this is fine for entry level. for entry level photographer
the most important thing is what encourage you to take
lots of pix ... since you skill will be the "liming reagent",
not the technical specs of the camera. [i am assuming the OP
doesnt have that much photo experience. if you are
an experienced photographer looking for a cheep digital,
other criteria apply]. i also thing shooting RAW is a mistake.
also i would get probably 1-2gb memory cards at the largest.
you really dont want to put all your eggs in one basket
when it comes to your pix ... and it's not like carrying
3 cards is a lot of extra weight. cant give lens advice until
the OP says what kind of photography is important to him ...
but the kit lens is generally a cheep enough addition
that it's worth getting.
\- BTW, the comparison to the Rebel 400 is the Nikon D80.
also if you have a friend you can borrow gear from (lenses
typically), that can be a consideration for which camera
to get sometimes. if you budget is in the $600 range, these
may exceed that.
\_ _You_ do not get a UV filter, I do. YMMV, let op do some
research. Fair point on the D80, hence dpreview. Do some
comparison. I found the 17/85 a great general purpose lens
to start with, it's just a tip. As for RAW, if he's getting
an SLR I assume it's for higher quality pics. It took me a
while to figure out that shooting jpeg was pretty pointless
as I lost a lot of detail and color even highest settings--
just passing that on. And I have two 2GB cards, I wasn't
talking about 16GB or anything likee that, probably should
have been clearer. -John
\- you realize a UV filter != polarizing filter right?
yes, the lens protection filter is often called a UV
or Haze or skylight filter. Also a circular polar
will cause prolems if you have polarizing sun glasses.
I really like polarizing filters ... if you do plan to
shoot landscapes, i'd get a decent one. [and make sure
it doesnt vignette at 18mm ... although may not be an
issue on a dSLR]. as for shooting RAW, i think you are
better off braketing a lot than shooting RAW ... which
isnt to say cant do both, but i bet you arent ...
hundreds of giant files are pretty hard to deal with.
[how big are your RAW images?]
[how big are your RAW images? ... also RAW is not really
a format ... so it is unclear software will be able
to read it in 10years. canon RAW today isnt even canon RAW
of 5 yrs ago ... although i assume at a given point in time
canon-RAW is the same across the whole product line. but
i would think with a major platform like canon there
will be some software aroudn that can read/convert it].
you might want to google(raw, jpg, workflow). a lot of
people ahve weighed in on this.]
\_ Partha, you may have noticed I said "UV filter OR
pol filter." My RAW are about 7 megs, which is, what,
35,000 photos on a 250GB drive? Plus, CR2 is
handled very nicely by iPhoto, GIMP, and most other
non-stone-age photo tools. As for bracketing, it takes
some practice to get the feel, and I've not found it to
be nearly as good dealing with haze. OP: You might
prefer to find a good photo store where they can advise
you, given what we posted. I'd still look at dpreview
first just to get the skinny on all this crap. I don't
know good stores in the SFBA, but http://bhphotovideo.com in
NYC is where I've gotten 2 cameras and they're great.
\- re: filter: you get a UV filter for protection.
nobody who isnt stupid gets a polarizer ... because
they are expensive and they will affect you picture
and you want the protection element to be as netural
as possible, while a pol will cost you some stops.
taking refuge in the "or" is like saying "you can
either get a UV filter OR a cow to protect your lens,
BUT the cow might now work as well." OP: bhphoto is
great. anybody significant cheeper than bh ... you
should worry about no free lunch. there are a huge
number of sleazy dealers so do some research if
price seems too good to be true. well if you
are up to using RAW, that's fine, but it's not a
no brainer. i'd distinguish between "settled"
info and personal preference when giving advice.
you might find some of the debates interesting BTW.
\_ Re. filter: UV filter _is_ more neutral, but my
use of a pol filter is based on my own
experimentation. As I said, YMMV. I don't
notice much difference--you were aware that you
can adjust these, right? Try turning the little
ring thingy, it's pretty cool. -John
\- i wrote the mueller calculus software to
model polarimetry systems for NASA and was
one of the underpaid designers [along with
another ucb person] the polarimetry system
on http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu so yes,
i know how polarizers work. you might use
a CP opprotunistically as lens pro, but nobody
gets one as lens pro.
\_ Fine, that sounds more reasonable. I got
mine for about $120 (no drop-in.) -John
\_ The Nikon D50 and D70s have 1/500sec top flash sync speed. this
comes handy when you don't want to spend money on an external flash
and you want to use the whimpy built-in flash to fill when shooting
in sunny outdoor settings. The higher and newer model D80, on the
other hand, only goes up to 1/200sec. Stupid. -- yuen |
| 7/9 |
|
| dpreview.com In the US the base E-1 body has been reduced by $300 to $1499, in the UK the E-1's body price is down 300 to 999 inc VAT (the kit including 14-54mm lens now 1399 inc VAT). This new price change brings the E-1 into line with the Canon EOS 10D (excluding lenses). In addition Olympus America are also offering a range of rebates up to $100 off Zuiko Digital lenses. They own United States patent 4,698,672 which covers the JPEG compression standard, this patent was created by Compression Labs who Forgent bought back in 1997. Over the last two years, Forgent's has generated $90 million from licensing the patent to 30 different companies. The camera companies include Canon, Kodak, Fuji, Kyocera, HP, Panasonic, Ricoh, Toshiba, Concord and software suppliers Adobe, Macromedia, JASC. New cameras from Canon (PowerShot Pro1, EOS-1D MARK II), Kodak (DCS Pro 14nx, DCS Pro SLR/n), Konica Minolta (DiMAGE A2), Nikon (D70, Coolpix 8700), Olympus (C-8080 Wide Zoom) and Sigma (SD9, SD10) are now supported. They are the easiest means of archiving digital photographs today, but if disc is useless after 2 years, perhaps another archival medium is required. If CD-R is still your chosen media, then purchase the best, record at the recommened speed for your drive, and store in a cool dry environment. Our full in-depth review of the eight megapixel Olympus C-8080 Wide Zoom. This camera combines a brand new five times optical wide zoom (28 - 140 mm) lens with a 2/3" type eight megapixel CCD. The C-8080 also sports a new body design and comprehensive control system. See how the C-8080 Wide Zoom performed in our tests and how it compares to the other four eight megapixel digital cameras currently on the market. Our full in-depth review of the all new eight megapixel Canon PowerShot Pro1. This camera features a 2/3" type eight megapixel CCD sensor combined with a Canon "L-type" 7x optical zoom lens which provides a wide zoom of 28 mm to 200 mm. See how the Pro1 performed in our tests and how it compares to the other four eight megapixel digital cameras currently on the market. Our full in-depth review of the eight megapixel Nikon Coolpix 8700. This camera is visually identical to the Coolpix 5700 as it shares that camera's body and lens, however there have been quite a few changes inside the camera. This is Nikon's offering to the eight megapixel prosumer market which is now made up of five cameras. See how the Coolpix 8700 performed in our tests and how it compares to the other four eight megapixel digital cameras currently on the market. Our full in-depth review of the eight megapixel Konica Minolta DiMAGE A2. The A2 shares its body design, lens and control layout with the five megapixel DiMAGE A1 but pushes the megapixel count up to eight and includes several 'under the hood' improvements. See how the DiMAGE A2 performed in our tests and how it compares to the other four eight megapixel digital cameras currently on the market. This new ultra-compact camera appears to utilize a 'folded optics' lens design similar to the Minolta DiMAGE X series and the Sony DSC-T1, T11. The AZ-1 also comes with a cradle used for charging the camera's internal Lithium-Ion battery as well as providing USB and video out connectivity. This camera has not yet been announced outside of Japan and it's not clear at this stage whether this will become a domestic market only camera. |
| www.spitzer.caltech.edu Spitzer en Espaol Ofrece en Espaol la informacin sobre la misin de Spitzer, antecedentes cientficos, un tutorial sobre astronoma de rayos infrarrojos y otras actividades educacionales. Spitzer Science Center is the source for information on observation planning, proposal submission, observer support, and data archives and analysis. Education and Public Outreach Learn more about infrared light, astronomy, and the world around us. Spectacular images, fun games, resources for educators, and more! Spitzer and Hubble Create Colorful Masterpiece A new image from NASA's Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes looks more like an abstract painting than a cosmic snapshot. The masterpiece shows the Orion nebula in an explosion of infrared, ultraviolet, and visible-light colors. Belching Black Holes Astronomers using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have recently identified two quasars, or supermassive black holes, that may be on the verge of a colossal cosmic "belch." |
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