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Photograpy/ Camera buffs
#1556205
25/11/2015 21:33
25/11/2015 21:33
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Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 820 Trowbridge,Wiltshire
jon13
OP
Enjoying the ride
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OP
Enjoying the ride
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 820
Trowbridge,Wiltshire
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Hi all, Just looking for any advice towards finding a camera for the girlfriend for Christmas,as I haven't the first clue where to start. She's stated that she's keen to get into it as both her sister and friend have cameras and are moving forward with the hobby. Hoping to take advantage of the Black Friday sales in time for Christmas. She'll probably use it mostly for close up and landscape stuff and shooting 'pretty' things. She would also need to be able to get good images of myself and other friends whilst we're surfing at up to 50/60m away. Amazon have These Is this a good start? Any and all help is greatly appreciated!
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: jon13]
#1556214
25/11/2015 22:39
25/11/2015 22:39
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glenn1960
Unregistered
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glenn1960
Unregistered
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ignore digital zoom figures, optical zoom is what you need [ higher the better ] . My camera is a sony with 12x optical zoom and my camcorder has a ridiculous 70x optical zoom. !! The 12x would be well enough for the purpose you stated. Safe to go with a digital Canon or Nikon .
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: jon13]
#1556216
25/11/2015 22:49
25/11/2015 22:49
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 3,610 S. Wales. Way beyond my means
Gripped
Club member 1924
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Club member 1924
Forum is my job
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 3,610
S. Wales. Way beyond my means
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In addition to Canon and Nikon, I've had very good experiences with Fuji Finepix cameras including bridge cameras (somewhere between a compact and a DSLR) too. Lumix also well thought off.
Last edited by Gripped; 25/11/2015 22:50.
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: jon13]
#1556217
25/11/2015 22:55
25/11/2015 22:55
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glenn1960
Unregistered
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glenn1960
Unregistered
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ps.. My sony has 5.1 mega pixels, I would suggest at least that level, if not higher. Looking on ebay, Nikons seem to have very high mega pixels levels[ in the 20s ], but Canon and Nikon seem to have only 3x optical zooms.
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: ]
#1556219
25/11/2015 23:06
25/11/2015 23:06
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Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 6,144 Southampton, Hants
Roadking
Club member 1809
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Club member 1809
Forum is my life
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 6,144
Southampton, Hants
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A professional photographer I know has migrated to the Olympus OM-D series 3/4 camera and lenses. I'm still using a full DSLR, but he swears by their quality and ease of use/carry.
They are regularly on sale on Amazon so worth a lookover the Black Friday sales.
"RK's way seems the most sensible to me". ali_hire 16 Dec 2010
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: Hyperlink]
#1556236
26/11/2015 04:18
26/11/2015 04:18
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,072 South Cambs
Barmybob
Hon Club Member: 003
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Hon Club Member: 003
Je suis un Coupé
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,072
South Cambs
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With digital SLR's it is not a bad idea to buy bleeding edge, that is SLR's that have recently been replaced. Generally most advances in SLR technology recently have been with regard their video capabilities. So if you don't need the latest and best video recording you should be able to get a very good recently replaced model for a good price.
Earlier this year I bought a Pentax K50 with an 18-135 lens. Cracking bit of kit and I already have a lot of old Pentax glass. My nephew has just gone down the 3/4 route though an he has uploaded some great pictures recently. However as the 3/4 format is quite new there is a limited number of lenses available, especially second hand, and they can also be quite pricey too.
So I would say - recently replaced SLR model, and probably from Canon or Nikon as they are the most popular.
Gone Audi mad!
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: Nigel]
#1556252
26/11/2015 11:31
26/11/2015 11:31
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Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 6,144 Southampton, Hants
Roadking
Club member 1809
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Club member 1809
Forum is my life
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 6,144
Southampton, Hants
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this 7D may be on Amazon BFS tomorrow. I've got a 7D very good but has been superceded by the Mk2 Do not be afraid to buy off Panamoz or DigitalRev (UK). Grey imports, significantly cheaper warranted and taxes paid in the purchase price. I've bought cameras, lenses, and a flash with no issue whatsoever.
Last edited by Roadking; 26/11/2015 11:53.
"RK's way seems the most sensible to me". ali_hire 16 Dec 2010
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: Nigel]
#1556283
26/11/2015 20:45
26/11/2015 20:45
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Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 6,144 Southampton, Hants
Roadking
Club member 1809
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Club member 1809
Forum is my life
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 6,144
Southampton, Hants
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In the majority of cases, grey imports are OK, but you need to read the small print - some (like Portus Digital) have terms and conditions which mean that you are engaging them as an import agent, but that any duty due is to be paid by you.
This means that if you don't declare the item, you're breaking the law. If Customs intercept the parcel, you'll be liable for the duty.
I very nearly bought my D810 from them until I realised the potential downsides (as well as the warranty differences) Digital Rev UK and Panamoz sell the items tax paid. Whether they pay all of it is between them and HM Customs .
"RK's way seems the most sensible to me". ali_hire 16 Dec 2010
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: jon13]
#1556284
26/11/2015 20:54
26/11/2015 20:54
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FreakinFreak
Unregistered
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FreakinFreak
Unregistered
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You could always get her a film camera...
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: jon13]
#1556287
26/11/2015 20:56
26/11/2015 20:56
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GrahamL
Unregistered
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GrahamL
Unregistered
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http://www.flashcamera.co.uk/is good for cheaper high end grey import stuff shipped from within the UK so no duty/tax issues. I bought a Sony camera from them and had no problems.
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: jon13]
#1556302
27/11/2015 00:11
27/11/2015 00:11
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Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,617 SE Essex
charlie_croker
I need some sleep
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I need some sleep
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,617
SE Essex
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I use the Fujifilm X-Series cameras and love them, the lenses all have reasonably "fast glass" and are made of metal, quite a few are weather sealed, they are relatively compact compared to a full D-SLR. Originally they (the bodies) used relatively slow contrast detection for autofocus but the algorithm became much improved on the early ones (I have an XT1 and an X-Pro1). One of the best things about Fujifilm is they adopt "Kaizen", which means they continue to release firmware updates, even for relatively old cameras. Which means that when they released the Graphite XT-1, they also released a firmware update which made my "black" one have the same features... You can get them at a discount here http://shop.fujifilm.co.uk/refurbished-digital-cameras Even the relatively cheap X20 and X30 make cracking cameras (they have f2.0 apertures) and even though these don't have an APS sized sensor, you can get reasonable subject separation/"Bokeh" from them. The XT 10 and f1.4 35mm (1.5 crop factor) would give you some very nice images indeed. http://petapixel.com/2013/10/30/fujifilm-x-series-made-feel-inadequate/
Last edited by charlie_croker; 27/11/2015 00:14.
Happy
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: charlie_croker]
#1556316
27/11/2015 09:33
27/11/2015 09:33
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,072 South Cambs
Barmybob
Hon Club Member: 003
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Hon Club Member: 003
Je suis un Coupé
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,072
South Cambs
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This was the main reason I upgraded my budget Pentax K-r to the K-50. The K-50 was the only budget - mid range Camera to be fully weather sealed, not sure if that has changed now? Weather sealing really helps with keeping down dust issues, especially if you also buy a lens that covers a large range and thus reduces changes. Dust is probably the biggest drawback to digital photography. It is most visible when shooting at smaller apertures - higher f stop numbers. Don't forget software. Digital photography is great but some good software can make all the difference between a good image and a great image. Fortunately modern software even makes it easy to remove dust marks too. I am currently using Corel Paintshop Pro - X7 which can be picked up quite cheap now.
Gone Audi mad!
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: Barmybob]
#1556318
27/11/2015 09:54
27/11/2015 09:54
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Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,617 SE Essex
charlie_croker
I need some sleep
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I need some sleep
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,617
SE Essex
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This was the main reason I upgraded my budget Pentax K-r to the K-50. The K-50 was the only budget - mid range Camera to be fully weather sealed, not sure if that has changed now? Weather sealing really helps with keeping down dust issues, especially if you also buy a lens that covers a large range and thus reduces changes. Dust is probably the biggest drawback to digital photography. It is most visible when shooting at smaller apertures - higher f stop numbers. Don't forget software. Digital photography is great but some good software can make all the difference between a good image and a great image. Fortunately modern software even makes it easy to remove dust marks too. I am currently using Corel Paintshop Pro - X7 which can be picked up quite cheap now. The adbobe montly subscription is great value for money, I had used apple's Aperture app but they have discontinued development so I switched to Adobe Lightroom and am liking it, price is £8.57 a month for Lightroom and Photoshop http://www.adobe.com/uk/creativecloud.html
Happy
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: barnacle]
#1556322
27/11/2015 10:14
27/11/2015 10:14
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,072 South Cambs
Barmybob
Hon Club Member: 003
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Hon Club Member: 003
Je suis un Coupé
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 8,072
South Cambs
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Have you tried asking on the Forum, Jim? Um, that was the point of my post... *I* know that, and I know you know I know that... Hang on a minute, when did Neil start using smilies?
Gone Audi mad!
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: jon13]
#1556363
27/11/2015 19:26
27/11/2015 19:26
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 33,568 Berlin
barnacle
Club Member 18 - ex-Minister without Portfolio
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Club Member 18 - ex-Minister without Portfolio
Forum Demigod
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 33,568
Berlin
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Re: Photograpy/ Camera buffs
[Re: Nigel]
#1556408
28/11/2015 12:40
28/11/2015 12:40
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Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 820 Trowbridge,Wiltshire
jon13
OP
Enjoying the ride
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OP
Enjoying the ride
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 820
Trowbridge,Wiltshire
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@Jon13 - although you'll need to pounce PDQ if you'd want a Black Friday deal, if you want to try a D3200, I'd be happy to lend you mine. Functionality is very close to my D5200 and resolution is the same at 24MP
I can probably find you a lens to lend you as well (on the basis that a body only is not particularly useful....)
My problem is that I only have one charger, which I'll need to keep hold of to charge my D5200 batteries (I bought the D3200 very cheaply to use as a second camera with a short lens, while I was lugging a big telephoto on the D5200 - it came with nothing other than the body) - one charge will do 500-750 shots though, so it'll be a while before you kill the battery
Happy to lend it to you though - will give you a feel for what its capable of, and whether a DSLR is the right choice or a step too far Wow! What a great offer, thank you very much!You have PM.
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