Thread: Which digital SLR for pen photography?

Fred,

Here's a couple of sites for you to checkout for online pricing

Static Ice (http://staticice.com.au/) - one of the best sites for finding the cheapest electronics & computer components in Australia

Road Mogul (http://www.roadmogul.com.au/) - they have a pretty good rep and prices
Black Tea Tech (http://www.bttech.com.au/) - next best recommendd place for good deals
Digital Camera Warehouse (http://www.digitalcamerawarehouse.com.au/) - a lot of variety, not sure of their rep

In the end, I bargained mine down at the local JB HiFi, and the 450Ds were a hot item and out of stock in lots of places. Got about $200 off the JB RRP.

Russell.

Thanks Russell, cheapest is about $50 below the local price, then add freight, so may as well buy locally.

As a matter of interest, Dick Smith is offering the Canon 450D for $1241 locally.

Originally Posted by ciscokid

Just checked and you can still buy a 30D for around $600 US (body only) which is roughly half what it was a couple of years ago. The 40D can be had for around $860. These are not the "Rebel" series cameras which are more affordable. Both the 30D and the 40D are as automatic or as manual as you want and are even programmable for those requiring that feature. The lenses have a switch for either auto-focus or manual (I prefer manual). The 5D Mark II is the next step up at $2,800 US (body only). Not being a professional photographer or wealthy, I stuck with the 30D. Pros - excellent battery life and features. Cons - a bit heavy to lug around all day.

Thanks for that cisco. Bit problematic buying this sort of gear from OS. First of all warranty usually doesn't apply here, then there is the weakness of our $A ($US600=$A900) then add freight of about $A65.

Originally Posted by Big Shed

Thanks Russell, cheapest is about $50 below the local price, then add freight, so may as well buy locally.

As a matter of interest, Dick Smith is offering the Canon 450D for $1241 locally.

Yep, when i tried to get JB to match the online price, they added a figure for postage to come to their final price, and if there are warranty issues, it's always better to have somewhere you can go to, than having to worry about postage.

Russell.

Thanks Russell, went out this afternoon to "test drive" my 3 preferred models, both price and feature wise. Virtually decided on the Sony A300, based on visual inspection (no batteries though!) and reviews.

First off the rank was the Olympus E520, nice compact camera, viewfinder small and dim, strike one.

Second off the rank was the Canon 450D (leave the best to last I thought), nice to handle (just the right size for my hands, very clear viewfinder - good size, big Live View screen, hmm possibilities here, expensive though!

So on to the one I thought I was going to buy, the Sony A300, good size viewfinder, manual focus felt somewhat stiff, tried another one it was the same. Nice Live View screen, but not nearly as clear and bright (or as big) as the 450D. Like that flip out screen though. Good price too. Take it outside, can't see very much on the screen.

Back to the Canon 450D, take it outside, easier to see and focus, maybe those extra dollars are worth it after all. So ask the question, won't budge from $1399.

OK, says I, I'll think about it.

Back to Dick Smith, Canon 450D $1241, ah but there is a catch - standard lens is image stabiliised , 70-250 ins't (tha's why they call them "tricky Dickie". Oh you wanted the telephoto image stabilised as well sir? That'll cost $1398

Ok, more than one way to skin a cat, on to the Good Guys, Canon 450D, 2 IS lenses $1398. What's your best price, $1299, not good enough, what do we have to beat, $1241. Ok, how about $1240 sir. Done, here's my card.

Battery is charging as I type.

End of saga

Cool, glad you got the deal. I've already admitted to being Canon biased, but it's because I think, overall, they really are the best camera.

Can't wait to see some shots.

Oh, here's one I took using the remote camera software for the Australian Photo Forum "self portrait" challenge

Russell.

Congratulations! You got a fine camera that will do just about anything you ask of it.

Well done and happy snaping.
For down the track...
don't forget you can buy cheap adaptors to use all sorts of lenses on your camera.
I'm thinking of old manual focus lenses of fixed focal length which would be ideal for the pen photography. set the camera on a tripod and focus manually. I've got a swag of old Contax C/Y lenses that I choose to use most times I have a subjct thats not moving. Works a treat.
All the best
Kevin

Originally Posted by Big Shed

went out this afternoon to "test drive" my 3 preferred models, both price and feature wise.

snip

Back to the Canon 450D, take it outside, easier to see and focus, maybe those extra dollars are worth it after all.

Battery is charging as I type.

End of saga

NOPE, it's just the beginning

give it a few months and you'll be lusting after a much better lens — whilst I've got a D40 and a couple of Nikon's good (read expensive) digital zoom lenses, if I'm being really serious I pull out the 85mm/1.8 with the curved diaphram blades

you'll need a tripod but don't bother witha cable release, I use the self timer instead
and a light tent



ian

Congrats on your purchase!

There's a nifty little lense for the Canon that is perfect for portraiture. It's the 50mm/f1.8 - the "Thrifty Fifty". It's not USM, and it's not amazing quality but it's very sharp (much sharper than zoom lenses), it becomes 80mm on a DSLR-compact sensor like the 450D which is an excellent focal lenth for portraits. It also costs about $140. It's not as nice as the F1.4 USM version, but that one is $650-ish.

I have one for my 350D and use it for dedicated portrait sessions. The only thing to watch with it is that as f1.8 the depth of field is very, very small which can cause it's own problems...

Cheers,
Dave

As this thread has now wandered well away from PEN photography, I have moved it to the general photography section. Don't want to clutter up the Pen Turning section with unrelated stuff.

Ozkaban, I hear what you are saying about an 80-90mm (35mm equivalent) focal length lens. When I was still a very active (obsessed?) amateur photographer one of my favourite lenses was a 90mm Macro lens, which I used for all sorts of things including portraiture. I also used a 105mm Rodenstock enlarging lens on a bellows setup for real close up nature work.

Why anyone would want to spend $650 on an F1.4 lens, of any focal length, escapes me! You'd have to stop that puppy down at least 2-3 stops to get a decent DOF and to get rid if aberrations and distortions at the edges! It always amuased that people would proudly proclaim that they had the 50mm f1.4 lens rather than the 50mm f1.8 lens, at 2 times the weight and 3 times the cost, as well as half the quality.

As a very active member of APS and our local camera club I have seen more than my fair share of camera snobbery.

I still have that Soligor Flexomatic bellows and focusing rail setup with an Olympus adapter, must see if I can get a Canon adapter and use that Rodenstock lens on the Canon.

On another note, I have now had a chance to use the new Canon 450D for a day or so and have taken a few quick photos with it. Must say that so far I am impressed with the handling and ease of use, this is the first digital SLR I have ever used and I got going with most of the major functions without reading the manual, very intuitive controls.

The on-camera flash works a treat, particularly in daylight in-fill mode.

Must get myself a wireless or IR remote control and set the thing up on some of bird baths and get some bird shots.

Also need to get a decent lens hood, the Sony I was going to buy came with a dedicated lens hood for each of the 2 lenses it was supplied with, and they were bayonet mount.

Probably get a couple of spare batteries and a car charger too, these things are totally useless without power!

Originally Posted by Big Shed

Must get myself a wireless or IR remote control and set the thing up on some of bird baths and get some bird shots.

Fred, I got myself one of these

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Wireless-Remote-Control-Canon-5x1-450D-400D-350D-300D_W0QQitemZ170312833208QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAU_Cameras_Photographic_Accessories?hash=item170312833208&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2|65%3A1|39%3A1|240%3A1318

Works a treat, and for less than $10, how can you go wrong? Mind you, you need to be in front of the camera for these things, which is a big drawback. I use the self timer on the tripod mainly to ensure nice crisp shots.

I'd actually love one of these or similar

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/TR-80-C6-Timer-Remote-for-Canon-TC-80N3-350D-400D-450D_W0QQitemZ200320486106QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAU_Cameras_Photographic_Accessories?hash=item200320486106&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2|65%3A1|39%3A1|240%3A1318

But haven't been able to justify $70 - $80 for it yet, too many other higher priority things to get. It's be great for long exposure night shots and doing time lapse imagery.

Russell.

Thanks Russell, but neither of those would do what I want it for. The first one, as you have said, is line of sight (30deg +/-) and in a lot of instances I would be positioned somewhere to the side or rear of the camera.

The other one, although remote, is still connected to the camera and more useful for studio work. A $10 remote switch will do that (without all the fancy features).

Something like this will do for starters (also good for time exposures)

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/3M-10ft-Remote-Cord-Canon-EOS-Rebel-XSi-XTi-XT-RS-60E3_W0QQitemZ180336171215QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_15?hash=item180336171215&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2|65%3A1|39%3A1|240%3A1318

or a radio remote control (one of several)

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Radio-Wireles...3A1|240%3A1318

I bought a wireless remote off ebay for the Nikon D40X

asked the question and was assured it would work fine.

I couldn't get it to work and my son couldn't get it to work.

So then bought the proper Nikon remote no probs since.

Cheers Fred