camera

i have been blown away by the photos entered into the competitions and fancy trying photography myself. What is the best sort of camera to start with digital or eh non digital? Are there any good books to read or is it just a case of getting out there and taking photos?

[G]

Digital is the only thing to buy now.

Most compacts will turn out some very good photos now if you just want a point and shoot.

A bridge camera is a very good camera if you want to start playing about abit more with the settings to get a photo a bit different.

An SLR is the way forwards if you have a good knowledge of cameras and the settings involved for different conditions, you will always get the best photo with an SLR but it will cost you.


I have a Fuji S5700 bridge camera at the moment as it was cheap and has a good range within its settings. Tesco's has them on offer at the moment at ?130 which is a damn bargain.

thanx i have a cannon ixus v3 just now but its quite old (7 years) and i have not really tried to do anything other than point and click. Might get instruction booklet out if I can find it and see what I can do with it.

I bought a Panasonic DMC-FX18 Limix thing for myself for Christmas.

I had a little cheapo 3mp compact thing before and it took reasonable close-up shots and OK little Mpeg movies - but I really wanted something that would pick up the detail when taking shots of my leatherwork.

I mainly chose this one as the Lumix Intelligent Auto is absolutely awesome. It makes me look good, like I know what I'm doing!
I can basically point and push the button with it at the moment, but it has the capability with semi-auto and fully manual settings to stretch my skills if I ever get round to reading the manual.

Artistically, Ive got a good eye (some even say two), but I have the technical knowledge of a retarded house-brick.

Edit: Forgot to say, it's a plain digital, not an SLR (Is that a 'bridge camera'? I don't know.) I wanted to still take movies with it for the riding lessons at Uni, and you can't do that with an SLR - this was the best compromise that meant I didn't have to buy two separate bits of kit. Cost £275

i recommend canon g9 or digital slr (depends on your budget).

Originally Posted by K

I bought a Panasonic DMC-FX18 Limix thing for myself for Christmas.

I had a little cheapo 3mp compact thing before and it took reasonable close-up shots and OK little Mpeg movies - but I really wanted something that would pick up the detail when taking shots of my leatherwork.

I mainly chose this one as the Lumix Intelligent Auto is absolutely awesome. It makes me look good, like I know what I'm doing!
I can basically point and push the button with it at the moment, but it has the capability with semi-auto and fully manual settings to stretch my skills if I ever get round to reading the manual.

Artistically, Ive got a good eye (some even say two), but I have the technical knowledge of a retarded house-brick.

Edit: Forgot to say, it's a plain digital, not an SLR (Is that a 'bridge camera'? I don't know.) I wanted to still take movies with it for the riding lessons at Uni, and you can't do that with an SLR - this was the best compromise that meant I didn't have to buy two separate bits of kit. Cost £275

I just got bought a Panasonic lumix FZ8 for me birthday, great camera, brilliant Leica lens, then went out on bought one of these the other day http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWN:IT&ih=003
happy days, say cheese

I would recommend getting a bridge camera which can also shoot raw if you are serious about developing your skills. If you don't know, RAW is akin to the old darkroom - you can digitally develop them and have much more control over the final image than with a plain point-and-shoot.

Also, a bridge camera will have manual overrides for when you are trying to be clever and control depth of field etc

who would have thought buying a camera would be so tricky

Originally Posted by kitkat

who would have thought buying a camera would be so tricky

Whats your budget if you dont mind me asking ?

Originally Posted by simesb

I would recommend getting a bridge camera which can also shoot raw if you are serious about developing your skills. If you don't know, RAW is akin to the old darkroom - you can digitally develop them and have much more control over the final image than with a plain point-and-shoot.

Also, a bridge camera will have manual overrides for when you are trying to be clever and control depth of field etc

In that case mine's definately a 'Bridge Camera' cos the manual says I can do all that wangy stuff... when I gets a brian.