for photographers...?

Question

i recently got a sony cyber-shot 10.1 mega pixel digital camera recently for the holiday. i am looking into photography and am currently taking classes. i personally don't think it is a very good camera...but does anyone have one? what do they think?
and i am thinking about trading it in for a new one, a want a small compact one, can anyone give me some brands/types of digital cameras that they may recommend?
thanks!

Answer 1

Hi there, Low. It's always good to hear folks getting into the hobby. Which cybershot do you have? How small are you looking to go? There's small like a compact slr...and then there's small enough to fit in a pocket, ya know?

Some folks would point you to big fancy SLRs to learn on, Low. But I don't think you really need to. And I almost guarantee you your teacher would agree. Yes, SLR's are superior from an image quality perspective, and many of the controls are very accessible on slr's. And lord knows, you can equip those slr's with thousands of dollars of accessories. But you can learn plenty with a smaller compact camera, and you're more likely to carry a compact camera with you. Like any hobby, practice is the key.

So don't beleive the hype when folks tell you you're an idiot for not getting a Canon XTi, or a Nikon D40 right off the bat. You can learn the basics of exposure control, composition, and other techniques with much smaller platforms. (and much less expensive!). You will, however, appreciate the advantages of slr's more, once you learn the techniques and discover the breadth of what one can do. Just keep in mind...with photography, like any hobby, frequent practice is more important than how high-tech your equipment is.

That being said, I would recomment you stay away from the ultra-compacts that are geared for what's referred to as "point-and-shoot" users, and only offer "program" and "scene" modes. That's not what will help one who wants to learn the technical aspects. You'd want a full-featured compact camera, which gives you full-photographic control, instead of relying on built-in logic to control everything for you. In addition, the ultra-compact cameras, imo, compromise too much on optical quality. They have to shrink down the optics to fit in such a small form factor. So they're very limited in their high-ISO capabilities, and have a limited range of apertures.

Basic features you want to keep an eye out for:

--Look for a knob that allows you to set Tv (shutterspeed priority), Av (aperture Priority), M (full manual), and P (Auto Program Mode). Do not compromise on this one item. It's a must-have for those who want to learn the fundamentals.

--Look for a camera that's able to go down to a 35mm equivalent of about 2.8f-3.8f aperture setting (two figures are usually stated--one at the wide setting, and one at telephoto). That will give you enough range in the Depth of field to start understanding the principles.

--Don't bother looking at the megapixels. Anything over 6mp is fine for printing up to 8"x10". Besides...the files get so big afterwards you'll have no place to put them!

--Do NOT get hung up about whether this cam or that has "superior optics." Yes, optics are important. But good images have more to do with the photographer's talents moreso than the optics. Besides...there's alot more that goes into good image quality than just a good set of glass (sensor quality, for one...and the manufacturer's choices on what kind of in-camera noise and color processing is done). Most of the time it's pixel-peepers splitting hairs over images that were smudgy not so much because the glass was inferior, but bcs the operator couldn't figure out how to focus the thing, or forced the camera to a poor ISO.

The best one I can think of from a photographer's perspective would be the Canon G7 for it's flexibility. I don't know if that qualifies for "compact" for you. It's an incredibly versatile compact though, and it has the most slr-like controls of the compact cameras out there. And it has a flash-shoe, which is really useful when you start getting more advanced.

Cheaper options do exist though. The Canon A-series like the A640 or A710IS are very good camera that gives you full photographic control, and is very very close to the G7 quality wise. And the Olympus SP-350 is kind of like the poor-man's version of the G7.

And it's not all about Canon either. I would give serious consideration to the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX1 (and now the LX2) and the Samsung NV7 OPS, and the Olympus SP-350 as well. All are very modern, very capable, and offer full photographic control.

If you are open to slightly larger cams, there are also the Panasonic DMC-FZ7, and the Canon Powershot S3.

G'luck Low! Have fun!

Answer 2

While many Sony P&S cameras seem to be pretty good, the one you mention has been assessed by others about the same way you have assessed it.

If you are "looking into photography and currently taking classes" and want to stay within the digital world (which I especially recommend for someone who is just learning), consider getting a Nikon D50 or (preferably) D80 along with Nikon's 18-70 lens, for starters. You might also consider the 18-135 lens, although I have no personal experience with that lens. If you stay in photography, when you are ready to add lenses, the sky is the limit with Nikon. Then, when you upgrade your camera, you will have a nice, useful collection of lenses.

Others will recommend a Canon EOS 400D or EOS 30D and I certainly will not argue with them, as they are also fine cameras. At this level, you really have to visit your local camera shop and see which one feels better in your hands.

If you are taking a class, it might be a good idea to ask your instructor for a recommendation, as it is always easier if you are using the same system as the instructor. I'll go out on a limb, though, and say that if he/she recommends anything other than Nikon or Canon, take my advice over his/hers.

Answer 3

What driveshaft said is true...up to a point.

The problem with the manual settings on digicams is the depth of field. The same aperture just doesn't behave the same on a small sensor with a built in lens. So a setting that will really blur the background on an SLR won't have as much affect on a digicam. Also the higher ISO settings suffer from noise on a digicam, sometimes very badly. On an SLR, noise is better controlled.

Other than that, I agree that you can learn a lot of photography on whatever kind of camera you have. Lots of photography is not technical. It's subject, composition, and learning how to see and harness light.

Answer 4

I love my SONY Cybershot, this is the 3rd SONY camera I had in the past 8 years. For me this camera is capable of allowing me to manipulate settings other than just using auto mode. Like you, I had taken photography classes in college, I have learne photography using manual cameras, as a result, I was capable of using the program setting of cybershot to acquire the result I want for a particular photograph.
If I will buy another digital camera in the future, I will buy HP because it is capable of manipulating the the image, cropping the image, changing colors of the image right in the camera. itself. It cost about $299 and uses secure digital (cost $20 for 1GB)

Answer 5

First off, don't go with Sony. The best lens is on an Olympus. Any of the Camedia series have the best lenses, as well as the Canon cameras. They are the two top brands for quality images.