Close up cameras?

[Bonnie Campbell]

Okay, I'm slowly looking for a good reasonably priced (read as 'cheap as possible') camera that I can get good close ups without being a camera geek. I don't want any fancy do-hickey attachments that I'll have to figure out how to work.

Right now I've got a HP Photosmart M517. It's not a camera I'd recommend to anyone that wants close up pictures. Using the same settings for two pictures I can get one really good picture, the second can be about as bad as they get (blurry, colors off, etc). Actual success rate probably runs 10%. I know, probably mostly operator error. But I'd like to find one that'll compensate at least a little for lousy skills. I had a Sony Mavica that was almost impossible to screw up a close up. It died though and the HP camera was bought for me.

So if anybody has any personal experience with a good camera I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks! :)

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Bonnie,

My wife is referred to as "The Camera Queen". She has 2 - 35mm cameras, an APS camera, a camcorder, a digital camera and a digital SLR. She knows nothing technical about cameras and relies on me to provide her with the results she wants. I had a special built Dell computer built just for her photography.

The problem we have experienced with most "digital" non-SLR (Single Lens Reflex) cameras is the length of time the shutter button is open. Typically this allows the photographer to "shake" and therefore the image is blurred. This is greatly reduced with the use of a digital SLR. I also had problems photographing my turnings with the non-SLR camera as I couldn't get a consistant white color out of it and the color of the woods of my turnings were inaccurate.

Last summer we were told that our youngest son and his wife were giving us a trip to NZ for our anniversary this year. They told us in advance so we could get our passports and plan the trip. I bought my wife a Nikon SLR digital camera...a D40X for use on that trip. The problems with our photographs have disappeared. Now Nikon is not the only good camera maker out there.

I'd highly recommend a digital SLR....it gets rid of the long exposure times and most good digital SLRs take good photos. Most come with auto-focus...auto-everything so you, my wife or myself...don't have to do a lot UNLESS you want to..then most will allow you to go into all of the different automatic modes or fully manual mode and shoot special effect photos. But for my wife's sake.....you can put them in "Full Auto" , adjust the lens to frame the photo (set the size of the photo) and just point and shoot.

Good luck with your decisions!

[Don Kondra]

Good advice Ken but you missed the "cheap as possible" :)

Bonnie,

Your camera is actually a step up from the Kodak P & S I used to use, mine was a 2 mp and 6x zoom. I found the biggest improvement I found in my photo's was using a tripod and some basic lighting.

If you could give us an idea of how much you would like to spend?

I hate to tell you this but a bit of research would also be in order, sigh...

A great site to compare models of camera's is http://www.dpreview.com/

On the top left side of the main page you can click on "Buying Guide" and then choose "side by side".

From that page you can choose two or more camera's you are interested in and compare their features.

In very general terms a fixed lens Point and Shoot camera similar to what you now have can run from $100 - $500. Then you move up to the digital single lens reflex camera's where you can change the lens for specific applications. These start at around $500 and upwards...

Don't get pulled into the more mega pixels the better trap, your camera has 5 mp and should be able to produce an image that can be printed up to 8 x 10 with acceptable results.

Happy studying and look forward to hearing back from you :)

Cheers, Don

[Mike Henderson]

I'm not a camera expert but if your problem is shake on closeup shots, you can use a tripod. Many new digital cameras have image stabilization which should help a lot with shake. And image stabilization is available on some lower cost cameras now.

I had a digital SLR (Nikon D100) for a few years. It's a good camera but it's expensive because everything is separate. So you buy a camera body, then lenses, and an external flash. And when you're finished, the camera is big, heavy and bulky. The reason I sold it is that my wife refused to use it simply because it was too big and heavy.

[note: the reason 35mm cameras are the size they are is because of the size of the film (which is true of all film cameras). But now, with semiconductors, we can make high resolution imagers that are quite a bit smaller than a frame of 35mm film so the digital camera can be quite a bit smaller. The only reason Nikon and Canon have digital bodies that take the lenses and flashes that were used on their film cameras is that people have big investments in that stuff, which ties them to the brand. If they couldn't buy a compatible Nikon or Canon digital body, it would open them up to buying a competitor's brand of camera.]

Digital cameras change at a rapid rate so there's no use telling you what I bought to replace the Nikon because it's now obsolete. I'd have to research what's available today to see what's "best" today. But whatever you choose, remember that in two years max, it will be obsolete compared to what's available then (digital cameras are like cell phones in that regard). So don't spend too much money and plan on replacing it after some number of years.

Good luck!

Mike

[Lee DeRaud]

I had a Sony Mavica that was almost impossible to screw up a close up. It died though...Which model was it? You might try taking a look on Ebay for a used/leftover replacement: older Mavicas are literally dirt-cheap there.

(And no, you can't have mine. I've got an old FD92 that is still better for some situations than any of my newer cameras.)

[Glenn Clabo]

I'm not real familiar your camera...it does have a Macro mod so...make sure you start from there. I say that because many people I've talked to about this never knew.

Next...there are some rather cheap additions to your camera that can help. Check out this...
http://www.bestlaptopbattery.com/b.cfm/Digital-Camera/HP-HEWLETT-PACKARD/Photosmart-M517/Titanium-Digital-Optics-Superwide-multi-coated-45X-lens-Titan45X.htm

Now here are some tips for Macro shooting.

I like to use an adjustable F-Stop because the "largest aperture" equals the smallest F-Stop. Your Marco mode does that for you. It uses the smallest F-Stop which max's the blur effect and blends the background which also causes that eye/flower stem is sharp effect.

Next is focal point. Because there will only be a small sharp area in shot...pick the most interesting area and make sure the camera is focusing on that. You're making the camera work hard to do something most people/cameras don't want to do. Most P&S cameras are naturally made to make everything in the picture in focus. Try moving the camera to the right spot. Take a bunch of shots...experiment...experiment...experiment. A common falsehood...the pros only take one shot to get that perfect one. They take hundreds sometimes.

Next...keep the camera as still as possible. A sand bag...a tripod...or both. Use time delay if you have it. Any movement will cause that small point of focus to be a blur.

If all that doesn't let you get what you want...you may be looking for a camera with a little more control...which will complicate your process...and cost you more money. You have plenty of pixels to work with. I'd suggest that if you use good shooting practice...and experiment...(did I mention that before?) you may get where you want. I've taught photography before...and one thing I can tell you...it ain't the camera in most cases.

Any more questions...just ask. Show us your experiments...and some of us may be of help. Have fun...

BTW...These are some my low res shots...
http://sawmillcreek.org/album.php?albumid=2

[Bonnie Campbell]

Okay, the first thing I'll do is track down a tripod. I know we have a couple around here somewhere. One of my pet peeves with the HP camera is that it ALWAYS starts in macro mode. Of course any settings I put in to use all revert back to default once the camera is turned off :rolleyes: So then you have to start from scratch each time.

Sony Mavicas had some kind of defect back when I had mine (hence it's short life span), otherwise I'd of gotten another of it instead of the HP.

[David G Baker]

Bonnie,
I have an old Kodak DC260 that I use for my Ebay photos. I purchased an attachment that fits on the existing lens for extreme closeups and it has worked fine.
A tripod and lots of light should help you in most situations. You don't really need a tripod if you can make a device to hold your camera steady while taking the photo. I try to use as much natural light as possible.

[Bob Moyer]

Bonnie,

What size print are do you want? A possible option is a higher mega-pixel camera; you can then crop the image to what you want. I do this all the time for eBay.

[Bonnie Campbell]

The camera I have has max 5MP. So that's what I keep it at. I usually just post pictures on line or send in emails (rarely print any out per se). I haven't noticed a loss of picture clearness by resizing/shrinking the pictures. I just take horrible pictures for the most part.

[Bob Moyer]

The camera I have has max 5MP. So that's what I keep it at. I usually just post pictures on line or send in emails (rarely print any out per se). I haven't noticed a loss of picture clearness by resizing/shrinking the pictures. I just take horrible pictures for the most part.

Bonnie,

Define reasonably priced; at one time I was a semi-professional photographer and also sold cameras. Give me a price range and I will get back to you with suggestions.

[Bonnie Campbell]

I'm hoping to keep the price range between $100-$200 (less is better for the budget ;) )

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

What do you mean by "close up" ~?

I flip the lens around and just hold it snug to the camera. That'll get you almost microscope close.

[Bonnie Campbell]

What do you mean by "close up" ~?

I flip the lens around and just hold it snug to the camera. That'll get you almost microscope close.

Boy I'm dense, but here it comes..... huh?!?

My camera varies it's 'allowed' close up distance. I know, read the book on operating it. It's long lost in the papers of time.....

[Bob Moyer]

I'm hoping to keep the price range between $100-$200 (less is better for the budget ;) )

Bonnie,

Look at the
Nikon Coolpix S210, it is about $160.00.
Nikon Coolpix P60 $200.00

You really can't go wrong with the Nikon's; I would try to stay away from a camera that uses an XD Card; I prefer SD cards.

The Sony Cybershots are very good also, http://www.steves-digicams.com/hardware_reviews.html or http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/, they are excellent sites and provide great reviews and places to buy. I buy a lot of my equipment from Adorama in NY. www.adorama.com

[Glenn Clabo]

A review...
"I also found it impossible to focus on anything closer then 12 inches, even with the macro, meaning that any extreme close-ups will need to be cropped and exploded on your computer (but with 5MP, this really isn't an issue)."

One last word...Don't give up on the camera. You can take pretty good shots with it if you practice. Buying another inexpensive camera will not get you any further in your picture taking ability.

Here's why I say this...The first thing I did when I taught photography was tell everyone to leave their "expensive" cameras home. I then gave out cheapo kodak cameras and told them to shoot a 36 roll of film. We developed it...and discussed the shots. Guess what...some were outstanding...some not so go. But more importantly...nobody could blame the cheap camera.

[Glenn Clabo]

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/manualCategory?lc=en&cc=ca&lang=en&rule=7408&product=442921&dlc=en&

[Curt Harms]

.....
Here's why I say this...The first thing I did when I taught photography was tell everyone to leave their "expensive" cameras home. I then gave out cheapo kodak cameras and told them to shoot a 36 roll of film. We developed it...and discussed the shots. Guess what...some were outstanding...some not so go. But more importantly...nobody could blame the cheap camera.

Bet you weren't offered any sales consulting jobs though:)

[Bonnie Campbell]

Thanks for the link Glenn! And all the info everybody has given.