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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
I'm having a kid in 2 months and am in a real dilema as to what kind
of digital camera I should get. The main issue is portability vs quality. I really like the d50, but have been told that due to the size, i won't want to carry around another bag with me. Is there a point and shoot that is decent as well? Or should i stick with the dslr? ....any thoughts you guys could provide would be appreciated! |
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
skanji wrote:
I'm having a kid in 2 months and am in a real dilema as to what kind of digital camera I should get. The main issue is portability vs quality. I really like the d50, but have been told that due to the size, i won't want to carry around another bag with me. Is there a point and shoot that is decent as well? Or should i stick with the dslr? ...any thoughts you guys could provide would be appreciated! Be sure and check "full press shutter lag" if you want to record action (e.g. baby's first step). You want full press shutter lag under about 100 milliseconds for action. Many P&S cameras are too slow. (P&S fanatics don't post about pre focus: most people can't anticipate where baby takes his/her first step and pre focus on that spot.) See dpreview.com for full press shutter lag. Larger pixels give better performance at high ISO and low light. Typical high ISO performance improvement of DSLRs over P&S are 8 to 16x. That could be important in dim light baby's first steps action shots. If you only shoot in great light and static subjects, P&S cameras take great pictures. The smaller DSLRs are similar in size to the larger P&S cameras. Digital Cameras: Does Pixel Size Matter? Factors in Choosing a Digital Camera http://www.clarkvision.com/imagedeta...el.size.matter Roger |
#3
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
On Feb 19, 5:16 pm, "skanji" wrote:
I'm having a kid in 2 months and am in a real dilema as to what kind of digital camera I should get. The main issue is portability vs quality. I really like the d50, but have been told that due to the size, i won't want to carry around another bag with me. Is there a point and shoot that is decent as well? Or should i stick with the dslr? Roger's advice is good. Having had a similar experience recently, I can tell you that you'll want to take pictures indoors with artificial light, often not so bright. A p&s is almost useless for this: the AF won't be sufficiently fast, and you'll need a fast lens and high ISOs. If you do decide to get the D50 (or a dslr), be sure to get a 50mm f/ 1.8 lens for low light shots (note that the D40 will not AF with this lens, so I'd avoid it). So to summarise, you will need low light ability (ie good AF in low light and low noise at high ISOs, as well as the ability to use fast lenses such as the cheap and fast 50mm lenses). In the light conditions that I have in mind, you can forget about a p&s focusing dependably if at all. And if you're thinking that you won't need these low-light abilities, well, just wait 2 months! Anyway, you also will appreciate the speed of the AF even in good light (as you're about to find out, babies tend to move quickly and erratically). As an aside, many people tell me that for exactly the purpose we're discussing a small compact is fine, and show me photos made by p&s cameras in very low light which are indeed not so bad on the camera lcd or at web resolutions. But try to print them at A4 and you'll see the problems: motion blur, misfocusing and noise ruin the image; too high contrast and saturation make it almost unprintable etc. Save yourself the aggravation. I have nothing against compact cameras, but for the purpose you have in mind, you'll waste your money. Good luck with the baby! ...any thoughts you guys could provide would be appreciated! |
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
skanji wrote:
I'm having a kid in 2 months and am in a real dilema as to what kind of digital camera I should get. The main issue is portability vs quality. I really like the d50, but have been told that due to the size, i won't want to carry around another bag with me. Is there a point and shoot that is decent as well? Or should i stick with the dslr? ...any thoughts you guys could provide would be appreciated! Get something for taking short movies as well - either a movie camera to go with your DSLR or a non-SLR with good movie capabilities. Movies can add a lot to the still image.... For a "handbag" camera I recently got this one - but it needs care indoors: http://www.digicamreview.co.uk/ricoh..._r5_review.htm David |
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
So is a nikon d50 or canon xt/i the best way to go? I suppose the
basic lense is ok for now? |
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
On Feb 19, 8:31 pm, "skanji" wrote:
So is a nikon d50 or canon xt/i the best way to go? I suppose the basic lense is ok for now? The basic lens is very slow. I suggest you also get a 50mm f/1.8. This will allow, for example, a shot at 1/80s where the kit lens would need 1/10s (at 55mm, both the Canon and Nikon 18-55 are f/5.6; I just checked). At around 50mm, 1/80s is easily handholdable, 1/10s is impossible to handhold. The 50mm f/1.8 lenses are quite cheap. |
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
skanji wrote:
So is a nikon d50 or canon xt/i the best way to go? Correct. I suppose the basic lense is ok for now? If budget isn't a problem get a Sigma 30mm f/1.4 lens. Verify whether it will autofocus on a D40, no problem on a D50 or Canon. The kit lenses will all be too slow to get good images in low light. You really do not need a zoom lens, only the very expensive zooms are reasonably fast and with a normal field of view you can capture most anything for family shots. A 28mm f/2.8 lens is a reasonable compromise for about the same price for either Canon or Nikon and might be a little more compact than the Sigma. |
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
On Feb 19, 9:06 pm, Paul Furman wrote:
If you don't mind cranking up the ISO for grainy images, the D40 and kit lens may suffice, I doubt that. He'll really want to take photographs in low artificial light for which ISO 1600 at f/5.6 isn't really enough. From experience, ISO 1600 and f/1.8 is barely enough in some situations like this. Of course, if he decides he only wants to take photos of the baby outside during the day, he could also use a p&s, but I guarantee he'll change his mind very quickly. |
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New Parent - DSLR vs Point and Shoot (portability vs quality)
Canada question...
I know Sears had the Canon Rebel XTI xti kit on sale for $850 (CDN) a couple of months ago. This was the black one with the 18-55 lens. I missed it as I was out of town. I suppose I don't need the 18-55 Lens and will pick up the 50mm f/1.8 Lens instead. Do you guys know of the d50 or xti at this pricepoint? I guess I could get it used from Henry's for about the $500 range without a Lens. |
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