Camera Choice

[Compass Call]

Could the experienced photographers among the patrons of this forum advise me as to which of the following would be the better choice - and why.

Konica-Minolta Dimage Z3, which uses an SD storage card
or
Fuji Finepix S5500, which uses an XD storage card

Both can be bought new for around £200 or less
I want to get away from wet film and my Epson Photo PC 700 is a bit long in the tooth for aircraft piccies :O

Thanks in advance,

CC

[allyn]

I have the Z3.

It's a great "all around" camera that's biased towards the "serious snapshooter". You have a pretty good built-in zoom lens plus digital zoom. You can also take surprisingly decent movies with it. The build quality is "ok"....but it is a little "plasticy" so if that sort of thing bothers you, take note.

[Conan the Librarian]

I had the Fuji S5000 (for a short while) which nearly got booted over the fence at Fairford as the most diabolical, useless, frustrating and over marketed device I have ever seen. If you are looking to take Aviation pics, with the Fuji, bear in mind the following.

Cheap and nasty lens that really looks the part after mid zoom.

LCD viewer (and not a good one) shows a big delay. Wave your finger in front of it and see. Hopeless in bright conditions too.

Shutter lag of such profound proportions that by the time it decides to fire, your target has probably landed or gone tech.

What do I use now? A digital SLR with a large lens. Not shirtpocket stuff, but the quality and flexibility is everything I could ever wish for. My own preferred airshow combination is the Nikon D70 and the Sigma 50-500 zoom. Had I bitten the DSLR bullet earlier, I would have saved a lot of money - but on the other hand, they are now much more affordable than they were even last year.

Conan

[Genghis the Engineer]

I think that there are very few digital cameras which are particularly good for ground-to-air shots, and those are pretty expensive.

Look for:-

- An optical viewfinder
- A centre biased autofocus and exposure determination.
- FAST switch-on
- FAST cycle between frames.
- Big optical zoom. (8x or more I'd suggest)

I have to confess that I've given up on digital for the time being for ground-to-air and gone back to my elderly but still reliable Canon EOS 1000FN. That said for everything else (including air-to-ground) my current digital (a Yakumo 410 (http://www.yakumo.com/produkte/index.php?pid=1&ag=Digitalkamera#1037204) , not a common make but worth looking at - made in Germany BTW) is superb.

(Slightly off-track opinion, not having used either of the cameras mentioned).

Out of interest, has anybody experience of the Canon EOS digital bodies?

G

[jumpseater]

Yup I've just got a 10D. Its pretty good but very slow compared to my 35mm EOS'. To learn the digital side it'll no doubt be a good intro, but because of the type of use I give mine, I can see it being replaced in a few months for a faster EOS1mkIId.
If you've used the EOS1 or 3 35mm body then the controls are intuitive and hence I've got my head round the 'creative zone' i.e. what you'd get from a good 35mm SLR, very quickly. I'll post some stuff here in a day or so taken with it. I am however using high spec lenses so I cant comment on how it will operate with lower spec lenses.
I also borrowed a 300D a few weeks ago, and found it a bit 'plasticky', but bare in mind I'm used to using more solidly built pro-spec stuff. The 300d gave some good pics, but I prefer the 10D out of the two for its robustness.
rgds js

[Phoenix09]

I have recently purchased the Canon EOS350D and am very, very pleased with it. I have, so far, been extremely pleased with the results. It is very fast to switch on and has a smaller body than the 10 or 20D although as I have rather large hands I use it with the battery grip. It has an 8 megapixel CMOS sensor which compares very favourably with the 20D.

All in all I am very pleased with it.

There is a very comprehensive review of the 350D here (http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos350d/)

The same site provides excellent reviews of a wide range of digital cameras.

Can't post too much at the moment as I am watching the cricket!! :)

[Conan the Librarian]

Another big plus that fellow DSLR owners can attest to, is that because of the sensor being smaller than a film frame, it gives the effect of "Boosting" the magnification of the fitted lens by slightly over 50% Result is very welcome for airshows, is that your 200mm zoom becomes 300, your 300 becomes an effective 450mm focal length and my own Sigma, the "Hubble" gives me 750mm instead of 500mm.

If you want point and shoot, auto or program shooting as your norm, then the flexibility of the DSLR might go over your head a bit - but if you want something the equal of a 35mm film SLR and especially if you enjoyed film SLRs then the Canon/Nikon DSLR route is the way to go. The quality these cameras regularly achieve, is astounding. I would sell my soul before flogging my Nikon.

DP Review, as posted by Phoenix is the online bible for Digitals. Spend some time there - you will learn a lot.



Conan

[Gonzo]

I've got a Nikon D70, and as conan says the shots I'm getting with my Sigma 500m (35mm equiv) are out of this world!

[jumpseater]

As promised a few test shots from the 10d

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/ezy738test1.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/ezyarrtest.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/3eab3153.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/ryrdeptest.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/busdeptest.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/bustaxi.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/737amdep.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/jumpseater/73taxi.jpg

[imabell]

the lens length conversion from film to digital. is 1.6.

a 300 mm lens on a canon 300d is the equivalent of a 480 mm lens on a film camera.

[Out Of Trim]

the lens length conversion from film to digital. is 1.6.

Only true for the Canon DSLRs -

On Nikon DSLRs FOV conversion factor is 1.5

[Conan the Librarian]

But better quality.... Tin Hats ONNNNNN!!!!!


Conan

[supercarb]

Well for anybody with 2 1/2 grand to spare, this new bit of kit just announced by Canon would seem to be the bees knees....

EOS 5D (http://www.dpreview.com/news/0508/05082209canoneos5d.asp)

[Out Of Trim]

Or, For just a bit more money!! This much nicer Camera from the superior company :cool: ;)

D2X (http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond2x/)

[Conan the Librarian]

And just for a giggle, the admittedly gorgeous EOS5D has a full frame sensor - so the "Zoom" factor there is erm.... nil.

Looking forward expectantly to a reply to the EOS from Nikon and their D100 is now long in the tooth. A replacement for that, might persuade me to upgrade my D70...


Conan

[Conan the Librarian]

Speechless, you are in dreamland with that combo. Exactly the same that I use.

My own settings ho something like this for airshows.

Aperture Priority. F8 is wonderful with this lens, but it depends how much light you have to play with.

Metering set to Spot or Centre weighted. If you want pictures "out of the box" then set your sharpening and saturation to mid values. If like me, you post process with Photoshop or Nikon Capture, then set everything flat. You will bring out the detail later.

The Hubble gives 750mm at full chat. You need a very fast shutter speed to make the most of this. However, a factor of 1.5 ain't far off. so for 400mm focal length, don't go beneath 1/640th sec. This will get rid of camera shake. You will find that the lens is Pin sharp up to about 420mm. After that, slightly softer.

Set to multi shot -and shoot RAW if you can. There is far more scope to rescue RAW (NEF) as opposed to JPG afterwards. Take a few big cards! I total 4.75GB in my bag.

I find the easiest way of holding is for the left hand to support the zoom collar . Whenever you get the chance, put the bugger down! It is heavy and your hands and arms will ache after a few hours. shakeout your arms, fingers and shoulders every 40 mins or so.

No exposure compensation should be needed if you are shooting RAW or have the Sun behind you. If you have a bad aspect, add half a stop of Exposure compensation.

Final tip? Shoot, shoot shoot! Enjoy - if there is anything I can do to help, PM me or post here.

You have an awesome combination there. I have done 10,000 shots with mine in 11 months. Love it to bits....


Conan

Let us know how you go on.

If you really are just "point and shoot" experienced, it might be better to choose Shutter priority. This sets the shutter speed and basically holds this value whilst automatically adjusting aperture. For that lens and fast jets on a sunny day, I would set about 1/800-1/1000th of a second. If you are unfamiliar, then this will set a median value that should get you some good results. If you go this way, set spot or centre metering, plus AFS (Single servo Autofocus) You need to use the centre AF bracket for best results.


Conan

[Gonzo]

One problem that shooting with a long lens (and thus fast shutter speeds if you're without a tripod) poses is the freezing of motion. For jet aircraft that's not a problem, but I find shots of prop aircraft far more dynamic and atmospheric if there's some blur on the props, either 1/125 or 1/250. If I'm without my tripod I make use of my 24-120mm Vibration Reduction lens with a 1.4 teleconverter on my D70, which gives an effective zoom of 250mm (35mm equivalent) and crop in later.

[Conan the Librarian]

The old paradox... fast enough to stop camera shake and slow enough to maintain a prop disc. Me? I aim for a LOW zoom and a slower speed. Doesn't work all the time and this pic demonstrates it well.


The wonderful Wokka? Admit you are largely beaten. Forget the camera and treat yourself to a wonderful display. Other choppers (apart from Dennis Kenyon) - open a beer.

Conan


http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y192/zorbathegeek/sundries/DSC_5586.jpg

[Gonzo]

Speechless two, I'd recommend the highest capacity card you get is 1MB. I have a friend who delighted in showing off his new 4MB CF card and then crying for hours when he lost it and all the hundreds of shots that were contained within. Don't put all your eggs in one basket!

Prop blur, jet efflux and contrails are certainly some of the more interesting details of aviation photography! Here are a selection from 2004's Duxford Autumn airshow. Nothing to compare to the regulars here, I know! :O
http://Ad.smugmug.com/photos/34632521-S.jpg http://Ad.smugmug.com/photos/34632721-S.jpg http://Ad.smugmug.com/photos/34632734-S.jpg http://Ad.smugmug.com/photos/34632729-S.jpg http://Ad.smugmug.com/photos/34632728-S.jpg http://Ad.smugmug.com/photos/34632725-S.jpg

[Compass Call]

GONZO

I routinely use 15MB & 32MB CF cards, guess I'll have to look for some smaller ones :E LOL

CC

[Gonzo]

Damn! I meant GB!!!!!!!!!!!!!

D'oh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1GB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:}

[Max AirFactor]

I'm considering a lens upgrade for my EOS 300D. What is good for reasonable airshow pics - would 300mm do it (conscious of budget)? Anyone care to offer a suggestion on make/model/size/price? Many thanks.

MAX

[Conan the Librarian]

Depends what you want to do with it really... General purpose user? Wedding fan? Interested aviation buff? Tyro?

If you are happy with Canon and there is no reason why you should not be - then your lenses will ultimately be a bigger investment than the camera body. What you get now, should last for many years longer than your 300D.

There are lots of lenses, but they are all optimsed for different types of user, or "Market Segment" as we are touchingly referred to nowadays.

Come back and tell us what you want to do - and then we can all join in with contradictory input. One thing has sent a few shudders through the camera community in the last few weeks though and you should at least be aware of it. It is this.

Because your 300D like my D70 and everyone elses DSLRs, uses a sensor that is smaller than a full film frame, manufacturers have started to produce digital only lenses, which use a slightly different lens technology with a smaller (They say Lighter to us, but it is far cheaper for them to make) sweet spot. Now as long as nobody breaks the mould and produces a camera with a full size sensor, everyone is happy. These lenses are great -but could not be fitted for instance to anything other than a small sensor DSLR.

Two weeks ago, Canon announced the EOS5D and guess what? As a consequence, I would be a bit cagey about buying an optimised "Digital" lens. If that becomes a trend, your "digital" lens investment will be worth nothing. Go for standard SLR glass!

Look forward to hearing what you want from your lens and then far better photographers (like, Nick, Nick and Nick) will maybe pass on words of wisdom.

Beddybyes....


Conan

[Max AirFactor]

Conan, thanks for the response. I think I would classify use as general purpose on account of budget (maybe sub £400 ?) but would like reasonable airshow shots. Not planning to change the camera for some time but hear what you say about optimised digital vs glass.

MAX

[Conan the Librarian]

I would certainly have a look at DP Review

http://www.dpreview.com/


There is also a Canon EOS300D/350D forum here

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/forum.asp?forum=1031


For GP use there are several all in one lenses with a focal length of maybe 28-300 mm which on your 300 will give an equivalent of about 42-450mm. I haven't used anything like this myself, buit have seen others getting surprisingly good results and the price is under £200 as well, which is nice...

Go and have a look - you will get far more sense there, than from me :-)

Conan

[Nardi Riviera]

Great tips, better than I've seen anywhere.

1978 Nikon FE has served me well until now. Played with a friend's D70 lately. Very interesting.

Checked lens compatibility on DP, but couldn't understand all it said on AI lenses. As the FE does not have autofocus, maybe they won't work?

:O

[Conan the Librarian]

Pretty sure that you will have a manual only lens, should you mount one on a D70. Because of the Crop factor referred to in earlier posts, if you already have a 50mm lens, then it will become a 75mm on nearly all DSLRs and definitely, the D70. This is a bit unwieldy, so the optional 18 -70mm Nikkor zoom is a little cracker and well worth the money. Search around for best prices on the D70 - there are still a few around (Now the D70S with a few minor tweaks, but more cost)

Old Nikon glass is much sought after. Even as a manual, you would still love it.


Conan