Best camera for flower's picture
Wayne Veilleux
I want to buy a camera and I'm not a technical expert in camera
world. Most of the picture I want to take is flowers. And I need
to take those pictures very near (6 inches to 36 inches). What do
you recommend ? The store we have hear recommend the Canon Rebel
S or II (by the way, what is the difference between the Rebel S and
the Rebel II ?). Which "zoom" do you recommend for very near picture ?
Thank you very much for any help.
Bye.
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| Wayne Veilleux | Hydro-Québec |
| Ingénieur en Télécom | 5625 Hochelaga |
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Gerald Hayes
: I want to buy a camera and I'm not a technical expert in camera
: world. Most of the picture I want to take is flowers. And I need
: to take those pictures very near (6 inches to 36 inches). What do
: you recommend ? The store we have hear recommend the Canon Rebel
: S or II (by the way, what is the difference between the Rebel S and
: the Rebel II ?). Which "zoom" do you recommend for very near picture ?
Wayne,
For Macro (close-up) photography, you'll want a lens that gives you the
magnification desired for *your* application. Macro lenses give a
magnification of, for example, 1:2, which means the image will be 1/2
life size on the negative; 1:1 means the image will be lifesize on the
negative.
While it's not unusual to find a zoom with a ration of 1:3, if my main
goal was to take pictures of flowers, I'd look at a true macro lens.
While it may not mean much now, you'll probably be getting a smaller
minimum aperture and better edge sharpness -- very important in a macro lens.
As far as cameras bodies go, you'll probably want something with a mirror
lockup to avoid camera shake, a feature I'd be surprised to find out is
present on the Rebel. While the Rebel is a good body for the price, I
think the reason they suggested it for macro is either 1) you liked it in
the first place, 2) it's the upper limit of your price range, 4)-100) any
number of reasons for making the sale.
The *really* critical feature is a good tripod and cable release
(electronic or manual). Expect to spend no less than $80 on a tripod --
if price is a main consideration, the lower priced Bogens are a good deal
for the money. I don't know if the Rebel supports an electronic cable
release, if not, be very wary of this salesperson -- they either don't
know or don't care what's best for your needs.
I have an Elan, which I like very much, but the only thing I *don't* like
is the inability to use a manual cable release, (the electronic one only
works from in front of the camera).
Don't jump to soon, and do your homework.
Good Luck,
Jerry
Philip Greenspun
I want to buy a camera and I'm not a technical expert in camera
world. Most of the picture I want to take is flowers. And I need
to take those pictures very near (6 inches to 36 inches). What do
you recommend ? The store we have hear recommend the Canon Rebel
S or II (by the way, what is the difference between the Rebel S and
the Rebel II ?). Which "zoom" do you recommend for very near picture ?
I've owned by Canon and Nikon SLR systems and the Nikon macro system is
vastly superior. What you want is a Nikon SLR (6006 is OK) with a
60/2.8 macro lens, SC-17 flash extension cord, and Nikon flash. You can
see results from this combination in the butterflies exhibit linked from
No zoom lens can come close to the results obtainable with the Nikon
macro lenses. Canon's macro lenses aren't as convenient (the 50 won't
go to 1:1) and they lack the ultrasonic motor that makes some Canon EOS
lenses irresistible (like the 70-200/2.8 which I just dropped today, 1
meter onto a hard concrete New York City sidewalk; no damage).
--
-- Philip Greenspun
-------------------------------------------------------------
MIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
545 Technology Square, Rm 609, Cambridge, MA 02139, (617) 253-8574
Personal Web URL: http://www-swiss.ai.mit.edu/philg/
Lord Jonin
: I have an Elan, which I like very much, but the only thing I *don't* like
: works from in front of the camera).
I have seen this pointed out several times on several different threads.
Not having the camera, I dont know where the sensor is, but it just seems
to me that using the remote from behind shouldent be a problem if you just
be creative. I would think that either of the following would solve
this problem:
1: using a mirror - you could easially mount a mirror that would
'reflect' the ir to the sensor from the back. I know that I have used
remote controls from shooting off glass and even proven that most
reflective surfaces will reflect by shooting the Ir beam off my eye. :)
if the mirror is slightly convex, it would give you even more angles
to shoot from. It wouldent be that hard of a streatch to mount said
mirror on a thin piece of metal that you bend and adjust - using the
tripod screw to hold the piece of metal in place. You shouldent have
a problem with putting the tripod on either as we are talking about
1mm or less thickness for the piece of metal. As long as you can see
the sensor in the 'button mirror', you can use your remote. Want to
shoot from off to the left? well tweek the metal stand and voila!
2: There are several devices commercially available that you can increase
the signal of the ir device. They essentially flood the room with the
Ir beam, greatly increasing range and angle. This might not help in
outdoor sceens, but what the hey. :)
3: if you really wanna be cute, and dont want it to be too obstructive,
you could tack on fiber optic cable to the sensor input area and simply
point the back end of the fiber optic to wherever you want to use the
remote from. Heck - you could even 'wire' the remote this way. :)
Of the 3 suggestions - I think #1 is probably the cheapest, and easiest
to do. I mean - you probably dont even need a mirror. Any reflective surface
will work. You could even crinkle tin foil somewhere in front of the camera
and probably with a bit of fidigting, get it to work. Just because the sensor
is in front, doesent mean you have to be. :)
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Mr Paul Frankenstein
Wayne Veilleux <wa...@smtl.hydro.qc.ca> wrote:
* Hi:
*
* I want to buy a camera and I'm not a technical expert in camera
* world. Most of the picture I want to take is flowers. And I need
* to take those pictures very near (6 inches to 36 inches). What do
* you recommend ? The store we have hear recommend the Canon Rebel
* S or II (by the way, what is the difference between the Rebel S and
* the Rebel II ?). Which "zoom" do you recommend for very near picture ?
I would recommend a Pentax K1000 with a Vivitar Series 1 105mm Macro.
If you don't want to shell out for the Vivitar lens, a good substitute
could be the Sigma 90mm Macro.
Basically, for taking pictures of flowers, you don't need the
automation of the Canons, and the combination of the above body and
either one of the lenses will provide (IMO) a better camera and a
better lens than either Canon Rebel and one of their 'standard' zooms.
In fact, those zooms (28-70, 35-80) wouldn't be very good at taking
flower shots.
Of course, there are those who hold that the only way to photograph
flowers would be with an 8X10 and a 400mm lens....
paul
--
"Paul, I wouldn't call you anti-social," said my mother. "Just autistic."
pa...@hk.super.net
Gregory Popovitch
I want to buy a camera and I'm not a technical expert in camera
world. Most of the picture I want to take is flowers. And I need
to take those pictures very near (6 inches to 36 inches). What do
you recommend ? The store we have hear recommend the Canon Rebel
S or II (by the way, what is the difference between the Rebel S and
the Rebel II ?). Which "zoom" do you recommend for very near picture ?
You obviously need a macro lens. Some zooms have a macro position, but
if you want the best possible image quality, I would go with a fixed
focal macro lens. I would recommend:
a/ a new Nikon autofocus camera with the Nikon 60mm f2.8 macro
or
b/ a used Nikon manual camera with the 55mm f2.8 macro (you see these
in rec.photo.marketplace from time to time).
gregory
Marc Clarke
1) a camera body with mirror lock up;
2) a macro lens, hopefully 100mm in focal length or longer.
3) a very solid camera support, either a tripod that goes to ground level or a
head attached to a piece of plywood.
The simplist SLR body will do. I still use my 20 year old fully manual Minolta
SRT-101, since it is the only body in the Minolta manual focus line that has
the mirror lock up feature. A used body and a used lens will work fine. Look
for the longest focal length macro lens you can find. I think Canon used to
make or still makes a 100mm macro. Stay away from non-body-manufacturer zoom
lenses with a macro (close focus) capability. All zooms with macro capability
are optically inferior to single focal length special-purpose macro lenses.
--
Marc Illsley Clarke (m...@hpfimic.fc.hp.com)
Integrated Circuit Business Division, MS 72, Hewlett Packard Company,
3404 East Harmony Road, Fort Collins, Colorado 80525-9599 USA
HP-TELNET: 1-229-3376 AT&T: (970)-229-3376 FAX: (970)-229-6580
Martin Tai
-> I want to buy a camera and I'm not a technical expert in camera
-> world. Most of the picture I want to take is flowers. And I need to
-> take those pictures very near (6 inches to 36 inches). What do you
-> recommend ? The store we have hear recommend the Canon Rebel S or II
-> (by the way, what is the difference between the Rebel S and the Rebel
-> II ?). Which "zoom" do you recommend for very near picture ?
-> Thank you very much for any help.
For close up flower shots, you need "macro" lens, not zoom lens.
Eric Birdsall
manual-focus camera fitted with a good macro lens. The K1000 would be
fine, and is widely available used for approximately $100US in excellent
condition. There are four excellent 90mm macro lenses on the market,
all available used for approximately $200US (or less): Vivitar Series 1,
Sigma, Tamron, and Tokina. All have their supporters, but the consensus
is that all are very fine lenses. Also good is the "regular" Vivitar
90mm/f2.8. Some of these lenses (or their successors) are still sold
new, but buying used will save you money and, in the case of the Vivitar
Series 1, at least, the 90mm lens is reputed to be sharper than its
successor 105mm.
In addition, I would strongly recommend a good tripod. The authors of
PHOTOGRAPHING WILDFLOWERS (a book that I recommend) suggest the Bogen
3021 with the 3028 Super 3-D head. This combination will cost about
$120US from B&H Photo.
Eric Birdsall