Compact System Camera

Hi everyone, I want to buy a camera with a macro lens for taking close up wildlife pictures but If I buy a decent DSLR camera a macro lens will cost as much or more then the camera body and I really want to avoid spending that kind of money and if I do buy one then within a year I'll have dropped another grand or so on more lenses and gadgets for the camera since one I start a new hobby I like to do it right.

I really don't want to spend that kind of money and my wife really doesn't want me to spend that kind of money so a good compromise may be to buy a compact system camera and buy a macro lends for it. Sony makes a macro lens for their lines of compact system cameras. What I'd like to know is if anyone has had any experience with these cameras and how good are they. Also, here is a link to the macro lens for the Sony camera I'm looking at, I'd like to know if it's specs are comparable to a standard DSLR macro lens.

http://www.amazon.co...31218302&sr=1-2

If you don't want to continue dropping money on lenses, then why not something like the Nikon Coolpix P150? If you actually _need_ the functionality to change lenses, then it's going to cost you (and the Canon Rebel is a good place to start). In quickly emerging technologies like digital photography, most people's skill will not exceed the capabilities of the equipment before the equipment is obsolete. I've determined that my capabilities are in the low range DSLR, and that's what I am willing to pay. And I bought one lense, a $700 macro lense, because that's what I'm working on right now. But I won't pay more than $300 for a telephoto, when i get around to it, because I don't care to photograph anything further way than that will handle. I've still only spent $1500 (when I get around to it). You don't have to buy EVERYTHING

Another thing to think about is that these compact system cameras are the way Sony and Panasonic are trying to compete with Nikon and Canon without developing solid technology. It's like getting a steak at a chain restaurant. You could have eaten a meal that was pretty delicious at the chain restaurant that cost a third as much. And if you're going to have someone make you steak, why not pay a third more and get exactly what you wanted?

I'd either go up or down.

Todd

I have a Nikon point and shoot superzoom camera right now and it takes great pictures but the difference between it's macro mode and a macro lens is such a big difference that's I want to have a camera with a macro lens but the cost is high. Here are 2 pictures, one is my camera in macro mode and the other is a friends Nikon DSLR with a macro lens.

http://gallery.nanfa...1_1424.jpg.html

http://gallery.nanfa...ageViewsIndex=1

I see your point about getting what you pay for though, but the only way for me to get a good DSLR camera with a macro lens is find one used.

Does your point and shoot have manual settings? The difference between the on-board using manual settings on a tripod and what Sony is going to offer you are, for the price, intangible.

Have you been to KEH.com?

Todd

I don't think my camera has manual settings but I'll look when I get home. It has the usual array of auto, easy auto,macro mode, indoor, closeup,fireworks etc etc.

Does your point and shoot have manual settings? The difference between the on-board using manual settings on a tripod and what Sony is going to offer you are, for the price, intangible.

Have you been to KEH.com?

Todd

I'm on KEH.com right now Todd. Give me your phone number so my wife knows who to call and yell at

I agree with what Todd is saying. Either go up or down. BTW, those Nikon Coolpix take excellent macro shots. Look at this http://silurus.acnat...004/1index.html by Mark Sabaj; almost all of the shots on the website were taken with a Coolpix. Go through and look at some of those shots; I'd have to set up all kinds of equipment to get shots like that with my dSLR setup.

As Todd said, the Rebel series is a nice introduction into dSLR. For probably $50-100 more (the Sony lens you posted), you could easily get a Canon 60mm macro lens that does fine macro work.

I have a Nikon Coolpix L100 right now and I do like it but after seeing what a DSLR can do I got a serious case of camera envy. Unless I luck into a really good deal on a DSLR with a macro lens I'm going to keep what I have. I guess it's like that old 70's song "If you can't be with the one you love then love the one you're with"

Understood. But there's an awful lot you can do with the camera you have, especially in good light. It's just that the DSLR cameras have more capability, but with that, comes an associated cost.

Think of it like this... Here's two pictures:

 rainbows.jpg   102.17KB   0 downloads

 spottedsucker03.jpg   62.05KB   0 downloads

Which was taken with a $250 point and click (that's now completely obsolete compared to your camera) and which was taken with a $700 camera body, $700 macro lens, and $250 speed flash?

Can you tell? Certainly, there was considerably ease in getting the DSLR photo. But.. is it worth $1400 to you?

Todd

Yep. You really have to ask yourself if a photo that is 10-30% better is worth the extra $500-1,000 or more. I hate to burst your bubble, but you're also not going to find many people taking professional macro shots without at least $500 dollars invested in flash equipment. This is especially true if you're trying to take macro shots of anything not 2D (like the fish portraits we take), because f/8 just isn't going to cut it with stuff like crayfishes, amphibians, reptiles, flowers, etc.... (especially if you want most/all of the animal in focus)

That being said, I will most likely be getting rid of my Canon XSi for dirt cheap in a couple of months. Not the best camera, but it was certainly an upgrade from my point and shoot, and a nice introduction into the dSLR world.

You have to ask yourself, what is your underlying goal?
If you just want to take pictures, buy a P&S and forget about it. If you’re interested in exploring the capabilities available with professional equipment, buy an introductory level dSLR. I’m all for dSLRs but remember, shooting a dSLR with automatic settings is equivalent in using an overpriced P&S, and your dSLR body will eventually be the cheapest part of your camera bag.

If you go the dSLR route, your next question will be Canon or Nikon? And my asnwer is, it doesn't matter. Buy whatever your firends have so you can share equiptment to save costs.

You have to ask yourself, what is your underlying goal?
If you just want to take pictures, buy a P&S and forget about it. If you’re interested in exploring the capabilities available with professional equipment, buy an introductory level dSLR. I’m all for dSLRs but remember, shooting a dSLR with automatic settings is equivalent in using an overpriced P&S, and your dSLR body will eventually be the cheapest part of your camera bag.

If you go the dSLR route, your next question will be Canon or Nikon? And my asnwer is, it doesn't matter. Buy whatever your firends have so you can share equiptment to save costs.

This sums it up wonderfully.

Another thing to remember is that with a dSLR, you'll likely keep your lenses longer than the camera body. Typically, they're in it for the long haul, so the price is a little more justifiable.

It's been a while since I've used a P&S, but a few years back they all had the irritating hesitation after pressing the shutter button. Is that still an issue? I believe the SLR/dSLR cameras are the only thing you can get with a focal-plane shutter which is why I'm feeling more drawn toward them in my own search to replace my old dinosaur of a dSLR and try some underwater photography.

My Nikon Coolpix is fairly quick to actually take the picture but my waterproof Olympus is painfully slow and every review I've read for their cameras say the same thing. I'm used to it though and until it dies I'm not going to buy a new one. Plus I found a soft plastic waterproof case for my Nikon that I'm going to buy and try it this spring.

Thank you everyone for your input. I'm going to stay with my Nikon P&S for the time being but if a good deal on a DSLR and macro lens comes along I'll grab it.

My Nikon Coolpix is fairly quick to actually take the picture but my waterproof Olympus is painfully slow and every review I've read for their cameras say the same thing.

I don't know much about cameras but I've seen firsthand the difference between a large, high speed memory card and a small, slow speed one. The time between when you take the picture and when the camera is ready to take the next one can vary quite a lot based on your memory card. If you've got a small, slow speed card you might want to consider a high speed card because it might improve the speed without you having to buy a new camera. Memory cards are fairly inexpensive online, but they can be really up there in price at your local electronics store. It's definitely worth price comparison shopping for.

I'm used to it though and until it dies I'm not going to buy a new one.

That's what I did. My camera had only 480p so when after five years its touchscreen finally stopped working (preventing me from being able to operate the camera), I bought a 1080p Sanyo Xacti that takes beautiful HD video Unfortunately it takes truly awful still shots, and sometimes its video has issues with color (tinting everything yellow) Maybe I should have spent more than $125, or gotten a name brand or something. Now I've sort of got buyer's remorse for focusing so much on the video capabilities of the camera and not being more discerning about the macro still shot quality. The still pictures I take close up of my fish have vertical lines on them and are really grainy.

This is a still that I screen-shotted from a video taken with the Sanyo Xacti: http://gallery.nanfa...repens.png.html
This is a still that was obtained using the camera function: http://gallery.nanfa...15_002.JPG.html
I hate the graininess that shows up when you zoom in on a still shot: http://gallery.nanfa...resize.jpg.html
The same graininess is gone when you zoom in on a screenshot from a video. So I'm discouraged from taking macro photos of my fish It kind of makes me want to get a really nice macro camera like you guys have. But they're so expensive and technically I don't need a new camera, so... I guess I'm just waiting until this one eventually breaks.

Edited by EricaWieser, 12 March 2012 - 10:30 AM.

I have a 2 gig card in my Nikon right now and that's the biggest it will take. I got the camera for Christmas in 2009 and I guess they didn't think about allowing for increases in memory card size. I tried to put a 4 gig card in and it wouldn't accept it. I just realized though that I've never tried to upgrade the firmware for the camera. Yeah and I'm the one who works in tech support lol. Guess I know what I'm doing tonight