Q about 'macro' camera settings

[Olle]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

It's a condition that worsens with age, and I'm sad to admit that I have more than my share of it.

Hemorrhoids?

Originally Posted by sheepherder

I found a 24 page review of the G3 at Digital Photography Review and am trying to wade through it. Hard going for me. I know nothing about photography.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canong3

I will take your word that the G3 is a "first good camera". It sold for $699 new, so $40 for one now is indeed a good deal.

I will be looking for an affordable G3 with charger, battery, and manuals in the near future.

Thank you for your help, Olle!

There will be a learning curve, for sure. Just figuring out the nomenclature was one hurdle, so it's a good start to learn that and how all those fancy words translate to more practical terms.

However, the good thing about digital cameras is that it doesn't cost anything to take pictures. I hate reading manuals so I learned how to do it by taking 10-20 pictures with different settings, taking notes about which settings I changed, then pull them up on the computer and see how they turned out. Lots of trial and error, and the whole learning process to me was very much like trying to make a smooth cut on a lathe or tuning a carburetor. You just need to get a feel for it, learn the features, which knobs to turn and how much etc, but once you get it you'll find that it's easy.

I was where you are now about 10 years ago, and it took a year or so before I really felt confident that I could pick up the camera and take a picture that really looked like what I wanted without spending a whole day on it. I'm not an expert, but I'll be more than happy to share the little I know. And I know you don't want to hear this, but the G11 is one hell of a camera, there's one for sale right now for $50 and that's the one I would pick. Better ISO, shutter and aperture range will make up for a lot of shortcomings in the "studio" as it makes the lighting less crucial, so you may save a lot of money right there.

Then again, the G3 will be a significant step up from what you have now, and once you feel you want something better you can get your money back by reselling it on eBay.

BTW: Here's some very good reading about the G3: http://www.photographyblog.com/revie...t_g3_x_review/ . The G3 came in a few different versions, and this is obviously the "G3 X", whatever that entails. The main features should hopefully be the same though.

[4 Scale]

I am partial to Canon G series (as you noticed in that other thread) and find them excellent cameras for photographing many things including Lugers. You might "play" on eBay and look at other G series to see what else is out there. It is hard to go wrong with a Canon G - I have owned several, selling the old ones on Ebay when I get the latest. IMO eBay is a fantastic marketplace for buyers of used digital cameras, you can get fine cameras in near new condition that have been let go by those who need or want the latest.

[4 Scale]

Good for you!! "Barrel distortion" refers to the apparent lines in a wooden barrel when viewed from the side, the up and down bow top and bottom, and is a common problem with wide angle lenses. It's an amusing coincidence that we are discussing barrel distortion in the context of actual firearm barrels.

I think your photo is not bad. I am not familiar with your software, but a program sophisticated enough to handle distortion may have features to adjust brightness and hue i.e. improve your photo in other ways so that it is darker and has better color saturation. Look for 'brightness' and 'color' control features.

While some people may see your photo as "washed out" (slightly overexposed), I say not so fast. Slight over exposure of an object with fine detail is sometimes desirable, as it tends to illuminate and therefore bring out detail in the shadowed part of the object. A common technique is to overexpose in the camera on such objects, then "fix" the washed-out parts of the image using image processing software. In Ye Olde Days, we did this in the darkroom using what was called dodging and burning in to preserve shadow detail while striving to make the rest of the photo look normal.

All of which is a long way of saying keep trying and learning. I am continually astounded at how good cameras and imaging software have become, having spent hundreds of hours in darkrooms as a photojournalist.

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by 4 Scale

It's an amusing coincidence that we are discussing barrel distortion in the context of actual firearm barrels.

Yes, I'm all about providing amusement for the Forum.

[4 Scale]

By the way-you did ask about macro. Here's what a Canon G series can do in extreme close up. This is a low-rez grab shot; the camera is capable of much sharper close ups. Can you tell which side of the magazine release button was cleaned under a microscope?

[DonVoigt]

If you really want to OD on info and "get ready" for your next camera- go online to the website of the manufacturer.

Most post in their entirety the Instruction Book for their various cameras. My last Panasonic came without its IB. I went to the Panasonic site and found it - all 148 glorious pages-.

It is saved to my hard drive now, and being an analog guy, I printed out about half of it for
easy reading and reference.

You could check out the various features that way too.

These other guys are happy with Canon, which are fine cameras. I recenly upgraded to
a several years old Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ 28, with a Leica zoom lens of phenomenal range.
It has about every feature you could ever use.

This one was $50, with battery and charger, no card. There are lots to choose from, you can't go wrong with this one either. I'm very happy with initial results and ease of control.

[sheepherder]

I have only a vague idea what this news release is about, but you news photographers/photojournalists might be excited by it...

Canon's DSLR camera boasts an insane 120-megapixels

http://www.pcworld.com/article/29814...lr-camera.html

[Olle]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

I have only a vague idea what this news release is about, but you news photographers/photojournalists might be excited by it...

Canon's DSLR camera boasts an insane 120-megapixels

http://www.pcworld.com/article/29814...lr-camera.html

It's just the hi-tech version of "Mine is bigger than yours"

[4 Scale]

Hi resolution (which presumably a 120 MP camera would have) is just one more tool. The question always comes down to, what do you need, what are you trying to do? For the web for example you typically need less than 1 MP. Offhand I can't imagine what I would need 120 MP for.

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by 4 Scale

Offhand I can't imagine what I would need 120 MP for.

High resolution pictures of the Nazi rockets on the moon???

[4 Scale]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

High resolution pictures of the Nazi rockets on the moon???

Could be. Or maybe scientific work, or very specialized architectural work, full-sized reproduction of paintings or who knows.

What most people don't realize is pixel quality (sensor quality) is just as important as pixel quantity for most applications. That's why at some point if a person wants significantly better-looking photos they must upgrade the camera.