Best Camera for Portraits

[kimnicho]

bobbyz wrote:

I have FZ5 along with 10D. I would say, FZ5 is good only for outside shots. I would recommend getting the older 300 rebel dSLR and starting with 50mm f1.8 lens. That lens is only $80. The quality difference would be night & day. Later you can get 85mm f1.8.

As stated in the post below - maybe it's big bro, the FZ-20 might be a better option

[Hards80]

there are times when the DOF control of a SLR sure is nice, but as proven above this is not always necessary.. it will give you an increase in flexibility over the digicam though.. but is it worth it to you, that is something you will have to decide..

you may also look at canon's G6, it has a faster lens than the others mentioned and offers all the manual controls you could want as well as some of the best digicam images i have seen to date..

my advice is to try them out.. the only way you are going to be able to decide what is best for you is to simply give them a trial.. test the digicams, then test the rebel.. make your decision based on that..

-dustin

[kimnicho]

I decided to stop quibbling and attempt to aid the OP...I re-read the post and it does seem like a dSLR might be a "stretch" financially So... Canon G6 is a GREAT recommendation. I would like to add a couple more to the mix - Sony V3 and Panasonic FZ-20 with 12x Zoom . All three have the Hot Shoe....and maybe even Olympus C7070 - In my opinion, the Canon will give you the nicest skin "tone" followed by the Panasonic. I heard great things about the Olympus but haven't used it personally.

I agree that all of those models would be good choices. The point I was trying to make was regarding the recommendation that a DSLR was a necessity for good portraits (made by thebac, BTW). In my experience, a DSLR isn't the only type of digital camera available for making good portraits (if you disregard the P&S models with no manual controls). I have had & used DSLR's & agree that they are great for portraits (or most anything else for that matter).

[Hards80]

another reason i like the G6 is its compatibility with all of canon's great speedlights.. get a g6 with a couple of 550ex's or 580ex's with their wireless capabilities, a few umbrellas to reflect off of and you have quite a nice little portrait outfit.. for the portraits its 2.0-3.0 lens and good skin rendition will be very nice..

[coldshot]

The original poster indicated to us he has a limited budget of $450, to suggest dslr at this moment does not fit his situation.

To be a portrait photographer one needs to know:

1/ Posing (at least he can pose non stop half an hour straight, a silent gap will cause the subject becomes boring, eventhough in real life he needs only a few poses to get the pictures).

2/Technical side: fill flash, bounce flash, reflector (when to use white, gold, silver), backlight setup to avoid the subject squinting the eyes, and of course DOF calculation, soft focus to create a romantic mood...

An advanced p&s or so called prosumer camera is good enough to start out in portrait mode especially in this limited budget. An experienced photographer can do good portrait with any camera, it's the artistic in each of us that counts,remember when we were still in kindergarden class where we drew with crayon pencils, those are the most beautiful art we ever created at our early age and now was carried on to this photography hobby. Photography is art and art has no limit. Therefore, if this original poster picks a $450 camera and creates beautiful portraits, his next camera, a dslr, he will know which one to choose, what prime lenses to apply in order to keep a comfortable distance from the subject, because most people are camera shy, unless the subject is a professional model.

Who knows, in the near future this poster once asked what a limited $450 camera helped him make better portraits, will give best advice how to become aprofessional portrait photographer in this forum, those are one of the photographers I fear most to engage in a portrait photo contest.:-)

[kimnicho]

Anyone else wondering "where is the OP?" .... maybe we were quibbling too much and scared him away?

[soukups]

I'm here--- Got the Canon Digital Rebel (6.3) yesterday.Circuit City cut the price for the kit to $560. Couldn't pass it up. I'm still reading and learning it. Thanks for all the great advise. I'll post some pics once thier worthy.

[soukups]

Oh....BTW. I was intrested in portriats just for family and fun stuff. Nothing professional......(yet).