Steve'sDigicams

mase · Aug 29, 2006, 3:31 PM

Hello everyone, I live in South Africa and have only recently wanted to buy a camera, partly because I am in the film industry, an actor, and have a passion for the visual medium. And partly because I am 23 years of age and have recently started working so I guess some money is burning a hole in my pocket.

What I want to do is take allot of portraits where the subjects are not aware of the camera. So my main focus involves people which mean that they could be stationary or be moving. And since I know so little about my choices, besides feeling massively overwhelmed I would like some really good feedback in terms of me wanting to print these out and putting them up in my apartment. I cannot afford huge prints and since this is my first time trying my hand at this art of photography I feel way too timid to just dive in and spend all of my months salary on a SLR style camera. So what do you guys think of the Fujifilm S5600? Or would something like Canon Powershot A700? Like I said I have no clue, I suppose I am a romantic at heart so most of these images might be in black and white but I would like as much as manual control over options so that I can connect with the subject as well as having more options at my disposal. So please help a guy out and perhaps I can get my head around this all.

Also I saw what seems to be this great digital photography manual online... well they say it is, is it work the buy or are there more than enough resources online which are free to learn from? Here is the link.
http://www.123di.com/buy.htm
Thank you so much for your time everyone.

Kamal Hans · Aug 29, 2006, 4:10 PM

Would it be ethical to sneak snaps of people w/o their knowledge/permission?

This bothers me!:?

mase · Aug 30, 2006, 2:10 AM

Well, besides the implications that this might have from an ethical standpoint I was hoping to have some advice on the actual camera...

zygh · Aug 30, 2006, 5:52 AM

mase wrote:

Quote:

What I want to do is take allot of portraits where the subjects are not aware of the camera. And since I know so little about my choices, besides feeling massively overwhelmed I would like some really good feedback in terms of me wanting to print these out and putting them up in my apartment.

you are spooky, mate! maybe the thing you should best invest your money in is professional treatment.

BenjaminXYZ · Aug 30, 2006, 6:14 AM

Code:

What I want to do is take allot of portraits where the subjects are not aware of the camera. And since I know so little about my choices, besides feeling massively overwhelmed I would like some really good feedback in terms of me wanting to print these out and putting them up in my apartment.

Quote:

Oh dear, it seems like you are on to something fishy...

I would suggest the Fujifilm FinePix F30 for sucha mission objective. But it doesn't have night vision.

Quote:

It you are more high-tech, I will suggest a Nikon D50 with it's superior low light capabilities with a Nikkor 85 mm F/1.8 prime glass to capture those candid portrait shots from a far in great quality and speed! (You would look more like a photographer!)

kenbalbari · Aug 30, 2006, 6:30 AM

Well, since a tripod might attract attention, I imagine you will generally be shooting handheld. And you will also obviously prefer to avoid using a flash. So I would strongly recomend looking for a camera with optical image stabilization.

You also might want to look at cameras with LCDs that tilt. This can enable you to take pictures less obtrusively, as the camera could be held at waist level, for example, rather than having to bring it up to eye level. Even a traditional optical viewfinder is probably less obvious than most LCDs, which require you to hold the camera away from your body to get a good view.

You might also like a good zoom. A Canon S3IS would be one candidate with all of the above.

You might also want to pay attention to how quiet a camera is.

And, when taking unposed subjects, you are also going ot have to deal with movement. So you would prefer to use the highest shutter speed possible. So you would like good performance at higher ISOs. And preferably a "fast" lens--that is one that lets you use a wide aperture. Your requirements here aren't that different from a sports or wildlife photographer.

All of the above sugests you might be best off at least considering an entry level DSLR.

BenjaminXYZ · Aug 30, 2006, 6:38 AM

The Sony DSC-R1 with it's top mounted LCD will do perfectly fine for spy shots>>>

Sometimes I really wish I could have that setting above to take those candid shots. Since the camera will always be pointing at the person by default, you can pretend to do something with the camera while you take the shot silently. Soundless and not obvious. Generally, you don't have to lookin the person's direction; you can always look down on the live preview LCD. (People might think you are adjusting something with the camera which is true most of the case [Take the shot!]).

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Aug 29, 2006, 3:31 PM	#1
mase Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 14	Hello everyone, I live in South Africa and have only recently wanted to buy a camera, partly because I am in the film industry, an actor, and have a passion for the visual medium. And partly because I am 23 years of age and have recently started working so I guess some money is burning a hole in my pocket. What I want to do is take allot of portraits where the subjects are not aware of the camera. So my main focus involves people which mean that they could be stationary or be moving. And since I know so little about my choices, besides feeling massively overwhelmed I would like some really good feedback in terms of me wanting to print these out and putting them up in my apartment. I cannot afford huge prints and since this is my first time trying my hand at this art of photography I feel way too timid to just dive in and spend all of my months salary on a SLR style camera. So what do you guys think of the Fujifilm S5600? Or would something like Canon Powershot A700? Like I said I have no clue, I suppose I am a romantic at heart so most of these images might be in black and white but I would like as much as manual control over options so that I can connect with the subject as well as having more options at my disposal. So please help a guy out and perhaps I can get my head around this all. Also I saw what seems to be this great digital photography manual online... well they say it is, is it work the buy or are there more than enough resources online which are free to learn from? Here is the link. http://www.123di.com/buy.htm Thank you so much for your time everyone.

Aug 29, 2006, 4:10 PM	#2
Kamal Hans Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 13	Would it be ethical to sneak snaps of people w/o their knowledge/permission? This bothers me!:?

Aug 30, 2006, 2:10 AM	#3
mase Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 14	Well, besides the implications that this might have from an ethical standpoint I was hoping to have some advice on the actual camera...

Aug 30, 2006, 6:30 AM	#6
kenbalbari Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 822	Well, since a tripod might attract attention, I imagine you will generally be shooting handheld. And you will also obviously prefer to avoid using a flash. So I would strongly recomend looking for a camera with optical image stabilization. You also might want to look at cameras with LCDs that tilt. This can enable you to take pictures less obtrusively, as the camera could be held at waist level, for example, rather than having to bring it up to eye level. Even a traditional optical viewfinder is probably less obvious than most LCDs, which require you to hold the camera away from your body to get a good view. You might also like a good zoom. A Canon S3IS would be one candidate with all of the above. You might also want to pay attention to how quiet a camera is. And, when taking unposed subjects, you are also going ot have to deal with movement. So you would prefer to use the highest shutter speed possible. So you would like good performance at higher ISOs. And preferably a "fast" lens--that is one that lets you use a wide aperture. Your requirements here aren't that different from a sports or wildlife photographer. All of the above sugests you might be best off at least considering an entry level DSLR.

Aug 30, 2006, 6:38 AM	#7
BenjaminXYZ Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 788	The Sony DSC-R1 with it's top mounted LCD will do perfectly fine for spy shots>>> Sometimes I really wish I could have that setting above to take those candid shots. Since the camera will always be pointing at the person by default, you can pretend to do something with the camera while you take the shot silently. Soundless and not obvious. Generally, you don't have to lookin the person's direction; you can always look down on the live preview LCD. (People might think you are adjusting something with the camera which is true most of the case [Take the shot!]).