Digital SLRs for Starters

Massive Memory? Yeah, We Got That

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:16:00 +0000

The recently announced Canon Rebel T2i 550D has a special feature: it is compatible with a new type of SD memory card called SDXC.

The "XC" stands for "Extended Capacity" and the idea behind the new format is that you can now have a memory card that lets you record hours of Full HD video without worry (whether or not anyone will watch said video is another matter).

At the PMA 2010 conference, SanDisk announced the release of a 64GB Ultra SDXC card...available to the public now for a mere $350 USD.

While most people probably don't need QUITE so much memory, expect to see many more SDXC cards as 2010 rolls along.

New DSLR - Canon Rebel T2i 550D

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:42:00 +0000

Never content to sit around and twiddle their thumbs, Canon has announced the release of their latest Digital Rebel: the T2i 550D.

The T2i 550D is a follow-up to the Canon Rebel T1i 500D, the first Digital Rebel to include a video capture mode (Full High Definition 1080p).

The T2i enhances that video mode, providing aspiring videographers with manual exposure control, autofocus during video capture and an input for an external microphone.

In addition to the video mode, the T2i 550D can capture 18 megapixel images at 3.7 shots per second.

When you want to show off your photos and videos, you just plug the camera into an HDTV using an HDMI cable (not supplied with the camera). If your television has what's called a "Consumer Electronics Control" then you'll be able to control the camera playback using your TV remote.

The LCD on the T2i 550D has a wide aspect ratio designed to maximize the quality of video and image playback if you don't happen to have an HDTV nearby.

Since Full HD video files can eat up a lot of space, the T2i is compatible with the latest SD memory cards called SDXC.

Release Date: March 2010
Estimated Kit Price (with lens): $900 USD

Macro Lenses for Nikon D60 and D5000

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:50:00 +0000

If you'd like to get really up close and personal with your subjects, a regular old kit lens just isn't going to cut it.

The main limitation of a standard lens is something called minimum focusing distance.

With a standard lens, if you get the front glass of the lens too close to your subject (closer than the minimum focusing distance of the lens) your autofocus won't be able to make the subject appear clear.

You might even hear the focusing motor in the lens tracking back and forth: the autofocus is trying to get a lock, but isn't succeeding.

However, if you're using a specialized lens called a macro, minimum focusing distance is no problem at all - you can get your lens up close and personal with even the smallest of subjects.

If you're the owner of a Nikon digital SLR camera that does not have its own focusing motor - like the D40, D60, D3000 and D5000 - then the macro lens that you're looking for needs to have its own focusing motor. Nikon calls these types of lenses AF-S.

If you're not fond of tons of options, then you're in luck: there are three Nikon macro lenses with AF-S that you can choose from:

A quick analysis: both the 85mm and 105mm have Vibration Reduction (VR) which helps you capture clearer shots when you hold the camera in your hands. Note: camera shake is especially apparent in macro shots, so this is a nice feature to have - unless you intend to use a tripod all the time.

The 60mm and the 105mm have a slightly wider maximum aperture than the 85mm (helpful for shooting hand-held in dim available light) but they also have another advantage: they're not DX lenses.

DX lenses - like the 85mm - will only work on digital SLRs with cropped sensors. If you ever decide to upgrade in the future to a full-frame digital SLR, the non-DX lens is the better option here.

Olympus E-PL1 Intro Video

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:27:00 +0000

This video highlights some of the features of the latest Olympus micro 4/3rds camera (also called an Interchangeable Lens Digital Camera or ILDC).

This is the third micro 4/3rds camera released by Olympus, and it comes packed with features including an HD video capture mode.

January Newsletter Now Available

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 15:54:00 +0000

So this announcement is a little bit late - that's what happens when you have far too many things to do and then come down with a head cold.

The January issue of the Digital SLR Guide newsletter is now available on the web site.

Here's a quick overview of what's in this issue:

How to protect your camera from rain and cold
Alternative kit lens options for all the different manufacturers
How to take photos at night (and what problems you'll run into)

Read the January Newsletter

Q and A: Full Frame or Crop Frame DSLR?

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:44:00 +0000

Question:

Should I get a full frame or crop frame digital SLR camera?

Answer:
The key deciding factor between full frame and crop frame boils down to how often you think you'll shoot in dim available light.

While full frame cameras do offer a wider field of view (which is great for landscapes and interiors) their real advantage is the minimal noise they produce even at high ISO settings.

The larger sensors handle noise much better, so you can shoot at ISO 1600 and be hard-pressed to see deterioration in image quality.

If you don't think that you'll be shooting a lot in dim light without flash, then the reduced size and portability of crop-frame cameras is a big advantage. Plus, you pay a huge premium right now for full frame.

I expect the price of full frame cameras to drop in the coming years, and you can certainly get a crop-frame camera now and upgrade to a full frame later on down the line when the prices are more reasonable.

Canon DSLR Portrait Lens

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:21:00 +0000

A lot of people write in to the Digital SLR Guide asking which lens they should get for their camera.

These are folks who started out using the kit lens that came with their camera, but have a sense that there might be something a little bit better out there.

Today, I'll begin a series of posts on the lenses that I find most interesting for all of the different camera manufacturers.

To kick it off, I'd like to talk about my favorite Canon DSLR portrait lens: the Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di LD.

There's a lot that I like about this lens:

Zoom Range: 28 to 75mm is a great range for portrait photography, allowing for large group shots as well as individual head shots
Wide Aperture: the f/2.8 maximum aperture lets you take pictures in very dim available light without having to boost your ISO too much
Constant Aperture: the aperture is constant throughout the zoom range and doesn't change once set
Superb Image Quality: the sharpness and color capture of this lens rival some that are significantly more expensive

Finally, there's the price: you can pick up a new version of this lens for about $430 USD, which is extremely reasonable given the quality and the performance that this lens offers.

Adorama iPhone Contest

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:06:00 +0000

If you've got an iPhone and have been snapping images and manipulating them with photo apps, then here's the contest for you.

Dubbed the APPOS™ (Photo App Awards and Photo Contest), the contest seeks reward both interesting photos taken with an iPhone as well as innovative iPhone apps designed for photographers.

This is the first time this event has been run by Adorama (a NY-based camera retailer) and it promises to be an annual event from here on out.

Winning photo apps will be chosen by a panel of judges along with winning photographs captured on iPhones in a variety of different categories.

The contest runs for a month from January 15 to February 15.

So get out there and start snapping some iPhone photos!

Contest Press Release

Contest Web Site

Beware Online DSLR Scams

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:46:00 +0000

I've said it on the Digital SLR Guide and I've said it in my newsletter, but this one bears repeating:

If you're thinking about buying your DSLR online, BEWARE of the SCAM companies.

Unfortunately, there are lots of people out there trying to make a buck out of unsuspecting consumers. These scam artists set up web sites that report to be selling name-brand cameras.

Once you make a purchase, the nightmare begins.

They'll call to say they don't have the product you ordered and will try to upsell you to something different. Or they'll say that the product has no accessories - like a lens - and that those things will cost more.

How do you quickly spot an online scam?

The price of the camera will be HALF of what it is on other legitimate online retail web sites.

The scammers use these low prices to lure in buyers, but don't take the bait.

How do you protect yourself?

Once you've found an online company selling the camera that you'd like, look them up on resellerratings.com.

If the company has a bad reputation for misleading customers, you will find out pretty fast.

Another way of protecting yourself is to know the AVERAGE online price for a DSLR camera. I update my page of digital SLR camera prices often, so use that as a reference.

If you see a quoted price that's half of the average online price, DO NOT BUY from that retailer - it's almost certainly a scam, and not worth your time or trouble.

OutdoorPhotographer.com Breaks Down HD Video

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 19:23:00 +0000

If you're feeling baffled by all of the video options springing up on digital SLR cameras these days then you're probably not alone.

After all, it's hard enough to keep track of the features that the cameras offer to enhance STILL images and how you have to figure out how to handle MOVING images.

To compound the problem, the world of video capture has its own jargon that you have to pick up in order to objectively compare different options.

Terms like 1080p, HD, SVGA and MPEG-4 compression are tossed around with nary an explanation.

Well, OutdoorPhotographer.com solves all that, with their HD Video Primer.

It's a great introduction to the terminology that you'll hear with regard to DSLR video, and it includes a breakdown of all the current DSLRs that can capture both motion and stills.

December Newsletter

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:13:00 +0000

Happy New Year (and new decade)!

The December issue of the newsletter has been mailed out and is also available on the site.

In this issue: how to get better results from your camera's built-in flash, new intermediate lessons in the works and what to do when you get a shiny new DSLR as a present.

Read the December newsletter

Thanks to all the Facebook fans who suggested ideas for the tips section of the newsletter.

Shallow Depth of Field

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 17:47:00 +0000

2009-10-08-080.jpg
Originally uploaded by crob

If you're wondering what the aperture setting on your digital SLR camera does...well, here's an example.

The aperture setting controls Depth of Field - this is the space behind and in front of the point of focus that is also in focus.

Wide apertures (small numbers) result in SHALLOW depth of field while narrow apertures (large numbers) result in DEEP depth of field.

This image was captured with an aperture setting of f/3.5 (pretty wide open) which is why only a small portion of the image is in sharp focus and the rest fades off into blur.

For Starters...

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Roberts) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 17:10:00 +0000

Hello, and welcome to the latest incarnation of the companion weblog to the Digital SLR Guide.

Let's get the introductions out of the way - my name is Chris Roberts, and I'm the person behind the Digital SLR Guide (writing, photos, etc.).

The concept for the Digital SLR Guide came out of a long-time interest in SLR cameras and their ability to take pictures differently from compact cameras.

As an SLR enthusiast, I spent a lot of time on a variety of different web sites reading about camera technology and terminology. I enjoyed reading about new cameras as they became available.

But one day something dawned on me: while there were plenty of sites covering digital SLR technology, the vast majority assumed that the person reading the information was a quasi-expert.

There were very few sites that explained the terms in simple non-technical language for people just getting their feet wet.

And so - back in 2005 - I started building the Digital SLR Guide.

It's come a long way since then and just updating the site on a regular basis keeps me pretty busy. The Guide also has a Facebook page, and I periodically post to Twitter as well.

Toward the end of 2009, I realized that I wanted to have a place where I could share a variety of DSLR information - photo tips, new camera info, cool web sites and useful tools.

And that's how Digital SLRs for Starters got its beginning.

I hope you find the information and links here useful, and also hope that the tips and other sites provide you with inspiration to help you start shooting some amazing pictures.

Happy picture-taking!

Chris Roberts, Your Digital SLR Guide