dSLR? Why bother

I totally agree with that. I hardly ever recommend a DSLR to people. They just don't need all the hassle of it. I still carry my little A70 around as a backup as I know that if my 10D failed I could still get the shots. I've used it at gigs before now and managed to do ok. Its a great camera to sneak into places too. If you take something with a "lens" as I did when my 10D failed, a EOS 50 film SLR, you'll probably get told off by security. If you take a compact digital camera you'll be fine. Just another fan. Its all about the photographer. Photography isn't just Canon DSLR's and white lenses.
 
it would be tricky to do all the things a normal digital can do on a DSLR with limited room
the c8080 is a larger camera though
I'd still take a 350D (smallish) and a 28-200 ish lens if I was limited
but it's the photographer, not the equipment
the powershots are awesome but the long zoom kit you can buy is really slow in focusing, don't miss it in my move to DSLR
having said that, I have an ixus too :)
 
cyKey said:
I totally agree with that. I hardly ever recommend a DSLR to people. They just don't need all the hassle of it. I still carry my little A70 around as a backup as I know that if my 10D failed I could still get the shots. I've used it at gigs before now and managed to do ok. Its a great camera to sneak into places too. If you take something with a "lens" as I did when my 10D failed, a EOS 50 film SLR, you'll probably get told off by security. If you take a compact digital camera you'll be fine. Just another fan. Its all about the photographer. Photography isn't just Canon DSLR's and white lenses.
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Tis about Nikon too :p

But I agree ^_^
 
So if I take my DX6490 into a warzone, I can be assured my shots are as good as those a professional might take with a 1DS mk2 and a batch of L glass? :D :p
 
danza said:
So if I take my DX6490 into a warzone, I can be assured my shots are as good as those a professional might take with a 1DS mk2 and a batch of L glass? :D :p
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No, I think it is just that they probably won't be much different to the shots you would take with a Canon blah blah L glass blah blah :p
 
I think it's more about the subject matter, a warzone is something that's really interesting so the composition and sharpness etc arn't anywhere near as important as usual. The subject matter is enough to warrent a good photo imo. If you had L glass, it would be a better picture but the impact probably wouldn't change too much?

whereas, taking a picture of a flower - the sharpness and composition are far more important and that's where the extra quality of DSLR really comes in to play.
 
Ugley_Matt said:
Its the eye take takes the picture, the camera just collects the light...
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Yes .....


.... but a poor camera (or lens, or both) can ruin a good photo. By the same token, a top-class dSLR is just a tool and is not going to turn a lousy or talentless photographer into a good one.

For my 2p worth, a dSLR has the benefit of versatility and adaptability in terms of quality of accessories, including lenses. But it isn't for all situations, which is why many enthusiastic amateurs (and not a few pro's) will have a decent compact (or more) too. It isn't for all users, either.
 
I think to say that it doesnt matter whether you use an SLR or not because its the photographer that takes the picture is oversimplifying photography.

The photographer's eye is fully responsible for the composition of the image, this is true and the composition is the single most important factor affecting impact, originality, etc.

But technical considerations are also important, and posting examples of images where the smaller camera could cope is not the best way to see the full picture (pun intended). Yes, in situations where a compact can cope, theres no problem and you will get the images, but if its simply too dark for your f3.5 or f2.8 lens and the subject is moving then you simply will not get the shot, no matter what your abilities are.

Yes you can turn around and take other images of other things your camera can cope with, you can use a little flash and somehow get a decent shot, you can definitely still enjoy photography, photography is not just about SLRs, but the point is an SLR with a fast lens would have allowed the shot you wanted to take.

But I agree, horses for courses and a compact camera can be very good for many situations, and in fact even better than an SLR in some thanks to size. Just dont tell me it doesnt matter!

PS: Also some of the sayings being brought up about cameras being 'just light tight boxes' are dated concepts now. With film, any 35mm SLR could produce pretty much the same image quality. The factors were the lens and the film and the body just held both.

The digital SLR is different. The lens still has the same place, but you are pretty much stuck with the same 'film'/sensor on a body. (albeit a special 'film' with variable ratings).

That means some bodies are substantially better in image quality than others. You cant call them light tight boxes any more, because the job of the film has become part of the body.
 
That was a long post and I forgot to say what I was going to say in the first place. To answer the topic; 'dSLR? Why bother'

If your type/style/area of photography only requires a compact camera, then by all means, use the right tool for the job.

If however you want to venture into several areas of photography and be able to capture an image in many different conditions, then you will WANT to bother with a dSLR...
 
Dont bother if your out to capture snapshots. If you are creating an artistic photograph you will find yourself limited.
 
cyKey said:
Lies. The whole point of this thread was to point out that you don't need a DSLR to create artistic photography.

I took this with my A70 2 1/2 yrs ago.

http://www.deviantart.com/view/4942774/
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Good on you. I'll dig out some dusty CD-R's from 1997 and pull some Casio QV-10a shots ;)

I also ran with a 602z for 2 years and did well but I would consider that an almostSLR as you had control of everything, custom white balances, ISO etc. I'd never recommend a digital compact to anyone who wanted to do artistic stuff and even with the 602 I found that if I got a cracking shot on screen, blowing it up to print at A4 was a nightmare, even with Neatimage.

R.
 
Rikki said:
Good on you. I'll dig out some dusty CD-R's from 1997 and pull some Casio QV-10a shots ;)

I also ran with a 602z for 2 years and did well but I would consider that an almostSLR as you had control of everything, custom white balances, ISO etc. I'd never recommend a digital compact to anyone who wanted to do artistic stuff and even with the 602 I found that if I got a cracking shot on screen, blowing it up to print at A4 was a nightmare, even with Neatimage.

R.
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You can have the same problem with DSLR's. Tiny screen where shots look great but rubbish on the big screen. If you're doing artistic stuff then all you need is manual controls. Artistic photography can be so many things that you can easily spend £150 and sample man areas and produce plenty of arty shots with it. Its the photographer, all the photographer.
 
You don't need a powerful PC to do wordprocessing, but it'll come in handy when you want to play games....same applies here. It ain't black and white :)
 
cyKey said:
You can have the same problem with DSLR's. Tiny screen where shots look great but rubbish on the big screen. If you're doing artistic stuff then all you need is manual controls. Artistic photography can be so many things that you can easily spend £150 and sample man areas and produce plenty of arty shots with it. Its the photographer, all the photographer.
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True it is the photographer but putting David Coultard in a C2 will not win any F1 races ;)

My point is if you do artistic stuff and want to show it off larger than web/A5 size then sensor size comes into it as does optical clarity. I've taken great shots on the 602, smashing on the screen, smashing on monitor, fugly when printed due to noise and inherant upsampling for print softening.

Here's a great shot from my Nokia 6630 at the weekend, I call it "M3 visits the scenery" :D

whodis.jpg


R.
 
Rikki said:
True it is the photographer but putting David Coultard in a C2 will not win any F1 races ;)

R.
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But thats all about precision. Art isn't precise. I'd never recommend a compact to an aspiring sports photographer, but for someone wanting to be an artist sure. Its simply creating a nice photo. I just don't believe that an artist should have to spend £3k on camera equipment just to be creative. I've seen brilliant shots from £10 cameras.

My point is if you do artistic stuff and want to show it off larger than web/A5 size then sensor size comes into it as does optical clarity. I've taken great shots on the 602, smashing on the screen, smashing on monitor, fugly when printed due to noise and inherant upsampling for print softening.
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That is true. But surely these new fangled 7mp cameras coupled with noiseware should be able to do a decent print.
 
OK, the thread title was maybe a bit provocative and seems to have riled some people but it wasn't meant to be taken completely literally or to apply to everyone. I just found it interesting that the guy, who could afford any camera and used to use leica rangefinders, had actually chosen to use consumer digicams. His reasons for doing so were interesting as was his methods round some of the limitations. As he points out most of his comtempories think he is mad and use pro dSLRs.

I would love a dSLR and keep being tempted but can't really justify the cost at the moment. I started with film using a manual Canon rangefinder and then got an Oly OM2 and my small digicam with a screen on the back just doesn't feel right. But that is really just an excuse and I know I could do far more with what I have got and my real problem is lazyness.

Another page I thought was fantastic and I look at whenever my wallet feels threatened is below. I think I probably first saw it linked on here so apologies if you have seen it before but the results the guy gets out of some cheap kit and a lot of imagination and skill are amazing.

http://megaweb.clubsnap.org/articles/a70_reversed_35mmf2/
 
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