The Great Camera Debate

Here are the facts:

 

  1. We have a Camera. A 4.0 megapixel Canon Powershot 410. It is 1 year old and takes nice pictures.
  2. It has a slight smudge on the lens. 
  3. We have a baby coming.
  4. David has proposed to buy a $900 Canon EOS Rebel SLR Camera.

emoticon  David

  1. With a baby coming I think it is important that we have the best possible pictures.
  2. I want to learn how to use an SLR style camera anyways.
  3. Money grows on trees. (my tree.)

 emoticon Kiko

  1. We already have a camera.
  2. We don’t have the money.
  3. We recently got a new video camera.

 

Voting has begun. Look to the right of your screen (perhaps it is near the bottom now.) 

Vote! 

18 thoughts on “The Great Camera Debate”

  1. heheh… kikos dad is not a professional photographer, but he will pay to have them done once a year. but no worries… i have been beaten into submission by the visitors to this website… i have capitulated. no camera for me. i will tell my baby to thank you all when he comes’a’lookin for baby photos 😉

    i called you today! did you get the message?

  2. “A slight smudge”?

    Dude.

    Also, you are being crazy. Your baby photos were taken on cameras that were frequently worse than disposable cameras. Your “slight smudge” will be fine.

    Also, isn’t Kiko’s dad a professional photographer? Won’t you then be getting professional photographs done at least once a year?

    Kiko is totally right dude.

    – Chris

  3. If you want to learn photography, you will almost definitely not do it with the rebel.

    There is a difference between cameras, but you will not notice it. People who have been using cameras for years and know what to look for will notice, but you will definitely not.

    Why would the kiss not be a real slr? It has a single lens and a mirror which reflects the image into the viewfinder… hence Single Lens Reflex (SLR), and manual mode. If you want to learn about slr photography, that is all you need.

    But buy something with no features other than aperture and shutter speed, and you will learn how to take a picture. No camera does anything but modulate those variables (some exceptions do exist, but you won’t use those features for a long long while).

    face the fact that when you start, no matter what camera you use, you will be a shitty photographer. You will improve faster if you are learning about what the camera does, and you will only do that by practicing the basics. It is frustrating and hard, so if you have point-and-shoot features, you will give up and do it the easy way. Learning photography is all about slowing down and thinking. With a not fancy camera, you force yourself to think and learn. Most pros, as they get better, buy increasingly less automated cameras to force themselves to take more control of their photos.

    A shitty guitar player will sound shitty on the best equipment. A good guitar player will sound good on the worst.

  4. Kiko is right! live with it 🙂 College fund sounds like a much better idea. You are picture/camera crazy, there will be lots of pictures of the baby no matter what camera you have.

  5. hmm… interesting point about the archiving being pointless in one generation… lots to think about.

    once again, i am pretty much convinced, but let me put it this way: if I just wanted a new point and shoot (ie. to upgrade my canon ixy to a 5.0megapixel, a 6.0megapixel, smaller, or something) wouldn’t it be the same thing?

    I am convinced that the Kiss won’t be a real SLR, I want one of those too, but from what I gather after reading a few reviews (dpreview etc.) if money wasn’t that much of an issue, a Kiss or better than the Ixy I have…. (not that money isn’t an issue mind you!!)

    must get back to thinking.. (implementing that shogi board is way harder than i thought it would be! wish me luck!!)
    dave

  6. But from talking to you, what you want is a point and shoot digital camera. SLRs are bulky and a pain in the ass to lug around.

    If you just want to learn photography, there is a lot to be said for pinhole cameras, which you can make with a shoebox, tape and a pin.

    What will you actually get from the rebel which you don’t get from your little canon now? More megapixels only matter if you want to go to poster sizes, remember.

  7. you won’t notice the difference between the camera you have and the rebel. If you buy a glorified point and shoot without knowing how to use a camera, you will use it like a point and shoot. Even people who know how to use cameras more often than not use new cameras like point and shoots. Film is also a lot easier to deal with archivally, and black and white negs will last forever… practically. With the same money, you could buy a film camera, and all the developing you can dream of, and still have money left over.

    And you have a good digital camera. You will never need to enlarge your photos to poster size. 4 megapixel will do a perfectly fine 8×10, which is the biggest anyone ever goes to.

    You will not get anything that you don’t have if you buy the rebel, except a lack of $900.

    and you are the only one who archives things the way you do, dave. One generation later, the photos will be gone. Film may be less convenient, but in every other way, it’s much better.

  8. fair enough, but that doesn’t detract from the importance of having pictures of the baby. i want them, kiko wants them, theh baby may want them when he is older. My point is if a) i want to learn to use an slr-type camera b) i want higher quality pictures of the baby and c) in the long run, we have the money, why not? (that being said I *do* agree with greg and eventually want a film camera as well… but I also think that given how important computer pictures are to me, that i should also have a good digital camera)…

  9. Again, if you’re all preoccupied about taking pictures of the baby, then you’re not really thinking about the BABY are you? Trust me, in a few years you won’t care whether the baby photos were 3 megapixels or 8 megapixels.
    Repeat after me. $900. College fund.

  10. bridgecross is 100% right. Get any old Nikon, you have access to fifty years worth of lenses, and you can get a body and a 50mm lens for less than three hundred bucks. And you will learn how to take a picture, instead of trusting a chip in your camera to guess what you want.

  11. I’m currently using a 35mm Canon EOS 55.. which I bought under the pretence of being an EOS camera, but it’s also sold in North America as the Elan IIse. The next time you put big money into a Canon product, make sure you get one of the kick-ass upper level EOS chipsets. (EOS 5, 3, or … 1!!!!, or Digital 20D, or 5D.. 10D’s showing it’s age) 😀 I’ll take you on a tour of the Marunaka Kitamura no Kamera some time. 😀

  12. Haha~ I’ll remain neutral on this topic by suggesting…

    If you’re going to go for a digital Canon SLR, why waste your investment with the Rebel/Kiss Digital? Granted, it’s an SLR but the digital component isn’t that much better than their regular Powershot and IXY series. For the time being, I’ll back up Bridgecross-san and suggest going for a sweet 35mm. When you’re ready for Digital SLR it’ll be time to invest in the Canon Digital E20.. or… hehehehe… the soon to be released E5, which is the DIGITAL SLR OF ALL DIGITAL SLRS…

  13. Crap.. i noticed. i was expecting a big win on this. its a baby… we need the best pictures we can get!!! whats wrong with you people!?!?!?

  14. You wanna learn how to use an SLR? Get a cheapo film SLR with a few different lenses. They still take great pics and you can act all artsy and superior. (The Canon EOS is a great camera; if you’re going to upgrade then that’s the one)
    But for $900 you can buys something ELSE for your child, like oh, I don’t know, START A COLLEGE FUND!!
    Remember, there will be LOTS of people around with cameras. And you have video.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *