helping choosing a camera

[Andrewe92]

hey guys so I have been a part of the community for some time now and Ive been really inspired by all the amazing photography going on.. I know theres a lot to it. but two questions 1. what is a recommended camera (for a reasonable price) 2. How can I get angel eyes to capture correctly ? is it just a matter of shutter speed to capture the light correctly?
thanks in advance!!

[Itsed65]

That is about like asking "What car should I buy?"

Before anyone can answer, we at least need to know what you define "reasonable price" as. Also, what do you want to shoot? Cars, animals, people, action, nature, etc... Do you want an interchangeable lens camera (DSLR, like a Canon or Nikon or Mirror-less, like a Sony or Olympus) , or more of a point and shoot type? It can get complicated very quickly!

To get the angel eyes, it is a matter of the proper exposure, which is part of the "triangle" of shutter speed, aperture, and ISO setting. Normally for the lights to show well, you would use a tripod and a slow exposure near dawn or dusk for best results, although I'm sure others have their own methods.

[Andrewe92]

Originally Posted by Itsed65

That is about like asking "What car should I buy?"

Before anyone can answer, we at least need to know what you define "reasonable price" as. Also, what do you want to shoot? Cars, animals, people, action, nature, etc... Do you want an interchangeable lens camera (DSLR, like a Canon or Nikon or Mirror-less, like a Sony or Olympus) , or more of a point and shoot type? It can get complicated very quickly!

To get the angel eyes, it is a matter of the proper exposure, which is part of the "triangle" of shutter speed, aperture, and ISO setting. Normally for the lights to show well, you would use a tripod and a slow exposure near dawn or dusk for best results, although I'm sure others have their own methods.

Yea you're right the word "reasonable" is different for everyone I guess I just meant within $400.. and cars and nature for the most part is what I would be dealing with. I've been looking at the Canon EOS Rebel T3 and thanks for the great feedback by the way!!

[amanda hor$t]

i'm doing fine with the camera on my ipad retina, and you get all that other stuff too

[Andrewe92]

Originally Posted by bosster hymen

i'm doing fine with the camera on my ipad retina, and you get all that other stuff too

Wait you can't control shutter speed on the ipad? Can you?

[ddk632]

He's trolling.

Anyway, $400 isn't a lot so a T3 or even a used XSi kit isn't a bad starter. Pretty much any Rebel is a great camera.

Read through the threads in here and you'll see similar threads to yours and the responses, as well as through the general photography conversation thread.

Plan on expanding your budget over time to acquire lenses.

I think with how often it gets asked, we need a sticky for shooting angel eyes. It's difficult if not usually impossible to properly expose angel eyes and the rest of the car in one shot. Too much difference in dynamic range.

The general suggestion is to take 2 shots on a tripod, one exposed for the car, and one for the lights, and then carefully merge them in Photoshop to get the properly exposed car with properly exposed angel eyes.

Oh, I do use my iPad for taking photos. Like, when I need to take a picture of a document and email it or something, it's really useful. I just don't confuse that with actual photography

[Nate4641]

$400 should be able to get you a good entry level DSLR like the T3 type of camera. Check out craigslist if you are fine with buying something used. You'll always want better glass to go with it too so look at different brands and see what lenses they offer aand what the price points are. Canon usually runs a little less expensive on glass.

For getting a good exposure of angel eyes, here is what I would do. Try a slow shutter speed (several seconds and on a tripod) and play with aperature and ISO until you get the amount of light you want. Once you get the headlights the way you want play around with lighting the car in different ways. Using an off camera speedlight would be the preferred way if you're not doing a full studio shoot. With several seconds of the shutter being open you have time to run around the car and pop the flash. It might take awhile to get the shot just the way you want, but you'll learn a lot about exposure doing it this way.

[Andrewe92]

Originally Posted by Nate4641

$400 should be able to get you a good entry level DSLR like the T3 type of camera. Check out craigslist if you are fine with buying something used. You'll always want better glass to go with it too so look at different brands and see what lenses they offer aand what the price points are. Canon usually runs a little less expensive on glass.

For getting a good exposure of angel eyes, here is what I would do. Try a slow shutter speed (several seconds and on a tripod) and play with aperature and ISO until you get the amount of light you want. Once you get the headlights the way you want play around with lighting the car in different ways. Using an off camera speedlight would be the preferred way if you're not doing a full studio shoot. With several seconds of the shutter being open you have time to run around the car and pop the flash. It might take awhile to get the shot just the way you want, but you'll learn a lot about exposure doing it this way.

Awesome answer! I appreciate the help guys.. Yeah well Black Friday is coming up I'm sure there will be a sale on dslr cameras I mean best but has a sale now on them , pretty good deals just not sure how many lens and stuff I would buy but thanks for the angel eye mini tutorial it should def be a sticky. Someone make it happen!

[Billup]

Originally Posted by Andrewe92

Awesome answer! I appreciate the help guys.. Yeah well Black Friday is coming up I'm sure there will be a sale on dslr cameras I mean best but has a sale now on them , pretty good deals just not sure how many lens and stuff I would buy but thanks for the angel eye mini tutorial it should def be a sticky. Someone make it happen!

You don't have to necessarily consider new. You can get some pretty amazing deals on craigslist, many people will include a lens, two, or three depending on what they have. The glass will be your biggest assets, the body you can upgrade as you learn more. Plus, most people that are selling DSLR's typically take very good care of them, as they aren't exactly rough and tough cameras getting tossed around like many point-to-shoot cameras.

Good luck! Let us know what you end up getting!

[khaye1]

I'm selling my t2i for $300 and you can scoop a 50mm 1.8 for less than $100. the t2i is a better camera than the t3...there's a difference between the t3 and the t3i.

http://sandiego.craigslist.org/nsd/pho/4151989377.html

[Mik3ymomo]

I always end up reading posts and saying..hmmm.
Ok that's good info. I look over at the name... Ad there u are again.

Originally Posted by ddk632

He's trolling.

Anyway, $400 isn't a lot so a T3 or even a used XSi kit isn't a bad starter. Pretty much any Rebel is a great camera.

Read through the threads in here and you'll see similar threads to yours and the responses, as well as through the general photography conversation thread.

Plan on expanding your budget over time to acquire lenses.

I think with how often it gets asked, we need a sticky for shooting angel eyes. It's difficult if not usually impossible to properly expose angel eyes and the rest of the car in one shot. Too much difference in dynamic range.

The general suggestion is to take 2 shots on a tripod, one exposed for the car, and one for the lights, and then carefully merge them in Photoshop to get the properly exposed car with properly exposed angel eyes.

Oh, I do use my iPad for taking photos. Like, when I need to take a picture of a document and email it or something, it's really useful. I just don't confuse that with actual photography

[carson86]

Are you looking for a compact point & shoot camera, a DSLR, or something in between? Are there particular brands or models you already have in mind?What do you like to shoot most?
Please be as specific as possible

[carson86]

This camera is on the mid-range budget, take a look at here

[Andrewe92]

Originally Posted by carson86

This camera is on the mid-range budget, take a look at here

looks nice!! and in terms of budget im looking for a cap of 400 or 500 but I like to go for the best value/performance i am seriously considering the Canon EOS Rebel T3 I love cannon as a brand they make great hardware and for good value. Also this camera is 12.2 mp but thats not a big deal I think thats enough pixels to work with! it's only $350

also note for the angel eyes thing, i think hdr could help out to from what i understand (high dynamic range) thanks for all the feedback any objections on the cannon??

[khaye1]

Originally Posted by Andrewe92

looks nice!! and in terms of budget im looking for a cap of 400 or 500 but I like to go for the best value/performance i am seriously considering the Canon EOS Rebel T3 I love cannon as a brand they make great hardware and for good value. Also this camera is 12.2 mp but thats not a big deal I think thats enough pixels to work with! it's only $350

also note for the angel eyes thing, i think hdr could help out to from what i understand (high dynamic range) thanks for all the feedback any objections on the cannon??

I'm not sure if you read my post above...got a t2i for sale...unless you're dead set on the t3.

[Andrewe92]

Originally Posted by khaye1

I'm not sure if you read my post above...got a t2i for sale...unless you're dead set on the t3.

18mp could be nice to work with and I do like the t2i. im dead set on cannon.. still wanna hold out for black friday tho!

[khaye1]

Originally Posted by Andrewe92

18mp could be nice to work with and I do like the t2i. im dead set on cannon.. still wanna hold out for black friday tho!

got it...I hope that's your budget just for the body alone. Skip on the kit lens and get a nifty fifty as your first lens, if you're on a budget. Then later on you can get some nice glass when money permits.

[Andrewe92]

Originally Posted by khaye1

got it...I hope that's your budget just for the body alone. Skip on the kit lens and get a nifty fifty as your first lens, if you're on a budget. Then later on you can get some nice glass when money permits.

thanks! and yeah I am quickly finding that this would be an expensive hobby lol