[ale] OT: DSLR recommendations

[Ken Cochran]

See interspersed...

> Date: Sat, 20 Jun 2009 01:09:09 -0400
> From: Richard Bronosky <Richard at bronosky.com>
> To: "Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts - Yes! We run Linux!" <ale at ale.org>
> Subject: Re: [ale] OT: DSLR recommendations
>
> The best local resource is KEH.com what ever say about the condition
> of their used gear, you can absolutely trust. I'll also say that in my

Yup, another recommended source but KEH isn't exactly a
retail "store" - to actually "see" them you have to make an
appointment and they have only one location.  Ritz/Wolf has
locations around the Atlanta metro area and they're open more
hours and I think Saturdays.

> experience, while it's good to have fast recycle time and rapid fire,
> it would make you a better photographer. It will likely make you
> worse. I do equestrian competition photography. I started off trying
> to hold down the shutter release as the rider entered a jump, and
> shoot until they cleared it. The results were a bunch of almost right
> photos. When I finally "manned up" and started waiting for the shot
> and pressing the shutter release when the shot was right, I was
> getting 3 great shots for every jump instead of 9 of garbage. So,
> unless you are going as high as 10+ releases per second, don't worry
> about 2.5 vs 3 (4,5,etc.). But then you are going to have to sift
> through 30 to get the 3 shots. I'm at above 80% with my timing. I
> really appreciate having less cruft to filter out. Especially with
> photos of my kids. It almost feel like blasphemy to delete even a
> terribly blurred shot. So I don't want to take advantage of rapid fire
> there.

Also agreed - I believe the likes of a Nikon D40, D60, D5000
or D90 would server you quite nicely.  More important than the
camera body, though, is a VR lens, but I don't think the D40 is
sold with one "standard" as are some of their other kids.  Fwiw,
Adorama has factory-refurb D40s available - also a nice choice -
there might be other models available as factory-refurb too.

-kc

> On Fri, Jun 19, 2009 at 11:12 PM, Ken Cochran<kwc at theworld.com> wrote:
> > I was a photographer before computers discovered me long ago...
> > I *highly* recommend the Nikon D40; anything any "better" is
> > at least twice the price.  Actually the 1/500s flash sync isn't
> > for freezing action (flash'll do that) - it's for balancing the
> > light between ambient & flash.  As far as I know there is no
> > other DSLR that syncs flash at 1/500 and the D40 is likely to
> > be replaced by Nikon before much longer.  Another plus for Nikon
> > is their dead-on flash/light exposure/balance; they're the best
> > I know of.  The D90 and D5000 are the new steps-up from the D40.
> >
> > Buying:  Get it from a *photo* shop - they have the expertise
> > & support.  Price won't be much different than the electronics
> > places.  Recommended online places would be B&H, Adorama &
> > Ritz; Ritz now owns Wolf, so that might be a nice option for
> > you if you're in the Atlanta area.
> >
> > -kc
> >
> >> Date: Fri, 19 Jun 2009 22:27:17 -0400
> >> From: Scott <skotchman at gmail.com>
> >> To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts <ale at ale.org>
> >> Subject: [ale] OT: DSLR recommendations
> >>
> >> Hey guys, thanks for the opinions offered. I'm now leaning towards the
> >> Nikon D40 even though it only has a burst of 2.5fps and not the 3.0fps.
> >> The deciding factor is the flash sync shutter speed of upto 1/500 sec as
> >> opposed to 1/200 sec on the 10.x and greater megapixel cameras. This
> >> allows for freeze action flash photography and with 3 hyper active
> >> monkeys, er I mean grandkids that 1/300 sec could make a difference of
> >> smiling angel like faces to blurry devilish imps.