in the market for a camera

[reefermike1]

hey everyone. i got a few bucks burning a hole in my pocket, and looking into cameras. i have to admit that it will probably be primarily used just for taking pics of the tank, and with that said id like a close-up setting, and a setting that i could get a pic of a moving fish without having to change lenses or anyting. i want to be able to take nice clear pics. u can look at some of the pics ive taken with my current camera and it just looks terrible(el-cheapo camera). so i want a good amateur camera, and probably a tripod, but have a max budget of about $400give or take.

any suggestions?

[dmpchopper]

i like the canon line, I own a digital rebel xti, and i love it. the canon sure shot would be a good choice. There are a few at your price range to choose from

[STAR FYRE]

I just bought a new camera. I wanted it primarily for taking pics of my tank. My friend is a photographer, so I asked his advice. His suggestion was to look for the highest amount of megapixels I can afford. He said at least 6 megapixels if I want good color. He also suggested a camera that has a macro option. Some digital cameras have a macro option. A better option would probably be to go with a camera that you can switch the lenses. You would probably have to buy the macro lens seperately, and they can be pricey. I opted for the clearance model at Wal-Mart. I got a sony digital camera with 7.3 megapixels and a macro option. It cost me $150, plus $70 for a 2gig memory card that holds 600 pictures. The only thing I don't like about it is that I can't focus on extremely tiny objects. For the price, I'm pretty happy with what I got. It also takes video.
Here are some pics I took with my new camera so you can get an idea. HTH
This is my seahorse Banana:

Here's a shot of my new zoas:

New dragon eye zoas on bottom right and lettuce sea slug attached to the glass:

Shot of new dragon eyes under actinics lights:

I just bought the camera about a week ago, so I'm still trying to figure out all the options and settings on it. I believe these pics were taken with the macro option. It has like 7 different settings on it.

[dmpchopper]

nice pics

[reefermike1]

those are pretty nice, and a really nice price. whats the model #of the camera?

[Loverotties]

Nikon is my fav. make.I had a Sony and was ok.But if you do Macro you need a tripod to get it so your pic. are not fuzzy.

[STAR FYRE]

I don't have a tripod. Some pics do get fuzzy, but not too many. I'll check the model # for you reefermike.
It's a sony cyber-shot DSC-S650. I believe that's the model #.

[FishDaddy]

Mike,

An excellent prospect well within your price range is the Canon S3 IS. It can be had online for $307.50 with free shipping from Beach Camera. Beach is a very reliable company and I've bought cameras from them before. http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/prod...SS3&sku=CNPSS3


Here's a full review of the S3 IS. http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons3is/

It's image stabilized and has both macro and long telephoto capability so it's an excellent all-round camera for whatever you want to shoot with it. I don't own one but have friends who do. If I were in the market for a comparable camera right now, this is the one I would buy. I've always favored Olympus cameras but they no longer make smaller digicams which fit my needs, though their DSLRs are excellent. I've got four older model Olympus digicams as well as a Nikon D70.

Hope this helps,

Dick

[Bubbashrimp]

I researched getting a camera quite a bit. I narrowed it down to a canon and a fuji. The things that were important to me and other aquarist were: Macro and supermacro, optical zoom, white balance, 4-7 megapixelz, manual settings, and all black in color not to scare the fish. I took those pictures of the Ahermatypic Coral after a week of owning the thing. I am currently working on my whitebalance education but slow is the word. My camera is a Canon S3 IS.

[PHIL GUY]

i have a nikon coolpix4600..that takes realy good pics.it been dropped a few times and now the quality of pics arent the same any more heres a pic when i first baught it..its only 4.0 megapixels

[PHIL GUY]

Originally Posted by PHIL GUY

i have a nikon coolpix4600..that takes realy good pics.it been dropped a few times and now the quality of pics arent the same any more heres a pic when i first baught it..its only 4.0 megapixels

[reefermike1]

thanks for all the suggestions. i ended up with a cannon powershot a630. got it on sale for just over 200. i must say im pretty happy with it. heres a couple pics i took with it just messing around

[Tynan Rasmus]

after looking at just about every $400 cam out there, I settled on the canon SD 750. I just opened it, so wish me luck!

[jenajet]

Good luck! I need a good camera but now I got to get this new tank up and going so all my $ will be going into it for a while. Great shots everyone!

[Tynan Rasmus]

I know where your coming from there, I just got my 75 up, took some pics with the new cam, I will share when they are uploaded. The underwater setting on this cam seems to catch the color that my other cam could not do.