I bet you guys get this all day long - purchasing and other questions

I always had wanted to start into photography, but just never had the time or money. Now that I'm actually starting to make some money in

a sense (college student.) Now to some of the questions that I do have, I kinda have an idea of what camera's are good and I know were to

find reviews, but my question is should I go film slr or hold out a little bit long and make the move to dslr. One of the other questions I have

is, I have no clue how to process the raw film so would there be a kit of what materials I would need to do it my self or is there something

that plugs into a computer (does that scanner thing for raw film.) And lastly of all what would you guys and lady's say to get to cover the

basics of what I need to get started.

 

Thanks ahead of time =)

Chris,. I grew up on film, shot chromes and negatives colour and black and white. Went to digital about 2 years ago as I realised film just wasn't an option any more for some of my expeditions to Africa and elsewhere. I wanted to get a 40D but couldn't buy one at the time and ended up with an XTi. On the change to digital, it was the right move, I still have rolls of film in the freezer but I don't think I'll ever use them. I print A4 size and the home made prints on a cheap HP multifunction printer look every bit as good as what I got from film and lab printing. As to the camera, I think my move to Canon was correct, but I've found the XTi a mixed bag. The small size is great when travelling or at family gatherings where I don't want to be obtrusive, but the viewfinder is difficult to work with, I have no problems with the other ergonomics, my film camera was a 7e.

My advice is to get a lower cost DSLR and start taking photos, experience counts. With the camera you can get by with a cheap wide zoom, 17-50 etc, and one cheap, quality prime, say a 50 1.8. Use these for a while and you will learn a lot, the 50 1.8 will show you just how good digital is, and allow you to make quality shots from the begining. The cheap zoom is for every day casual shots, but you will see the limitations when you try to make large prints and learn a bit more about the importance of good glass. Some will disagree with me when I say bypass film, but for you I think digital is the way to go. Best of luck. Neill

Hmmm, I'm not sure where to start here. It's difficult to answer these questions as they require long responses

and additional clarification. I'd start with the learning tab on the top of the page, read everything you can

find and try to narrow down your objectives.Get books, visit websites and absorb as much as you can. For

instance, is there any type of photography you are interested in? Do wish to make photo albums? Prints to hang?

Just view on computer and web pages? Portraits? Landscapes? Just snapshots of friends, family and travel? The

answer to questions like these will help clarify what equipment you need. You seem pretty interested in film, and

that is good, you'll probably get a firmer grasp of the basics, however you might not be ready to process it

yourself,

 

To try to give you some sort of answer, this is what I would do. Note that I'm no pro,and I'm sure more qualified

people will give their opinions. Get a relatively inexpensive DSLR like a Nikon D40 or a Canon Rebel XTI, with a

kit lens. Even a good point and shoot will do more than you probably imagine. Learn to use it without the auto

settings. Read the manual. Read it again. The camera should come with some basic editing software. Don't get

caught up in the mega-pixel hype, 6-8 is plenty for anything except enlargements over 8x10 or even larger. In my

opinion this route gives you maximum flexibility with the least learning curve. Please don't get me wrong, you

could easily study photography the rest of your life and still have lots to learn. It is also very expensive.

 

As for the basics, a camera with a kit lens (something like a 18-50mm) and some software (should be packaged), a

memory card, a lens cleaning cloth, a tripod is worth it, and that's all you need for a very basic starter kit.

Assuming you have a computer of course.

If you eat your meals the way you post, I bet you get a lot of stomach aches ;) . As far as film or digital, that's not a choice we can make for you. I shoot film exclusively (mostly coz the dslr I want is $3500) and have it scanned at the lab which processes it. Films bring a whole can of worms, but so does digital. An advantage with 'system' type cameras is that generally you can start with one and try out the other if you want. In fact, I'm currently building a nikon system so that I can some day swap out for digital bodies, but right now film bodies are so cheap it's hard to not stock up! Processing film can be fun, if you do start with black and white, read ansel adams' 'the negative', and I recommend getting a neg capable scanner (or finding a lab that will give good scans) unless you REALLY want a true dark room. This way you can also get used to using digital editing programs so if you decide to make the jump to digital..well blah blah blah blah.

 

Read, read more, and then keep reading. Stay hungry and don't let yourself give up. There is a lot to learn and it is very rewarding.

Go digital.

Welcome Chris!

 

In terms of what kind of system to get, tell us a little more about how much you're willing & able to spend on

camera, lenses and accessories. Do you have a fast computer with big hard disk, or an older one that's fairly

slow and cramped for disk space and memory? Do you have a scanner and is it capable of handling negatives?

 

Also, are you interested in any particular kinds of subjects? That will determine which kinds of lenses you'll

need and how many, whether you'll want a tripod and external flash etc.

 

You can set yourself up for processing your own B&W film, but because of the cost and short shelf life after

opening of the needed chemicals, DIY color film developing is usually not more affordable than taking it to a

developer, unless you process large quantities of films. Unfortunately there is no low-cost scanner-like device

that you can feed undeveloped film into and just push a button.

 

There are however very affordable models of slide & negative scanners that you can scan your negatives with after

developing and get pretty good results for tweaking your photos digitally - as well as brand new expensive

scanners that will produce excellent results and make it really difficult to see any difference with digitally

shot photos.

I think the only thing that makes sense is to start in digital and move to film if you find a compelling reason.

 

Digital is cheaper from an ongoing expense perspective, allows you to shoot more pictures, and get faster

feedback on what works. Film requires processing of each roll which costs money. Perhaps $0.30 or $0.50 per shot

depending on how you process it.

 

Given your questions about film, you clearly are starting from scratch here, so I suggest going to your college

library and checking out books on basic photography issues. How light works, how lenses, f stops, shutter speed,

depth of field etc all work. Basic Photographic Materials and Processes used to be the bible for college courses

in photography. I don't know how good the latest editions are at updating for digital age.

 

A good way to start "serious" photography is with a DSLR kit like the Canon XS or XSi kit with the kit lens.

Nikon makes good equipment also, but I'm less familiar with it. If you want a cheaper way to get started, there

are many things you can learn from a point and shoot, even a pretty cheap one like a Canon A590 IS... but it is

definitely more limiting (more noise, very little control of depth of field, not very wide perspectives usually).

If you go the P&S route, get one with P,Av,Tv, and M modes... Canon, Panasonic, some of the advanced Fuji cameras...

 

Even if you go the DSLR route, it is a good idea to have a P&S. So you might start there, in case you find

"serious" photography less interesting than you thought.

One of the very best ideas for you would be to source out a Camera / Photo club in your College, or Local Area, and get along to a few gatherings, ask questions and have a look at what can be and is done..

 

Your question reveals there are elements that might best be explained face to face and with hands on, rather than on an internet forum.

 

With some fundamentals in order, I think you will be better placed to ask more specific forum questions and better equipped to absorb and appreciate the answers.

 

My gut feel is you will be better to get a DSLR.

 

WW

I started with film a long time ago, gave up after a while and recently purchased a Pentax K10 to go with my '70's lenses. Best move I ever made. IMO go digital unless film really calls you. Oh and Pentax was also a very good choice, they have some lovely glass.

You can get a really cheap film camera without all the bells and whistles at a very cheap price now. Go ahead and get one for $50 and learn the basics of photography. Make sure it is a manual camera so you have to adjust the shutter speeds and f-stops yourself. This will make you learn the technical aspects of photography and keep you from using the dreaded "Auto" setting. Practice with it, if you screw something up and ruin a whole roll of film, you won't ever make that same mistake again. (And unless you really want to learn how to develop film yourself, just take to a photo store to have it processed). Now when it comes to digital, there's no reason to hold out a couple of years. Since you probably won't be making any huge prints, a 10mp camera will be just fine to start out with and you can get a nice canon or nikon for 6 or 7 hundred bucks (or less if you find a used one). This will be fine for you to start out with, when you're ready for an upgrade, you can start looking at the $5000 cameras. Good luck!

Ok, for subject matter I'm a little bit more interested towards nature shots, but I would be doing everything. I do have a brand new computer (iMac 20" the one with the faster processor and etc.) I do agree with you guys that I should go digital but do learn about film and the processing of it so I can take that thought chain over to editing the pictures on the computer. As far as budget or camera make and model I still have not decided, I was just trying to dig up some idea's for now and keep the reach search up till later this year. I do look forward to this as being a great hobby. Thank you every one!

The short answer is forget chemical photography - go digital.

 

Face it - you don't have much money so just start an account and just save your money.

 

Go to the library and start reading anything that has to do with digital photography - try to get a real grasp of what it is about.

 

Technology moves lightening fast so by the time you are ready to buy some good equipmennt we will be in another phase of digital

photography.

 

Pick up a better digital camera used / cheap.

 

Practice - practice - practice.

Go digital --- you will improve faster as you can see these results instantly -- You can compare shooting data..etc...etc..

 

@ Richard "Don't get caught up in the mega-pixel hype, 6-8 is plenty for anything except enlargements over 8x10 or even larger."

 

This not entirely true...(the enlarging part) I print 13 x 19 all the time with a Nikon D50 and the images are almost as good the D300... I've also printed and sold some 6 x 40 inch panos taken with my D50 that are sharp and clear. With proper post work 6 mp is fine for larger prints...Maybe not wall sized but larger are just fine.

If you haven't invested in any brand or system yet, and are undecided about going digital versus film then I'd

say leave your options open to do both: choose a system that will allow you to use the same lenses on a good DSLR

body (which will cost you several $100s) as well as an affordable but well-featured 35mm body (plenty great

models around in

good used condition for only $50-100, but after buying your running expenses are higher paying for film &

development).

 

Buy whichever one of both body types first as your budget permits, and then get the other type of body later so

you can find out firsthand how they compare and which suits you most. I shoot both film and digital and really

feel they are both essential parts of learning and living photography.

 

The main contenders for such a "one lens set/both body types" approach would be the autofocus ranges of Canon, Nikon,

Pentax and Sony/Minolta. Unfortunately Olympus DSLR and 35mm AF bodies do not use the same lenses. Do a little

bit of research first to know which lenses will really work on both types of bodies, most brands have added some

extras over time to their autofocus mounts and in some cases that precludes early AF lenses from working with the

latest bodies (or vice versa).