Fish Photography - Camera

[Logy]

Hey all.
I'm looking for a camera that has features that would be well suited to fish photography. I'm looking to spend in the 400-500 range (Canadian). I first became interested in the idea after I picked up my Firemouth and Severum (My first Cichlids! *Fist pump*) They both just so much color. I must capture this color on film and than post it on the forums. That is my mission. I've heard SLR camera's are really good at this sort of thing. But I'm not sure I'd find one in my price range. If anyone has any camera suggestions I'd be open to them.

Thanks so much.
Logy

 

[OgreMkV]

I've got a Canon EOS Rebel Digital. It's not the top of the line model, but it's plenty good for everything we've ever done.

 

[Robin Alv]

I have a Nikon D50 - They now make a 40 at a lower price. It's a good camera for the money and will let you do a lot since it can be totally manual if needed. I think the Canon the OrgreMkV mentions also can be manual.

 

[cweg71]

choices

DSLR will give you more options such as lenses and more powerful external flash. Most point and shoot cmeras still have the ability to shoot in manual mode. Also most point and shoot camers I have used so not have a view finder. They use the screen as the viewfinder. There is usually a lag between the press of the button and the actual shutter release. This causes a lot of fish tail pictures. I shoot with a Canon 300D- The first gen digital rebel.

 

[grannylvsfish]

I just ordered this.. Has rave reviews. manual and auto settings. and has aquarium setting Wooooo hooooo

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/518qVmlYBbL._SS400_.jpg

Product Description
Manufacturer Description

The PowerShot A590 IS will astound you with its power-packed performance and impressive value. It’s got 8 megapixels, a 4x optical zoom, an Optical Image Stabilizer, and a large 2.5-inch LCD. A range of shooting modes -- from manual to automatic, including Canon’s new Easy Mode -- make picture-taking carefree. A DIGIC III Image Processor with Enhanced Canon Face Detection assures natural-looking results, while Motion Detection Technology reduces blur. For added creativity, attach wide or telephoto converter lenses.

Canon PowerShot A590IS Highlights

8 megapixels with 4x optical zoom and optical image stabilizer With the PowerShot A590 IS, dramatic, personal pictures have never been easier to shoot and share. The 8.0-megapixel design lets you create impressive high resolution images of family and friends you’ll be proud display. The genuine Canon 4x zoom lens moves you in for powerful close-ups -- like a bird in flight or a child’s winning goal -- at the touch of a button. Plus, Canon’s highly sophisticated Optical Image Stabilizer keeps every shot absolutely steady even when you’re not.

2.5-inch LCD screen The camera’s 2.5-inch LCD screen gives you the big picture, whether you’re shooting, reviewing or showing off your images. This high-resolution screen offers a crisp, clear and bright picture. It also features Night Display for easy viewing in low light.

New Easy Mode simplifies operation Even if you’ve never picked up a camera before, with Canon’s new Easy Mode you can take inspiring, dramatic pictures that will impress everyone. Once you choose Easy Mode, the PowerShot A590 IS handles all the details automatically. It automatically sets every camera control including the flash to reduce blur and improve image quality. So you get pictures that are bright, clear and natural just by pushing a button. Best of all, you can relax and concentrate on what really counts -- your subject.

Selectable shooting modes With 19 Shooting Modes including 7 Special Scene Modes, you’re ready for whatever shot comes your way.

DIGIC III Image Processor With DIGIC III, your images boast superior quality, the camera operates at top efficiency and battery life is enhanced. What’s more, DIGIC III enables Canon’s Face Detection Technology and Red-eye Correction to give you better, more true-to-life people shots. Simply press the Shutter Button halfway down, and the camera automatically pinpoints the faces in the scene and chooses the ideal focus point. The camera controls exposure settings and flash to keep every face looking bright and natural. Red-eye Correction can be handled in-camera, in two ways. The entirely new Red-eye Correction during shooting uses the Face Detection Technology to recognize and remove red-eye from flash images as they're taken, before the file is written to the memory card. It's also possible to correct red-eye during image playback, using simple settings in the A590 IS's menu.

iSAPS Technology is an entirely original scene-recognition technology developed for digital cameras by Canon. Using an internal database of thousands of different photos, iSAPS works with the fast DIGIC III Image Processor to improve focus speed and accuracy, as well as exposure and white balance.

Face Detection Technology Canon's powerful Face Detection Technology delivers even better results with the new A590 IS. The Face Detection Technology continues to recognize faces in a scene, and concentrate exposure (daylight or flash) and focus upon them. But the A590 IS adds more: Face Detection WB means the camera concentrates upon faces when calculating white balance for the best possible skin tones. Face Select and Track lets the A590 IS user highlight one face among several in a scene, and the camera concentrates on that person, even as they move around the scene. Face Detection Technology is a powerful contributing factor in Canon's new Motion Detection Technology.

Red-eye Correction Red-eye Correction provides three options for removing red-eye from subjects in flash pictures.

* The new Red-eye Correction during shooting actually identifies and corrects red-eye in human subjects as pictures are taken.
* The A590 IS can be set to automatically detect and correct red-eye during image playback.
* The user can manually locate any red eyes in a scene during image playback on the LCD screen, and command the camera to remove them.



High ISO The PowerShot A590 IS features ISO 1600 and High ISO Auto settings that reduce the effects of camera shake and sharpen subjects in low-light situations, giving you greater shooting flexibility.

Motion Detection Technology automatically reduces blur Life doesn’t stand still for picture-taking. That’s why Canon included its advanced Motion Detection Technology in the PowerShot A590 IS. This sophisticated feature works in the background to instantly evaluate how fast your subject is moving. Then it automatically selects and sets the optimal exposure and ISO settings to keep everything looking sharp and clear. So whether you’re shooting a bride walking down the aisle, a ballet recital or even a child’s soccer game, you can relax and shoot with confidence knowing you’ve got the picture you intended.

Accepts Wide-Angle and Telephoto Converter Lenses To expand your creativity, the PowerShot A590 IS is compatible with shooting accessories such as wide and tele converter lenses, High-Power Flash designed for all of the PowerShot models.

The Complete Print Solution

The A590IS features a Print/Share button for easy direct printing and downloading, plus ID Photo Print and Movie Print with select Pixma photo printers and Selphy compact photo printers.

The PowerShot A590 IS's Print/Share button makes direct printing easier than ever. Simply connect the A590 IS to a Canon Pixma photo printer or Selphy compact photo printer or any PictBridge compatible photo printer, press the lighted Print/Share button and print! Also use the Print/Share button to transfer images to a computer (Windows and Macintosh).

Print your own ID photos in 28 different sizes or use the Movie Print function to output multiple stills from a recorded movie on a single sheet with a Canon Selphy compact photo printer.



Product Description
The PowerShot A590 IS will astound you with its power-packed performance and impressive value. It's got 8.0-megapixels, a 4x optical zoom, an Optical Image Stabilizer and a large 2.5-inch LCD. A range of shooting modes - from manual to automatic including Canon's new Easy Mode - make picture taking carefree. A DIGIC III Image Processor with Enhanced Canon Face Detection assures natural-looking results, while Motion Detection Technology reduces blur. For added creativity, attach wide or telephoto converter lenses. ISO Sensitivity - Auto, High ISO Auto, ISO 80/100/200/400/800/1600 equivalent Built-in ElectronicFlash - Auto, Red-eye Reduction, Auto Red-eye Correction, Flash On, Flash Off; FE lock, Slow Synchro Flash Range - 12 in.-11 ft./30cm-3.5m (W), 12 in.-7.2 ft./30cm-2.2m (T) (when sensitivity is set to ISO Auto) Shooting Modes - Auto, Easy, Camera M, Portrait, Landscape, Special Scene (Foliage, Snow, Beach, Sunset, Fireworks, Night Scene, Aquarium), Indoor, Kids & Pets, Night Snapshot, Movie Storage Media - SD/SDHC Memory Card, MultiMediaCard, MMC Plus Card, HC MMC Plus Card - Suggest optional 1GB or higher for practical use File Format Design rule for camera file system, DPOF Version 1.1; JPEG Compression Mode - Still Image - Exif 2.2 (JPEG); Movie - AVI (Image - Motion JPEG; Audio - WAVE (Monaural)) Number of Recording Pixels - Still Image - 3,264 x 2,448 (Large), 2,592 x 1,944 (Medium 1), 2,048 x 1,536 (Medium 2), 1,600 x 1,200 (Medium 3/Date Stamp), 640 x 480 (Small), 3,264 x 1,832 (Widescreen); Movie - 640 x 480 (20 fps/20 fps LP), 320 x 240 (30 fps) available up to 4GB or 60 minutes, 160 x 120 (up to 3 minutes at 15 fps) Uses 2 AA Batteries - Shooting Capacity for Still Image - approx. 220 shots (AA-size Alkaline Battery), approx. 500 shots (AA-size Ni-MH Battery); Playback Time - Approx. 540 min. (AA-size Alkaline Battery), approx. 660 min. (AA-size Ni-MH Battery) - Sugg

 

[WinnipegDragon]

I'm shooting my tanks with a Canon Powershot S5IS, it has an 'aquaruim' auto-white balance mode that is decent-to-good. It's right in your price range, has a lot of SLR-like features, but it's still not as capable as a true DSLR.

If you really want to take great pictures, save your pennies and aim for a $800-$1k DSLR with a good lens.

 

[Ajordan]

don't forget remote flashes!

 

[OldMan47]

Might try a nikon D-40. They have most of the features of the more expensive DSLR cameras but cost much less. Try looking on line where they are much less than at a local shop. Caution, there are places that advertise them without the lenses and when you get them separately they get expensive.

 

[Plecosterone]

don't forget remote flashes!

:iagree: Pretty much a MUST for good shots.

 

[Chaitika]

:iagree: Pretty much a MUST for good shots.

I have to agree. If you really want to step it up a notch, you'll want a system that will allow you to fire remote flashes above the fish.

I used a sony dscp200 for awhile and while the camera took nice pics of most everything, it totally sucked for aquatic photograpahy because aquatic photography is like no other form of photography. A professional studio photographer will be totally lost if you were to ask one to shoot your fish.

Most point n' shoots have a very difficult time focusing on fish because fish move and the camera is meant to take images of static objects for the most part. As soon as the fish moves, the focus mechanism locks on what isn't moving, usually a large stone or the background or even the glass in front of the fish. They also lack manual modes, something almost as critical as overhead flash. Sure, you can shoot pics using "scene mode" where certian apertures and shutter speeds are chosen for you, and they typically work fine for those scenes, but again they are not intended for aquatic photography. The onboard flash also has to be diffused since it is too intense and the flank of the fish just doesn't appear natural. Colours are exagerated and sometimes the fish looks entirely different. That does not occur with light from above.

Canon powershots are probably the best point n shoots for aquarium photography, but not the only ones. A hobbyist won several photo contests on Cichlid Forum using the point n shoot sony I used to have. Higher end point n' shoots are a good investment for the most part, but you can get into a good used dslr for the same money. Many good photographers will nonetheless say that it's not so much the gear as much as the person using the camera and how much that person understands photography that makes the difference.

I use Nikon gear. I started with a Nikon D70s a year ago and recently got into a D300. I chose the D70s because it was the lowest model that had commander mode, a must for wireless flash photography. The d40 and d50 don't have that feature. I've also picked up several speedflashes and lenses and I'm officially addicted to the hobby, lol. Did I need to buy all that gear? No. Did I get some great deals buying used lenses? Absolutely. Does it allow me flexibility in how I can take pics? Absolutely. Can I use that gear to shoot portraits and wildlife and family bbq's? Absolutely and the pics will be much better than you can ever take with a point n shoot. Can someone who knows what they are doing with a canon powershot take pics that are almost as good. Absolutely. Can that powershot take pics of fish as well as my dslrs system? Nope.

But if you decide that a point n shoot is good enough for you and you're not all that interested in learning how cameras really work or you are severely limited financially, then a point n shoot is your best bet. My D300 doesn't even have an auto mode. I almost never even use autofocus. I simply have better control using manual mode and manual focus in everything except for possibly shooting fast moving objects. You can't do that with point n shoots.

If I were to sell my D70s used, I'd get no more than about 400 cdn dollars for the body. And thats in almost mint shape. You could add a used kit lens like the 18-70mm for about another hundred to hundred and a half. As for the flash, you would ideally want a nikon speedflash, since they're a perfect match for the camera, but you can get away with cheap slave flashes from sellers on ebay for 20-30 bucks and they will almost work the same. This is an image taken with the D70s, the entry level 18-70mm kit lens and a pair of nikon sb600 flashes above the tank.

Not too shabby, I'd say. Try to do that with a point n' shoot though.

Here's a couple of pics of birds with the same camera, lens and a speedflash mounted on top of the camera.

Those pics can be duplicated by a good point n shoot but when you go back to take pics of your fish, you might as well put the point n shoot away.

What do I suggest you do? I'd suggest you into a photography store and start handling cameras, both point n shoot and dslr. Not a big box store. An actual photography shop. They will know the cameras inside and out and will take the time to help you. Big box store employees will for the most part ditch you fast and hard once they find out you're not buying a camera in the next 6 minutes. They could be a good option for prices once you know what you want, but not for helping you decide. Ask questions about features. On line, go to dpreview.com and start checking out reviews of both types of cameras. Start checking out ads in local papers or ebay for prices. Don't be afraid of used dslr equipment since camera bodies and lenses are very well built. I woldn't buy used gear from just anyone, but like any other product, it's easy to tell who takes care of their gear and who doesn't.

DSLR gear can get expensive. I won't try to BS you about that. Point n shoots are now good enough to almost match dslr gear in almost everything but if you really want to get into it, for a little more money you can blow them away.

A good forum for reading and checing out different gear and images is the sister site to this one.

http://aquatic-photography.com/forum/

Research and budget is what it's all about. Ask questions and once you have a good idea of what you're looking for, you can also scour the internet for the best prices, but never never ignore the local used equipement market. People are always upgrading their gear and selling camera bodies and lenses that they don't use very much to finance their new purchases. Lots of cash can be saved that way.