Help the Rookie

[fcovenus]

Hi. My name is Cassie, and I'm an amatuer photographer.

I'm graduating from college in December (Hurrah!) and as my graduation present to myself I'm buying a d-camera.

I've had an ESO 650 (circa 1987) forever and ever. I've used it for every photo class since high school. I love it. Not that I really have anything to compare it to.

And I'm tired of buying film. It's time to go digital.

And in the last 5 years of Canon ownership, I've accumlated many EF lenses. And not wanting to buy any more lenses for now, I pretty much have to stick to the Canon line, right? (not that I mind. I like Canon.)

Anyway, I've done a little research and I think I'll buy the D10 unless something better comes along before Christmas. So, I'm saving my pennies.

I've already budgeted for the cost of the camera. I thought I'd buy PS Elements also, but I found out it comes with the camera, which is nice.

But I need to know what other accessories I should be planning to buy. My friends who have bought smaller d-cameras also had to purchase a memory card to take more than 8 photos at a time, battery packs, chargers, etc., etc.

I will be using this camera to take alot of pictures for the non-profit I work for. The ideal situation would be to have a battery that will last for 12+ hours and a card that will hold 50-75 .tif images. In the supplies that come with the camera, about how many pictures can I take between downloads? (I know this will vary, but can I have an approximation? Or a website that will give me some type of breakdown?) What should I plan on buying to prepare myself for plently of pictures and battery life?

And what's a good 8x10 printer? I think I'll purchase that for my graduate school graduation present.

Also, why is the D1s so much more expensive? Is it because of all those megapixels? Is there gold hidden it somewhere?

--C

[Cal Maier]

fcovenus wrote:

But I need to know what other accessories I should be planning to buy. My friends who have bought smaller d-cameras also had to purchase a memory card to take more than 8 photos at a time, battery packs, chargers, etc., etc.

I will be using this camera to take alot of pictures for the non-profit I work for. The ideal situation would be to have a battery that will last for 12+ hours and a card that will hold 50-75 .tif images. In the supplies that come with the camera, about how many pictures can I take between downloads? (I know this will vary, but can I have an approximation? Or a website that will give me some type of breakdown?) What should I plan on buying to prepare myself for plently of pictures and battery life?

And what's a good 8x10 printer? I think I'll purchase that for my graduate school graduation present.

Also, why is the D1s so much more expensive? Is it because of all those megapixels? Is there gold hidden it somewhere?

--C


Hi Cassie,

The 10D does not come with any memory cards so you will need at least a 512mb CF card in order to store up to 75 raw files with the small jpeg that is created.

The camera comes with a charger and a single li-ion rechargable battery that will probably last long enough for a day's shooting, depending on how much you use the cameras LCD for viewing your photos. I would suggest getting another battery to carry as a back-up, only having one battery is like driving without a spare tire, a bit of a gamble.

A good 8X10 photo printer is the Canon i950 this printer gives very good results and is very reasonably priced. I am using the Canon S9000 which is one of last years models of the new printers from Canon and I am getting excellent results from this printer.

The Canon 1DS Camera is expensive partially because of the image capture size and the technology it's using to produce these images, plus it is built into a professional body that is just about bullet proof.

Comparing the 10D to the 1DS is similar to comparing the Elan7 to the EOS1V, only more extreme, because the 1DS quality exceeds 35mm film and can only be compared to 645 MF film cameras.

Hope this helps, I'm sure that you'll get a few more answers from other forum members with some alternate views on printers but I'm pretty sure I'm correct on the basic camera questions.

Cal

[Dans_D60]

Cassie:
Your EOS 650 was Canon’s first EF auto focusing camera where the AF motor was moved from the camera into the lens. I don’t know how old your EF lenses are but there have been a lot of improvements over the last 15 years. Your conclusion is pretty much right on assuming you do have an investment in EF glass and other EOS support equipment. Currently the Canon EOS10D is the best price/performance digital SLR from any manufacturer, hands down. But you must remember the nature of digital microprocessor technology will improve exponentially over the next several years. Don’t be surprised to see a significantly enhanced version of the 10D at a better price in 12-18 months. Doesn’t mean you 10D is not a great camera and a wonderful buy. It just means don’t expect these digital SLR bodies to last 7-10 years before replacements like the film versions they are rapidly taking over.

Most new digital SLR’s do not come with storage devices. They used to but the technology was advancing so fast it really was not worth it. You should be able to get about 100 extra-fine images on one 256 meg memory card that will cost you about $90. CF memory cards come in all sizes and prices. The battery in the 10D will get about 500-600 shots depending on image size and flash use. The battery is rechargeable and takes about 90 minutes for a full charge.

Why does the 1Ds cost so much? Because there is a demand for it! Also, the difference between the 10D and 1Ds is pretty wide. The 1Ds is based on Canon’s top-of-the line professional EOS-1v body with one of the best full frame CMOS sensors developed so far. Again, all will change in time in this crazy and exciting digital SLR market. Have a great time in new world of digital photography!
Dan
http://www.pettusphoto.com

[UK_Terry]

fcovenus wrote:
and a card that will hold 50-75 .tif images.
--C

To be able to get Tiff images you will have to shoot in RAW mode, then convert using software.
Breezebrowser is a popular one.

http://www.breezesys.com/

you will need a large CF card either 512 or 1gb

Prices for these cards are coming down all the time (shop around)
I have mine set to shoot RAW + large /fine jpg.
and i get 60 images on a 512 card.

[SteveCliff]

Just a quick thought - I'm not sure what lenses you currently have, but it would be a shame to buy a loverly camera like the D10 and have mediocre quality photos forced on you due to average glass on the front.

Don't get me wrong, if you've already got good lenses then feel free to ignore me completely! Most do anyway ;-)

However, if you are looking at gradually replacing your lenses with up-to-date quality ones, don't under-estimate the cost! I was amazed at how my budget completely disappeared when buying lenses to go with my D60. I thought the camera was the expensive bit!

Whatever you do though, enjoy!