What is the best camera and lens to use for weddings?

splefka

Looking to buy another Pro camera and I'd like to know what other wedding photographers are using.

Answer
I got the Nikon D60 camera for Christmas, and it beat my old camera by a long shot. I love this thing!
Technical Details

* Extraordinary 10.2-megapixel DX-format Nikon picture quality
* Includes 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR and 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom-Nikkor lenses
* 2.5-inch LCD screen; horizontal and vertical orientation are detected automatically
* Continuous shooting at 3 fps; Active Dust Reduction System with Airflow Control
* Capture images to SD/SDHC memory cards (not included)

If you want to buy the best camera, Nikon is the brand you want.
I evaluated the Sony, Canon and Nikon models, and in the end the 60 provide the right blend of megapixels, comfort while shooting, available Vibration Reduction lens combinations, and at a price point under $1000 for body and 2 lens, 18-70 VR and 55-200 VR. I have found these VR lens do indeed add an extra level of forgiveness in your shooting.

In last 30 days, we have taken shots of Vegas sites, the Grand Canyon and of many sites along the Nile in Egypt, daylight and night, and the results are very good even for an amateur such as myself.
Believe me it's the best choice for the money you got. BTW I used it on some weddings too because I'm a photographer

You can get it cheap on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0013HOW6M?ie=UTF8&tag=wirelesscompu-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0013HOW6M

Grand Canyon Trip Photography Tips?

tammy w

Hello!

II and my husband are going to a few "photo opp" areas and would like to know the best way to take some pictures. I have a Nikon D40 with a telephoto and standard lens. I was reading that filters maybe useful. Would it be worth the money to get some, and which ones would be useful if they are recommended?

We are planning to go to a few parks; the Valley of Fire, Zion, Bryce and Grand Canyon. If there are recommendations on what to brush up on, or sites that maybe useful, it would be appreciated!! We are also staying in Las Vegas, so tips for fun pictures there would also be useful. Thank you!!

I'm not sure if we will have this opportunity again for some time, so it would be great to get some nice pictures! Thank you for your help!

Answer
The first item you need is a tripod. The Benro "Travel Angel" series should be sufficient. I found these two models at B&H - http://www.bhphotovideo.com

A-2690 which extends to 5'-2'' and weighs 4 pounds. $200.00

A-0691 which extends to 5'-0'' and weighs 3 pounds. $237.00

I consider a tripod as mandatory for good landscape pictures. I never leave home without my tripod. Never.

You will also need a circular polarizer which will darken a blue sky and enhance colors as well as remove/reduce glare/reflections from rock, water, sand, snow. Brands such as B+W, Tiffen and Hoya are worth the price. If you have the usual 18-55mm zoom lens you'll need 52mm diameter filters. You'll have to check your other lenses for the filter size. Its usually on the front of the lens. B&H is also a good place to buy your filters.

I'd also include a Skylight filter for each lens which should be left on the lens except when using your circular polarizer.

Here is why you'll want a circular polarizer:
http://www.dpfwiw.com/filters.htm#polarizers

Here is why you'll want a Skylight filter:
http://www.dpfwiw.com/filters.htm#uv

The hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset will be the best times to make your pictures at the Canyon or anywhere else.

For night pictures of Las Vegas your tripod will be mandatory. I use and recommend this site for low-light exposures: http://www.calculator.org/exposure.aspx I used the Scene 'Distant view of city skyline or floodlit buildings' and ISO 200 for these pictures of the Louisville, Kentucky skyline as seen from the Indiana shore of the Ohio River.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/drifter45h/4048051455/ 100mm lens @ f11, exposure of 30 seconds.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/drifter45h/4048796836/ 200mm lens @ f11, exposure of 30 seconds.

Additional tips:

1) Shoot at your camera's highest resolution.
2) Use ISO 100 for all your landscape pictures.
3) Shoot in NEF (RAW) + JPEG basic.
4) Use your tripod for all landscape pictures.
5) Use Aperture Priority when shooting landscapes. This allows you to have control over the aperture and Depth of Field (DOF).

If you aren't sure what shooting in RAW means these sites will help you:

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/understanding-series/u-raw-files.shtml

http://www.lonestardigital.com/shooting_raw.htm

If you aren't familiar with what DOF is and how to control it this site will help you:

http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html

There are only 3 factors that affect your DOF:
1) The focal length of the lens.
2) The f-stop (aka aperture) used.
3) The subject distance.

At the DOF Master site you can use the DOF Calculator to figure DOF for any combination of the 3 factors imaginable.

To maximize your DOF use the 18mm end of your 18-55mm zoom. Set the aperture to f16 and focus on a subject at 5'-0'' and your DOF will be from 2'-0'' in front of your camera to infinity - as far as you can see. Unfortunately, there is no Distance Scale on the lens so you'll have to improvise a bit. With your camera on the tripod measure a spot 5'-0'' in front of the camera and have your husband stand there. You can then either manually focus until he's sharp in the viewfinder or use the auto focus and then either turn the AF off or use the Focus Lock. Now you're ready to compose and make your picture. By using the camera's Self-Timer you and your husband can stand 3' in front of the camera and you'll be in focus as will everything behind you as far as you can see. Always try to include something of interest in the foreground when shooting landscapes. This adds depth to your pictures.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/drifter45h/3982233634/

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Any tips for a beginning photographer at the (North) Grand Canyon?

best camera lens for grand canyon image

Ned

I have a Nikon D40. I have read that I should use a polarizing filter or UV filter, but that a polarizing filter can cause problems at wide angles (vignetting). How can I take good shots at wide angles without the polarizing filter?

Will vignetting only occur at the widest angle (18mm)?

Do I need to use a small aperture (large f/value) when shooting the scenery?

Any additional tips?

Answer
Vignetting really has nothing to do with what kind of filter you are using, it is a result of the FRAME of the filter being picked up by the lens at it's widest angle. Now under certain conditions, a polarizer can render one area of the sky dark blue while having little to no effect on another area of the sky. A wide angle lens will promote this problem, but again, how bad the effect is just depends on Sun location and the focal length of the lens.

Keep in mind your camera has a sensor crop factor of 1.5, so your 18mm lens will have the effect of a 27mm lens in actual use. 27mm is not really an extreme wide angle, so you should have no problem with vignetting.

What you do NOT want to do is stack filters. Do not use the UV and polarizer filter together. Again, it is not the filter that causes the vignetting, it is the amount of filter frame that you will have on the front of the lens that could be picked up and show as dark patches in each corner of the photo.

To be extra safe, you can purchase SLIM filters. These filters are very thin. They are designed to help prevent vignetting with wide angle lenses.

So you should have no problems using either filter at your widest lens focal length which will in actuality only be 27mm... just don't use both filters at the same time.

As far as aperture, yes, if you use a larger f stop, you will have more depth of field,.. i.e. more of the photo will be in focus in front of and behind your subject. But it is usually not wise to shoot at the lens smallest aperture, (largest f number). Even the very expensive pro lenses can have image quality issues at the smallest aperture. Best to shoot your lens a couple stops open from the smallest aperture. So if your lens has a max f number of 22, try shooting at f18 or f19 or f20. This is when a tripod will come in handy, because at this small aperture, the camera will set a slower shutter speed. I do not suggest you use any of the "scene" modes. Use aperture priority and watch that your shutter speed does not fall below about 1/60. If it does, you need a tripod. You could also raise your ISO to get faster shutter speed. The D40 has good clean images even at the higher ISO ranges, so don't be afraid to use them. But if you are tripod mounted, might as well use a lower ISO for the absolute best quality. Also, use a remote release or the self timer when using a slow shutter speed. You pressing the shutter release button on the camera can cause blur at slow shutter speeds.

Try to plan your shoots at early morning or late afternoon hours, not in the middle of the day. You will get far more stunning shots with the sun in these positions and the resulting shadows in the canyons add to the effect to show dimension.

And as said in another answer, you are using digital. You can review your shots and histogram. But don't be wasting time looking at each shot like a rank amateur. Just check your first in a series then shoot away, If the lighting or your position changes, you can review again. But the camera will do a good job of getting things right for you if you use aperture priority.

This could be a good opportunity to take some High Dynamic Range photos. Expose the same scene for shadows, then expose for the highlights and later combine the two in post processing for one great shot with detail in both the shadows and highlights.

You may also want to purchase a graduated neutral density filter. This filter is darker on the top with no filtration on the bottom. You can use it to tame down a bright sky and make the overall exposure between canyons and sky more of a match.

Hope this helps you some, have a good time!

steve

What is the best camera for movie making?

j615

I have heard good things about Cannon XL1 and XL2, are they difficult to use?

Answer
No they aren't difficult if you know how to use them, but the XL2 costs a lot, although you could probably find an XL1 for $1500. If you have enough money for an XL2, get a DVX100B instead. This is why. Both the XL2 and the XL1 allow use of interchangeable lenses, but a lens will cost you hundreds, if not a thousand. Also, if you're using it for filmmaking, you might be interested in the film-look. Even if you're not, it doesn't hurt your movie by adding it. A simple film-look can give a viewer the first impression that your movie is good. Even if your story and directing is awesome, people will get distracted by the video-look. The XL2 offers some film-look options, but the DVX100B is the undisputed king for offering a film-look without post work. It's got a short lens, yes, (10x), but if you're going to be making movies with it, you wont REALLY need anything above 10x anyways, right? (unless you plan to shoot a thriller in the grand canyon). Or if you really want to save money, you could get what I have, a canon gl2 (but I didnt buy it to save money, I didnt have any to begin with :-) I got mine for $1500 off of ebay, but you could probably find even better deals than that. It's not strictly pro, but from my uses, it really is worth the money. If you're not looking for anything fancy, and manual controls with a great picture quality is all you need, then the GL2 is perfect. Plus, its not too big, but not too small either, so people wont think you're tv crew, yet at the same time know you could kick some serious ass if you wanted to. And plus, you'll have all the leftover cash for other stuff as well. Hope this helps!

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whats a good camera for taking someones picture in front of a huge landscape?

best camera lens for grand canyon image

Ian

like someone standing in front of the grand canyon. or standing on a summit peak and overlooking the cities?
btw im a newbie so nothing way too expensive

Answer
If you are using a film SLR, then use a 28mm or a 35mm lens.

If you are using a DSLR, figure the lens factor and use the lens that compares to the 28 or 35mm.

If you don't have a SLR, but only a point and shoot, just do not zoom it, shoot it to get the widest picture.

Anyone who would suggest a Linhof to a newbie would use a nuclear bomb to kill squirrels.

packing list for 14 year old girls for the grand canyon?

Bamababe12

My family is going to the grand canyon from July 21st-29th and I have NO idea what to wear... If y'all could come up with a packing list for me that would be AWESOME!

Answer
Travel bag or Carry on:
Books or ipod (+Charger)
Sun Glasses
Glasses or Contacts? (Lens solution in small, spill proof bottle)
Cell Phone (+Charger)
Laptop (+Charger)
Camera (+Charger)
Pillow / Blanket (or jacket)
Snacks
Head Phones

Clothing (plan out outfits ahead of time and take things that you can wear more than once):
Pajamas
T-Shirts (light weight fabrics since it will be hot)
Tank Tops (you can be casual but still put together)
Shorts
Skirt
Bathing Suite(s)
Sun Dress(s) (you can dress them up or down)
Panties
Bras
Cover up or light jacket (if it rains you may want a light rain jacket)
Socks
Walking shoes
Flip flops or sandals
Cute sun hat

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