New Camera for Detailing Shots...

SilverLexus · 01-17-06, 10:10

I found a great consumer camera to use for automobile photography. It's the replacement camera for the Canon A610 and it does 7.1 mp resolution and has a new digital image chip and sensor. I have tested a few shots and the color and resolution are impressive. Bought it for $400 plus I got a San Disk 512 mb card on sale as well.

Here is the in-depth review from DP Review:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canona620/

I got tired of driving 40 miles to my pro slide film lab. I'll probably save a lot of gas money and I always have the Nikon F100 for more serious work.

Here's an early picture of my hound Nala:

I hope that my ability to post pics here faster now also improves my imaging. It's raining bad here in Atlanta but I will have some shots up soon.

Setec Astronomy · 01-17-06, 10:33

Nice picture. The A620 is not the "replacement" for the A610, it is its higher megapixel brother. The specs are identical, according to the Canon website, save for the MP, and the fact that the A620 has a slower frame rate, presumably because the identical processor has more pixels to process.

SilverLexus · 01-17-06, 10:46

You are right. I just reread the review on DP Review and it noted that it's the replacement for the A95.

Accumulator · 01-17-06, 10:53

SilverLexus- Glad you like your new digicam. That's a nicely detailed pic of Nala.

I'm in the same boat...getting my 35mms processed is a pain and I've yet to scan in *any* images

So I keep thinking I oughta join the 21st century and buy a digital. I sorta need autofocus anyhow to take decent pics of our younger dog, who never stays still long enough for my stoneage (full manual) SLRs and my middle-aged eyes.

Danase · 01-17-06, 10:55

I got the A85 by Canon and really like it. I have been through a Sony Cybershot and HP something or other and the Canon blows them both away.

Setec Astronomy · 01-17-06, 10:56

I have been looking at the A610 and I had compared it to the A620 so I knew they were virtually identical. I'm not sure if having the extra 2 MP is really much benefit for general use (I remember it being predicted that 5-6 MP was the point where digital would eclipse film [approx the same resolution], and there wouldn't be much point in going beyond that, but they keep going higher), but I haven't really decided yet.

Accumulator, this is one of those things that after you start using it, you wonder how you ever possibly could have done that film thing. I don't take a lot of pics, so I have been able to borrow a camera from work, but I think the technology is mature enough at this point so if I buy a digicam it won't be obsolete tomorrow, only the day after...I'm sure you can get much better advice on this than from me, but just like in the old 35mm days (I have an old manual SLR, also), it's important to have a good lens, so that's something to watch out for on the more "point & shoot" digicams, which may have similar specs. Honestly, everytime I set out to buy one, I am overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of cams, and the fact that they are so small and seem difficult to handle because of that (flip side being they are very portable). One of these days I'm going to do it.

SilverLexus · 01-17-06, 11:18

Quote:

I remember it being predicted that 5-6 MP was the point where digital would eclipse film

They say that but it isn't really true. I know some professional photogs and they say 10MP and above is where it gets close. I shoot Provia 100F with my Nikon film camera and the resolution is around 12-14MP based on equivalent images on my friend's high end Canons. This is with an ED pro glass lens. One problem is that scanning slide film at that resolution is complex and expensive.

For most uses, however, 5MP and above is pretty good. I find that color accuracy and white balance are equally important. I would encourage you to do the 7MP if you can. The extra 2MP is valuable imho.

G35stilez · 01-17-06, 11:22

Nice camera. I love my A610. Be sure to play with the manual settings as well as color-balances. I have taken some pretty sweet shots with mine...

However, unless you are printing out posters, I don't see a need for 7.1 MP.

Picus · 01-17-06, 12:03

The digital vs film debate is still raging. I think that a 6MP DSLR can easily eclipse film in color saturation and clarity, however each still has its place (imo). We take all the pictures posted at the website in my sig with a 6.3MP DSLR, and for anything up to 8x10 or so it's easily as good as our film SLR, but after 8x10 the film camera is superior. A lot of what you get depends more on the glass than the body and its MP count.

I think for 99% of people a camera like the one SilverLexus bought (quality 5-8mp digital with good optical zoom and decent glass) is a perfect buy in terms of picture quality and ease of use. Enjoy it.

SilverLexus · 01-17-06, 12:07

Quote:

Nice camera. I love my A610.

That's funny Sean...I was thinking your recent pics looked awesome. I almost PMed you to find what camera you were using. Those pics look great!

Quote:

A lot of what you get depends more on the glass than the body and its MP count.

This is very true. I would like to one day get the D200 from Nikon as I have a nice ED glass lens but it's such a hot camera right now that the price is quite high. I'll see what happens over the next 12 months. Might be a future Christmas present.

I really like good ole analog film but it's tough to beat the convenience of digital. The Canon A620 really integrates well with the new version of iPhoto also.

Accumulator · 01-17-06, 12:21

Setec- Last year I went out to buy a Canon 20D but I just couldn't stand it in the store so I bought a different 35mm instead, which I love using. It's very similar to the one I'd been using forever and with this one I can use my wife's lenses, which are surprisingly better than what I had before.

But I *can* see a use for a digital (especially here at Autopia) and I really do need a good autofocus sometimes, so

If I didn't need the autofocus I'd buy a digital back for my wife's camera, which she'll probably want some day anyhow.

4830Deuce · 01-17-06, 02:07

very nice camera...an advanced point and shoot i guess you could call it?... and its a canon cant go wrong with that....

-Justin