what digital camera do you use and why that model?

[kotatsuneko]

omfg! you got the eos kiss!?

have seen a few of those around recently, looks so nice! specially since the higher range ones are crazy prices..!

does it come with a lens? and can you use regular eos lenses on it? if i ever get money for a digi slr thats the one i would want, as the rez is sweet, it has the features i would use, unlike the pro models and if its anywhere near as tough as a regular eos then its kots proof...

u lucky dude! i mean, i like using film, i love my new ixy, tho its taking a while getting used to close ups, feels weird how on power up the whole lens comes out, any tips on taking close up shots with it? even with the flower button, it seems a bit weird, then again im so used to either using the viewcam or the lenses on the eos , im not used to a compact cam, do have a nice fuji aps thing, but never used it too much..

ramble! ermm just wish i had a camera shop as nice as mr B's up here!

what is it with 2nd hand prices in japan anyway? in the recycle shops, old laptops and camera goods, even tho they are unboxed etc the price is either way too much, or even close to retail!

i wonder how many of the functions he uses on the 1ds?

gonna have to take some tips from my bro.. he sure has an amazing eye for taking pics... imho he could go pro, but he enjoys being a the head sys/admin...

[Hana_Mizu]

Well I've had a play with the Kiss over the weekend. and I must must say it takes superb photos! Great resolution. You can't really go wrong even when using the standrad pre-programmed settings (point and shoot baby!). It doesn't have a huge selection of manual/customizable functions, but still has more than enough to keep me happy.

The photos are sharp even when printed A4 photo paper!

The Kiss is sold here with (kit) and without the lens. I purchased the kit as it was only 10,000 Yen more.

Yes it can use the standard EOS lenses (so the manual says).

Main gripes:
1. Considering my 256MB card only managed to hold 43 photos at full resolution using RAW file format (you may consider investing in at least a 512MB card), and took a few minutes to transfer the photos to my PC, the USB 1.1 output port was inadeqaute.

2. The built-in (pop-up) flash is quite powerful, which meant some indoor shots were a little over exposed.

3. No CF card included! Why?

I don't really have anything bad to say about the Kiss, then again I'm not a Pro user.


kotatsuneko,

Taking macro shots with IXY is a bit hit and miss. According to the manual the focusing range for the IXY is 10-50cm. IMHO, 10 cm is a bit optimistic, I don't think it can focus too well at less than 15cm. So don't get too close. My old Nikon CoolPix 950 was flawless at this.

[gpvillamil]

ultra, that's an amazing picture - tell us more. When, where, how, what camera settings, etc.

[kotatsuneko]

hey hanaM cheers for the tips! and the info about the kiss, thats one cam i really hope to have at some time.. really due to it being able to handle eos lenses, ta for clearing that up!

how does the case feel? like a regular eos? i mean its silver, so does it feel metallic or just regular canon plastic thats shiny? it really does look sweet..

btw some mail order clothes catalogues have it on offer with a canon bag, tripod and saw one with a phat metal carrying case too... not sure if it was nissen or another co, the bumf got thrown out, but it was a great deal imho.. and the tripod looked sturdy too..

i love the ixy, but the viewfinder is def off sync with the lens / screen and what you see thru the lens isnt what you get on your image, wtf?! and the flash is indeed terrible at night time unless you are right under a street light.. a bright one that is, most are pretty weak up north..

its a damn nice cam tho on reflection i should have spent a bit more and gone for the kiss, but it sure is tiny and guess ill take a lot of shots that i wouldnt have got if it had meant lugging a slr around so maybe it is best to have both solutions after all.. dammit in london i never carried a camera at all! think when i go back ill end up taking pics of everything! if i can wangle it, id like to get the shots printed/laminated and use them in a game at class..

[Hana_Mizu]

kotatsuneko,

The Kiss casing feels plastic (because it's made of plastic) unlike the more expensive 10D and 1Ds which are made of magnesium alloy. Feels pretty well built though (not cheap).

Where did you see the Kiss with a metal carry case included? Not that it'll do me any good now.

I think you'll find that the viewfinder and screen sync problem is common with most compact digicams. It was the same with my old Nikon and my wife's Sony. I'm with you on the IXY's flash if you can call it that... better off using a candle!

To be honest, although the IXY is more than capable as an every day cam, the extra quality from the Kiss makes carrying it around worthwhile. Besides it's not that heavy in comparison with other SLRs.

[NeoNecroNomiCron]

Although I am am film fan after so much hype from this thread I decided to get a Canon IXY 400. Its really smart especialy the digital stitch function(i am so adicted to making huge panoramic shots). Also its really easy to get some long shutter shots. I just wish it was possible to adjust the aperture at the same time, it seemes to be an either or function. Cant tell as my instructions are in japanese.

Anybody a sugestion on a free host so I can start uploading some pics. I wish ther was an upload function on this site.

[NeoNecroNomiCron]

Its really smart especialy the digital stitch function(i am so adicted to making huge panoramic shots).

Here's a panorama I took with the camera:

Told you it was smart But it really needs the memory.

[NeoNecroNomiCron]

This board has gone panoramic

[Caustic Saint]

Canon Raises Output of Fast-Selling Kiss Digicam

Canon Inc said on Monday it had raised its production capacity for its hot-selling "EOS Kiss" digital single-lens reflex (SLR) camera by about 25 percent, anticipating explosive growth in coming years.

....

In what could be another headache for Nikon, Canon's Ando said a lower-priced digital SLR could be about one year away.

"If it's not this autumn, then that would probably mean next spring," Ando said, noting the release would then be one-and-a-half years after the original "EOS Kiss." "Development times are so much faster than they were in the film age."

I'd love to get one of those, but for what I use my digital for I can't really justify the price. I do have to stop and admire it every time I see one, though.

The Ginza Apple store has one out as display model that I played with while I was there. Very, very nice camera.

The idea of a lower-priced one is quite appealing, but even then I couldn't really justify it for the snaps I take. I'm thinking ultra-small for my next digicam.

[kotatsuneko]

if only canon had kept the kiss in a standard boring black case! that silver one is too noticeable , would love one but the wife would spot it straight away! also back in the uk, wouldnt really want to have it stolen, as i`m sure it eventually would be..

i found a great weatherproof case over in sapporo , a great low budget solution for those not wanting to splash out on the waterproof one for the ixy 400 when i get time i`ll up some pics, only cost something like 2000 yen from yodobashi

[Caustic Saint]

I binged this weekend and got a new camera:

Casio Exlim EX-Z30

I've done a bit of playing so far (having to learn it that way, since the manual's all in Japanese and the Euro site doesn't have an English one for download yet) and really like it. Very small, nice picture quality, fast to power on, lots of camera control and a wide variety of preset shooting modes.

Here are a couple sample pics:


4-second exposure, maxing out the available light. Not too bad on the blur, considering I was holding the camera in my hand when I took it.


Random shot. Can't imagine what I saw worth photographing here.

The ability for this thing to focus up close in much better than anything I've ever had before. By using the manual focus I can get a crisp shot from about 3cm away. (That may not be that extraordinary, but I've never had a cam that could do it before.)

I'll do more experimenting and get a few more pics posted as I get used to the camera. It's also got video and voice recording modes that are pretty decent. Unlike the older Z3 and Z4 models, the Z30 and Z40 don't cap your record time. As long as you've got memory, you can record.

[Taro Toporific]

Casio Exlim EX-Z30... Very small, nice picture quality, fast to power on, lots of camera control and a wide variety of preset shooting modes.....video and voice recording mode.

K-cool and with your Card Reader, it's no muss no fuss to get photos into iBook's iPhoto (an soon iLife).

:P :P :P

[Caustic Saint]

Casio Exlim EX-Z30

K-cool and with your Card Reader, it's no muss no fuss to get photos into iBook's iPhoto (an soon iLife).

Not using a card reader. The camera's dock works perfectly with OSX. It can even be used without AC power and get juice from the camera's battery to run the slideshow mode (on the camera's LCD) or get power from USB to transfer photos. Why do that? It saves the charge cycles on the battery.

[ramchop]

So Akinori Takahashi, of the National Institute of Polar Research in Tokyo, Japan, and his colleagues mounted tiny cameras on five Adelie penguins and five chin-strap penguins to monitor their dives off Signy Island in Antarctica.

The cameras weighed only 73 grams in air and were held on the penguin's body by a waterproof tape. They recorded over 11,000 images from 2,140 dives.

[Taro Toporific]

[The cameras weighed only 73 grams in air and were held on the penguin's body by a waterproof tape. They recorded over 11,000 images from 2,140 dives.

I WANT ONE to wear on the train!


Penguin-cam snaps amazing imagesBBC News, UK - 24 March
... ... swim in a group for about half of their foraging dive... scientists think the co-ordinated behaviour may be a strategy for avoiding predators rather than to corral the krill.

[CAkOS]

I use the SANYO Xacti DSC J4.
small form factor.
HQ video 640* 400 30 fps
up to 8Mpixel
...

http://sanyo-dsc.com/dsc/j4/index2.html


some photo sample here

[AlbertSiegel]

I use the Sony 505v 3.3MP camera. A bit on the large side, but takes some of the best photos I have ever seen in very low light. I have hardly ever used the flash. You can see photos taken with it at my website. http://www.jeebus.com

[emperor]

I use a Sony DSC-TRV60E camcorder - the stills are just 2MP but actually quite good - i think the decent sized lense helps, the CCD chip size is ok too..

my Mom came to Japan recently, she shoots alot of landscape and i picked out the Nikon D70 for her - it just pipped the Canon "EOS KISS" - the photos are excellent but I dont think i have any i can upload - the resolution she generally snaps at is HUGE!

Im thinking of getting the new Sony W1 (lovely start-up speed) or one of the *little* U-series ones before heading back this summer

[jingai]

I'm sorry Taro, the Penguin-cam only works underwater, but I'm looking forward to your underwater pictures from Tokyo Summerland : )

Seriously, any camera with a remote shutter release will work fine for your subway adventures. Put it around your neck and click, click, click. I'll upload some pictures I took candidly with my metal, mechanical Canonet at some point. It's hard to take candids of Japanese people as a gaijin, but I had fun trying.

[aquamarine]

Fuji S602 for me, for now. Does the job, although it's a little bulky. For amateur studio work, it does the job very well and there are a bundle of manual features. 3.1mp but it has a different style of CCD which bumps pictures up to "6" megapixels. From using so many different digicams, I can honestly say it's final quality is NOT 6mp, more like 4.5-5mp as far as print-out quality goes. It has both CF card capacity and SmartMedia (which might I add is VERY out-dated), and the big-brother to the 602 (the S7000) takes both XD cards and CF 1/2 & Microdrives (as does the 602).

All in all, it's a great camera, but now that I'm moving over to Japan for a while, I figure it's time to take the step up to a real DSLR. Anyone have any suggestions on a good store to purchase a camera from?

[emperor]

Anyone have any suggestions on a good store to purchase a camera from?

Bic Camera give you a points to collect on your card which translate into money straight off that purchase or the choice to stockpile for a rainy day - which there will be plenty of soon enough
(usually between 10-23% of purchase)
http://www.biccamera.com/bicbic/jsp/w/index.jsp

[Caustic Saint]

[The cameras weighed only 73 grams in air and were held on the penguin's body by a waterproof tape. They recorded over 11,000 images from 2,140 dives.

I WANT ONE to wear on the train!

Ask and ye shall receive! (almost)

'Black box' cam for total recall

A wearable camera full of sensors could help people with memory problems, according to Microsoft researchers.

The prototype SenseCam takes an instant snap every time it spots changes in movement, temperature or light.

Currently capable of storing 2,000 images on a 128MB memory card, the cam could help people record their days.

[GomiGirl]

That would be helpful for..

momento....



Great movie...

[aquamarine]

For what it's worth, I just picked up a Nikon D70 here in Canada for $1400 (with the lense and extra batter - after tax no less!). Great camera, I think I found my new love!

[aquamarine]

Most definatly, she's a real gem! And in todays world, you need at LEAST a Canon digital Rebel to be taken seriously in the photography world. I've been using the Fuji S602 and S7000 up till recently and decided I wanted the complete manual functionality of a DSLR so took the plunge. Talked to the Nikon representative, and as long as they can use my photos, name and a photo of me in a possibly advertising slot as a "world traveler/durable camera" style ad, then I can take it for less than cost, hurrah!

[aquamarine]

Heck, call up your local Nikon rep and if you plan on doing any traveling, see if they'll cut you a deal.

[ricegirl]

back in the day...when people still used stuff called 'film', i sported a pentax slr. now with digital, i'm recycling all the expensive lenses i bought and am currently using the pentax digital *IST. overall, i'm happy with the ease of use, and the pictures are sharp. great camera!

[aquamarine]

Nice to hear RiceGirl. Our Pentax rep. came in and gave us the run-down on the IST. Seemed pretty nice till he pulled out some of the first SLR lenses that were made for Pentax cameras... you know the kind I'm talking about, where you hold a small plate against the camera and twist the plate, not the lens (ie: non-bayonette mount).

The fact that he tossed those darned old lenses on were impressive enough let alone that the picture quality was stunning.

[ricegirl]

if i hadn't already invested all that money in my old pentax slr and lenses, i think i probably would have gone for the nikon d1/d70.

still, paying only about $800 for the pentax digital IST (body only), i can't complain.

[kotatsuneko]

btw, anyone upgraded their Official FuckedGaijin Camera (ixy 400) to the 500 yet? the shutter/view switch on mine has got a bit too loose on me so am thinking of upgrading soon.. if i can get away with it, i hope to get a 10D also, ooh that smooth metally case ^^