Please recommend me a camera

[mretzloff]

I want to retake all the pictures on my website in a lightbox. I have the lightbox, but need the camera. For practical purposes, let us assume that my budget is equal to whatever I have to spend to get a good camera for this purpose.

Someone recommended the Canon 12 to me. The camera would be used to take the aforementioned product pictures and to record some record some short product videos. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

[Legion]

That would be a nice high end compact if you didn't want to go the SLR route. Another option to look at would be the Panasonic LX-5. I have the predecessor, the LX-3, and it is excellent.

[Snargle]

Assuming you don't want to drop the big bucks on a DSLR kit, the Canon G12, Nikon P7000, and Panasonic Lumix LX-5 would all be on my short list of choices.

[Go Forth]

Assuming you don't want to drop the big bucks on a DSLR kit, the Canon G12, Nikon P7000, and Panasonic Lumix LX-5 would all be on my short list of choices.

I have the Panasonic LX-5, and it is excellent. I carry it when I don't want to bring my large Nikon D300.
The LX-5, however, is at its best when shooting RAW; it's JPEG compression is not great, and this is visible
when images are viewed at full size. For your purposes, though, it would be fine, given the image sizes
on the website.

The Canon S95 is also quite well regarded as a direct competitor to the LX-5, and is quite compact. I see
that its price is now down to around $300.

Here is review comparing both cameras and the Nikon P7000:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/q420...dcompactgroup/

The S95 will be superseded by the S100, but there seems to be some problems with that camera at present:

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/837...powershot-s100

[ThePatrician]

It's hard to go wrong with a Canon. I've got a PowerShot A-1000 and love it. It's a simple-to-operate camera that takes fantastic pictures, which is exactly what I wanted. I highly, HIGHLY recommend it.

[Benbo]

The S95 is the Amazon Gold Box deal today for $229. Good price.

[scottish steve]

It might not be the first name that springs to mind, but Panasonic do good compact also. They now own Leica and have Leica lenses in most of their products, even the affordable ones. dp reviews.com was my touchstone site when planning a purchase. It really does seem to be very informative and honest

[YuriZhivago]

Assuming you're using the digital photos for your website only, they should clock in at a paltry ~72dpi (as JPEGs) for website standards for fast loading and reducing the chance of piracy. ANY digital camera above 5MP would be more than adequate for website work, as long as the lens (zoom or interchangeable) can reach the magnification, compression/wide angle, and DOF (depth of field) requirements for what you wish to accomplish. The Panasonic Lumix line of cameras with Leica lenses are exceptionally good. If you scout around some of the larger stores (Target, Wallyworld, etc.), discontinued Panasonic models with Leica lenses (sometimes called Summicrons) with 6+MP can be had for under $100.00. I personally use a Panasonic/Leica Digilux 2 (circa 2004, European Camera of the Year) for web image postings. I've been a pro shooter for 30 years and now have 47MP cameras for my commercial work but still use the 5.1MP Digilux 2 camera as my NYC walk around camera every day. Unfortunately though it does not record video.

[valleyrider]

If money is not your biggest concern go for a DSLR, canon t2i is really nice and you can find one around $600 then set yourself up with a 100mm macro lens, put it all on a tripod and you're ready to go for some really nice professional looking photos.

[YuriZhivago]

If money is not your biggest concern go for a DSLR, canon t2i is really nice and you can find one around $600 then set yourself up with a 100mm macro lens, put it all on a tripod and you're ready to go for some really nice professional looking photos.

If money is truly no object, then really go for it and drop ~$42K for the new Hasselblad H4D-60 (without lens) which is being used by Sotheby's and other auction houses to photograph objects d'art.

As a note, Hasselblad is now owned by an investment group from Hong Kong(?) I believe.

[aodenkou]

I guess I have to mention the Cannon DSLR 60D. You can get video with this DSLR, tons of different lenses, and it will do more than I can even begin to talk about (or for that matter I even know about). I just picked up a 70-300 lens for the camera and look forward to experimenting with it. I do have one of the water proof Pentax cameras that I really like. I do get a chance to snorkel on occasion and it's fun to carry it with me then, or in bad weather.

[scottish steve]

Having thought to myself "Man, I wish I'd brought my camera!" many times in the last few months, I can definitely see a case for getting something compact. and since you can't miss what you never had, if you get a well-regarded compact, you should be very happy with it, without constantly referring to a higher-end model around which you start to organise you entire computer setup in the deluded notion that you're going to be the next (insert name of famous photographer here). I'm speaking from personal experience!

[Endless Purple]

Don't know if you purchased already, but wanted to add a contribution to the thoughts. For good product shots, I do recommend a DSLR. An inexpensive Canon or Nikon will work. I have used both brands, though I buy Canon now.

In my experience with products shots most point and shoots do not cut it. But a couple tips:
- get a tripod
- get a grey card and set a custom white balance in your camera for the photos (very important to avoid work later)
- use a decent lens

I've done many product shots, and if you do the things above, it will be a tremendous jump in image quality - more so than just the lightbox can offer by itself.

Good luck with it.

[downswalker]

Whichever route you take, compact or DSLR, make sure the camera is comfortable for you to use. To my mind, this is quite important - if you're comfortable with its layout, functions and handling, you'll want to use it.

Endless Purple in the post above suggests a tripod, grey card and decent lens - sound advice. It's the lens that makes the picture, and a good, solid tripod to hold the camera still is worth having. Mine is a Benbo 1, which definitely won't suit everyone because the mechanism is very different to a 'normal' tripod, but it's rock-solid and can position a camera in more ways than most others.

[CubReporter]

I just bought my girlfriend a Canon G12 for Christmas, and we both love it. She loves that it can be simple to use and still turn out great photos, and I love that I have easy access to all the manual settings and turn out great photos.

I chose the G12 over Nikon's version because of the lack of shutter lag. Push the button, the shutter releases. No wait time. But a compact like this allows you to set it up with any lighting systems you have, since it comes with a hotshoe mount. Very handy!

[pdillon]

You can get really good savings on a camera by buying used.

My coworker has worked as a professional photographer and he helped me get set up with a DSLR. I bought a Canon 20D on ebay for about $270. It came with the 15-85mm lens. You can get them for even cheaper if you're on the lookout.

Depending on your budget you could get any of the cameras in that family. 20D, 30D, 40D, 50D, etc.

[Gamad]

Panasonic dmc-TZ5 and the newer TZ7 seem to be everyone's favorites these days.