Camera Help

[Em Wright]

Hey all,

I currently have and have been using a Samsung S630 to take photos and I'm not sure if it's me, the settings, or just the quality of the camera, but my pictures never turn out very well. Out of 20 pictures I get maybe five that are worth keeping around. :shrugs:

I bought it a few years ago and until I started taking pictures of snakes never really bothered with it. But I've noticed my images are usually blurry, don't show details very well, and trying to get non-blurry close-ups is nearly impossible!

Anyway... does anyone have any suggestions for a better camera? I'm a novice to the world of photography, but I'd like to be able to take those very detailed, gorgeous shots of my snakes and truly capture their colors. That's the best part of the snake keeping hobby for me and my lousy camera tends to ruin it! :(

Oh, here's some of the specs of the camera...

6.0 mega pixels
5.8 - 17.4mm Zoom
2.5 Large LCD
ASR (Advanced Shake Reduction)

Thanks in advance!

[SquamishSerpents]

as anyone is going to tell you, finding an entry level DSLR is going to be your best bet. i am a Nikon girl, and have been since i started photography, but of course that's just me and my own opinion. there will always be pros and cons to each brand, some may be more important to you than others. when shopping for a new camera make sure you actually go into the stores, and test them out. make sure it feels good in your hand, and that all the controls are in a spot that's comfortable for you.

i personally would recommend the Nikon D3000. i don't believe it does the newest DSLR trend...which is HD video. but to be honest, i have the Nikon D90, which DOES take HD video, and i've used it maybe once or twice, and the times i have used it i've ended up deleting the videos anyways. maybe i'm just not a video person?

anyways. your camera is only a 6.0 megapixel, which to me says it's probably kind of old. NOT that "more megapixels the merrier" because that is absolutely NOT the case, but it just seems that most new cameras nowadays are at the very least, 10 megapixels. DO NOT base your choice on megapixels!!!!!

one tip i can give you for the one you're currently using, if you're trying to take a close up shot, try putting it in the macro setting, which is usually a little flower icon. if you look for "macro" in your manual you should be able to find it pretty quick. sometimes it's just a button you rpess (easy peasy!) sometimes you have to find it in the menu, it depends on the model. but when you put your camera into macro mode, it can take MUCH sharper photos at a closer distance.

hmmmm that's just me rambling! good luck with your camera.

[Em Wright]

Katia thanks so much for your advice. I've been playing with the macro function you mentioned and noticed a definite change in close ups. Thanks again!

Here's one of the pictures I took with the macro setting!

http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd233/ARC97/Heidi8492.jpg

[wax32]

i personally would recommend the Nikon D3000...

Me too!

Now that you found macro I bet you will be pretty happy with your camera Em. That one looks pretty good. :D

[ArpeggioAngel]

The macro function is a huge benefit when photographing snakes -especially for close ups or for smaller snakes.
But even with a point and shoot camera - you can get some great shots. Sure, an expensive DSLR is nice, but it is really the photographer, not the equipment - that makes for the best photos. I have seen amazingly beautiful photos that you would think were taken by $1000 cameras - but in fact they were just shot using a cheapo point and shoot.

The nice thing about digital is you can take tons of photos until you find what works best for you without being out a ton of money.

Work with lighting and composition and you may notice a differnce in your shots as well. And just keep practicing! People always tell me how much they love my pics. I am not a pro - I do not have any schooling. I use a Canon Rebel XTI which is a DSLR - but it is an entry level DSLR - and previously I used a Fujifilm which was not a DSLR. I just kept taking tons of pics until I found what worked best.

[SquamishSerpents]

another thing to add to this, you say out of 20 photos, you get 5 that are good.

with my DSLR, i would say out of 600 photos, maybe 30 of them ever see the light of day! so 5/20 is pretty good!

[SquamishSerpents]

editing to delete double post...major computer issues tonight!

[desertanimal]

I'd say spend a ton less on some good full spectrum light bulbs and some adjustable lamps and see how you feel about what your camera can do.

[Em Wright]

Thanks for the lighting suggestions, everyone. I'll start messing with that next chance I get! :) I appreciate it!

[Snakehead]

To be honest, I don't even know what DSLR is? I have a Panasonic DMC-TZ3 point and shoot, don't even remember the megapixels, lol. But I am pretty happy with the pics. My biggest complaint is the colors especially reds don't look true to the animals. But another big help is cropping. Almost all my best shots are cropped not only to zoom in a bit but to center the subject and trim off any background clutter. You can crop from just about any picture program and even from photo sites like photobucket.