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Severna Park, Maryland
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Gaston, Oregon
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[#2] Posted: 08/19/2011 - 10:05:26 AM |  |  |
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It's a good deal. As with any entry-level kit, the lenses are not particularly fast. If he'll be shooting in low-light situations with available light (not flash) that can become frustrating.
I know that Canon & Nikon dominate the market these days, but I urge you to look carefully at Pentax. In general, they give you more camera for the money than N or C. For instance all of Pentax's DSLRs have shake reduction built into the body instead of the lens (making subsequent lens purchases less costly) and they're fully weather proofed. They're also 100% backwards compatible with every Pentax lens ever made -- and Pentax made some kick-ass lenses back in the day, many of which are available for a song now.
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Jim Katen, Oregon
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[#4] Posted: 08/19/2011 - 1:35:25 PM | | |
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We gave my son that exact camera for Christmas. Here is a segment of Video he is working on. It is one part of what will eventually be a 4 or 5 part film. I am a Canon lover.
http://www.youtube.com/v/g5PJ7...embedded
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Gaston, Oregon
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[#5] Posted: 08/19/2011 - 2:48:18 PM | | |
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Quote: Originally posted by ghentjrQuote: Originally posted by Jim Katen
It's a good deal. As with any entry-level kit, the lenses are not particularly fast. If he'll be shooting in low-light situations with available light (not flash) that can become frustrating.
I know that Canon & Nikon dominate the market these days, but I urge you to look carefully at Pentax. In general, they give you more camera for the money than N or C. For instance all of Pentax's DSLRs have shake reduction built into the body instead of the lens (making subsequent lens purchases less costly) and they're fully weather proofed. They're also 100% backwards compatible with every Pentax lens ever made -- and Pentax made some kick-ass lenses back in the day, many of which are available for a song now.
I agree, but many older fast Canon lenses also are compatible and you can find them at tag/garage sales cheap.
Yes. And the Canon's will accept the old Pentax/Takumar lenses too (with an adapter). (Nikon won't.)
But with Canon, the shake reduction is built into the lenses, not the body of the camera. So if you want shake reduction, you have to buy the (very expensive) lenses with that feature. With Pentax, you get the shake reduction feature even if you're using screw mount lenses from the '60s.
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Jim Katen, Oregon
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Louisville, KY
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Kenmore, WA
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[#7] Posted: 08/21/2011 - 05:47:43 AM | | |
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I love Pentax cameras.
I bought my MX back in 1978 when I was at Camp Red Cloud Korea primarily because I was struggling with the Army issued Cannon crime scene photography kit our investigations office used. I'd read everything at the CRC library about photography and I'd taken a college photography course at night trying to get better photos yet it was still a hit or miss situation.
The MX was dead simple to use and, I think, cutting edge for its day. It had a red, yellow and green light adjustment. If the combination of shutter speed and f-stop you chose wouldn't produce a good photo for that film speed you saw a red light in the viewfinder. If what you chose would produce the equivalent of a one or two stop under or over-developed photo you'd see yellow and for a perfectly adjusted camera you'd see green. I was able to push film speed and, without guesswork, still get great pics and I was able to easily get increase or decrease the depth of shadowing and contrast. My crime scene photos went from borderline crap to as good as one could get with the purchase of that very simple camera.
I still have the MX; it sits four feet behind me on the shelf. It's got a nasty dent in the top of the viewfinder house that hasn't hurt it, although it tore the flash mount off and it still takes great pictures. Now, after 33 years I finally bought a new camera, the W90. It's getting a workout. The other day, I forgot it and left it on the roof of the truck. About 8 miles from the job I was traveling down the road at 50 mph when I heard a clattering sound and glanced in my mirror just in time to see something catapult off the roof and bounce off the ladders into the bed of my truck. I pulled over and found the Pentax down in a corner of the bed a little bit scratched up but still working fine. This is my business camera. It's great for what I do on the job; but when I decide to finally replace the MX with something else for family and portrait use it's going to be another Pentax SLR. That might be another 30 years though.
ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!
Mike
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Severna Park, Maryland
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[#9] Posted: 08/22/2011 - 3:38:04 PM | | |
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I got my first Pentax SLR in the mid 70s and had 2 subsequent, bfore switching to Nikon. Jim K's endorsement has me thinking I'll go back to Pentax for my next DSLR. I still have all my lenses and filters.
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| Bill Kibbel, Historic & Commercial Building Inspections - Old House Resources |
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Severna Park, Maryland
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[#10] Posted: 04/14/2012 - 07:05:33 AM | | |
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We did get the Canon 2Ti. He enjoys it very much. I have a particular something positive to say about it.
Recently, it was accidentally left outside. That night it rained like the dickens. I mean serious rain with gully washing results. The camera was elevated on a playground platform so it was at least off the ground. The next day when it was discovered missing, we eventually found it.
We took the battery and memory card out and removed the lens. We gently swabbed the lens and body with a towel. We left all the compartments open and set the camera on top of the always warm DVR in the entertainment cabinet. We left it there for about a week to make sure the warmth would have a good chance to dry everything.
This all happened about a month ago and (knock on wood) the camera is functioning perfectly.
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John Dirks Jr - Arundel Home Inspection LLC - MD license: 29827
Maryland Home Inspectors - Maryland Home Inspection - Maryland Radon Testing - Baltimore County Rental Inspection
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