Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Err, after the death of mine (and the inadequacy of the backup camera) does anyone have suggestions? I'm leaning towards the successor model to mine,t he Canon SX120IS. I want a decent zoom (10x ), I want a useable macro mode, I want good image quality.
I've read some reviews but they range all over the place...There was a Casio I was looking at, and I liked the specs on a Nikon but the ergonomics threw me off.
I'm trying to keep equal or less than 250.
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa

I've always used Nikons myself but thanks to daneby and some of those killer close-ups he takes I'm looking into fujifilm. Haven't decided if it'll be the S2500 or the S1800, either of those should fit into your price range. Reviews are mixed on them as well but just have a look at some of daneby's close-ups and decide for yourself if the camera gives the detailed pictures you want.

Fujifilms HS10 looks good as well, little more money though.

Gerry

the closeups are good on them, but I'm worried about shooting at range. I've been unimpressed by fujis in the past but Dan's stuff is nice
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa

To some extent it depends on how much money you want to spend.

I'm currently using a Canon Powershot A560. It cost $160 when I bought it a few years ago. I does decent macro shots, but there's a limit to how close you can get. It also shoots decent from relatively far away with a zoom. Though there's a difference between "decent" and "great."

The link below has photos from that camera from a trip I made to NorCal in April to give you a frame of reference. The great thing about a $160 camera is that I don't worry much about camera damage when going to oceans, deserts and swamps - it's a cheap camera.

On the other hand, I'm looking at getting a "higher end" camera later this year. I think part of the problem is a number of herps I find are in the woods (poor light), basking in the sun (too much light) or found while roadhunting (no light, must use a flash).

Photography is all about the right light, and a lot of times you're at the mercy of the environment. A fair number of field herpers catch animals and pose them in controlled environments - but that's not the sort of thing I'm into.

Tim
California Herping 2010

ditto: I've only ever restrained animals maybe 2-3 times for photos (the baby rat, briefly by putting a back in front of it..a long nosed I moved off the road and just needed a quick voucher shot for...)
In situ is more difficult butit's more fun too, and it actually shows behavior in a more natural manner
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa