Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am a boa breeder and a field herper and I need some advice on a good camera to purchase. I have a kodak easy share right now and it takes nice pictures but i want something that can produce more detailed pictures and also have a quick snap so I can take multiple pictures real quick to really catch what i am looking for in the subject. Nothing real expensive or cheap but efficient.

Thanks

Not sure how much your willing to spend but the Nikon D70 is a great value for the money.... I have had mine for almost two years now and trust it to deliver.... Base price now I guess is around $5-600 but it produces like cameras twice that price...

With the D70 you have lots of lens options and Nikor lenses are very good..... however not all lenses are created equal and you really want to do your homework before buying one.... I have taken many reptile shots w/both their kit lens 18-70mm and their 105mm micro that have won awards and been published in several magazines... they have the new 20-200 that was introduced w/the D200 that reads well, but I havent played w/it or read to many reviews of it but in theory for the field... that plus a macro lens, a doubler a flash and your set...... btw... you can go broke buying lenses *

I know several other people active in this forum that are also D70 believers.... I am sure they will speak up in time *

MDK

Link

sorry... new lens is 18 to 200...
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www.thegardensofeden.org

I have saw alot of people talking about the D70 on this forum so it must be a good camera. I have to do a little more research on photography before I purchase a camera because all of that camera lingo confuses a simple mind like mines. Just you talking about the lenses lost me. It is really something that I want to get into some more so every little bit of input that i can get will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for the advice and BTW what kind of crazy snake is that?

Shot

Trimersurus species (an asian pit viper)

I also have a d70....I have owned it for a year now.....nothing but perfection, the only downfall is the 6.1 mp....but then again all I need to update later on is the body. I have all the rest of the things I require....below is a wide angle shot....Jacky Dragon in the Warrumbungles National Park, NSW Australia.

Regards,
Scott Eipper

There are a lot of good digital cameras out there and they all have good and bad qualities. But I can't tell you what would be a good camera for you because I don't know you and I only know a few of these cameras. I have only used 5 different DSLRs and a handful of different point and shoots so I am certainly not qualified to evaluate many cameras.

Don't get me wrong, the D70 mentioned below is a good camera (I considered it carefully before choosing the camera I ended up with). But the D70 may not be a good camera for you.

You need to decide what you want to achieve photographically. Then you need to do some research to find out what it takes to capture images like that. Lastly you should look at sites that compare a large number of cameras and see which models offer the features you need at a price you can afford.

For example, I expect that if you purchased the Hasselblad H2D digital camera body and the 120mm f/4 Macro lens and maybe the zoom wide angle 50-110 lens as well you could get some very nice herp shots. You would be very happy with the results. Of course, that equipment would set you back just a little over $34,000. You might also be able to get what you want with a $200 refurbished 4MP Olympus C740.

Do some reading about photography. Learn what you are trying to capture and what you need to do that and then you will be better equipped to make the decision.

I know that isn't the type of answer you were looking for, but it is really the best answer.

If you want the quick fix, here are some "good" cameras....

Nikon DSLRs (D50, D70, D70s, D100, D200 etc)
Konica Minolta DSLRS (5D, 7D)
Canon DSLRs (350D, 1DMkII, 20D, etc)
Olympus DSLRs (300D, 500D, 1D)
Pentax DSLRs (what ever the new one is called - they have weird names)

Then there are all the good point and shoots made by companies like -
Olympus
Sony
Nikon
Konica Minolta
Canon
etc., etc, etc.

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Chris Harrison
San Antonio, Texas

Did you say $34,000!!! or is that a misprint?

Thanks for the advice Chris and like you said I do need to do some research before I make a purchase.(alot of research)

Shot

Hasselblad H2D - 22MP camera = $26,995 (of course, if you are trying to save money, you can get the older H1D for a paltry $17,995).

The lenses in this mount range from $1800 -$3900.

For lenses, that isn't too bad if you consider that the big fast lenses for the Canon and Nikon DSLRs range up to $9000.

I would love to see someone put a $8000 Canon EF 600 f/4 L IS on a refurbished $400 Digital Rebel body.
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Chris Harrison
San Antonio, Texas