Beginner in need of help from experienced photographers.

antiavidity · Apr 26, 2004

Recently, I have picked up photography as a hobbie. Though, all I have been using are disposible cameras. The results were decent with what I had to work with... Though, as you can probably guess I have many disadvantages.

I have been told to get a regular film camera, but film is expensive. I have $100 to spend (birthday money). I have been leaning towards getting a cheap digital camera (2.0 MP). Though, I've heard I won't be satisfied (supposedly), unless I'm willing to spend more money (that I don't have).

What can anyone suggest? Should I just go with a film camera and find perhaps a used one somewhere cheap? Or just go with the cheap digital camera I've been eyeing? Any responses would be greatly apperciated. Thanks.

P.S. I know these questions have probably been asked a million times, but I wanted more help considering my situation.

markc · Apr 26, 2004

What's the digital you've been looking at?

You can get a decent 35mm film camera and lens for under $50, but the other $50 isn't going to last very long for film and processing. As a beginner, it might be better to get the digital and be able to take a lot of pics, even if they aren't going to be high-res enought to make good prints.

antiavidity · Apr 26, 2004

The digital camera I've been looking at can be found here

I don't know, I can probably find this actual camera somewhere cheaper, like ebay...Thanks for your help.[/url]

Big Mike · Apr 26, 2004

Something you might want to consider...is getting a used manual SLR camera. If you really want to learn photography, this would be a great tool. Check out e-bay or better yet a local camera shop. You can get your photos developed at Wal-mart or someplace that is easy and inexpensive.

A digital camera is great too because of the limitless amount of pictures and the instant feed back but a digital camera under $100 probably won't give you enough control over the images to really learn the basics of photography.

That being said, there is nothing to say you can't take great pictures and learn a lot while doing so...with a cheap digital camera.

markc · Apr 26, 2004

That's a nice camera. I haven't looked at the low end in a while. They have really improved quite a bit. I'd recommend going with the digital. You won't be making any posters from the images, but it should be fine for smaller prints, and certainly for the web. You don't need fancy features to make good pictures, just lots of practice. With a digital, you won't have to lay out cash everytime you want to take a picture. You won't have to wait to finish a roll before getting feedback, either. That's a big plus.

voodoocat · Apr 26, 2004

Golly... to think I spent $500 on a 2.1 megapixel camera with a 3x optical zoom :roll: That is what got me interested in photography. Being able to see the photos right away and shoot to my hearts content. Then I moved to an all manual SLR and now I shoot on a digital SLR.

So I would say go with the digital camera with the limited funds. Good luck.

Harpper · Apr 27, 2004

I'm not as experienced as the others on this forum but I know what you are going through because I've been there myself. If you only have $100 to spend and you don't have a steady income then I say go with the digital. If you can afford constantly buying film then I say get a low end film SLR.

Low end digital cameras have definitely come along way since I've bought my first one though. My Toshibia had no selectable shutter speed, no selectable aperture, no zoom, and basically not many features that would let me take the type of pictures I wanted. It was a completely new experience when I got my digital SLR. I had more control over how my pictures turned out. Of course, I'm not saying you need to get a digital SLR...just find a camera with as much manual features as you can afford is my advice if you really want to go further with photography.

That's really the problem I had with low end digital point and shot cameras. Most of the camera was fixed at auto settings which means you take pictures that the camera thinks is good and not necessarily what you had in mind. From quickly looking at your Fuji camera it seems to have enough manual features to see if you really want to get into photography and play with the outcome of your pictures. Basically try to find a camera with more manual features that's in your price range.

With the advancement in low end digital cameras, you'll probably be happy with them for the time being. I've used a few of the newer generations myself but they still lacked what I wanted. If you are just starting out I think the Fuji will definitely work for you. You don't have to buy a high end camera because even a digital SLR is money wasted if you leave it on full auto. Well, that's my 2 cents on this topic. :wink: