Save me from Ken Rockwell's advice

[Photongraphy]

So, I decided to read Ken Rockwell's website for a while. It was the #1 result on Google for photography advice. However, I tend to seek other opinions before making any kind of purchase, so I googled "Ken Rockwell is a dumbass" and "Ken Rockwell is an idiot," the later which brought up this site.

A lot of people seem to disagree with him.

For a total newbie just starting out (I've been into the... point and shoot... scene... oh dear), what kind of camera is recommended? I'd love to take beautiful, clear pictures such as this:

File:Hong Kong Skyline Restitch - Dec 2007.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

I don't understand the whole "lens" thingmabob, and I don't know what kind of DSLR I need. Any help would be greatly appreciated. :mrgreen: However, I don't want advice for Point & Shoot cameras. Right now, I am only interested in DSLR's due to what I've read everywhere.

EDIT: Oh yeah, one more thing. I've been looking at this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16830120355

 

[Josh66]

so I googled "Ken Rockwell is a dumbass" and "Ken Rockwell is an idiot,"http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16830120355

OK, that actually made me laugh, lol.

Read this:

http://www.kenrockwell.com/about.htm

While often inspired by actual products and events, just like any other good news organization, I love to stretch the truth if it makes an article more fun. In the case of new products, rumors and just plain silly stuff, it's all pretend. If you lack a good BS detector or sense of humor, please treat this entire site as a work of fiction.

 

[Photongraphy]

Yeah, I read it. However, most people aren't going to read that horrific wall of text. I'm basically looking for advice on getting started.

 

[Josh66]

But you did read it, so you should know better... Half of what he says is good advice, the other half is pure BS... If you can't tell which is which, don't read his site.

For getting started, this forum is as good a place as any...

 

[djacobox372]

So, I decided to read Ken Rockwell's website for a while. It was the #1 result on Google for photography advice. However, I tend to seek other opinions before making any kind of purchase, so I googled "Ken Rockwell is a dumbass" and "Ken Rockwell is an idiot," the later which brought up this site.

A lot of people seem to disagree with him.

For a total newbie just starting out (I've been into the... point and shoot... scene... oh dear), what kind of camera is recommended? I'd love to take beautiful, clear pictures such as this:

File:Hong Kong Skyline Restitch - Dec 2007.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

I don't understand the whole "lens" thingmabob, and I don't know what kind of DSLR I need. Any help would be greatly appreciated. :mrgreen: However, I don't want advice for Point & Shoot cameras. Right now, I am only interested in DSLR's due to what I've read everywhere.

EDIT: Oh yeah, one more thing. I've been looking at this: Newegg.com - Canon EOS Rebel T1i Black 15.10 MP 3.0" 920K LCD Full HD Movie Digital SLR Camera w/ EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

That photo you linked to is more about one's photoshop skills then the camera. It's a restitch that could be done from photos from a 5 year old point and shoot.

My advice is to keep educating yourself about photography and then pick a camera system that suits you. Most people do the reverse of this.

Where do you stand on these topics?

Low Light photography
Macro photography
Telephoto photography
Resolution/Sharpness
Narrow depth of field
Speed

 

[farmerj]

try Thom Hogan's Nikon Field Guide and Nikon Flash Guide

 

[KmH]

From the beginning of Ken's About page:

[SIZE=+3]Caveat Lector![/SIZE] (reader beware!)
I do this site for fun. It is my personal website. I do this site all by myself. This site is provided only for the entertainment of our kids and our dogs....

..While often inspired by actual products and events, just like any other good news organization, I love to stretch the truth if it makes an article more fun. In the case of new products, rumors and just plain silly stuff, it's all pretend. If you lack a good BS detector or sense of humor, please treat this entire site as a work of fiction..​

​

 

[Josh66]

Yes (...like I said...), and if you can't see the humor even in that quote, there's something wrong with you...

"just like any other good news organization, I love to stretch the truth"...
I mean..., come on...! That's good stuff, lol.

If you can separate the fact from the fiction, his site is not bad... And If you just want a good read, it's actually quite funny.

Personally, I love his site. But not for the 'review' aspect of it. He certainly has the same sense of humor that I do - I find his site hilarious as hell.

It's not his fault that it's the top result for any photography search on google...

 

[Photongraphy]

Thanks for the replies. I'm probably wrong about everything, but...

Low Light photography

Like night vision? I'd love some good exposure setting with a remote control to catch photos of the stars, the milky way backdrop, etc... The idea of attaching the camera to a telescope is appealing.

Macro photography

I think I've used this once. I guess it's to focus on something? *shrug*

Telephoto photography

The zoom feature on my Point & Shoot is lame. I would like the ability to zoom without getting something that looks like Quake 1.

Resolution/Sharpness

In my opinion, the higher the resolution, the better it looks when resized, and the more detail is in the picture. Furthermore, I think sharpness is good, because I hate blurry photos. Doesn't that have to do with ISO?

Narrow depth of field

No idea.

Speed

Shooting pictures quickly? Yes, I like this.

And what kind of card should I use? 64 GB SDHC? Any particular brands to avoid, etc...?



EDIT: I guess what matters to me the most is superb image quality with excellent low-light capabilities, a remote shutter switch, and a high resolution. I want to take night pictures of the cities I visit. I need to be able to manually set my exposure time, rather than be limited to 15 seconds on my current Point & Shoot. A good tripod would be sorely needed as well, preferably one that can handle panoramas. Right now, I use a cheap tripod and just manually turn it. :meh:

 

[ann]

It is wonderful when he reviews a piece of equipment he has never used

 

[Garbz]

Low light photography: This just refers to the moments when you need to pull out a tripod. The term can be used for anything like a typical indoor house at night, to night time photo such as the city you just linked to, to star photography. The first is trivial to learn, the second a bit of a beyond the basics type thing, however taking photos of stars through satellites is a very advanced topic and would by easily considered throwing yourself in the very deep end.

Macro Photography: Taking photos of something small

Telephotography: Taking pictures of something far away. This does not imply zooming. It just implies far away. You can get fixed telephoto lenses and they cost as much as a small car, but have prevented many national geographic photographers from getting eaten by their subjects.

Resolution and sharpness: One of the things to learn is how the system works, not just the camera. The Nikon D2h has a lower resolution sensor (megapixels) than the iPhone 4, but it takes far better and sharper pictures because of the glass.

ISO: The sensitivity of the camera. The higher ISO the brighter the resulting image when everything else is held constant.

Narrow depth of field: Picture says 1000 words: http://www.dphotoexpert.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/true1point2web.jpg



For your desires basically any DSLR and even many modern flexible point and shoots like the Canon G10 would suffice too.

 

[Photongraphy]

Thanks. I appear to have mixed up Narrow Depth of Field. I thought that was a macro technique. Great advice, thanks!

So pretty much any DSLR will do? I find this very appealing:

Newegg.com - Canon EOS Rebel T1i Black 15.10 MP 3.0" 920K LCD Full HD Movie Digital SLR Camera w/ EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

with a tripod:

Newegg.com - VANGUARD Alta+ 263AP Aluminum Alloy Tripod with Panhead

But I need to know what kind of flash card I would need. I'm a little confused. Hoping for something around 64 GB if possible. Any advice?

 

[ann]

why a 64gb card? that is huge and expensive as well.

check out 4-8 gb , still do the job not as expensive and will hold quite a few images.

check your manual and see what class card they recommend. if your doing video then probably a class 6 card or higher
i personal use either lexar or sandisk

 

[Village Idiot]

My main cards are 3 8GB Sandisk CF cards. With 21mp image files, I'm getting about 300 images to a card.

You'll get more with a T2i as it has smaller file sizes. Also, if you were to have a 64GB card fail with 2000 images on it, you're porbably not getting them back. Not to mention the amount of time it would take to download the files from the card and have you even though about how much storage you'll need on your PC?

 

[djacobox372]

Low light photography: This just refers to the moments when you need to pull out a tripod. The term can be used for anything like a typical indoor house at night, to night time photo such as the city you just linked to, to star photography. The first is trivial to learn, the second a bit of a beyond the basics type thing, however taking photos of stars through satellites is a very advanced topic and would by easily considered throwing yourself in the very deep end.

Macro Photography: Taking photos of something small

Telephotography: Taking pictures of something far away. This does not imply zooming. It just implies far away. You can get fixed telephoto lenses and they cost as much as a small car, but have prevented many national geographic photographers from getting eaten by their subjects.

Resolution and sharpness: One of the things to learn is how the system works, not just the camera. The Nikon D2h has a lower resolution sensor (megapixels) than the iPhone 4, but it takes far better and sharper pictures because of the glass.

ISO: The sensitivity of the camera. The higher ISO the brighter the resulting image when everything else is held constant.

Narrow depth of field: Picture says 1000 words: http://www.dphotoexpert.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/true1point2web.jpg



For your desires basically any DSLR and even many modern flexible point and shoots like the Canon G10 would suffice too.

The significance of that list of topics is that they are the topics that will determine which camera/lens combo is right for you.

Of course you could buy a kit that will do it all, but you'll be spending thousands. If you can narrow down what particular things are important to you and what are less important, we can give you advice on equipment choices.