Re: Digital Camera Info

>OK.  I think there are some folks interested in digital cameras.  So what is
>your choice for taking pictures to put on the internet, provided you don't
>have a scanner.
>
>Joe Spears

Dear Joe,

It's cheaper to get a scanner and scan 35mm 4"X6" prints from a '1 hour
place', than to get a capture camera (with better results too).  We got our
U-Max scanner about a year ago and it was $250, but now they're about $150.

We do, however, use photoshop to do the color/contrast/cropping corrections
of the raw scans.  Raw scans don't look good, just as raw 'captures' from
digital cameras (which BTW is a misnomer, the are really 'filmless cameras'
and are not digitized until they are downloaded) look terrible before they
are adjusted.....

Which brings us back to a previous post about how wedding photographers are
avoiding capture cameras.  We agree, and as stated before, there are good
ones out there, they are very expensive ($80,000), large/bulky and are used
primarily in studio still life imagery for catalogue work.

The reason they are used is that they save megabucks in film costs and
color separation costs.  It has been noted in photographic trade
publications that these cameras can pay for themselves in a single
month....but these people are producing catalogues.....lots of them.  The
resolution needed for an 8X10 print is far greater.  On the other hand, the
resolution of a web page is way, way less than even a catalogue.  The best
present, computer monitors can only display a resolution of 72 dots per
inch...and that is crude.  Most color catalogues are produced at 175 dpi.

What we are saying is:
Use a reasonably good 35mm camera (that has a manual exposure overide),
with a couple of appropriate lenses, and perhaps a small tripod.

Shoot negative film (not slides)...we like Fuji Reala ASA 100...get it
developed and processed at a one hour lab, and then scan the prints using
one of those reasonably priced scanners, correct in photoshop or the
equivilant, and then upload to your web page (or 'attach' and e-mail them
to your friends).

For an example of what can be done, visit our website:
http://www.bway.net/~skid/

It is still under construction, but there are plenty of images to see, both
garden and some of our commercial ones.

For the most part, dollar for dollar, a 'conventional' 35mm SLR camera will
be a much better value than a 'filmless' camera .

Hope this is helpful,
Bill & Harvey
SKID Plants  Zone 6  CT  USA
SKID Photography in NYC
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