When I first started listing on Etsy and posting to Flickr (and all the rest) I thought that the whole photographic process would be the death of me. I hated EVERYTHING about it and I'm sorry about the capital letters here, but in my mind that everything is ten feet high at least. Composing the picture, the background, the lighting, the 'branding' (or lack thereof!!!), the editing, were all uniformly tough to deal with. The only spot of light here is the view of someone raised in the film era, at least one doesn't have to wait for processing and you can cheerfully format over all your hideous errors. This is where I can love technology.
All this hatred coincided with the purchase of my first point and shoot SONY, (can't remember the model) which actually took quite decent macro shots. Although, it took me a long time to learn to use it effectively...Then it was stolen in our house burglary in 2008 (along with all the photos in the computer which I had only half backed up...). I bought another SONY (DSC W210, around 200$) which, as I discovered, did not let me get nearly as close in macro mode as I would have liked as it had a wider angle lens on it than my original. Grr, no money to buy a better camera.....
Of course, as I embraced technology, I realized that I would really like to have a DSLR, but the cost was high for its primary use. Do I need to shoot RAW format, shoot in low light a lot, need massive telephoto lenses as long as my arm - or indeed, do I need to be able to change lenses at all? No, I don't think I do - to
all of those things, really.
Long story short, I started checking ebay and local sales for used high end point and shoots. I was looking for 12 mp, really decent macro shots and some manual focus capability and some aperture and shutter control. Missed out on a Canon G10 for 250$, but finally found this: (free shipping, too!)
In case you can't read it, it's a Canon Powershot 650is. All for only 125$, perfect body condition and function (so far, at least...). It is the next step down in the Canon line from the G series (roughly, DSLRS, G series, then this series.) It's worth checking out the used route as there are always people upgrading and this camera does everything I could ever need! I'm not attempting to shill for the Canon corporation, merely pointing out that there are great cameras to be had used from the top manufacturers that are now outmoded, but perfectly serviceable for internet stuff.
I also like the swing out monitor even though I thought I wouldn't. It swings shut and protects the monitor from clutzes like me - also the camera is large, but very comfortable to hold (curved grip), which again I thought was a negative, but turns out to be a plus as I find the tiny point and shoots kinda difficult to hang on to! This camera just melds into my largish hand. Also, it takes 4 ordinary alkaline batteries, which is also a plus, as I can't count the number of times I've forgotten the charger for the custom batteries of my other cameras while travelling. So far, the battery life is impressive.
And wow, aperture control on macro! Now I can do those lovely background (or foreground ) blurred shots that really bring the details of the work into the eye of the beholder! Gee, I might make the Etsy front page! It has a host of other features that I haven't even explored yet. The best thing about digital photography is that with each camera, the learning curve is shorter - really!
It will focus as close as 1cm from the object! Excuse all the not very informative pictures, but immediately, I love this camera! The swivelling LCD makes it very easy to get shots from strange angles, or over people's heads, for that matter.
Hey, maybe I'll actually enjoy photography again. And not just studio work either....
