Picking out a ditgital camera for tanking photos of fish..

[greenmaji]

After much consideration and suggestion I think Ive decided on the Fuji FinePix S5100,
I was wondering if I could get any input here on other camera options and if not another
camera a better deal on the camera Ive selected..
The deal on the Fuji FinePix S5100...currently ~$306 with S/H
http://www.digitalfotoclub.com/sc/from-shopping.asp?id=964599176&rf=dt
Does anyone know were I could look for a better deal?
Or a better suited camera in the same price range?
Thanks in Advance!

 

[reefrunner69]

On dpreview there are lots of people very happy with that cam, one thing to consider though (and I haven't looked at the specs) is white balance, shooting in aquariums can really have an issue with the whitebalance of a photo, does it have a setting to allow you to set a manual white balance?

I don't know where you will find a better deal, I've used that company a few times and have been happy with them each time, and they are almost always one of the lowest prices.

 

[krap101]

i think the main thing in buying my new camra would be the optical zoom. because digital makes it dark and big pixeled

 

[Jchillin]

All I can say is the Fuji is a fine choice. I just happen to have the 3100 and it's really good for the price. Every pic in my gallery was taken with it.

 

[Toirtis]

Re: Picking out a ditgital camera for tanking photos of fish

After much consideration and suggestion I think Ive decided on the Fuji FinePix S5100,

Bizarre...same camera make and model I am likely buying in July!

 

[greenmaji]

Re: Picking out a ditgital camera for tanking photos of fish

After much consideration and suggestion I think Ive decided on the Fuji FinePix S5100,

Bizarre...same camera make and model I am likely buying in July!

Great Minds I suppose!

 

[Jchillin]

Re: Picking out a ditgital camera for tanking photos of fish

After much consideration and suggestion I think Ive decided on the Fuji FinePix S5100,

Bizarre...same camera make and model I am likely buying in July!

Great Minds I suppose!

Three great minds???? This is getting scary....LOL

 

[greenmaji]

On dpreview there are lots of people very happy with that cam, one thing to consider though (and I haven't looked at the specs) is white balance, shooting in aquariums can really have an issue with the whitebalance of a photo, does it have a setting to allow you to set a manual white balance?

I don't know where you will find a better deal, I've used that company a few times and have been happy with them each time, and they are almost always one of the lowest prices.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/fujifilms5100/
The S5100 has auto/6-position/Manual White Balance.. The S5000 doesnt have have it..
its continuous shooting is a little slower and it doesnt do ISO 800 at all but the 5000 only does ISO 800 at 1MP..
not a big advantage there.. overall I like the S5100 better then its predecessor....
I think that the Fuji's have the most aggressive prices for the options given.. this is just a observation so far..

 

[greenmaji]

This seems compariable to the Fuji FinePix S5100... in features..
http://www.digitalfotoclub.com/sc/product-features.asp?id=964597562
Konica Minolta Dimage Z3... it has a few more features like a external flash option..
any thoughts?
Comparison

 

[Jchillin]

I kinda like this about it:

White balance control includes Automatic, Preset (Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Flash), Custom.

Wonder what that relates to in numerical form?

 

[greenmaji]

I kinda like this about it:

White balance control includes Automatic, Preset (Daylight, Cloudy, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Flash), Custom.

Wonder what that relates to in numerical form?

It looks like the settings for different types of light, Tungsten being the odd looking one I would assume its a Tungsten light source of some sort.. I dont know if you could give a number to Daylight...

 

[reefrunner69]

Daylight is usually 5500K
Cloudy 6500K
Tungsten 2850K
Fluorescent 3800K
Flash 5500K

Those are the values that Photoshop's Raw Converter assigns to the presets, the cameras actual presets are probably the same or very close.

 

[reefrunner69]

I dont know if you could give a number to Daylight

The sun at noon is about 5500K

Remember these are presets and not necessarily accurate for the actual color temperture of the light your shooting in, the only way to be sure your using an accurate white balance is to take a custom white balance each time you shoot. Auto and the presets are usually close enough for most people. If you shoot in raw you can always change the WB during conversion.

 

[Jchillin]

Thanks Kevin...that was what I was talking about. The last time I did anything regarding lighting was nighttime for bulbs and the term "candle power" was tossed around then.

 

[greenmaji]

Thanks for the info. reefrunner69 on WB!
I found a better deal on the Fuji FinePix S5100!!!!
$259.95 after $50 rebate!!!!!!!
http://www.bigondigital.com/viewitem.php?IndexID=6222

 

[reefrunner69]

Just make sure you research the seller.

http://resellerratings.com/

 

[reefrunner69]

Could be bad news....
http://www.resellerratings.com/seller6569.html

 

[greenmaji]

I dont know if you could give a number to Daylight

The sun at noon is about 5500K

Remember these are presets and not necessarily accurate for the actual color temperture of the light your shooting in, the only way to be sure your using an accurate white balance is to take a custom white balance each time you shoot. Auto and the presets are usually close enough for most people. If you shoot in raw you can always change the WB during conversion.

Im guessing your talking about the conversion from RAW format its on your computer like in a Photoshop type program right?

 

[greenmaji]

I checked the bbb and couldnt find anything on them.. though it could be a rather new company...

 

[greenmaji]

I have a question.. how is it they have a mail in rebate and the other retailers are not talking about one? I would assume that would most likely be a factory rebate if it was a mail in one... :?