Camera used for taking betta pictures

[Kelvin Tan]

Hi, what is a good low budget digital camera to use? under $700.

or rather what are you guys using for betta?

[kennho]

Nikon Coolpix 775 with macro function. 2mpix
Not as good if u want quality pics. A reasonable one is Nikon Coolpix 950.

[kennho]

Nikon Coolpix 775 with macro function. 2mpix
Not as good if u want quality pics. A reasonable one is Nikon Coolpix 950.

[Samuel Phan]

Stick to Nikon for good macro capability.
Fujifilm for features. Slow in photo taking. High resolution.
Sony for fast photo taking.

I am using Fujifilm 6800

[Samuel Phan]

Stick to Nikon for good macro capability.
Fujifilm for features. Slow in photo taking. High resolution.
Sony for fast photo taking.

I am using Fujifilm 6800

[Chris Yew]

I'm using Nikon 775 as the macro is 4cm! Good value for this feature. Guess the price must have dropped tremendously now and sometimes Best is giving 8 mths interest free. Though the price may be a bit higher than one than you can get from a photo shop that you have good relationship. Taking macro range for betta requires patience and much more skill. 2 study lamp (white) will do the trick and without flash.

[Chris Yew]

I'm using Nikon 775 as the macro is 4cm! Good value for this feature. Guess the price must have dropped tremendously now and sometimes Best is giving 8 mths interest free. Though the price may be a bit higher than one than you can get from a photo shop that you have good relationship. Taking macro range for betta requires patience and much more skill. 2 study lamp (white) will do the trick and without flash.

[Sebas]

what i need is a super durable brand of batteries that will last for half an hour in my Canon A200.

[Sebas]

what i need is a super durable brand of batteries that will last for half an hour in my Canon A200.

[Foo Hong]

How to use study lamps. The last time I used it the photos were horrible.

quote:Originally posted by Chris Yew

I'm using Nikon 775 as the macro is 4cm! Good value for this feature. Guess the price must have dropped tremendously now and sometimes Best is giving 8 mths interest free. Though the price may be a bit higher than one than you can get from a photo shop that you have good relationship. Taking macro range for betta requires patience and much more skill. 2 study lamp (white) will do the trick and without flash.

[Foo Hong]

How to use study lamps. The last time I used it the photos were horrible.

quote:Originally posted by Chris Yew

I'm using Nikon 775 as the macro is 4cm! Good value for this feature. Guess the price must have dropped tremendously now and sometimes Best is giving 8 mths interest free. Though the price may be a bit higher than one than you can get from a photo shop that you have good relationship. Taking macro range for betta requires patience and much more skill. 2 study lamp (white) will do the trick and without flash.

[Chris Yew]

Batteries - at least 2 will do, but the more the merrier.

1 study lamp (table type lah, don't use floor standing)on top of the small tank and one shinning in front. Switch the camera to non-flash (not auto) and adjust the 2 lamp position until it's bright enough to take without flash. If you're comfortable with normal SLR camera in manual mode, that should be fine.

There'll always be a delay in when you press the shutter and the time it actually take, so you must anticipate the fish movement.

[Chris Yew]

Batteries - at least 2 will do, but the more the merrier.

1 study lamp (table type lah, don't use floor standing)on top of the small tank and one shinning in front. Switch the camera to non-flash (not auto) and adjust the 2 lamp position until it's bright enough to take without flash. If you're comfortable with normal SLR camera in manual mode, that should be fine.

There'll always be a delay in when you press the shutter and the time it actually take, so you must anticipate the fish movement.

[ben fox wong]

Kelvin, Nikon Coolpix 775 was for $599 2 weeks ago with 2 lithium batteries + 2 memory cards (1 standard 8MB, 2nd card capacity i can't remember as i topped up $50 to upgrade to 128 MB), total of $649. since your budget is <$700 u can consider this. For the 2nd card u can consider one in the medium range (max is 256MB now), because other than for shooting fish, u may want to use it for travelling overseas in future, then buy a higher MB at a lower price.

[ben fox wong]

Kelvin, Nikon Coolpix 775 was for $599 2 weeks ago with 2 lithium batteries + 2 memory cards (1 standard 8MB, 2nd card capacity i can't remember as i topped up $50 to upgrade to 128 MB), total of $649. since your budget is <$700 u can consider this. For the 2nd card u can consider one in the medium range (max is 256MB now), because other than for shooting fish, u may want to use it for travelling overseas in future, then buy a higher MB at a lower price.

[Dr Hsu]

Nikon, Nikon, Nikon......can you tell I am a Nikon fan?:D

Nikon is know for it's excellent macro features, which is what you will need if you want to take good fish pictures. Get one with good close up (775 is 4 cm, 990/5/4500 is about 2 cm). Fox's deal sounds really good and 775 takes good pictures - just see Chris' pictures! I have not looked at the specs of the 2500 or 4300 but they would work just as well, if not better as long as they have close macro functionality.

Another brand that has good macro capability is Olympus - the new ones are decently priced and have good features as well.

Also look at the cameras at places like Courts and Harvey Norman as they usually have interest free HP schemes. Price is usually RRSP, which is usually greater than what you can get at a camera shop that you know, but if you have cash flow problems, it does help.

[Dr Hsu]

Nikon, Nikon, Nikon......can you tell I am a Nikon fan?:D

Nikon is know for it's excellent macro features, which is what you will need if you want to take good fish pictures. Get one with good close up (775 is 4 cm, 990/5/4500 is about 2 cm). Fox's deal sounds really good and 775 takes good pictures - just see Chris' pictures! I have not looked at the specs of the 2500 or 4300 but they would work just as well, if not better as long as they have close macro functionality.

Another brand that has good macro capability is Olympus - the new ones are decently priced and have good features as well.

Also look at the cameras at places like Courts and Harvey Norman as they usually have interest free HP schemes. Price is usually RRSP, which is usually greater than what you can get at a camera shop that you know, but if you have cash flow problems, it does help.

[Kelvin Tan]

thanks thanks thanks for yr advice.

my fren got a 775 or somethign similar. isnt the one hand grip a little unstable? cos his hand shakes when he used it and especially when you press down the button to take pic.

will consider all yr suggestions!!
will have more pics to show then.

[Kelvin Tan]

thanks thanks thanks for yr advice.

my fren got a 775 or somethign similar. isnt the one hand grip a little unstable? cos his hand shakes when he used it and especially when you press down the button to take pic.

will consider all yr suggestions!!
will have more pics to show then.

[Sebas]

Canon A200. Heavy heavy battery user. Used 2 heavy duty batteries, and it went flat in 2 minutes' time. Great macro functions, but lousy in enery-saving features. Conclusion: Burns out batteries fast, do not buy unless you own the energizer company.

[Sebas]

Canon A200. Heavy heavy battery user. Used 2 heavy duty batteries, and it went flat in 2 minutes' time. Great macro functions, but lousy in enery-saving features. Conclusion: Burns out batteries fast, do not buy unless you own the energizer company.

[ben fox wong]

for those keen on a Nikon, the Coolpix 775 has dropped to $549 with an extra 64MB CF card, CF card reader, case, dry box & mini tripod. this was at the recent SITEX at Expo. the 3500 was $699 with above extras except for mini-tripod (not critical anyway). but of course prices are like computers, new models spawned frequently with prices sinking. just get one within your budget & start flaring the camera, otherwise will always be waiting & waiting. with X'mas round the corner should be able to get a good deal. enjoy shopping!

[ben fox wong]

for those keen on a Nikon, the Coolpix 775 has dropped to $549 with an extra 64MB CF card, CF card reader, case, dry box & mini tripod. this was at the recent SITEX at Expo. the 3500 was $699 with above extras except for mini-tripod (not critical anyway). but of course prices are like computers, new models spawned frequently with prices sinking. just get one within your budget & start flaring the camera, otherwise will always be waiting & waiting. with X'mas round the corner should be able to get a good deal. enjoy shopping!

[ben fox wong]

for those keen on a Nikon, the Coolpix 775 has dropped to $549 with an extra 64MB CF card, CF card reader, case, dry box & mini tripod. this was at the recent SITEX at Expo. the 3500 was $699 with above extras except for mini-tripod (not critical anyway). but of course prices are like computers, new models spawned frequently with prices sinking. just get one within your budget & start flaring the camera, otherwise will always be waiting & waiting. with X'mas round the corner should be able to get a good deal. enjoy shopping!

[Foo Hong]

think I need a new one soon. Any recommends for cheap n good in that ....as long as can take bettas shots! Auto-zoom feature would be good.

[Foo Hong]

think I need a new one soon. Any recommends for cheap n good in that ....as long as can take bettas shots! Auto-zoom feature would be good.

[Myron Tay]

Absolutely excellent reviews people. I was also told that the Fujifilm line of cameras are not reliable and the Sony range has poor resolution. Can personally attest to the comment on the Sony range of digital cameras. YuckS!

[Bobby Chua]

i think there were little bias in your guy critics on certain camera brands. in fact, i'm using 3 brands, Nikon 885 [my 1st digital camera], Fujiflm S7000, and Sony 4.1Mp

my nikon - average
fuji - most detailed picture [due to high resolution]
Sony - fast shooter.

if you ask me base on your budget. i will definitely make a go for Sony.

they are very good camera but the best to me it's still Fujifilm. 1cm macro. If it can shoot at an ant, no logic it could not make it on betta.

Look at Kang's pictures. All taken with Fuji camera.
On Sony, well pls visit Suporn's website www.bluebetta.com

they're all great cameras.

rgds

[Myron Tay]

But Bobby, those three cameras are not comparable. The Nikon 885 is only 3 Mp, while the Sony is 4.1 Mp and Fujifilm S7000 is a massive 6.3 Mp! Check out the Nikon CoolPix 7900!

http://www.nikon.com.sg/PRODUCT/Coolpix/e7900.htm

[benny]

Some of the reviews above are so dated. The cameras are no longer in production. This post was from more than 2 years ago.

As for megapixels, please avoid the misconception that more megapixel equals a better camera. For your standard up to 8R use, a 4 megapixel CMOS is more than sufficient without noticable loss in quality. Above 6 Megapixel, you need to double the number of pixels in the CMOS to see any visible difference with the naked eye, even on a enlarged print.

Also, being able to focus to 1 cm does not do anything for taking fish pictures. When can you ever get to 1 cm of your fish anyway? Besides, at the distance, light fall off is considerable and the shadow casted on the subject is a problem.

What makes a good camera for fish photography is the following:

01. No or little shutter lag
02. Ability to add more flash
03. Options for manual controls on aperture and shutter speed
04. Able to focus manually
05. Respectable macro working distance (5 cm should be more than enough)

Hope that helps.

Cheers,

[Bobby Chua]

Benny

that's a sound answer to this forum topic, Benny. I'm always having over-exposed pictures. Some give me advice using white paper or tissue. Would you mind to share with us on this technic?

My S7000 is still new with me and very keen to learn over the manual control, aperture and shutter speed control.

Myron, is there any topics exist on this forum for showing betta photos? We can upload the betta photos for comments. It will definately polish our photography skills from the comments of the masters like Benny.

cheers

[Myron Tay]

quote:Originally posted by Bobby Chua

Myron, is there any topics exist on this forum for showing betta photos? We can upload the betta photos for comments. It will definately polish our photography skills from the comments of the masters like Benny.

cheersBobby

We should start one.

[ber]

Myron

[Myron Tay]

Benny

What is a reasonable minimum shutter speed to be able to decently capture our favourite bettas? Thanks.

Myron

[benny]

quote:Originally posted by Myron Tay

What is a reasonable minimum shutter speed to be able to decently capture our favourite bettas?

Hi Myron,

That will be inversely proportional to the focal length you are using, but not below 1/60 seconds.

If you are using a 100 mm focal length, the minimum shutter speed is 1/125 seconds.

If you are using a 30 mm focal length, the minimum shutter speed is 1/60 seconds.

Cheers,

[Myron Tay]

Thanks, Benny. I meant to ask what is the minimum shutter lag and how do we determine that in the specifications?

[Eugene]

Different camera makers measure or advert their shutter lag specs differently. Casio has short shutter lag. they advert as 0.01sec, but how they measure that is subjective...

Or a digital SLR but that may be costly.
Cheers



quote:Originally posted by Myron Tay

Thanks, Benny. I meant to ask what is the minimum shutter lag and how do we determine that in the specifications?

[Eugene]

Benny,

how about lighting? umbrellas help? or do you think the normal fluorescent from the top will do?
Should we take the photo from an angle or perpendicular to the glass surface?