doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Cameras for gun photos

I agree with the thought that for internet sales/this site posts, any camera with a decent lense size of recognized maker, and capable of 640 x 480 size pics is all that's needed. After that, lighting is the biggest factor. Just something I noted about my pocket sized 5 meg Pentax camera compared to my 4 meg Konica camera of midsize; the 4 meg Konica takes much clearer pics than the 5 meg Pentax because of the lense size. The Konica has a lense about 1 1/4" in dia and the Pentax lense is about as big as a dime

I have a Fujifilm S3100 Finepix and it takes great pictures. It cost about $600.00 about four years ago and I love it. It has the Sandisk that I can plug into the front of my computer and put them in my photo files or put them on a floppy disk or I can put them on a ZIP 100 drive or e-mail them to anyone. But you don't need to spend a few hundred dollars to get a really nice camera. Mine came with re-chargeble batteries and a charger. Aren't the little picture cards neat that they have now days?

Zip 100? Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy. Step away from the Zip drive.

LOL I'm LMAO here! Zip drive? That's collectible now isn't it?

No, I dont want to sell photographs. No, I dont want to be a professional photogrpaher. Too much reading into my questions. I sell on the net as a small dealer. I list guns here and there. I am just not happy with the photos I am getting. I use Photoshop 6.0 to edit. I use a tripod. I just want to know whats a better camera in the easy to use type because I AM NOT A PRO.

It seems that when I do close ups and the auto focus feature doesnt always come through. I go with the macro setting and shoot away. some come out great and soemtimes not.

I think the best all-around bet for your purposes, currently, is a Canon A 710 IS (IS = Image Stabilized), available for $300 - $400.

This comes from a lifelong dyed-in-the-wool Nikon guy (with lots of negs and slides from Rolleiflexes, a Speed Graphic and others).

As usual Chuck offers excellent advice and tips. My early years in photography were remarkably like his; I also earned decent $$ in college as a part-time pro and have been very active in photography constantly since.

My current "main" camera is a Nikon F100 (which more than a few pros use). I have a series of Nikons back to two Fs; all work fine.

I went with the Canon digital "point and shoot" for its versatility (FAR beyond a P & S) and image quality, at a very reasonable price point.

THE CANON A710 IS CAN DO MOST OF WHAT THE NIKON F100 CAN, but not as conveniently or instinctively, due to smaller size, fewer controls, and not being a SLR. However it has a very good lens and incredibly versatility, thru a number of menus.

Pixel count becomes VERY important when good quality, larger prints (8 x 10 or >) are needed -- or you need to enlarge just a small part of an image. For 3 x 5s and modest-sized web photos, high pixel count isn't needed.

I have some A 710 IS sample images from it I'll send to anyone for posting, who has a photo account.

Groggy morning. Thanks for the compliment Fred. I've probably forgotten most of the fundamentals of photography, but I'm starting to rediscover some.

Brian,
I've encountered some of the inconsistant focus problems you mentioned. With my camera, this was due to insufficient light to allow the autofocus to properly capture the subject.

Back to lighting.

You may very well have a camera perfectly capable of doing all you want. I'd recommend getting some better lighting. HomeD and Lowes sell shop halogen lightstands for a bargain. That will get you the candlepower you need and more.

Then the trick about lighting is figuring out how to use it to control glare and shadows. The easy solution is to "bounce" it off white walls and the ceiling in a room. Just imagine the light is a billiard ball, the walls and you're subject (gun in this case) are the rails on the billiard table. The difference comes in that you usually don't want the light to bounce off the subject at an angle that directs it right at the camera, in fact, usually just the opposite, you want to avoid bouncing into the camera to avoid glare. Bouncing light also reduces it's harshness and softens the light like many of the pics you see in DGJ. Bottom line, lighting is THE ONE THING (to paraphrase Curly in City Slickers) in photography. Photography simply captures reflected light.

A good place to start with lighting is a cloudy, dull day. With even sky exposure (not near a building wall, for example), the lighting is completely flat -- even all around. Some good gun photos use just this lighting; Oscar Gaddy built a 4-light stand to mimic it. It's also called "1:1" lighting (equal left-right, top-bottom or any axis).

If you add an equal amount of light from one direction (with a properly-distanced speedlight or a blue photoflood), you'll have 2:1 lighting. This is in the range of classic, but not strongly dramatic portrait lighting. For a human portrait, a top hair light around 1.5:1 adds a nice touch. For guns, the same idea can be applied.

The advice you've gotten should get you off to a good start; then EXPERIMENT. That is really easy, and dirt-cheap with digital. And once you've used Photoshop, you'll never look back.

Have you tried not getting so close and using the auto focus.
Then edit on the computer?
It works for me when taking certain shots.
I also recheck the camera light settings now and then.