New Camera, Olympus E 510. DSLR.

[rodwc]

I have allways admired the photography on RWG and have said so.

The time and effort members spend bringing their photographic skills to show us here, also the tutorials as to how to do these things.

Without it , well, I can`t even think what it would be like with words alone.

Having a fair grasp on how to press the button, upload to computer, manipulate the image for correction etc. my existing camera was fine for what I wanted it for, compact, simple point and shoot,portability but it would allways have limitations. ( Casio, Exilim, 10,1 mp. )

Since the outlay for DSLR a couple of years ago was to say the least a personal loan, mortgage extension,

I really put it out of mind.

So when Pugwash and one or two others started talking about Cannon DSLR my interest was aroused again.

The price now had plummeted down to around 1 K. for a more than decent entry level DSLR.

Not having to justify, a new purchase and fed up with mending and making do,off I went.

I had it firmly in my mind , a Nikon D40 X or a similar Cannon,

Had a look at them in the shop, yeah great I`ll have one,............ whats that , there is no direct view through the lens on to the LCD, ( even the simplest compact has that ) I was put off.

Cut to the chase, I ended up with an Olympus E510 ( 10.2 mp ) which came with a standard 14-42mm lens and also got a Macro 35mm 1:3.5 lens.

As to how to put all this together and take great pics, not yet I`m afraid. I simply havn`t worked out what all the buttons and k.n.ob.s are for. The shop has an introductory course for people like me, followed by 2 advanced courses which I`m not sure about just yet.

Have heard one or two members have this model camera , LordRasta is one I think, so if anyone can give any tips etc. how you are finding this camera, would love to hear from you.

[LordRasta]

Yes I have this camera and I still suck. I'll get better but I think I need a macro lense. Pugwash has been a great help.

[SubFrog]

Nice choice.

I've had a few Olympus cameras. However, the best yet, for me, is an old Olympus C-5060 Wide Zoom.

Super wide angle lens, with 4x optical zoom, equivalent to a 27-110mm lens on a 35mm camera

5.1-megapixel CCD delivering up to 2,592 x 1,944-pixel resolution images (3,264 x 2,448 pixels with Optimum Image Enlargement interpolation).

The best part about it is the 1.8-inch, color LCD display that tilts 180 degrees upward and swivels 180 degrees around.

It's not the 10.2 mp, like yours...but, the 5.1 is all I need for what I do. (web work)

If I were to macro out, like you guys, I'd probably look into your camera.

Enjoy.

[tin0]

DSLR without macro lens will not works for taking watches photo. Better using point to shoot with wide zoom, just like SubFrog mentioned; the C-5060 or any point to shoot with wide zoom, and a tripod of course.

[Pugwash]

DSLR without macro lens will not works for taking watches photo.

I disagree. I've never owned a Macro lens and people tell me my photos are ok.

Taken with the stock Canon 18-55mm lens:

Taken with a $10 macro reverser:

Taken with a 50mm f1.4 portrait lens a friend lent me for the weekend:

[LordRasta]

people tell me my photos are ok.

They are better than "ok" my friend.

[Pugwash]

whats that , there is no direct view through the lens on to the LCD, ( even the simplest compact has that ) I was put off.

I believe the Canon EOS450D does that, but it's still at 'new camera' prices.

As for hints, the more I use my DSLR, the more I realise that it's also a decent point-and-shoot. For watches, use the manual settings and take your time, but for the rest of it, walk around for a weekend just shooting everything on the automatic settings. Learn what the camera does and how it reacts to your pressing the button in different modes. Have fun, enjoy it. See what it can do and what it can't.

[hyster]

I bought a 400d a couple of months ago and am still slowly learning. A book that seems to be often recommended is Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson.

If you are serious about learning taking great pics I would pick up a copy.

Completely agree with Pugwash about the macro, extension tubes are cheap and let you get really close without spending lots of cash.

I have a pdf of the above book (not a great scan but readable) and a video that I found helpful explaining how to get into manual mode, if you are comfortable downloading it feel free to pm me.

I am surprised to say I don't miss the liveview thing, I really thought I would, I can see how it might be useful for macro work, but you just don't hold a Dslr the same way you hold a point and shoot while taking normal pics.

A friend has the E410 and its a really nice camera, the kit lenses look really good quality.

[Pugwash]

I am surprised to say I don't miss the liveview thing, I really thought I would, I can see how it might be useful for macro work, but you just don't hold a Dslr the same way you hold a point and shoot while taking normal pics.

For Macro pics, if you're semi-serious, you'll be managing it all from the computer anyway. While you don't get live views, you at least get them at decent resolution immediately after taking them and can tweak, reshoot, tweak, reshoot ... An LCD on the back of the camera isn't nearly high enough resolution to see if you got the shot right.

Oh, and for those with glasses that are new to the world of SLRs, a DSLR works fine without needing to take your specs off.

[rodwc]

For Macro pics, if you're semi-serious, you'll be managing it all from the computer anyway. While you don't get live views, you at least get them at decent resolution immediately after taking them and can tweak, reshoot, tweak, reshoot ... An LCD on the back of the camera isn't nearly high enough resolution to see if you got the shot right.

Oh, and for those with glasses that are new to the world of SLRs, a DSLR works fine without needing to take your specs off.

All this is very , very interesting and intriguing. ( since reading Pugwash`s lume image experiments, and computer control ).

Whilst attempting to find my way around the camera settings , ( this will come far easier with experimenting and fiddling )

the concept of managing this from a computer is a bit baffling.

From the camera comes a single usb2 cable, to the computer, ( into which program ?), the camera shutter button is still pressed ??

From the point of view, "use the manual settings, to see what the camera can do ," I don`t mean to sound flippant, but can`t the auto mode setting do this?

Please tell us all more , as I am certain that more people than I , are very interested in this.

Thanks for your time.

[Pugwash]

From the camera comes a single usb2 cable, to the computer, ( into which program ?), the camera shutter button is still pressed ??

That depends on the Camera. I don't know your camera but read the manual.

From the point of view, "use the manual settings, to see what the camera can do ," I don`t mean to sound flippant, but can`t the auto mode setting do this?

You're never going to learn your camera on auto-mode. If all you want to do is take the occasional photo of your kids, keep it on auto and snap away. You'll get adequate photos most of the time. If you want to take perfectly lit photos of watches, you'll need to learn the manual modes.

[Guest ThePhilosopher]

Full Auto SLR - you may as well have a PnS to be honest. Auto can be fooled easily with the addition of a flash - sure it'll expose the image and auto focus, but it's not able to control aperture to control DOF or shutter speed to blur or stop motion. If you really want to understand photographs shoot manual.

To shoot tethered to a computer with an Olympus Camera you need Olympus Studio 2.x.

I shoot Olympus DSLRs too. If you have any questions feel free to PM me.

Power cord and sync cable for a Bowens Monolight

Bronica ETRSi w/75mm lens

E-500 w/35mm f/3.5 Macro

Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8

ZD 70-300mm f/4-5.6

Microsync Triggers + EC-25

E-1 w/35-100mm f/2

Edited March 15, 2009 by ThePhilosopher