camera upgrade

bellaphotobellaphoto Registered Users Posts: 100 Big grins
edited April 25, 2008 in Cameras
i use a Nikon D40, i love it but i want to step up to something with higher megapixal, resolution etc. i need it to be fast, simple to use,
I photograph children and they move around alot, i also photograph outdoors so something under $1000 would be great. any suggestions. i am new to all of this and only been photographing for a year. i love my camera but my pictures don't come out sharp and as focused as i would like. and there are sooooo many to choose from i get so confused.
i love autofocus and i would love to do close up shots that come out tack sharp and detailed........thanks

romina

http://www.rominasphotography.com
Romina Ludovico

Comments

  • PineapplePhotoPineapplePhoto Registered Users Posts: 474 Major grins
    edited April 22, 2008
    get a D80? and a 50mm f1.4 lens?

    pictures being blurry is not just the camera.
    Body: Canon 1D Mark II N | Canon 30D w/BG-E2 Flash: Canon 580EX II | Quantum T4d | Strobes & Monolights
    Glass: Sigma 70-200 f2.8 | Sigma 20 f1.8 | Canon 28-135 f3.5-5.6 IS USM
  • HarrybHarryb Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 22,708 Major grins
    edited April 22, 2008
    You can get used D200s for a lot less than $1000 now. However if you're not getting sharp images from the D40 I have to tell you its not the camera. I would try to master the D40 before I moved up to a more complex camera.

    Maybe could you post a couple of the images you're not happy with along with theri EXIF data.
    Harry
    http://behret.smugmug.com/ NANPA member
    How many photographers does it take to change a light bulb? 50. One to change the bulb, and forty-nine to say, "I could have done that better!"
  • SloYerRollSloYerRoll Registered Users Posts: 2,788 Major grins
    edited April 22, 2008
    Harryb wrote:
    You can get used D200s for a lot less than $1000 now.
    15524779-Ti.gif

    While Harry mentioned the D200 (a fantastic camera). It's not as user friendly as a D40 or D80. There's no little green option on the dial that says fully auto to just let you point and shoot on the higher end models.
    Harryb wrote:
    However if you're not getting sharp images from the D40 I have to tell you its not the camera. I would try to master the D40 before I moved up to a more complex camera.

    Maybe you post a couple of the images you're not happy with along with theri EXIF data.
    15524779-Ti.gif some more.

    Posting some shots would help us, help you :D I'm confident we can help you out. But I don't think it's the camera. I've seen some shots in here taken on discontinued models that should be "inferior" to my gear and the shots are vastly superior to mine. But this is my photographic skill, not the camera or lens.

    Having cool toys is good though. As long as you don't blame them for the shot.
  • bellaphotobellaphoto Registered Users Posts: 100 Big grins
    edited April 22, 2008
    camera upgrade
    Yeah, i figured it was more me then the camera. i hate using a tripod on little kids because they move so much and i have to chase them alot to get great candid shots. i try so hard to keep it steady.. i have seen alot of shots of kids and the amazing detail in their eyes and color clarity etc.. thats what i want to do. i am learning and practicing everyday. Thanks for the advise. i will look at the D80 :)

    romina
    i will post some shots tonight and get some feedback. thanks again
    SloYerRoll wrote:
    15524779-Ti.gif

    While Harry mentioned the D200 (a fantastic camera). It's not as user friendly as a D40 or D80. There's no little green option on the dial that says fully auto to just let you point and shoot on the higher end models.
    15524779-Ti.gif some more.

    Posting some shots would help us, help you :D I'm confident we can help you out. But I don't think it's the camera. I've seen some shots in here taken on discontinued models that should be "inferior" to my gear and the shots are vastly superior to mine. But this is my photographic skill, not the camera or lens.

    Having cool toys is good though. As long as you don't blame them for the shot.
    Romina Ludovico
  • nightowlcatnightowlcat Registered Users Posts: 188 Major grins
    edited April 22, 2008
    Have you tried setting the tripod low, kid level, get a chair, and shooting from there with a decent zoom?
  • SloYerRollSloYerRoll Registered Users Posts: 2,788 Major grins
    edited April 22, 2008
    nightowlcat wrote:
    Have you tried setting the tripod low, kid level, get a chair, and shooting from there with a decent zoom?
    Maybe your different, but shooting kids on a tripod to me is like herding cats.. Next to impossible :D
  • nightowlcatnightowlcat Registered Users Posts: 188 Major grins
    edited April 22, 2008
    SloYerRoll wrote:
    Maybe your different, but shooting kids on a tripod to me is like herding cats.. Next to impossible :D

    Well, I was basing my reply on this thread, where Romina stated she was wanting to shoot candid shots of kids.

    http://dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=91559

    And yup, I have shot photos of my cats, had as many as eight living in the house at one time, getting more than two posed in a shot is a miracle rolleyes1.gif
  • DsrtVWDsrtVW Registered Users Posts: 1,991 Major grins
    edited April 23, 2008
    D40 is a good camera. My D50 6mp can get as good of shots as my D300 12mp. Another thing you could try at a lesser cost is a monopod(easier to use) or invest in a VR lens. I recently bought a 18-200mm nikon VR(650.00) it is really amazing what you can get with it. You will stil get some fuzzy shots but will improve your % of keepers. You can even get a 18-55 with VR for around 200.00. Nice thing about lenses you can take them with you if you choose to upgrade to a new camera. OK only if you stick with Nikon but why would you want to change.
    When I upgraded to D300 it took some great shots, and a lot of lousy ones. But it made me improve my camera skills more than anything else. It force me to work on improving my techniques more than anything else.
    Keep on shooting
    Chris K. NANPA Member
    http://kadvantage.smugmug.com/
  • NikonsandVstromsNikonsandVstroms Registered Users Posts: 990 Major grins
    edited April 25, 2008
    I Have had 16 x 20 images in galleries using a D50 (same sensor as the D40) and some can even go larger, just keep practicing with the little camera doesn't seem like there's a dire need for something larger. As for your problems set your ISO 200 and 400 are the levels you want to use for sharp photos on that sensor, and for action don't go below 1/60 and for landscapes Use the focal length as your guide (and don't forget to multiply by 1.5. So for 200 mm is a 300 mm equivalent and you want an exposure of 1/300, you can get away with slow exposures hand held if you're steady but this is a good rule to follow)

    I think the biggest question for you is how big of a print are you going to make, if it's smaller than 11 x 14 your fine, the only reason I'm getting a bigger sensor is that I have a 60 inch wide Epson to use now
    http://www.jonathanbeckley.com/
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