Hey guys, I'm looking at buying a better camera for exploring, the FUJI S1000FD. I'm basically ONLY thinking about this camera for UE stuff, so honestly will this be good enough for me? I have a samsung U-CA 3 right now which is total shit; so this has gotta be a better cam then that right? Will it be worth buying a camera like this if I only plan on using it for UE? If you can't tell I'm pretty cheap, so if you are suggesting something other than this FUJI keep in mind that I am indeed cheap any help is appreciated thanks

I think that is a digital camera, so film might be an issue.

seems like every other camera thread is dead

Buy a film camera.
Get an old manual one that will take a lens that's 20mm of wider.
I'm partial to the Nikon FA. but anything will do.
Shoot Fujifilm Pro C 160 on a tripod.
If you want digital that take the hundreds of dollars you just saved, and buy a scanner.
If you want to buy a dslr I hear the canons are slightly better, but having never used one in a low light situation I don't really know.

Thanks scottula i'll have took look into an old film camera, i'm sure it's much cheaper than a digital one

I suggest checking out the Henrys outlet store at Queen and Church in Toronto. They send all of the used equipment there after it doesn't sell in stores. Last fall I picked up a Canon A2 body for $70, so I'd imagine you can get yourself an AE-1 or K1000 for $50 or less. They also have bins of old manual lenses for literally a few bucks each.

When it comes time to process, find someone with a costco account, $2 a roll for process only.


If you're looking for some cheap film, I still have most of a case of kodak 200, expired but still fine. $1 a roll.

-George

To be honest digital will be easier and cheaper. Sure you can get a K1000, but you will also have to get a light meter and have the continuing costs of film and processing. Sure you can buy cheap expired film, but if you want good shots, you should buy pro film or even meet at halfway with Reala or something, which will run you about $10.00 a roll.

I think you could learn alot with this camera, which would help you move up to a manual film camera, if you so choose. There are only two real issues I see with this camera a) maxs out at 8 sec. b) it is a fixed lens, which means you have to be careful.

Whoops! I just looked at the specifications again. The biggest issue is that it doesn't shoot raw. You would have to go the the fuji s9600 for raw, unless I am missing something.

In order to purchase a camera you can use all the time, ue or otherwise, it might be wise to consider a cheap dslr like the NIKON D40 DSLR W/ NIKON 18-55 II LENS for $469.99CAD at Henry's. If it is that much at Henry's I am certain you can get it cheaper elsewhere.

Edit: and don't forget the costs of a good scanner. I by no means trying to turn you off film. I love it, but it is a pricey and time consuming venture. I just spent the last hour scanning, spotting and resizing this picture...



This doesn't include the time waiting for the negatives to be processed and the fear that something will happen to your film before it is processed, etc. Not to mention that I am not done. I have to find some way to clean up her glasses.

Cost is debatable, if your taking your time previsualizing, and framing your shots you may find you won’t go through enough film to cover the cost of a dslr before that dslr would have become obsolete.
Obsolescence isn’t as much of an issue now as it was a few years back when I was making this decision, but there’s more to it. An 18-whatever won’t isn’t wide enough for architectural photography on an APS-c sized sensor. You’ll need to get something like the Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6D that’s $569US at B&H I don’t know what it cost used. For film you can get a used Nikkor 20mm f/2.8D $200 used, and it works on every Nikon film slr from 1979 up that’s just what I happen to use there’s one or more lens like it for every system. Most of the time I find myself using aperture priority auto exposure, many older cameras will give you a maximum exposure length over three minutes. Newer cameras only go to thirty seconds.
In the end it’s really how you want to work, and what you want to end up with That determines what camera you want to buy. If you want an all digital workflow than obviously you need a digital camera. If your looking for the highest quality images, or to learn photography that consider a film camera (digital will still work).

Posted by argonian don't forget the costs of a good scanner. I by no means trying to turn you off film. I love it, but it is a pricey and time consuming venture. I just spent the last hour scanning, spotting and resizing this picture... http://farm4.stati...0_310563bb34_o.jpg

Scanning can suck. As for spoting. Thats a problem in digital to, but you cant blow a dslr out with compressed air. If you keep dust out of your camera, and keep youre lens clean it's not as much of a problem.

Posted by argonian This doesn't include the time waiting for the negatives to be processed and the fear that something will happen to your film before it is processed, etc.

Yup.

Posted by argonian Not to mention that I am not done. I have to find some way to clean up her glasses.

polarizing filter.

I have a fujifilm S1000FD. I bought it for $220 a while back, and while it might not be a horrible camera, it's lack of manual focus, grainy artifacting, low battery life, and slow capture speed make it marginal at best. It's got nice zoom and image stabilization, but that's about it.

I rarely use mine; I mainly shoot with my Nikon N-70. You can easily get a high-quality used film SLR for a fraction the cost of a new digital. People will sell them for well under $100.

I love film, but I shoot digital most of the time. The higher quality portion of my photos I take my time with and they could be done with film without breaking the bank, but I also shoot a lot of live shows and performances. The counter on my K10D, purchased last september, is up to 12,636 photos after last weekend, which equals 351 rolls of 36 exposure film. Assuming high quality film to match the output of the camera and an equal volume the camera has paid for itself around 4 times. My last camera reached 16,000 shots or so before I gave it out on semi-permanent loan to a friend, and I only shot shows with that one for about a year of having it. I'd never have been able to afford shooting all those bands and fire shows without digital. YMMV.

I bought a FUJI S1000Fd last year and haven't had a problem with it yet, pictures turn out wonderful.