A good camera?

@wiccania (3360)
United States
June 12, 2007 10:23am CST
i love taking photos of flowers, the moon, musicians performing and at sporting events. anyone know of a digital camera that's good for all of those? i currently have an olympus camedia, and it's not bad. but i'm hoping to upgrade soon and was hoping for recommendations.
3 responses
@volschenkh (1043)
• South Africa
12 Jun 07
Nikon D80 SLR - Front, top and back view of Nikon D80 SLR

Main Features




10.2 effective megapixel Nikon DX Format CCD image sensor 
High-speed continuous shooting: 3 frames per second (fps) in bursts of up to 100 consecutive JPEG (FINE M-size or smaller) or 6 RAW (NEF) images

Advanced high-precision, high-performance imaging processing engine with color-independent pre-conditioning 
3D-Color Matrix Metering II with 420-pixel RGB sensor delivers consistent and dependable automatic exposure for ideal results in most lighting conditions 
Refined 11-area AF system with new Auto-area AF mode and center sensor that can be switched to wide-frame operation for broader coverage 
ISO AUTO mode automatically adjusts sensitivity between ISO 100 to 1600, maximizing available light to help achieve optimal exposure 
Seven automated Digital Vari-Programs (Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Close Up, Sports, Night Landscape and Night Portrait) optimize white balance, sharpening, tone, color, saturation and hue to match the scene.

User-selectable choice of Normal, Softer, Vivid, More vivid, Portrait, Custom and Black-and-white image optimization options 
Near-instant response with 0.18 sec. power-up and approx. 80-millisecond shutter release time lag promotes fast handling 
Top shutter speed of 1/4,000 second and flash sync speeds up to 1/200 second 
Fast image transfer via USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface and SD memory card 
Creative in-camera effects and editing functions consolidated under the new Retouch menu, including D-Lighting, Red-eye correction, Trim, Image Overlay, Monochrome settings (Black-and-white, Sepia, Cyanotype) and Filter Effects (Skylight, Warm filter, Color balance)

Multiple Exposure shooting option automatically produces an effect that resembles multiple exposure techniques used with film 
Large 2.5-inch LCD monitor with ultra-wide 170-degree viewing angle for clear image preview and easy access to settings and information, including RGB Histograms 
Selectable Slideshow function (Standard or Pictmotion) 
SD memory card storage, SDHC compatible 
Lightweight, compact body 
High-energy EN-EL3e rechargeable lithium-ion battery delivers the power to shoot up to 2,700 pictures on a single charge and provides detailed battery status information. (Battery life figure determined by in-house test parameters) 
Built-in Flash with i-TTL flash control and full support for Nikon's Creative Lighting System 
The D80 supports more than 43 AF Nikkor lenses in addition to the growing family of DX Nikkor lenses 
Includes Nikon’s PictureProject software for easy control over image adjustment and management 
Support for Nikon's new Capture NX software, which provides easier access to powerful and visually intuitive enhancement tools that help tap the full potential of NEF images
Im using the Nikon D50 SLR, but would love to have the D80. The ket is to buy good glass (lenses). Normally the fast lenses are better than the slow lenses Fast and slow refers to to a lens's maximum aperture, which is the maximum amount of light that a lens can let in. A simple rule of thumb is that a fast lens lets in a lot of light, while a slow lens lets in less light, which defines how your photos will look. Maximum apertures are measured in f/stop numbers, which are actually a ratio of the size of the lens aperture and focal length. The smaller the f/stop number, the more light is let in. An increment in the f/stop number doubles the amount of light let in, so f/1.4 lets more light than f/2.0. Of course the fast lenses are more expenses that the consumer class lenses. Here are some review articles about the Nikon D80: www.dpreview.com/articles/nikond80/ www.dpreview.com/news/0609/06092301nikond80review.asp www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/D80/D80A.HTM www.nikonians.org/nikon/d80/ www.trustedreviews.com/digital-cameras/review/2006/12/05/Nikon-D80-10MP-Digital-SLR/p1 www.bythom.com/d80review.htm Main Features 10.2 effective megapixel Nikon DX Format CCD image sensor High-speed continuous shooting: 3 frames per second (fps) in bursts of up to 100 consecutive JPEG (FINE M-size or smaller) or 6 RAW (NEF) images Advanced high-precision, high-performance imaging processing engine with color-independent pre-conditioning 3D-Color Matrix Metering II with 420-pixel RGB sensor delivers consistent and dependable automatic exposure for ideal results in most lighting conditions Refined 11-area AF system with new Auto-area AF mode and center sensor that can be switched to wide-frame operation for broader coverage ISO AUTO mode automatically adjusts sensitivity between ISO 100 to 1600, maximizing available light to help achieve optimal exposure Seven automated Digital Vari-Programs (Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Close Up, Sports, Night Landscape and Night Portrait) optimize white balance, sharpening, tone, color, saturation and hue to match the scene. User-selectable choice of Normal, Softer, Vivid, More vivid, Portrait, Custom and Black-and-white image optimization options Near-instant response with 0.18 sec. power-up and approx. 80-millisecond shutter release time lag promotes fast handling Top shutter speed of 1/4,000 second and flash sync speeds up to 1/200 second Fast image transfer via USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface and SD memory card Creative in-camera effects and editing functions consolidated under the new Retouch menu, including D-Lighting, Red-eye correction, Trim, Image Overlay, Monochrome settings (Black-and-white, Sepia, Cyanotype) and Filter Effects (Skylight, Warm filter, Color balance) Multiple Exposure shooting option automatically produces an effect that resembles multiple exposure techniques used with film Large 2.5-inch LCD monitor with ultra-wide 170-degree viewing angle for clear image preview and easy access to settings and information, including RGB Histograms Selectable Slideshow function (Standard or Pictmotion) SD memory card storage, SDHC compatible Lightweight, compact body High-energy EN-EL3e rechargeable lithium-ion battery delivers the power to shoot up to 2,700 pictures on a single charge and provides detailed battery status information. (Battery life figure determined by in-house test parameters) Built-in Flash with i-TTL flash control and full support for Nikon's Creative Lighting System The D80 supports more than 43 AF Nikkor lenses in addition to the growing family of DX Nikkor lenses Includes Nikon’s PictureProject software for easy control over image adjustment and management Support for Nikon's new Capture NX software, which provides easier access to powerful and visually intuitive enhancement tools that help tap the full potential of NEF images www.cameralabs.com/reviews/NikonD80/
@TerryZ (22076)
• United States
12 Jun 07
I love taking pictures too. But I really need to upgrade on a camera badly. Im saving for a digital camera and I know nothing about them. I will bring my husband with me.LOL Good luck with that.
@windhair (498)
• Germany
12 Jun 07
If you want to shot the professional pictures about flowers, you should get a SLR camera with a suitable lens, but is relatively expensive than the general compacted DC. So that mostly depend on your budget.