Rant: In the land of the Digicams

[DougK]

It is definitely frustrating that there isn't a truly affordable basic DSLR/rangefinder out there like the film-based K1000. Something like that would be an awesome student tool, although I'd say make it 5 megapixels just to ensure enough available resolution for an 8x10 (yes, i know you can do it with 3). That way I could have the best of both worlds: a fine mechanical camera with the convenience of digital.

If wishes were fishes...

 

[Solinar]

I call it the tail wags dog syndrome. Consumer digicams are an off-shoot of the computer industry. Consumer digicams have become another computer peripherial. Filter threads, shutter dials and aperture rings? What are those? Who needs those when there are pull-down menus and 10 or more buttons to push? 😀

 

[einolu]

I started taking pictures with a digital P&S (minolta dimage x) and wanted something to improve my photography so I started using rangefinders. I have nothing against digital, its just that there is no digital camera out right now that I can afford and enjoy. I kind of thought about saving up for a Pentax *ist but its really too expensive for me right now, also I dont like SLRs too much. What are the chances of an affordable (that would mean the $1000 range I guess) digital rangefinder in M mount coming out any time soon? I think Voigtlander should look into that. Then again film is fun too, and I like developing my own B&W shots, even if getting them on the web is a pain.

 

[Nikon Bob]

hmmm.. digital vs film.... SLR vs RF vs PnS

i use all of the above.... even the occasional disposable.... the point is to get the pic, to capture the moment in time.

choose the tool for the job.

when i go hiking/camping/climbing i take a digital because i can get several thousand pix on a few memory cards. it would require a draft animal of some sort to carry the film equivalent. when the weather is inclement i grab the Epic weatherproof (film) because i know it can handle it. i have had digital and film SLRs

ultimately the idea is to capture the moment.. someone else said there are snobs on all sides....

i guess this thread has proved it

It is all good and no sense being snobby about either way. If anything this thread proves how polarized both camps are. There are others here who would like a basic digital camera that operates like a traditional film camera and that is affordable. That is my only complaint about digital. I hate the button, button, push, push way of operating, just let me set the aperature and shutter speed in the traditional manner. The Epson RD1 comes closest so far aside from the cost being too high to be really affordable and I hope more will follow ( digital Nikon FM please).

Bob

 

[Mohan]

I personally think point and shoot digital cameras and camera phones have the potential to be a really positive step for photography but this potential is rarely realised. I see a camera as a tool just like a pencil, it can be used to make people laugh, cry or think. it can draw a picture, tell a story or simply be used to jot down a note. I think most cameras sold, just like most pencils sold are used for simply jotting down notes but they have the potential for so much more (Perhaps a rather corny analogy ).

My first post here 🙂

 

[jaapv]

If one sees what the marketing boys promise the general uninformed buyer:
Unparalleled clarity (as clear as a flawless diamond), vibrant colours, 10 Mp super blahblah I'd ditch my digilux2 immediately for this! :bang:

http://www.thpsales.com/store/viewItem.asp?idProduct=1122&idAffiliate=16&campaign=google

 

[einolu]

^thats pretty funny, sepecially the part that says: "Up to 141 pictures in built-in 16MB memory"

 

[jaapv]

Yeah-but think of the poor schmuck that actually pays 400$ for the thing thinking it will turn him into a second Cartier Bresson.......

 

[solane]

mohan, i actually like your analogy. cameras are tools. to my husband, his canon P&S digital gets more frequently used than his stash of film cameras. i cringe at his aesthetic output but he captures what he wants and is a firm believer in "i'll crop it in post". (cringe)

but i agree with earlier comments that, for as much as i wanted to believe that a dSLR would help me be a better photographer, it was teaching me to be a different kind of photographer than i wanted to be. be damned white balance! down with lens multipier! no ISO 100? eek.

yes, my D70 has a place in my camera arsenal but it is not at the center of my camera world anymore. what an expensive lesson that was!

 

[Kin Lau]

That is my only complaint about digital. I hate the button, button, push, push way of operating, just let me set the aperature and shutter speed in the traditional manner. The Epson RD1 comes closest so far aside from the cost being too high to be really affordable and I hope more will follow ( digital Nikon FM please).
Bob

The digital p&s's mirror closely their film predecessors. Show me a film p&s that has separate shutter & aperture controls (if they have any controls at all). In fact, show me a new film slr that has separate shutter & aperture dials. My 20 year old Maxxum 5000 is all push button & one multi-function selector dial, so is my XTsi, EOS 650. I believe most of the newer Nikons, Canons, Minoltas and Pentaxes are all like that, with the exception of some of the higher end models.

With good design tho, I can change aperture & shutter speeds with just my finger and thumb without looking up from the viewfinder on all my electronic film & digital slr's. I still like the manual aperture ring on my other SLR's.

OTOH, none of my RF's show the aperture or shutter speed in the VF, so I do tend to do more hyperfocal shooting or stick with one shutter speed/aperture setting. I can live with that.

 

[Nikon Bob]

Kin

You are right, push buttons, multi-function dials and multi-programne modes have been a long time evolving even in film cameras. I did not say I liked it there either. Each to his own but I wish I had a choice in the way I wish to work in digital as I do in film.

Bob