Hello All! I'm an artist (painting and drawing mostly) and I often work with photographs. I can hold my own with a 35mm but I know nothing about digital cameras and I would like to go the digital route due to processing costs especially for large amounts of material and because I often manipulate images in photoshop to create a draft of what I then draw or paint and I'm told this would be far easier and more versative with a digital camera than a scanned photo. Thing is, I don't know how versatile digital cameras get. I need to be able to do close ups, telephoto work and hopefully night images. I'll use photoshop or other software to manipulate the image and then I'll often project the image onto canvas (or whatever)...the largest I've ever projected was 5X7 feet but it is not uncommon to crop and enlarge just a small portion of an image and I'm told that this process of cropping and enlarging a small segment is where the importance of "megapixels" comes into play. I'm writing to ask for opinions on which digital cameras would best serve my needs. I would also like to know if I have a great deal of equipment (filters, lenses etc.) for a Pentax 35mm SLR, will that equipment transfer to / work with Digital Pentax SLR? Thanks for the help! .. Gerry
it is a pleasure to talk with a fellow artist im currently a student at green river community college and im studying digital photography right now if you are not affraid of spending a lot of money i have the perfect bit of information for you computers: GET A MAC MACINTOSH COMPUTERS HAVE MORE PHOTO SOFTWARE AND EDITING SOFTWARE THEN IBM SO HEREIS WHAT YOU NEED 1. ADOBE PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS OR ADOBE PHOTOSHOP CS2 NO ILLEGAL COPYS DUE TO ADOBES NEW SECURITY 2.MAC OS X TIGER CONTAINS A UNIVERSAL CAMERA DRIVER FOR ALL DIGITAL CAMERAS 3.I SHOOT WITH A SAMSUNG PRO 815 DIGITAL CAMERA GO TO WWW.SAMSUNG CAMERAS.COM AND CHECK IT OUT IT WILL RUN YOU $925.00 BUT WELL WORTH EVERY PENNY 4.PURCHASE STUDIO ARTIST IT IS ONLY AVAILIBLE ON MAC AND WILL TURN ANY DIGITAL IMAGE INTO A PAINTING A CHALK DRAWING JUST TONS OF FEATURES $399.99 AND YOU CAN ONLY GET IT ON MAC IF YOU HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS PLEASE ASK ME OR E-MAIL ME AT SUSIEQ50510@COMCAST.NET
Hello! Thanks for responding! My computer is a HP Pavillion designed for graphics buy a friend who taught photoshop at Moore College of Art here in Philly. He too suggested a Mac but I need a PC for work and certainly couldn't afford two. I have a 12X19 pen and tablet at which I'm quite adept but could learn a lot more. I have photoshop 6.0 but haven't installed it because, so far, anything I can do in photoshop I can do in express. I need to take classes; the guy who put my computer together was going to teach me but he got a different job and moved away. I also have the full version of Corel Draw/Paint installed (my buddy taught photoshop but prefered Corel in his own work...I can't even understand the manuals). I have a couple of software packages but I don't use them; they actually do nice work but my idea of painting and drawings and the software's seem to be at odds! I'm pretty good at doing it myself anyway and even prefer by own designs by leaps and bounds...really just need a good camera. I will check out your samsung though...thanks for the tip! ...Gerry
then if you cannot afford the mac then try this get photoshop elements for ibm $79.99 u.s make sure you are using windows xp home edition or professional because elements works best with this also get microsoft office 2003 edition elements can transfer images and other artwork into documents for word and publisher and try out photoshop cs2 all you have to do is get a free adobe id account and download the trial it will last for 30 days they also have a adobe photoshop elements trial as well make sure your computer has 512 megs of ram or better elements is easier to use then photoshop cs and cs2 and that is it but like i said go and check camera stores you may find a good digital that you like i like my samsung and it might do you good to check it out online and have fun
going to digital photography school?how sweet..i started out in the b/w days ye got ye chemicals at a drug store,and for school it was the school of hard knocks.did my own color prints from negs,developed my own color negs.. had to give it up as i was chemical happy,i still have my lab downstairs..as for DIGITAL CAMERA anything above 3meg works great.. on any projects i do now.. i do work with some pixs over 500k to 1g ,on 2 windows 2000 sp-4 ntfs computers..2.4gh 3g ram 800fsb and a 3.2gh 4g ram 800fsb,i have over 78gb of pixs of all kinds. i do not use xp at all with pixs as that system is over bloated with security. now jerry1 now ye know why i am into pixs.. getting close to st.pats day,heres a pot of gold for ye all..
Thanks for the pot of gold Ireland! It'll buy me the camera! Anything above 3meg, I was told that, but I was advised to go as high as I can afford with the megs because sometime I'll crop and enlarge just a small portion of a photo and enlarge and toy with to create a draft if what I'll then draw of paint .... you seem to know more about this than anyone... would you say that this is a waste of money and something like a 5 or 6meg would be able to do this o.k.? Your advice is most appreciated.
jerry1, let me tell ye how i do my pixs,i use a cannon ae1 film camera 35mm for my good stuff..as i posted earler i do my own color negs.. when the negs are done i scan them into my computer at 2700dpi. with my scanner. i have a ton of digital cameras startinw with a sony mavica,a couple of kodaks a couple more sonys and cannon digital up to 6meg..about 20 or more film cameras i am camera poor..,..i am not that crazy..i will not pay for what there asking for a digital above 6meg,
gerry1 Take a look at the Canon Digital elphs. I got the very first one at 2megs and love it, it goes in any pocket and easy to use. the newer ones are great 4-5megs and 2 1/2" screens and a view finder too. A fun camera.
