Beginner newbie camera advice for this project

[dee1979]

Hi all,

I'm new on here and a complete newbie in the world of photography. I notice there are a few of the same posts regarding best cameras for beginners and don't want to create another of the same posts. Whilst I've read a few of these posts I wondered if there was a particular camera suited to the current project I wish to undertake which is explained below.

I am an artist/sculptor and want to incorporate small scale model figures into some of my artistic 3D scenes. These are very detailed figures in the size of 1:87 (HO Size). I want to take pictures of my scenes which I can then turn into prints up to say A3 size. With the figures being anywhere from 15mm-25mm the faces and features are very detailed up close but will loose detail if not using the correct camera.

Could anyone give me some advice on some models and as I would probably have to pick up a secondhand camera. I don't have a massive budget but any advice on the kinds of brands/pixels/lens I should be looking for for would be a great help.

many thanks in advance.

 

[Craikeybaby]

I think with this sort of "macro" work, you would be better with a smaller sensor camera, rather than a DSLR. It is probably also worth considering the lighting.

 

[Harlequin565]

I don't have a massive budget

Hi Dave. Welcome to TP. I know you say you don't have a massive budget, but a ballpark idea would really help folks. No point in someone typing out a recommendation for a £500 camera if your budget is £50.

As Lewis mentions, lighting is also important. If you could give an example of the sort of thing you're trying to photograph (can it be moved, or do the lights need to be moved to it?) that would also really help.

 

[GreenNinja67]

I'd suggest an Olympus M4/3 camera and their excellent 60mm macro lens.

Maybe an EM1 MK2 body if funds allow?

Probably get both for around £550 - £600

 

[dee1979]

many thanks for your replies so far. Regarding what i'm trying to photograph, I'm basically laying out small scenes that I have made onto a table with a white background. These might include little street scenes etc that will combine detailed tiny little people placed in various positions (hand painted resin figures HO size). I don't require any outdoor work or anything that is extremely close up. All will be aerial type of shots but i'd like to be able to capture these figures so that the detail isn't lost. I don't need to zoom in overly close but would like something better than my current Iphone takes so I could possibly then turn them into suitable prints up to A3 size.

I don't have a large budget at all and can also do a lot of additional after work within photoshop such as adjusting levels and contrasts etc. Once I get set up if I feel there is reason to invest then further down the line I would happily spend a few hundred pounds but at the moment looking for anything secondhand that might be suitable or even a lens that I could attach onto a phone...I'm very new to photography so very unsure as to what is best for such a project. Some of the cameras for macro photography are very expensive and are probably not what I really require at this moment as I'm not looking for extreme close ups of 1 figure I just want reasonable aerial shots and pictures from a short distance away capturing small scenes.

 

[ancient_mariner]

I'm going to suggest something different to my usual advice, but from personal past experience, try a Samsung S850 compact camera - available on ebay between £20 and £50.

It has a larger sensor than a typical compact, and the macro mode (for the close ups you may want to do) works well. At ISO50 images are very clean with good dynamic range. Examples:

500px

500px.com

500px

500px.com

 

[dee1979]

I'm going to suggest something different to my usual advice, but from personal past experience, try a Samsung S850 compact camera - available on ebay between £20 and £50.

It has a larger sensor than a typical compact, and the macro mode (for the close ups you may want to do) works well. At ISO50 images are very clean with good dynamic range. Examples:

500px

500px.com

500px

500px.com

many thanks for this reply, I will take a look for this model. I've spent all day looking at different models, but for someone that's a complete novice I haven't got anywhere and it's all got very confusing.

Just out of curiosity, if I have a huawei P20 phone. Would this camera you have recommended take better pictures than my phone? I have never really managed to take any decent photos from this phone as it seems to have a constant zoom which leaves edges blurred and is not suitable for my project. However, the actual quality of photos is excellent so just wondered how they match up in comparison?

 

[Harlequin565]

A3 prints are going to be a stretch for a phone camera unless you don't look too closely or are prepared to do some post processing. Is the field of view on your phone adequate for your purposes, or do you find yourself zooming in a lot? (or wishing it was wider?) A quick Google shows your phone to have a 28mm field of view, and the Samsung Toni mentioned appears to be at its widest at 38mm which is quite a bit narrower (bigger mm numbers = more zoomed in, lower numbers = wider).

I would also recommend a decent compact, but it would be good to know what sort of field of view you need for your images, especially at the widest end. A [Canon/Nikon/Panasonic/Sony] 12ish Megapixel compact with 28mm at the widest should do the job. I see a Canon Powershot G10 on eBay at the moment for less than £100 with the later model G12 for a bit more.

 

[ancient_mariner]

Just out of curiosity, if I have a huawei P20 phone. Would this camera you have recommended take better pictures than my phone?

Yes, I think it would. Do bear in mind that it's 'only' 8 megapixels so you won't get incredible detail with it, but taking the extremely low cost in account, it should be very usable. Take a look at the other pictures I shot with it to see what you think: https://500px.com/p/AncientMariner?view=photos

I'll see if I can dig out some full-size unprocessed pictures later (they're on a back-up drive). Out of interest, were are you in the UK? I still have one laying around un-used that you could try if it still worked after several years un-touched. I'm in north Oxfordshire.

 

[Erty]

It might be worth having a go with your phone to get an idea of what you want the models to look like. Get the camera close enough so the model fits into the scene. The distance to the model, the distance to the back of the scene and the width of the scene will be really important to see what lens type you need. If you have a go then don't worry about there being extra space around the outside of the background. That can be removed with a different lens than your phone camera has.

 

[Phil V]

many thanks for your replies so far. Regarding what i'm trying to photograph, I'm basically laying out small scenes that I have made onto a table with a white background. These might include little street scenes etc that will combine detailed tiny little people placed in various positions (hand painted resin figures HO size). I don't require any outdoor work or anything that is extremely close up. All will be aerial type of shots but i'd like to be able to capture these figures so that the detail isn't lost. I don't need to zoom in overly close but would like something better than my current Iphone takes so I could possibly then turn them into suitable prints up to A3 size.

I don't have a large budget at all and can also do a lot of additional after work within photoshop such as adjusting levels and contrasts etc. Once I get set up if I feel there is reason to invest then further down the line I would happily spend a few hundred pounds but at the moment looking for anything secondhand that might be suitable or even a lens that I could attach onto a phone...I'm very new to photography so very unsure as to what is best for such a project. Some of the cameras for macro photography are very expensive and are probably not what I really require at this moment as I'm not looking for extreme close ups of 1 figure I just want reasonable aerial shots and pictures from a short distance away capturing small scenes.

A lot of words that just padded out the original ask without answering some fundamental questions.

What’s your budget?

You need a suitable camera for ‘macro’ work, and you need to be able to control the lighting. Photography is the creation of an image using the light reflected from a subject.

If there’s no budget for flash lighting, you’ll likely need a way of keeping the camera steady. Any non flash light source will need a longer exposure.