Digital Cameras are back baby…

Meerkat at Bristol Zoo.
Meerkat at Bristol Zoo taken with a Sony DCR-PC110E

According to a BBC report, digital cameras back in fashion after online revival.

Digital cameras from the early 2000s are becoming must-have gadgets for many young people because of a burgeoning trend online. And in the past 12 months, videos with the hashtag #digitalcamera have amassed more than 220 million views on TikTok.

…and to think I still consider this *new* technology! 

One of my favourite photographs, which was taken with a Sony Cybershot Digital Camera in 2004.

My first digital camera was HP PhotoSmart digital camera, this 0.3MP camera used proprietary memory cards, didn’t have a LCD on the back, went through batteries real fast and as for picture quality, well it left a lot to be desired, though outside shots weren’t too bad!

Houses of Parliament taken with the HP Photosmart

There is no way to view pictures on the camera, so you needed to upload them to a computer first.

Since then I used various digital cameras, including other HP PhotoSmart cameras. I then moved over to Sony Cybershot cameras, and I had about three of them.  I still have one that I use now and again, though I seem to have lost the card reader for Sony’s proprietary Memory Sticks which the cameras used.

I also had a Canon EOS 300D for a while and I did think it took some really good photographs.

Hand sculpture
Sculpture taken with a Canon EOS 300D

I bought a Canon EOS 400D back in 2007 and I still use on a regular basis today. 

It’s not very good in low light conditions, this is when I use my iPhone instead. Today I take nearly all my photographs using an iPhone.

coast
Spanish coastline panorama taken with an iPhone 13

I am thinking though of getting a replacement for my EOS 400D

Centon Flash on the EOS 400D

I realise that I don’t write about my digital cameras much on this blog, I have talked about other cameras, but not mine.

I originally had a film Canon SLR and about six or seven years ago I got a Canon EOS 300D Digital  SLR which back in 2007 I upgraded to the Canon EOS 400D.

One of the original reasons for going for the Canon DSLR was that I hoped to use my Canon accessories with my new camera. The lenses seemed to work fine, but I could never get my Centon Flash unit to work with my Canon EOS 400D. I just put it down to new camera, old flash!

Today I was going through a box and I found the Centon Flash and I thought, why not have another go, so I did and yet again it didn’t work.

So… I know lets use Google!

Found this blog entry which though talking about a different Centon Flash unit made this useful comment.

I had to tape over the four communication pin contacts on my 400D with electrician’s tape – it won’t fire the flash otherwise when it is mounted on the hotshoe.

So using a bit of tape I taped over four of the contacts and tried the flash…

It worked!

Simple.

When you know how.

Phone Tossing Pictures

You know that annoying delay when you try and take your picture with a mobile phone camera, well you can use it to good effect.

Update: image removed from remote server…

Olympus E-3 Review

Digital Photography Review has posted a review of the Olympus E-3 EVOLT and the reviewer was very positive about the camera, but was less sure if people would switch.

To start with there’s no doubt that the E-3 is, without a shadow of a doubt the best Four-Thirds camera ever made and a more than worthy (if a little tardy) successor to the original E-1. It offers users of Olympus ‘mid range’ SLRs an affordable way to upgrade to a faster, even more customizable camera with a pro-grade weatherproof body and a significantly bigger, brighter viewfinder. But does it offer enough to tempt users of other systems over to the Four-Thirds camp? The answer to that question is far less clear-cut.

I really like the Digital Photography Reviews as they are so thorough including sample and comparative shots, if you want to get a camera, I would check the review on Digital Photography Review first before anywhere else.

Digital Photography Reviews

Digital Photography Review has recently reviewed quite a few digital cameras these are well detailed and thorough reviews and well worth reading if you are interested in getting a new digital camera.

Olympus SP-560UZ

Canon PowerShot SX100 IS

Sony Alpha DSLR-A700

Panasonic Lumix DMC-L10

The Sony looks like the one I would buy if I was buying a new digital camera, but then I am very fond of my Sony Cybershot and would be interested to see how their SLRs perform compared to my Canon.

Fujifilm Finepix F50fd Review

Digital Photography Review has posted a review of the Fujifilm Finepix F50fd, a compact 12MP camera.

Like any sequel the F50fd was always going to suffer by comparison to its illustrious predecessor, so is Fujifilm’s new flagship compact a Godfather II or a Matrix Reloaded? The answer, unsurprisingly, is that it’s neither one or the other, but something somewhere in between.

Fujifilm Finepix S8000fd Review,

Digital Photography Review has posted a review of the Fujifilm Finepix S8000fd.

Like the other 18x zoom / 8MP cameras on the market the FinePix S8000fd is a camera that tries to be all things to all men, and in some respects it succeeds, in others it shows the limitations of current compact camera technology in a very stark manner.

As with other DPReview reviews, I do like the way in which they compare the cameras they review with similar cameras, which means when it comes to making a choice you have a much better idea about what each camera can and importantly can not do.

Olympus E-510 EVOLT Review

Digital Photography Review has posted a review of the Olympus E-510 EVOLT and the reviewer was very positive about the camera.

I’ve been using the E-510 for an unusually long time – the delay in publishing this review meant I ended up living with it for several months, which allowed me to really get to know it in the same way an owner would. And my overall impression, I have to say, is very positive indeed. 

I often think these long term reviews are so much more useful and realistic than someone having the camera for a few days or even a few hours. It’s only after a lot of use that  you really get to know the ins and outs, the things that work well and the things which annoy you.

Nikon Coolpix P5100 Review

Digital Photography Review has posted a review of the Nikon Coolpix P5100 and it didn’t go down well with the reviewer.

Ultimately, for us, the P5100 was a disappointment, but not a surprise.

I really like the Digital Photography Reviews as they are so thorough including sample and comparative shots, if you want to get a camera, I would check the review on Digital Photography Review first before anywhere else.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18 Review

Digital Photography Review has posted a review of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ18.

…the FZ18 is a well built camera with a brilliant user interface and a superb range of photographic controls. The excellent quick menu gives you comfortable access to all important settings and the entire menu structure is designed in a way that’ll let you know your way around the buttons without any problems after a couple of days or so. There is a very comprehensive range of manual controls, so the choice is yours; you can leave all the thinking to the camera or adjust all settings to your preference. We found the FZ very responsive and quick all around and the efficient stabilization system is a very welcome feature, especially at the tele end of the very long lens.

They do seem to like the camera.

Personally I am not a great fan of this kind of camera format, too big to be easily carried even though generally you will get better pictures, but likewise none of the flexibility you get with a digital SLR.