novicenewbieboomer

Hi, I'm new to digital photography and trying to learn. Last camera bought was the first digi camera and was returned. Canon Elph. Drove me nuts to scroll thru menu to find P, A or M. Why go thru all that if there's a dial to twist? Plus the Elph didn't have the "landscape" mode. I paid $110 to take a adult ed photography class. Turns out it's called "SCN." What good is it to learn about composition etc. if can't operate the stinking camera? So now I saw a camera for $150 with dials. Oh great didn't bring make and model, but Best Buy guy said there's something called CCD and CMOS. The "old" turn the dial camera was CCD. What's that and why so bad? It's just very difficult to select a camera. My primary goal is to be able to sell things online whether ebay or craigs list and this Monday is cyberMonday. Also would like to do short videos day and night. Please advise. Just a struggle and not enjoying this. Thank you for the advice.

RiverNan Loc: Eastern Pa

if I understand you correctly and you just want to take photos of items so you can sell them on line why don't you just use a cell phone...point, shoot, upload, done. You can do short videos with your cell phone day and night too.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Welcome to our forum!

Don't worry about all the initials and abbreviations. Get a camera you can point and shoot. Auto mode usually works very well. Modern Menus are a fact of life, and each company has its own system.

Pick a camera that feel good in your hands and has the controls you want. Make sure you can return it if it doesn't meet your needs.

Good luck, and keep us informed.

steveo52 Loc: Rhode Island and Ocala Florida

Plus one, whenever I list items on Craigslist or eBay I always use my iphone's camera.

ralphc4176 Loc: Conyers, GA

CCD and CMOS are two different types of image sensors. If I remember correctly, CMOS is supposed to be better than CCD, but I don't remember why; maybe it's the other way around. In the price range you are probably seeking, I don't think you'll have a choice there. I think the Canon EOS Rebel T5 kit from B&H (www.bhphotovideo.com) for $399 plus the Canon Speedlite 270EX II flash for $139, if you need a more powerful flash than the one built into the camera, would do everything you wanted it to do and more. Another choice would be the Sony Alpha a58 with 18-55 mm lens for $498. That camera accepts Sony A-mount/Minolta auto-focus lenses, the latter of which are generally available used in very good condition for quite reasonable prices. Others may have some Nikon suggestions.

boberic Loc: Quiet Corner, Connecticut. Ex long Islander

First- I woud not trust any one at best buy regarding anything technical about cameras. CMOS and or CCD are somewhat different types of omputer chips. To get tehcnical-- CMOS is Comlementry metral-oxide semiconductors and CCD are charged couple devices. but in reality in doesn't matter. Go to a real camera store and tell them what you need the camera for. They can be very helpful.

FL Streetrodder

As Ralph said, CCD and CMOS are both types of sensors, CMOS being the newer design. CMOS is said to produce faster response times and is better suited to shooting videos or multiple frame still shots. The CMOS sensor also costs less to produce which makes it more attractive to camera manufacturers. I have cameras with CCD sensors and one with a CMOS sensor and find that the CCD sensor produces better color renditions.

orrie smith Loc: Kansas

i shoot with nikon, so i am only versed to that brand. that said, i would recommend a nikon d7100. a less expensive version would be a nikon d5300. both are great cameras, i just think the d7100 is easier to learn where all the controls are. you can buy either used on bhphoto.com or adorama.com for a reasonable price.
if you do not think you will ever get serious about photography in general, then just use your cell phone. they all take great pics for selling items online.

pecohen Loc: Central Maine

Sure, these are great cameras but probably they are over-kill for just taking pictures for online sale. Someone suggested a smart-phone and that might work for you, but I'd probably look for a point-and-shoot. One feature you probably will need is macro - being able to take extreme close-ups. That usually shows up on a menu as a flower icon.

I have an old Nikon Coolpix S9100 that I still use occasionally. Last time I looked you could buy one on eBay for about $50. Something like that would probably work well for you.

phlash46 Loc: Westchester County, New York

Get a Samsung Galaxy cell 'phone or the newest iPhone and save a lot of weight and money.

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

Keep It Simple. It appears you are not interested in using a camera. Use your cell phone. Very easy to operate and you have your images for your purpose.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

Newbie, get another Canon, because you may not always be a newbie!!!
If you're always gonna be a newbie, get anything!! :lol:
SS

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

+- $300
Close focusing capable
Use Auto mode or Program mode (ignore the rest)

You'll quickly learn that you have to learn the technical stuff just to get your pics from the camera to where you want them and to achieve better satisfaction from your effort. But you'll have a good start.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

CCD versus CMOS refers to the type of imaging sensor used in the camera... Most manufacturers started out using CCD, and a few cameras still use it today. It's fine, up to a point. It "runs hotter" than CMOS though, so tends to have more noise at higher ISO (greater sensitivity to light, needed when lighting is dimmmer).

Canon probably wasn't the first to use it, but really pioneered using CMOS in their cameras, because the image quality was better, especially at higher ISOs. Early on, no one was making this type of sensor, so Canon built their own manufacturing facility, which they are still using today. All Canon DSLRs from approx. 1999-2000 on have used CMOS. Before that, they bought their sensors from someone else (Kodak, in fact)... much like every other manufacturer.

Canon's DSLR cameras were their first to use CMOS, and for a long time their point-n-shoot digitals (such as you're looking at) continued to use CCD. All other manufacturers continued to use CCD sensors (bought from various sources) in most all of their cameras, up until 2008/2009. In 2006-07, I was shooting a lot with a pair of 8MP Canon CMOS cameras alongside a friend who used a couple more expensive models from another manufacturer that relied upon a CCD sensor and the difference in image quality was obvious... especially when we had to shoot in low light. I could use ISO 800 and 1600 without much concern, with my CMOS Canon.... She really couldn't use much more than ISO 400. As much as she liked her cameras, she replaced them immediately when the next model came out with a CMOS sensor!

Beginning about 2009, pretty much all manufacturers have converted their using CMOS in their DSLRs and have been gradually converting their entire camera lines. The last holdouts have been medium format cameras, with lower production numbers and much bigger sensors... Hasselblad, Pentax 645, Leaf/Mamiya. They've simply had no source of "better" CMOS sensor in the sizes they need... until this year. Now a MF models have begun to appear with CMOS sensors, too.

Your "problem" is that your budget for the new camera is pretty small. There are some excellent point-n-shoot models that have high access to settings, such as dedicated dials and buttons. But these tend to cost more, simply because it's far cheaper to design and build a camera where everything is done electronically in menus, than it is to provide convenient electro-mechanical controls.

"SCN" stands for "scene mode" on most of the more recent Canon cameras. "Landscape" is just one of the many Scene Modes, that's found under that setting. Those "scene modes" are highly automated, overriding many of the cameras settings, basically are some programmers' ideas how a camera should be set up to take a certain type of photo. There are so many of these "shortcut" or "preset modes" provided on most modern digital cameras, that they finally had to consolidate them under that one setting on the dial (SCN, in Canon's case), or that dial would need to be huge! You'll find most cameras from most manufacturers have something similar, unless it's a very high-end, pro-oriented camera (such as a $5000 Canon 1DX.

On Canon with "the dial"... You'll also usually find "A+" (auto absolutely everything mode) and "CA" or "creative auto". This latter lets you make many of the settings and gives you guidance what they do on the LCD monitor. It's a good learning tool, for folks who want to be more in control of their cameras. You'll also find four other modes that Canon calls the "creative" zone: Av, Tv, P and M. These are the three auto exposure modes most all manufacturers' cameras have offered for decades, plus fully manual. Often there is also a video mode on that dial, too. Some cameras offer one or more user programmable choices, too (usually labelled "C" or "C1, C2, etc." for "custom user setup", I suppose).

It sounds as if you really want more control over the camera. Or, at least more direct control over things Among Canon, if you want interchangeable lenses, then some the Rebel DSLRs would be the most affordable. The SL1 or T5 are the most entry-level models. If you live outside N. America, you'll find these models called 100D and 1200D, respectively. Same cameras, different names.

For a point-n-shoot, Canon calls them all "Powershot", I'd recommend looking at the G-series models. The G16 is a pretty neat and capable camera, for example. There are also several G_X models with different features. These start around $350 and go up to $700 or more. (Canon sells "refurbished" from their website, sometimes significantly discounted... usually just like new with same warranty, buy maybe were a demo model, or damaged box, or a return that was repaired or just wasn't the right camera for someone.)

Other manufacturers have similar DSLR and point-n-shoot models, and prices won't be all that different, at the level you're looking. Functions will be very similar, too (these guys all copy each other), though they might have different names for it.

There now is a type of camera in between DSLR and point-n-shoot, called "mirrorless". These have interchangeable lenses, but often don't have a viewfinder, rely only upon the LCD monitor for focusing and composing images. This allows them to be very compact. Even the lenses for them are smaller. Canon was one of the last manufacturers to design and offer this type camera - their "M" series - so has less camera choice and fewer lenses than some other manufacturers.

And, there's a variation of both called "EVF" or "electronic viewfinder", which allows for a more compact design. Sony, in particular, has developed a lot of these. Up until recently, these types of cameras were pretty slow to use (the viewfinder had a time lag), but they have improved a lot. Probably still not up to "sports/action" shooting, but good for many other things.

Frankly, to photograph goods for sale on eBay or Craigslist... any of these cameras is way, way more than you need! Some years ago I gave an old 1.2MP Olympus camera - that I paid about $900 for around 1996-98 - to my brother-in-law and he used it for many years for exactly those purposes. He only stopped using it and updated to a newer camera, when his Windows XP computer died. He had no choice but to buy a computer with a more recent operating system, and the old camera and media card reader would no longer work with it.

I don't shoot videos and can't advise very well about that... except to note that almost all cameras today can shoot video, too. I know all the Canon mentioned above can.

You have very basic shooting needs, which almost any modern camera can do very well. It's the camera interface where you seem to be looking for something a bit more sophisticated.

I'd recommend you go to a store that carries a bunch of different brands and models, spend some time checking them out. Find one that feels "comfortable" to you. Almost any camera can be "learned"... and there are books, online tutorials and other resources to help you do that as quickly and easily as possible. You will quite likely need to spend more get a camera that works in the manner you want, unless you get lucky with a refurbished one or buy used (I bought a Canon G5 for $40 used some years ago... still works just fine.)

Jakebrake Loc: Broomfield, Colorado

Excellent advice! :thumbup: