[Anteup]

Can anybody recommend a digital camera for me? I am not a professional, but I would like nice photos of my horses. Especially over fences. I always seem to have trouble with blurry legs. Or in an indoor, blurry animals. I also lack the timing to get that perfect knees up over a fence or extended trot shot, so I could use something with the capability of taking multiple shots with one click. Any suggestions?

[drs]

Canon and Nikon have many entry level DSLRs that would do the job. The thing with indoors, it depends on the lighting and you would need a fairly fast lens or push up the ISO. I would go down to a local camera store or best buy and look and see how each are and how they feel to hold.

[PiaffePlease]

Its next to impossible to get clear, crisp pictures in an indoor. Most dont have enough light, and florescent or sodium lights dont seem to help at all. Both Cannon and Nikon make nice DSLRs.

The higher the ISO, the more grainy your picture will be. Look for something that allows you to have a low aperture, like an F stop of 2.8. This is so more light can come in because the shutter speed has to be somewhat fast to stop movement. With mine, the more you zoom, the higher your F stop gets (so less light is coming in). So, if you can get closer to the subject and not zoom, you'll be able to let more light in. I looked at a zoom lens that had a 2.8 no matter how much you zoomed. So, you might look into getting the body of what you want, and get a zoom lens instead of the package of body and standard lens.

Do you have a price range?

[ryansgirl]

Nikon D3100 . I bought one a year ago and love it. I went to a huge show to try it out and took a ton of photos of a lot of upper level jumpers and I was amazed at how well they came out. I was right next to the rail (but slightly hidden due to the spectator tents so I was able to keep shooting but not interfere w/ the horses while on course) - basically I was so close that the horse and jump filled my frame. I could literally hold down the shutter and take photos a stride or two out until a stride or two after landing and was able to capture everything in between - with no blur. I have not tried it indoors yet (horse show's that is - it does fine w/ people/animals in houses). I have a university near me that does indoor schooling shows so I may try it then. But yes I would highly recommend this camera - I have been a long time Nikon user and have always been happy w/ their cameras .

[jenm]

You haven't indicated what your budget is, but I've been having a lot of fun with my Panasonic FZ40. In burst mode it shoots 10 frames per second, so I can catch all the elements of the jump which enables me to get my "money shot" each time. It also takes HD video and the software included allows me to capture single frames from the video as well.

This is what is called a Bridge Camera, meaning it's a great middle camera with the ease of point and shoot as well as allowing one to manually adjust settings.

[Trakehner]

Yep, your budget will limit your choices... I just bought a Canon D7, it's got the burst shuttter where you can take a bunch of shots in a row...just hold the shutter button down. Sometimes it's not the camera but the photographer not knowing when to hit the shutter. One problem with digital cameras is the "shutter lag"...basically the time between when you hit the shutter button and when the photo is actually taken. Some of the cheaper digital cameras can have a pretty long delay and if you get a good action photo it's strictly luck.

[Alagirl]

Ah, yes, the lag... in low light situations, sometimes the camera does not do anything at all. (also, get a tri- or monopod, while you are shopping...)


I have a Olympus E-420. It's a nice camera, but the shutter lag can be terrible in low light conditions.
Also, it's somewhat an off brand (though Olympus has been in the business for decades) which can make it hard to find decent lenses for a decent price. For shooting horses you need a 200mm zoom, bare minimum! Anything else just does not cut it.

I recently bought a Canon EOS rebel T3i. I am still learning this thing. Canon has a wide spectrum of lenses, since it is a popular brand.

Both cameras have the burst mode. Usually a runner icon.

My Nikon Coolpix I got for Christmas is pretty impressing for a little camera. The zoom properties impressed me, as I took pictures at a concert from the bleachers and still was able to get closeups of the musicians. SO can't knock the little guys either!

If you can swing it, my personal preference would probably be a Nikon, but they tend to be pricey.

[Trakehner]

Alagirl you bought a great camera in the T3i...get yourself a nice large memory card for it...a 32GB at 133-266 speed will work great with video or still photos. Should be under $40 (I just got a 64GB for my Canon D7 for under $60).

Get David Busch's book on how to use the camera, it's a great read and can help keep the mistakes down. Another suggestion, get the 2 battery holder that attaches to the bottom of the camera, they're great, lets you use AA batteries in a pinch and gives you more to hang onto. They're $59 on Amazon and comes with 2 spare batteries: http://www.amazon.com/Opteka-Vertica...0829576&sr=8-2

[Alagirl]

Alagirl you bought a great camera in the T3i...get yourself a nice large memory card for it...a 32GB at 133-266 speed will work great with video or still photos. Should be under $40 (I just got a 64GB for my Canon D7 for under $60).

Get David Busch's book on how to use the camera, it's a great read and can help keep the mistakes down. Another suggestion, get the 2 battery holder that attaches to the bottom of the camera, they're great, lets you use AA batteries in a pinch and gives you more to hang onto. They're $59 on Amazon and comes with 2 spare batteries: http://www.amazon.com/Opteka-Vertica...0829576&sr=8-2

Thanks!

[Tiffany01]

I have a Canon Powershot SX30 IS and I loff it!!

[Anteup]

I ended up asking an employee at Best Buy. i told her what I wanted and she showed me 4-5 cameras. Then I told her I wanted horse pictures and she immediately went right back to the Canon 310. She was so adamant, I bought it! We shall see! Thanks everyone!

[drs]

With the canon 310, I am assuming its one of the powershot elphs? You probably will experience a shutter lag if you are trying to capture over fences or moving photos. This may work out well outside, but in any indoor this camera will probably be very in effective for taking action photos.

To capture inside, as a previous poster said you would need a DSLR with a fast lens meaning 2.8.

[Alagirl]

I ended up asking an employee at Best Buy. i told her what I wanted and she showed me 4-5 cameras. Then I told her I wanted horse pictures and she immediately went right back to the Canon 310. She was so adamant, I bought it! We shall see! Thanks everyone!

Keep the receipt.

[Trakehner]

That is so the wrong camera for taking action horse photos. Best Buy employees typically are not knowledgeable about cameras. Hit a photo store if you can find one nearby. There are also photo forums a lot like COTH to ask your question.

Check your friends for camera owners (it'll probably be their husbands you talk to...and they'll be happy to tell you more than you ever wanted to know).

You can find a nice cheap SLR type of digital camera that will work well...Consumer Reports did a recent test on digital cameras. Check Amazon.com for cameras too, they've got a fairly decent rating system and descriptions of cameras.

[Alagirl]

http://www.martialtalk.com/forum/for...32-Photography

It's Martial arts, but the owner/admin is a photo pro.

And several semi pro/serious amis post there as well.

Seriously, take the little thing back. It's cute to have in your shirt pocket for the candid moment, but not for serious shooting.

[hiddenlake]

Alagirl you bought a great camera in the T3i...get yourself a nice large memory card for it...a 32GB at 133-266 speed will work great with video or still photos. Should be under $40 (I just got a 64GB for my Canon D7 for under $60).

Get David Busch's book on how to use the camera, it's a great read and can help keep the mistakes down.

I just got the T4i for Christmas and so far it's exceeded my expectations, but I wanted to learn more about how to use it to its fullest. I had not heard of the David Busch books but it turns out there is a T4i version. I just bought one on Amazon. Thanks Trakehner!