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So I am still a novice. However, my early results clearly say to me that my current setup will be plenty good for what I'm trying to do, and once I gain more experience I should be able to do some very high quality images.
I believe you're going to be just fine, Saruma.
Here's the problem, jaycutler. Taking good coin pictures is going to cost you, one way or the other. The less money you invest, the more time you will be investing to get things right, the steeper learning curve you'll need to display, and more importantly the narrower the "sweet spot" of conditions under which you'll get nice images.
The greater the investment in initial camera quality, the easier you'll have it. This isn't linear, though - it's in levels. Under, say, $250 (which buys you a compact point-and-shoot of one type or another), the conditions under which you'll get good images are pretty similar. I've seen people do just as well with a $50 used
ebay camera as a brand-new $235, 14MP Nikon. Just do your best to acquire something with as much manual control available as possible.
The "center" level above $300 to $500 tend to be occupied by large superzoom cameras whose lenses involve a whole bunch of compromises because of that zoom. These tend to be actually pretty difficult to use well (a couple of CCFers have proven me wrong there
) without the addition of a screw-on Macro lens addition such as Saruma describes, involving yet more money. They will, however, have the advantage of a useful full manual control regimen, making them able to duplicate dSLR results albeit under a narrower range of conditions.
At the top, well north of $500, are the dSLR's with dedicated lenses which will
absolutely make a capable photographer out of you, as long as you're willing to learn how.
And learning how is the key to all of this, regardless of your equipment. Coin macro photography is among the the most linear and "objective" of all genres of photography - the most "mechanical." Specific inputs achieve specific results, time after time. You don't have to be born with the "touch" of Ansel Adams; you just have to have the ability to learn a linear process, and do it the same way (with minor changes which follow specific patterns)
every single time.
There's a whole_lot of information contained in this Photography Forum posted by people who have already walked the same path you wish to. Before you even
think about spending money, I strongly urge you to spend an evening reading this forum a few pages deep, to see what those who have come before you have done.
I will say this, though - that Canon A570 you mention will be no slouch for a camera in its' price range. The XS will require a relatively expensive lens to really reach its' potential. The specific thing you're sacrificing is ease of use, plain and simple, but if you can overcome that obstacle the A570 might....just....surprise you.
Of course, I'm an unabashed and unrepentant Canon fanboi. Be mindful of that.
Posted 10/09/2011 10:22 am
