[C300]

Originally Posted by amitk26

@C300 these pics again confirm Takmars are gem of a lens and may be Zeiss is bit over rated. If can get it try SMC Takumar 500 F1.4 and SMC Macro Takumars ( both 50 and 100) they don't come as cheap as the others taks but excellent quality and price wise lot lower then old Zeiss.

Thanks Amit. Tak 135/3.5 is currently my favorite lens. The overall size and build quality is just perfect and for that price its a steal. The macros are definitely on the cards.
The Zeiss are definitely pricey compared to Taks probably because of their German background.

[bblost]

Can someone suggest a good (500$-600$) range dslr for taking pics of jewelery.

Essentially Gemstones.

My friend designs jewelery and wants to get a good camera so she can showcase the same in a very professional but personal website.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by bblost

My friend designs jewelery and wants to get a good camera so she can showcase the same in a very professional but personal website.

Actually any dSLR can do that, but in a very skilled hand. Shooting jewelery needs mastery on lighting setup. Your friend is better off hiring a photographer who can do it, instead of spending so much on equipment and finding she can't shoot it to her satisfaction.

[kkr2k2]

Originally Posted by Samurai

Actually any dSLR can do that, but in a very skilled hand. Shooting jewelery needs mastery on lighting setup. Your friend is better off hiring a photographer who can do it, instead of spending so much on equipment and finding she can't shoot it to her satisfaction.

Samurai answered it!!! You can contact the photographers who shoot product photos!!

But if your friend want to shoot pics, its better to buy a good P&S camera like Canon S90. Normally P&S have an added advantage in shooting macro which can only be bettered my expensive macro lenses on DSLR or reverse lens jugaad!!

Originally Posted by bblost

Can someone suggest a good (500$-600$) range dslr for taking pics of jewelery.

Essentially Gemstones.

My friend designs jewelery and wants to get a good camera so she can showcase the same in a very professional but personal website.

[devil_klm]

What about a light box and P&S camera.
Bit photoshop work is needed though.

[amitk26]

Originally Posted by bblost

Can someone suggest a good (500$-600$) range dslr for taking pics of jewelery.

Essentially Gemstones.

My friend designs jewelery and wants to get a good camera so she can showcase the same in a very professional but personal website.

Well almost everyone will say hire a photographer but it is a fact that a Photographer who can take macros of Jewellery will not come cheap either.

Anyway your friend needs a basic DSLR + Macro lens + Light tent + 3/4 strobes or studio lights + Adobe PS or GIMP and braodband internet connection to read up websites like strobist and patience to experiment.

For Camera setup Canon 1000D + Tamron SP 90 will be fine for lighting etc no clear answer but willingness to experiment and try is needed.
This can not be a short term project and needs continuous investment of time.

[shajufx]

Originally Posted by ajman28

So some more questions:
1. Other than the equipment, what are the other factors which affect sharpness of a picture?
2. How can one tackle the factors affecting the sharpness?
When you say resizing and 1 step sharpening, do you mean to say this is to be done on PP?

Hope I am not misguiding anyone with my 'learning' stage answers. Answering referring to the hand written notes of my class room sessions.

Factors affecting sharpness:
1) Aperture (know the difference of DOF play in an image through f values)
2) Shutter speed (each situation will require a different speed, 1/60 is a safe zone, anything lower can affect the sharpness handheld)
3)Tripod (a must for sharpness seeking shooters)
4) Lighting condition (low light can introduce noise and spoil the sharpness)
5) ISO (higher ISO usually spoils the image = not applicable to PRO bodies)
6) Wrong method of holding/supporting of camera (right hand on shutter button and left hand supporting the bottom of body, unless its a heavy lens)
7) Focus point (if the cam has 3 or 4 points, less trouble, the more you have, the max care to be taken to get the point on the subject active)
8) Finally, there are softwares to reduce noise and add sharpness when required. But a shaky image can never be improved through PP.

Originally Posted by bblost

Can someone suggest a good (500$-600$) range dslr for taking pics of jewelery.......

Samu san has answered ! I am assuming she would love to click her own creations than hiring a PRO on a regular basis, which is going to cost money. Even a Canon 1000D/ Nikon D3100 body is enough for the purpose. Ignore the kit lens and get a Macro lens. Then comes the most important part: A soft box light tent with white and black back drops. Then you will need 2 or 3 table top lights with height adjustable stands. Once you have these things, just google and you will get tons of tutorials on how to do the settings and photograph any product.

EDIT: Ha ha Amit has answered almost the same. I am editing to add camera Tripod to the list. A must !

[tsk1979]

A P&S is far better for closups due to better DOF, and no need to stop down to get everything in focus. An overall cheaper solution too.

[Samurai]

If bblost's friend was a dentist, I would have suggested a DIY setup. That is because dental photography is purely functional, it doesn't have to attract customers.

But bblost's friend wants to showcase jewelery, to attract customers. That means she needs professional help. Product photography is not something anybody with a camera can do. Bblost's friend's time is better spent designing jewelery than trying to learn to product photography. Not everybody will have the interest. Photomacrography is one of the toughest cookie to crack.

[amitk26]

Yes Samurai you are right while I mentioned a broadband connection in list of require material I omitted time to read and experiment as essential commodity. So person has to decide what can be spared time or cash for a professional :-D

Originally Posted by tsk1979

A P&S is far better for closups due to better DOF, and no need to stop down to get everything in focus. An overall cheaper solution too.

Well everyone says this but try taking a frame filling picture of a ring where the placement of stones and intricate design is visible with P&S and also a DSLR macro ( I did that just for fun at home) and you will find the difference.

Check the ball point tip picture in this thread that is without flash but in Jewellery photography similar sized objects are being photographed. The diamonds closely packed in design these days are no bigger then a tip of ballpoint pen

I think if a person is a professional designer then the photos should be similar in quality to brochures of Gitanjali or Tanishque.

[shajufx]

Originally Posted by Samurai

...Bblost's friend's time is better spent designing jewelery than trying to learn to product photography. Not everybody will have the interest. Photomacrography is one of the toughest cookie to crack.

Agreed 100%, but we have many women who are multi-tasking in various fields ! There are atleast half a dozen women in Bangalore who are full time software engineers, but do Wedding Photograhy on a PRO level. Who knows, bblost's friend might move to full time product photography eventually

[ashok_lat]

Any idea about Lumix DMC-GH2? How good is it?

[pratim]

Originally Posted by kkr2k2

If I am in your position, I would retain my existing gear and buy the D90 with 18-55 lens!!

I like your suggestion and now more inclined towards D90. I am thinking of buying either of the following two prime lens:
Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.4D
Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D

The former one is costly. How good it will be over the later one to command such a price?

The other point of consideration is: shall I buy the D90 with 18-55 lens or the 18-105 mm that comes as a kit? The 18-105 mm will give a better range and
will be used as a default lens, mostly.

Cheers
Pratim

[kkr2k2]

Originally Posted by pratim

I like your suggestion and now more inclined towards D90. I am thinking of buying either of the following two prime lens:
Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.4D
Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D

The former one is costly. How good it will be over the later one to command such a price?

The 50 f1.4 is a very good lens. Buy if you want a little more than 50 f1.8. The little more it can do is:
1. A slightly faster lens(3/4 of a stop faster than f1.8) making it a better lens for low light over the f1.8.
2. Bokeh!! If bokeh is important to you. f1.4 makes a better lens for portraits.

Originally Posted by pratim

The other point of consideration is: shall I buy the D90 with 18-55 lens or the 18-105 mm that comes as a kit? The 18-105 mm will give a better range and
will be used as a default lens, mostly.

Cheers
Pratim

If you are retaining your old lenses, there is only one reason you want to buy the 18-105. That is you want to avoid the head-ache of changing lens!
But (this but keeps coming!!...lol).... You have already used a film camera and I suppose the 28-80 was your default lens. By now you have an idea about what focal lengths you shoot mostly!! If in your experience the 28-80mm was sufficient then you are better of going with 18-55 (equivalent to 27-82 on a 35mm camera). The money saved here can be used for buying better glass!!



PS: In my opinion a 35mm prime(35mm f1.8) makes more sense than a 50mm prime on a cropped body(here the D90) as a normal lens(35mm lens acts like a 52mm lens on D90) unless your intention of buying the 50mm lens is for portraits or street!!

[SPARKled]

Originally Posted by kkr2k2

The 50 f1.4 is a very good lens. Buy if you want a little more than 50 f1.8. The little more it can do is:
1. A slightly faster lens(3/4 of a stop faster than f1.8) making it a better lens for low light over the f1.8.
2. Bokeh!! If bokeh is important to you. f1.4 makes a better lens for portraits.

I have both and even though none of them is a bokeh champ as the any of the 85s, the 1.4 is sharper than the 1.8 at larger apertures, has better contrast and then beyond F4 both are tack sharp with a slight edge to the 1.8 beyond F8. 1.8 handles flare and blooming better than the 1.4 at larger apertures.