Got a crystal ball for photos... pretty cool

[robj144]

You can by these on Amazon for $15 or less. They give new creative ideas:

[music2myears]

Beautiful, great gift idea!

[Muddslide]

Those are wonderful photos. Great composition.

My younger daughter is very into photography. I was too, many years back in the pre-digital age. She has a much better eye than I ever did.

My sweetheart is wanting a decent digital camera for Christmas and I'd love some suggestions. I can read reviews and such, but I know diddly about digital cameras.

My daughter recently got some Sony camera she is really happy with. She got some kind of mad Black Friday deal on it.

I'm sorry to derail the thread, but would you have any suggestions on a good hobbyist camera in the $250-ish range?

I know that is not much to spend on a nice camera, but my Lady isn't a pro or anything. She just wants something decent she can take with her places and shoot for fun.

[robj144]

Originally Posted by Muddslide

Those are wonderful photos. Great composition.

My younger daughter is very into photography. I was too, many years back in the pre-digital age. She has a much better eye than I ever did.

My sweetheart is wanting a decent digital camera for Christmas and I'd love some suggestions. I can read reviews and such, but I know diddly about digital cameras.

My daughter recently got some Sony camera she is really happy with. She got some kind of mad Black Friday deal on it.

I'm sorry to derail the thread, but would you have any suggestions on a good hobbyist camera in the $250-ish range?

I know that is not much to spend on a nice camera, but my Lady isn't a pro or anything. She just wants something decent she can take with her places and shoot for fun.

If you don't mind used, there are many cameras in that price range. I got a Sony NEX-F3 on clearance at Target about 5 or 6 years ago. I didn't really need it because I had a DSLR, but it was insanely cheap because they were closing them out. Anyhow, the point is, that little camera is still great to this day. It's always in my backpack and I've used it to take some great shots. Here's one with the kit lens:



So, there are cameras with better sensors, but you can pick up those Sony NEX cameras for very little these days on eBay or other sites. Here's eBay:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sony-Alpha-...41B:rk:31:pf:0

Charger isn't included on that one, but it charges with micro-USB... same as most phones so the same charger can be used.

Also, KEH is good for used gear. They have good descriptions on the condition too. Here are bodies:

https://www.keh.com/shop/catalogsear...lt/?q=sony+nex

Kit lens:

https://www.keh.com/shop/sony-sel185...y-e-mount.html

Or you can look around for a different lens. Since you have done photography in the past, you might want to look into a prime lens instead though. This is a really nice one for a Sony:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sigma-30mm-...!-1:rk:18:pf:0

Depends what you want, but you should be able to find a decent body/lens combo for $250 to $300 and it will take great pictures.

[hornrocker]

Very cool!

[Acousticado]

The photos are so good, I can see the callous on your pinky!

Seriously...seriously cool photos!

[robj144]

Originally Posted by Acousticado

The photos are so good, I can see the callous on your pinky!

Seriously...seriously cool photos!

Ha. You can if you look close. Didn't notice.

Thanks!

[robj144]

Originally Posted by hornrocker

Very cool!

Thank you!

[robj144]

Originally Posted by music2myears

Beautiful, great gift idea!

Thanks. Definitely look into it. Here's the one I got:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[BrunoBlack]

Very nice! I showed my wife and now...she’s got a crystal ball coming from Amazon.

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by robj144

You can by these on Amazon for $15 or less. They give new creative ideas:

What fun

[seannx]

Great photos! Reflections are always a problem when I try to photograph crystal balls in my sphere collection, as in the photo below, taken my new iPhone XS (amazing camera BTW.) It's really hard to capture what's inside, without getting annoying reflections from lights, or in this case the window mini blinds.
Now you've given my inspiration to include reflected nature scenery, like in your pictures, in a creative way. Thanks!

[robj144]

Originally Posted by Haasome

Very nice! I showed my wife and now...she’s got a crystal ball coming from Amazon.

Cool. She'll have fun.

[robj144]

Originally Posted by seannx

Great photos! Reflections are always a problem when I try to photograph crystal balls in my sphere collection, as in the photo below, taken my new iPhone XS (amazing camera BTW.) It's really hard to capture what's inside, without getting annoying reflections from lights, or in this case the window mini blinds.
Now you've given my inspiration to include reflected nature scenery, like in your pictures, in a creative way. Thanks!

Yes, the amount of light coming through must be more than the light behind you. Outside works better.

Thanks.

[Glennwillow]

Beautiful photos, Rob! Very cool!

- Glenn