2023 Weekly Challenge Week 38: Canon Rebel T1i

This week's review is about another of the cameras that really inspired me to get deeper into photography, the Canon Rebel T1i.  A year after I got my Rebel XTi I saved up for an upgrade kit in both the camera and the lenses for the Canon Rebel T1i which just came out, and it was a pretty solid upgrade from the XTi I was using (which was admittedly pretty poor in indoor settings and as I started to shoot some Volunteer events that were indoors, I needed something that handled ISO noise better)

One year after I bought the Canon Rebel XTi in 2009 I saved up enough for a Canon Rebel T1i and two new lenses, the 18-55 IS kit lens and the 55-250 IS lens.  Both of those were new releases with the Rebel T1i as well, and while still "Kit" grade lenses they were the first lenses I owned that had Image Stabilization

I re-bought this camera in 2022 for $60 and for $60 this camera is an unbelievable bargin even in 2023, and I'll explain why shortly.  If you want a cheap little "backup camera" to throw in a car to take with you and have something better then a cellphone anywhere you want to travel, a used Canon Rebel (Including the aforementioned T1i) would defiantly be towards the top of that list for me. 

The Canon Rebel/KISS (Japan) or XXX/XXXXD series of DSLRs are one of the main cameras that brought higher end photography to hobbyist photographers on a budget and the masses alike. They're the Toyota Corolla of DSLRs: not fast, nothing fancy, but relatively cheap, reliable, and they will do everything to just provide you enough to get you where you need to go with photography with ease of use.

Released in 2009 the Canon Rebel T1i was the second and only other camera other then the Canon 50D to use Canon's 15mp CMOS APS-C sensor.  

When Canon would upgrade their "Budget" DSLR range in 2011 with the Canon Rebel T3, that camera would be a refreshed two generation back Rebel XSi with the ability to shoot video using the 12mp sensor and not the 15mp sensor of this camera.  

While the 15mp Canon sensor didn't have the lasting success of the 18mp Canon APS-C sensor which was produced in DSLR cameras up until 2018; quality wise there isn't a huge jump between the T1i and T2i like there is from the XT/XTi/XS/XSi to the T1i.

With the upgraded 15mp sensor and Digic 4 image processor the Canon Rebel T1i could do a Hardware ISO of 3200 with the ability to go to 6400 and 12800 via Firmware.  This was a significant upgrade from the Hardware ISO of 1600 or Hardware ISO of 1600/Firmware ISO of 3200 that was on the Canon Rebel XTi, 40D and XSi.

When I look back on cameras of this era and compare them to Modern sensors the difference between ISO 1600 and ISO 3200 or ISO 6400 doesn't seem like a lot.  But back then it was groundbreaking.  

ISO 3200 is often a sweet spot for Indoor event photography; so the ability to shoot at this speed and still have decent looking photos was a huge leap for me.

The 15mp sensor used on the T1i in addition to being higher MP was sharper and had a lot better color rendition.  I didn't have to push images in POST as hard to get them to my liking, and the output from the camera was often even pleasant and warm straight out of camera (whereas the Rebel XTi without any processing the images were flatter and did not have as much color depth or vibrance.)

The Rebel T1i also added a dedicated ISO button, freeing up one of the 4 way buttons for other function use.  This may not seem like a lot but back then being able to change the ISO without lowering the camera by simply shifting my finger off the shutter made things a lot easier to adjust settings on the fly.

Performance wise there isn't a huge difference between any Canon Rebel from the XTi to T2i (which is the range I own minus the original Rebel).  Start up and shut down time on the Rebel T1i is likewise extremely fast. 

Just like most of the other Canon Rebel series cameras the T1i has the same tell-tale high pitched "ca-chink!" shutter sound. A shutter sound which is often used for stock sound effects for cameras in TV shows and movies based on how distinct it is.

The T1i can still show its age at time and does have its limits. It is still a great camera for casual photography but likely would not be as suited for serious work in 2023 and may fall short if it is a camera you rely on heavily. 

This camera is not the best choice for capturing anything in fast motion due to its limited 9 focus point AF system (which would become standard for even the 18MP Rebels all the way up to the Canon Rebel SL1) poor AF tracking and mediocre 3.5 FPS burst shooting; but for going out and doing Street or light Event photography it's plenty responsive.  

While I would upgrade to a Canon 60D and 80D after the Rebel T1i, and later switch my primary camera system altogether to Nikon F and Panasonic Micro 43rds; the Canon Rebel series of cameras still hold a special place in my heart for how simple and easy they are to shoot. 

Fourteen years later the Canon Rebel T1i still can pull off some really nice results without a big investment in either money nor time spent on learning a more complex camera like the Panasonic G9.  

The Rebel XTi may have been my first DSLR, but the Rebel T1i really cemented my joy in photography; so I am very glad to have one in my collection once again.

2023 Weekly Challenge Week 37: Fuji S2 Pro

Back before the Mirrorless Era Fuji was among one of the first companies to make a consumer DSLR camera; a short lived design that would only be made between 2000 and 2006.  After the S5 Pro Fuji would retract from the Pro and Pro-sumer camera market and focus purely on Consumer grade point and shoot, waterproof and bridge cameras until the first X series mirrorless body was released in 2012 six years later.

Why Fuji took such a long pause from the Professional market is unknown, but they currently have a strong presence in being the most popular of the "underdog" camera market (which falls below the big 3: Canon, Sony and Nikon) and they are now the current frontrunners of having the best APS-C based camera system along with the most affordable (though still well out of my price range) Digital Medium Format system.

The Fuji S2 series all use Fuji's APS-C Dual Layer "Super CCD" chip.  They also are unique in the fact that prior to the X series Fuji did not make lenses nor had their own lens mount so they worked out an agreement with Nikon to build a DSLR that used their F mount lens system.

My S2 Pro is hobbled together from 3 non-working cameras so we can take parts of the review with a grain of salt, as one in better condition then mine may not have the same issues mine has (such as the shutter getting stuck).  That said, a lot of used Fuji S Pro bodies are heavily used and abused with really high shutter counts, and there are more non-working bodies then working ones out there.

Released in 2002 the Fuji S2 Pro was the second DSLR by Fuji to use the Super CCD sensor and Nikon F mount.  This sensor was a new sensor from the original boasting 6mp Native resolution with the ability to shoot 12mp interlaced JPEG images in "super resolution" since the camera had a dual layer non-bayer pattern CCD chip which the camera could create these enhanced resolution files from the extra data the sensor recorded that normally was not used.

This makes the Fuji S2 Pro in technicality the first DSLR camera capable of capturing high resolution photos greater then 8 megapixels, however this file would only be available in either JPG or TIFF.

The Fuji S Pro series DSLRs were known for having extremely vibrant skin tone renditions which made them exceptionally popular for Portrait Studios in the early to mid 2000's.  Nearly every used S pro body has spent some time at one point in its life in a portrait studio.

Aside from this unique sensor, Nikon F mount, and ability to interpolate to produce photos 2x the native resolution of the camera's sensor there was one other thing that made this camera stand out to me; altough prior to 2003 this was fairly common place to see on DSLR cameras in the infancy of Professional Digital Photography.

That is the fact that this DSLR camera is actually designed off of a film camera body that has an integrated "digital back" on it.  Early days of DSLRs like the Kodak DCS series this was quite common, and some would even simply be an add-on kit that converted a SLR camera into Digital with a Digital back.  

The front of this camera is powered by two CR123A batteries which powers the fully mechanical shutter mechanism and "film" portion of the camera and four AA batteries in the grip which power the digital portion of the camera.

As such, it's not a very practical to shoot these cameras as a main camera in 2023 as even with using rechargeable AA's in the grip you still need to purchase very specialized CR123A batteries as well for the "analog portion" in order to use the camera.

However with the combination of batteries even without a Li-Ion battery pack the batteries will last a long time as a result.  I shot this camera for a week, roughly 400 or so photos, on one set of AA and CR123A batteries and the battery meter is still reading "full" on both.  

The Fuji S2 Pro is hard to get an accurate reading of battery life however as the battery meter only has 3 stages: "Over 50% (reads as Full), 50% or less and nearly depleted (15% or less); and it won't tell you what batteries are low so you have to guess which ones to change out and replace when it does exhaust one of its dual power sources.

Oddities aside let's get into using the camera.  A lot like the Canon 1D Mark IIn I reviewed earlier this year the controls on the Fuji S2 Pro are completely different then any other DSLR camera I've used.  A lot of the features are only available when going into the menu during a certain mode and tapping on prompts with the 4 buttons below the rear small LCD display rather then in the camera OS itself.

The Fuji S2 Pro has one thing that sets it apart from other cameras with odd control sets from this era and that is a true 4 way control pad.  There is no need to hit a combination of buttons and wheels to navigate once you do find the menu you need to be in to make an adjustment; it can be controlled via the 4 way D-Pad as one would expect.

Like the Nikon D200 the camera's shutter has a very loud but satisfying fully mechanical click. These shutters as I found out are prone to getting stuck but unlike most DSLRs the actuation of the shutter mechanism is fully spring-loaded instead of being motor driven so you can often un-stick a stuck shutter by simply pressing the shutter release again, and it will reset it to its starting position having just lost a single photo.

This means that while the shutter failure rate on these cameras is high, it isn't a death sentence to have one with a stuck shutter as they often can be unjammed simply by pressing the shutter release.  I noticed mine was the most prone to stick if I fired off two shots in rapid succession; so I didn't dare try the camera's burst modes.

The Fuji S2 Pro is fairly responsive to take photos especially when you consider it is a digital camera that is over two decades old. That said, the write speeds on the S2 pro are really slow especially if you shoot RAW or TIFF; and the camera can only take up to a 2gb flash card. Combined with the shutter issues mine had, this would be the last camera I'd want to be stuck with if I had to do any amount of burst shooting.

Overall for a DSLR that is old enough to legally drink this camera is still fun to shoot if you have patience.  This wouldn't be my first choice for a daily shooter or something to keep in the car for several reasons but that Super CCD sensor still creates some really crisp, amazing and unique photos some 20+ years later.

2023 Weekly Challenge Week 36: Sony f828

Back in the early 2000's the Digital Camera market was a Wild West of different features and designs.  You had your traditional pocket sized cameras (which all fit in many different sizes of pockets), cameras that wrote to Floppy Disks, CDs and a number of different dead memory card formats which didn't last past this era (such as Smart Media and XD).

And then you had a lot of different cameras that had unique designs to make them stand out from the crowd, and one of the companies leading this "let's make our camera different to stand out" charge was Sony.

Since I don't own either a floppy or cd based Sony Mavica that camera is not likely to be on this review unless I find one in working condition and decide I want to go through the pain of writing and transferring files off of one by the end of the year. 

So the current strangest and most unique camera in my collection from a design point of view is this one; the Sony f828

Released in 2003 the Sony f828 was the last camera in the fXXX line (though the R1 would be a spiritual successor of sorts) that started with the Sony f505 in 1999.  By design these cameras were pretty much like a camcorder and digital camera melded together into one unit with a unique dual body design where the back half of the camera aka the "screen section" pivoted on the front half or lens portion of the camera.

Ergonomically this camera handles really nice as a result, even if you get a lot of strange looks while out shooting it.  But that isn't the only thing that makes this camera unique...

This camera has a 2/3" 8MP RGBE CCD sensor; which adds a 4th color to the RGB array of a traditional CCD sensor (Emerald).  Sony claimed that this made this sensor more vibrant; but when compared to other CCD sensors of the era the look is still very simmilar.  

The Sony f828 does indeed have that wonderful high-contrast vibrant look; but so does any other camera with any other CCD or Non-Bayer pattern sensor such as the previously reviewed Canon Powershot Pro 1 and Minolta DiMage A2 which were both direct competitors to this camera.

The fact that it is a unique sensor does add to its cool factor along with its funky design. This camera is a great piece to have just as a conversation starter on how whacky digital photography used to be.

One unique feature that this camera has is the Nightshot mode which can be "tricked" using a magnet to record full spectrum Infrared Photos in daylight.  There are a few reviews about this feature out there; and sadly I just didn't have the time nor desire to try this feature out.

I haven't done any IR or Full Spectrum photography this year; and as such I'm not reviewing that convertible aspect of this camera nor the Sigma SD15 (which I still have yet to review) nor am I reviewing the two full IR converted cameras I own either for this project.

Compared to the Minolta and Canon equivalent cameras I enjoyed shooting the f828 the most overall.  It has a much brighter LCD screen which meant I could shoot it easier even with the screen in outdoor lighting.  

The lens on the Sony f828 also has the least amount of distortion of these three early 2000's bridge cameras when it managed to get focus (as I will get into a little later) and the mechanical zoom meant I didn't have to sit and wait for a slow electronic zoom motor to engage and zoom in or out to frame my shot.  Not to mention if you turned the camera off the zoom would stay at the same focal length as where you set it; something people who shoot Interchangeable lens cameras often take for granted.

Perhaps this combined unique ergonomics with a power switch that was located in an appropriate place and was not easy to accidently hit added to my overall positive experience with this camera.

That said, it's not all sunshine and rainbows as this camera runs into many of the same issues that most Digicams from before 2010 run into: Slow write speeds (especially in RAW), Shutter lag or delay, startup and/or shutdown delays, a noticeable lag when navigating menus the whole nine yards.   

Additionally the one thing I noticed about the Sony f828 over the Canon Powershot Pro 1 or the Minolta DiMage A2 was its Autofocus failed a lot more often and took photos before the camera had locked on focus, giving me a decent amount of unusable shots from this camera.  Good thing that pixels are free...  

In the end all three of the early 2000 bridge cameras I reviewed this year all fall short of what I'd consider acceptable for daily use without being frustrating to use one way or another; whether it be unusable RAW recording, slow autofocus, shutter delay, lack of a real burst mode, or chromatic aberration there are many things that would make me pull my hair out if this was a camera I had to rely on.

But overall this camera is still a lot of fun to shoot inspite of its limitations perhaps in part of just how strange it is.  Just like most classic CCD sensors: you really don't want to shoot this in lighting that will push the ISO past 400. 

So while the Sony f828 has good lighting and if you can be patient and take photos of things you can take your time with, you can still get some pretty impressive images with it two decades later.

The Stigma against Zoom Lenses and Street Photography and why I prefer shooting Zoom for Street Inspite

There are a number of "Stigmas" when it comes to the Professional or even Hobby photography realm and I don't believe or follow any of them. 

People who adhere to these stigmas are pretty adamant about it and if you dare tell them that you do something differently they will get all huffy when you try to offer a different way of taking photos as valid compared to what they are "used to" or "comfortable" with.  

 A few notable Stigmas within the Photography world are:

• Gear Snobs aka Full Frame is the only valid Digital Camera Format (I touched on this one earlier)
• Pocket Cameras are useless- your Phone is Better
• Any camera more then 5 years old is trash
• Cheap kit and superzoom lenses are useless and can't take useable photos
  
• A 50mm prime on a APS-C crop is rubbish (but an 85mm lens on Full Frame is OK)
• Using a Zoom Lens for Street Photography is a Moral Sin - "Real Street Photographers" ONLY shoot Primes

Today I'm going to just focus on the last of these bullet points, and go into detail of why I "Enjoy being a Heretic and using Zoom Lenses for Street Photography" (and also feel I miss a lot less shots because of it).

A good parallel to these stigmas is how Americans view how Steak is cooked, or putting Ketchup on Hotdogs. Myself I like a well-done or medium well done steak, and a lot of people have gotten offended by this (including having someone block me on social media for stating I like my meat not-raw), and I still to this day don't understand why my preference should offend them.

It's my steak, my food.  Let me enjoy it how I like it and if you want yours straight from the package and being on the grill for only 3.5 seconds and no more then fine, you do you.  

Same goes for Ketchup on hotdogs; why should this be something you are going to go out of your way making a scene about and ruining your day just because I prefer a different condiment on my ground up meat tube then you do?

 

In the end Photography is about getting the shot and whether you use a Prime Lens, Zoom Lens, Pocket camera or yes even a Smartphone use what tools works for you.  

Don't let someone else give you a set of tools with your favorite ones taken out to craft your images simply because they prefer using different tools then you do.

 

I like Ketchup on my Hotdog.  I like my Steak cooked and I use a Zoom for Street Photography every single time.  What is so offensive about any of this?

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To start this off I have been doing Street Photography seriously for about 5 years now (2018) though I did some casual "vacation photography" which could qualify as Street Photography well before that.  

Street Photography is what kept me sane during the Pandemic because I could find all this weird stuff happening around me, take photos of it, and know that after I took those photos it would be in the past and things would slowly and eventually return to something "more normal" again.

My street photography kit is always centered around a zoom lens.  Because when I am on the street I am going to take photos of every possible thing that catches my eye including buildings, people (though its NOT my main/only focus or subject), signs, window displays, vehicles and urban critters such as cats, squirrels, rabbits, various birds etc interacting in an Urban Environment.  

Zoom lenses give you the flexibility to take candid shots without having to have a 20 in the Sneak skill or be "up in people's faces" when doing street photography which is a tactic I find both dangerous and disrespectful; it's defiantly not for me.

So since I covered why I feel that Zoom lenses are superior for Street Photography and NOT Primes (a view that is backwards from just about every angry "Kids These Days" Street Photographers on Youtube) lets dive into some examples of kits I regularly use on the street and list some examples of why I enjoy these particular combinations.

You will note that none of these kits include a prime lens, and if I do shoot a prime its going to be mostly for Indoor Street Photography (such as Malls) or Blue Hour street photography.  Anything taken outside during daylight which is 90% of my Street Photography is going to be done on a zoom lens:

Kit #1: Canon Rebel (Various Models- XTi pictured) and Tamron 18-270 lens

If there was any one combination that would get a purist Street Photographer's blood boiling the fastest it would be this one. A cheap entry-level APS-C DSLR with a super zoom lens. So I am going to start with this "kit like lens" with a long reach and enjoy the purist's screams of agony while I explain what I like about this kit and why it works for me.

This kit is going to be a great all-purpose street photography rig for shooting just about any subject during daylight hours, from Street Scenes to Squirrels this lens will cover it all.

The Tamron 18-270 PZD VR lens does have Image Stabilization so you can still do some lower light photography with it provided you have steady hands and a non moving subject (I take a lot of photos of signs, storefronts, old buildings and parked cars to name a few so I certainly can work with these restrictions).

In my experience image quality on these lenses are going to be very similar to a "kit" lens having more distortion at wider apertures then having it stopped down. That said, this is still more then good enough quality especially for social media or web posting.

When shooting either kit lenses or super zoom glass I follow the mantra of "F8 and be there" when I'm doing street photography with kit lenses or superzoom lenses like this Tamron 18-270 lens (which I own for both Canon EF and Sony A mount). Stopping down to a "sweet spot" on a variable aperture lens using this method I get nice crisp respectable images every time.

Of all of the kits I'll mention I find this one to be one of the most easy and flexible for me to use. Because with a long focal range you won't miss a shot of having to run across the street to get a photo of someone walking their dog one moment and the next not being able to get a shot of a wider street scene because your focal length is too narrow to take it all in.  

You can take photos of anything without having to be the fastest street runner or lens swapper in the west and will ultimately not miss very many opportunities out on a street photography walk with a kit like this.

Entry level DSLRs are also typically incredibly easy to adjust settings on and use.  Set everything you need up, set it in Auto ISO and Aperture priority mode and just go out, have fun and get some neat photos.

Kit #2 Panasonic G9 and Olympus 12-40 f2.8 Pro

This kit is going to rank up in the "higher end" kits for me.  It has a high end wickedly fast and responsive mirrorless body paired with one of the best optical quality zoom lenses of all time the Olympus 12-40 f2.8 PRO.

This kit would be something I would take out when I have an interest in doing mostly street scenes but still want some flexibility for cropping in on signs, window displays, etc.  This is also a kit I would bring with when shooting street photography in Twilight/blue hour to have good Low-Light performance while still having a small ability to change my focal length.

With this kit I would be skipping out on portraits of people or animals during this time unless they are hip shots at the waist.  This lens has more or less the same range of a "kit lens" but with a much higher image quality, so shooting an entry level camera with a kit lens would be a very similar experience on what shots you could get on the street.

The 12-40 (24-80 FF equivalent) still gives me a leg up over a prime as there is some range to play with to frame my subject in a pinch and also being slightly wider then most superzoom lenses which makes it a solid lens for street scenes.

The big advantage of this lens is that the optical quality will be the same whether I am at 12mm or 40mm, f8 or f2.8.  It's going to be sharp and distortion free all the way through its more limited zoom range.  

This kit is the closest I would ever get to being a "purist" for street photography and even then this lens is still going to be too "well done" for them.

Kit #3 Sony a290 and Minolta 70-300

The few people on YouTube that I've found who do defend shooting Zoom lenses for street photography almost always will use a compact Telephoto zoom lens like a 55-200 or a 70-300 (as pictured here).  As such there is some small amount of street cred for shooting a telephoto zoom vs a wide-portrait or superzoom zoom lens within the Street Photographer community.  

Many of these telephoto street photographers are going for Candid street shots from a safe distance so they can get the shot without risking being punched in the face or having someone shield themselves with their arms and threaten to call law enforcement, and it's a very solid tactic.  

Not all Telephoto lenses are huge, and many people in this camp will look for variable aperture compact telephoto lenses to have a compromise for reach in a lens that won't attract too much attention when seen from a distance.

Another motivation for those who will hold to Telephoto for Street Photography is that many Portrait Photographers prefer the "look" of photos of people when taken between 70mm and 300mm FF equivalent.  

Using a telephoto lens you will get a more blurred out and isolated background and less distortion/more "natural" looking faces then taking a photo of someone with a 24mm lens at 2 feet away which can give a much more distorted or "flat" look.

The biggest downside to this kit is you are going to be forced into focusing on individual aspects of Street Photography such as signs, people, displays, animals, etc and won't be able to take wider street scene shots without having a side arm camera with a wide angle lens attached or switching lenses.

Of all the zoom kits I'll mention here this is the one I use the least, as I enjoy having some flexibility to do wider shots of street scenes when I am out.  But it certainly could be a good solid kit for a challenge when someone who needs more practice in isolating a subject.

Kit #4 Nikon D7200/ Nikon 24-120 F4 VR Lens

 

This kit is my goto for higher end street photography kit in areas that are well adjusted to seeing photographers around.  Its not small nor discreet but the range and quality of the glass on this combo is supreme, along with having a high resolution and relatively modern DSLR sensor.  

Most of my street photography is done at 40mm FF equivalent to 200 FF equivalent and this lens on the D7200 is a 40-180mm equivalent lens; so it hits the sweet spot that I commonly use for street photography in one solid constant aperture Zoom lens.

I've found that the 24-120 on APS-C lens combo is the best compromise between having consistent image quality, and quickly being able to switch from a street scene focal length to one more suited for isolating a subject or getting a shot of something across a street without spending the time to get closer and therefore missing that moment.

The one downside of this kit is that it is anything but discreet.  It's useful in high-tourist areas where I can put on my "tourist" guise and take photos without any questions asked, but for some situations I need something far more discreet which brings us into the next section of this post.

Street Photography kits when I need to be more Discreet

 

On numerous occasions I have been in a situation where an interchangeable lens camera would draw too much attention, especially alone in areas I am unfamiliar with or are more inner-city, Urbex/Abandoned or bar centric regions. Going to these locations alone with a large camera can draw a lot of unwanted and potentially confrontational attention.  

This was also true of most locations during the Pandemic where tensions were extremely high just about anywhere I went as people silently judged me behind a mask with suspicious eyes.

In these situations the average person would be most comfortable just taking out their phone and snapping photos that way. While this is a very valid approach to street photography, it is not my way just as much as shooting a Lecia with a 35mm manual focus prime as a purist would do. 

Additionally in tense situations my phone is my lifeline to the outside world so if that were to get broken, stolen or misplaced while doing a venture to places unknown I would be up the creek without a paddle. 

The main reason I am going to go into the "unsung heroes of street photography: the Zoom Pocket camera" over a cellphone for discreet street shots goes back to whole point of this post: why I prefer having the flexibility of Optical Zoom instead of just running with two or three real focal lengths on a smartphone.

Another advantage of pocket cameras (and Digi-Cams) for street photography is that often times you will be running something a lot cheaper to replace then a DSLR or Phone if someone decides they want to smash or confiscate your camera for taking a photo of them (which has never happened to me, but putting it out there).

So here are a few of my more discreet and often more easily replaceable kits (except for Kit #1 which is still pricey but is still really easy to conceal.)

#1 Panasonic ZS100

 

This is the camera that took a large percentage of all my street shots in 2020 and 2021 during the pandemic. It's easy to conceal, versatile and has image quality that under the average outdoor street photography conditions easily rivals what I can get off my larger kits.  

Like the last combo of the previous section the ZS100's 25-250mm FF equivalent zoom hits a very similar sweet spot of focal ranges for my street photography useage all in one small quick to activate, shoot and conceal package.

The ZS100 is a modern high end camera that still costs upwards of $300-500 to replace.  So while this is a great jack of all compact street photography kit I would not take this camera to a higher risk situation 

That said I tend to overall play it pretty safe and avoid Protests, etc even if they make for very powerful Street and Photojournalism photography, so in most situations I am in having a smaller camera that attracts less attention is enough to keep me safe from conflict.

For those who do cover such sensitive and explosive situations for street and photojournalism I recommend seriously considering one of the options in my next recommendations as those are all fairly easy to replace at less then $100 a piece.

#2 Canon Powershot S90

 

 

 

In situations where I want something even smaller then the Panasonic ZS100, cameras like the Powershot S90 come into play.  

Like the kit #2 in the previous section this package trades a longer focal length zoom for one that is faster and better in low light.  This makes this camera ideal for taking photos inside stores and malls where Security may otherwise be wary of street photography using larger equipment that will attract undue attention.

This camera is still a fairly high end pocket camera in its day that can still do a lot such as record files in RAW, and the replacement cost of such a camera is often around $50-70.  

#3 Canon Powershot SX280

 

Sometimes I find myself in need of combination of Discreet, cheap and a wide "superzoom"  range of greater then what cameras like the S90 or even ZS100 can offer.

This is where cameras like the Powershot SX280 come into play.  Falling somewhere between the S90 and ZS100 in physical size they compromise both compact size and great optical zoom for a slightly worse Image Quality and poor Low-Light capabilities.  

Given that a lot of my street photography is done in full bright sunlight, not being good in low light is not a dealbreaker for me. 

While cameras like this will have a lot less consistent results then any of my larger sensor ICL cameras or more premium pocket cameras I've still managed to capture some of my best street photography moments on inexpensive compact super-zoom packages like this camera even if they often lack the ability to shoot RAW and may lack the ability of having full manual control over the camera settings.

#4 The Digi-Cam (Casio Exlim Z850)

Have a compact camera sitting in a drawer at your Grandparent's house that they haven't used in 15 years?  Seen an old digital camera at a Thrift Store for $15?  You'd be surprised that these little point and shoot cameras do surprisingly well for street photography and are a great way to get into Street Photography with very little investment.

As I hinted before, "Digi-cams" are perhaps the most powerful tool for situations where you are not sure what might happen to you or your gear.  Go to a protest and have your camera confiscated by the local Police?  Well it sucks to lose a day worth of emotional powerful images but it sucks more to lose a $2000 interchangeable lens camera kit when you could have carried a camera you could replace for $20 instead.

And just like a phone, most digi-cams are designed to be really easy to pick up, shoot, and shove back into a pocket without fiddling with settings, making them great little cameras for hip shots so long as you have the light to do so.

Street Photography is also a great place to take your time and really test out a camera, as well as focus more on composition rather then technical aspects such as "Can this camera shoot a photo of a performer on the stage of a dimly lit production at ISO 6400 and get something useable"?  

Taking photos with Digi-cams is becoming an up and coming trend for one simple reason; the realization that one does not need to have the best equipment to get the best photos out on the street.

2023 Weekly Challenge Week 35: Nikon D80

Earlier this year I reviewed both the Nikon D70s and Nikon D200; so now I will review the last of my CCD based Nikon DSLRs the Nikon D80.

The Nikon D80 is the successor to the Nikon D70/s and in a lot of ways is a "D200 Lite".  It shares a very similar sensor (though I have been told the Nikon D200 uses a higher end variant of the sensor that was only released on the D200) and fits squarely in the high end prosumer/mid range DSLR offering by Nikon like the D70, D90 and D7500 that offers a top screen and some pro features such as a built-in AF motor but lacks weather sealing, Dual Card Slots (though the D100 and D200 only had one). 

Additionally, both the D70 and D80 lack more robust shutter mechanisms for longer life; which was something Nikon struggled with in their early years- only the higher end bodies like the D200 and D2 were made to have a shutter life that on average exceeded 50,000 clicks. This would change at the advent of the D90 and DXXXX series cameras.

That said, average shutter life is not an absolute and both my D70s and D80 have went over that 50k threshold and are still working (the D70s at just above 50k and the D80 at around 60k) but as such are not cameras I could rely on for anything but casual shooting, another reason I am ok on letting the D80 go in the future as long as I could find the right home for it.

I got this camera in early 2022 from a Goodwill online auction. At the time I wanted an alternative to my failing D200 and I wouldn't find a decently priced D200 with a low shutter count till the following year.  

The two cameras share enough similarities (with the D200 being obviously better- it was a higher-end camera) that I may be letting this camera go as I continue to cull camera equipment in my collection,

Doing these reviews has allowed me to figure out what gear I don't shoot that often, isn't something rare (exception made for the 1D Mark IIn but the new owner of that camera is certainly enjoying it a lot more then I did), is too close to another camera in the collection I already own or just doesn't "speak" to me.  

The Nikon D80 was released in 2006 one year after the D200 alongside the D60. It sported a newly upgraded 10mp CCD 1.5x APS-C sensor; the second and last generation of Nikon APS-C CCD sensors.  This sensor would be used in a few other cameras including the D40x and D3000 before Nikon would abandon CCD sensors in their APS-C DSLR cameras.

As previously mentioned the D80 was the higher "mid range" camera that would sit above the Nikon D60/D40x/D3000 but below the Nikon D200 the flagship APS-C camera from Nikon at the time.

Overall the Nikon D80 was a lot of fun to shoot and was a lot more responsive then the D70s I had reviewed previous.  The Autofocus (though I only used lenses with built-in motors for this test) was extremely fast and surprisingly rivals/ is on par with more modern Nikon DSLRs such as the Nikon D7200.

The time to turn on, focus and take a single shot was really fast, and the write speed of the camera is fast enough that even shooting in RAW the file is saved to card before the camera is ready to take another photo.

But the thing that really impressed me the most was how sharp and distortion free the images taken on the D80 were. During the entire week I only shot the D80 using the 18-105 and 55-300 which are both APS-C "higher end kit lenses" and they felt like pro glass on the D80 based on how fast and accurate the autofocus was and how sharp and distortion free the images were.  

Slapping these same lenses on the D7200 the images taken with these lenses look "ok" but you can defiantly tell that the colors/contrast are washed out, the lens is slower to focus and image quality is less sharp/has more distortion then when using higher-end glass such as the Nikkor 18-55 2.8 or even the Nikon 24-120 f4 lens. But the images taken with these same lenses on the D80 look beautiful.

This all said, the D80 is not a perfect camera and like most more vintage digital cameras on my shelf is not all sunshine and rainbows.  It did well and certainly could be a camera I had stored in the car to take casual photos with and I'd be happy enough with it, however it does have its shortcomings.

Outside of the sensor which struggled with anything over ISO 800 (common for this period whether CCD or CMOS) the one thing that really shows this camera's age was the shutter mechanism.

The shutter on the D80 is a bit slow and has a brief second or so "mechanical reset" time after firing before the camera is ready to take another photo. In burst mode this reset time is reduced but it still manages to only slug out a max of 3fps "as advertised". 

However most reviewers admit that the actual FPS of the D80 is a lot lower then the specifications laid out by Nikon and the real burst rate is only around 2fps; which is more consistent with the performance I was getting from my D80 when I used it.

The D80 therefore can be summed up as a great vintage CCD DSLR that gets nice crisp, vibrant and clear photos with any lens you slap on it with the caveat that its an Outdoor Shooter with a shutter mechanism that is a little wishy-washy when compared to similar cameras such as the Canon Rebel series bodies of the same era.