Beyond Megapixels » memory

Accessories for the New DSLR Owner

Tiffany Joyce — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 07:00:04 +0000

A friend of mine recently got an early Christmas present – a Nikon D90. She was in the process of updating her Wish List and pinged me for suggested accessories for a first-time DSLR owner.

1. First thing’s first. I promptly went out and bought her Scott Kelby’s Digital Photography Boxed Set, Volumes 1, 2, and 3. These books were utterly invaluable to me when I was coming up to speed on DSLR photography. I’m completely confident that she’ll find them as helpful as I did. I would have loaned her my copies but, well, I still use them all the time. That’s the mark of a truly great reference book or guide – that it remains useful months, and even years, after its initial purchase.

Here’s the review I wrote a while back about Volume 3.

2. Next I recommend buying a battery grip. this is the one she’d need for her Nikon D90, and this is the one that I still need to get, myself, for my Canon 7D. Keep in mind that if you want to be able to charge both batteries at once, you’ll need to pick up an extra charger. They’re cheap, though.

3. My next suggestion is to add a wireless remote shutter release to your gear. This one comes highly recommended for most Nikon models, while this is the one that I used for my Canon Digital Rebel. Come to think of it, I haven’t tried it out to see if it’s compatible with my 7D, yet.

4. The next recommendation would be to pick up a quality tripod. In my humble opinion, you really can’t go wrong with any kind of Manfrotto, and their line of joystick ball heads are really cool.

5. Then of course, there’s the extra memory cards. Both SanDisk and Lexar are very reliable suppliers – get 16GB or 32GB and you can shoot for hours – days, even. Check your camera’s specifications for the specific type of memory card required.

6. Get a LensPEN Lens Cleaning System (here’s the review I wrote a while back), a Rocket Air Blaster , and a few extra Microfiber Lens Cloths. Clean gear is EVERYTHING.

So! There are my top recommendations for the new DSLR owner’s wish list. What would you add to it? Feel free to leave recommendations in the comments!

Photo credits (all): Tiffany Joyce.

Caring for memory cards

Tiffany Joyce — Sun, 09 May 2010 10:00:53 +0000

We spend a lot of time worrying and thinking about the type of camera we want to buy: Do we want a point and shoot or are we ready to step into the dSLR world? What brand? Which model? Once we narrow it down it’s time to think about lenses. There’s a lot to consider.

Photo credit: teclasorg

However, what about our memory cards? Memory cards are valid things to think about and require a lot of care too. It’s important to take good care of our cameras of course. They’re expensive after all and aren’t simple to replace. Keep in mind though, the photos aren’t stored in our cameras or lenses, they’re recorded to our memory cards and if we treat those cards with neglect we run the risk of losing our pictures altogether.

If you’ve been busily following the tips I provided for photographing Mother’s Day, you’ll want to take good care of those pictures that are now sitting on your card. Here are some basic tips to keep in mind when it comes to memory cards:

1. Avoid taking your memory card out while the camera is still on. It can cause some of the files to become corrupted and you might lose some – if not all – of the photos, especially if your camera is still processing the last shots you took.

2. Avoid strong magnets. You know how you aren’t supposed to put your debit or credit cards on the de-magnetizing bars at the store because you could wipe the card? The same dangers can lurk for your memory cards so be careful!

3. Keep your cards safe while carrying spares. Don’t just toss them into your coat pocket or the bottom of your camera bag. Invest in a case or use the hard plastic cases that sometimes come with the cards. It keeps them from being damaged.

4. Format your card after you download the photos to your computer. Just deleting the photos doesn’t clear up all the space but formatting will wipe it out completely.

5. Caveat emptor! Sometimes you’ll see really cheap memory cards at the store; sometimes that can be okay if it’s a known name brand that just happens to be on sale. The price of cards is indeed coming down more and more. However, if you see a card that comes from a brand you’ve never heard of and it’s incredibly cheap there may be a reason for it. I’d rather invest a little more money to get a good solid brand that has a great reputation than risk losing my cards because I saved twenty bucks by purchasing a low-quality card.

Black Friday Deals on Digital Photography Gifts

Tiffany Joyce — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:00:08 +0000

Hello friends! As promised I’m back with some specific Black Friday deals for digital photography gear.

First of all, be sure to check back daily at Amazon.com’s Black Friday Deals in Camera, Photo, and Video. Deals are being offered all week long and, of course, on Black Friday.

Best Buy:
- Insignia Digital Cameras – $49.99
- Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements – $74.99
- Western Digital 500GB external hard drive – $79.99
- HP Photosmart Wireless Printer – $64.99
- Canon EOS Digial Rebel T1i – with 18-55mm lens $699; with 55-250mm lens $899
- Kodak Easy-Share C140 digital camera (with digital photo frame) – $109.99
- Sony Cyber-Shot – 10.1 mpx, various colors – $99.99 to $149.99
- FujiFilm FinePix 10.0 mpx – $119.99
- Nikon CoolPix 12.1 mpx – $299.99
- Nikon CoolPix 10.0 mpx – $179.99
- SanDisk Flash Drive Memory Cards (4-8GB) – $14.99-$19.99
- **See the entire ad (scanned) here.

Costco:
- Panasonic ZS1 digital camera (10.1 mpx) – $199.99
- Seagate 500GB portable hard drive – $79.99
- SanDisk memory cards – up to 50% off with coupon
- **Downloadable ad is here.

K-Mart:
- Samsung SL40 Digital Camera – $79.99
- Kodak CD80 Digital Camera Bundle (with case and 2GB memory card) – $79.99
- Sony CyberShot 10.1 mpx – $99.99
- SanDisk memory card – 4GB – $8.99
- **See entire scanned ad starting here.

Sears:
- GE A1250 Digital Camera – $69.99
- Fuji J29 10.1mpx Digital Camera – $89.99
- Nikon CoolPix 10.0 mpx Digital Camera – $99.99
- HiPro Camera Kits – 50% off
- SanDisk 4GB memory cards – $8.99
- **See full scanned ad here

Target:
- Nikon CoolPix S203 Digital Camera – $88.00
- Western Digital 500GB portable hard drive – $59.98
- Kodak ZD15 Digital Camera 10mpx – $129.00
- **See full scanned ad here.

WalMart:
- Western Digital 320GB portable hard drive – $49.00
- Kodak CD82 Digital Camera 12mpx – $69.00
- Nikon CoolPix S230 10mpx Digital Camera – $139.00
- Sony CyberShot DSCS930 – $79.00
- SanDisk 4GB memory card – $8.00
- Kodak Wireless Photo Printer ESP5250LE – $99.00
- **See full scanned ad starting here.

Also be sure to check out Holiday Gift Specials from B&H Photo Video.

Happy Thanksgiving, Happy Shopping, and good luck!!!

Photo Credits (all): FotoGraphix on Flickr Creative Commons.

SD Cards

Tiffany Joyce — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:56:04 +0000

If you’re using a digital camera then you’re familiar with the SD cards that are out there today. The selection is really something else, during one trip to staples I counted over 12 brands and about 85 different cards. I was overwhelmed to say the least. I searched online and through about twenty different sites I learned the basics…now to save you the search on twenty sites here it is all summed up:

What are they? An SD card and SDHC cards are flash memory cards used most commonly to capture video and images. An SDHC card is a high capacity SD card that allows the card to go up to 32GB size. One thing to note is that some devices do not support SDHC cards so be sure to check your device prior to making a substantial investment in one of these cards.

What do they look like? SD cards are just a touch bigger then a postage stamp and have a write lock switch on the side of the card to protect it’s contents.

What does the size of the card matter? Cards come in a wide range of sizes the larger the card the more photos you’ll be able to hold. One important thing to remember if you’re shooting in RAW format your images are larger in size and fewer pictures will fit on a card then if you’re shooting the same picture in a JPG format. Now I always shoot in RAW so that I have the greatest use of that image SOOC (Straight out of the Camera) so if I’m doing a shoot I need to remember larger cards and more cards.

So should I just buy the biggest card out there? I think not. These cards are small (remember, postage stamp) and they are valuable little suckers empty and when full they are priceless. For me, it’s risky to put all my eggs in one basket. I get into What If thinking like: What if the card becomes corrupt (although, this hasn’t happened me, knock knock knock) or What if I step on it and it breaks, What if it’s lost, What if it’s stolen.

What does the speed of the card matter? Some video cameras require a minimum speed to capture video it’s best to check with the manual on this point. For digital cameras if you’re in continuous shoot mode you may see the shoot speed improve slightly with a faster card. The speed is measured the same way CD-ROM speed is measured. The most common speed I’ve found is 6x, 66x and 200x. Price of the card does go up with the speed. I’ve personally used 6x most frequently with no issue.

So what do you have? I have two – 2GB SD cards, three - 4GB SDHC cards, and two – 16GB SDHC cards. This works for me.

Anything else I need to know? YES this is IMPORTANT. Some computers have an input slot for SD cards. This does not always work with the higher capacity SD cards or the SDHC cards so you’ll need a reader or to connect your camera to your computer. The SD card readers are much faster then hooking up your camera. I have a couple of different readers. This one by Sandisk is always connected to my USB hub and can read a variety of different types of cards. It’s available at Amazon.com for $17.99.

I also have this little guy that stays in my purse just in case I’m ever in need of sharing images on the go. Also available on Amazon.com for $12.17.

Where should I buy my SD or SDHC cards? Well you can buy them all over the place. Personally I’m trying to be more “green” so I have been using Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging (they should be slipping me money for all these placements). Plus I don’t like to be frustrated or cut myself on the plastic trying to get these little suckers out of the packaging. I also find their pricing is very good. Here is a card I just bought 16GB for $30.50 and it arrived in two days as promised.

Okay this is getting long, anything ELSE? Just one tip. If you’re going on vacation I recommend bringing along a few pre-paid self addressed padded envelopes. As you’re taking valuable memories on your trip and you fill up a card slip it in the envelope and mail it back home. The last thing you want is to have your camera bag stolen and lose all of your memories – insurance will cover the camera (which we’ll talk about next week) but you’ll never be able to take those shots again.