Newbie here, need advise!


dollishchic

New Member
Jul 15, 2010
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I am very clueless with DSLR, hence I am here to seek help.

I am in need of a good camera + lens (wide angle) that allows me to take good photos of architectural buildings.

Can anyone advise me which model and lens should I get? Need to know where to buy the camera to get good rates too. Thanks! :)
 

Yet another 'Which camera for a newbie' thread...

Canon 1000D/450D/500D/550D
Nikon D3000/5000/90
Sony A230/290/330/380/390/500/550
Pentax K-x
Oly E-450

Visit sites like DPreview and slowly choose:)

All of the above comes with kit lens(Usually the 18-55) and should be wide enough.Don't forget to set aside some money for accessories too...
 

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you may wana get tokina 11-16mm for architectural buildings, for camera Nikon D90 will have enough features for u to get from a novice to amateur.
 

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I am very clueless with DSLR, hence I am here to seek help.

I am in need of a good camera + lens (wide angle) that allows me to take good photos of architectural buildings.

Can anyone advise me which model and lens should I get? Need to know where to buy the camera to get good rates too. Thanks! :)

If you are serious about architecture, I recommend a Full Frame camera and Perspective Control lenses.

Nikon D700 + any of the PC-E lenses or Ai/Ais PC lenses, , depending on your need in terms of focal length.

Canon 5Dmk2 + any of the TS-E lenses, depending on your need in terms of focal length.

For wide angle look for 24mm. You can still find old Ai/Ais 28mm/3.5 Nikon PC lenses. They are still going for around $2k.

You will really need Tilt-shift or Perspective Control lenses to counter keystone effect when shooting architecture. And these lenses are optimized for use with FF cameras. Using conventional rectilinear UWA lenses will give you will perspective distortions (keystone) which are undesirable in architectural shots.

You should probably ask Kit on this. He is the resident architecture photography expert here in CS.

BTW, be prepared to spend a small fortune on equipment. PC and TS lenses are very very expensive.
 

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I am very clueless with DSLR, hence I am here to seek help.

I am in need of a good camera + lens (wide angle) that allows me to take good photos of architectural buildings.

Can anyone advise me which model and lens should I get? Need to know where to buy the camera to get good rates too. Thanks! :)

The first question that come into the picture is how deep is your pocket?:devil::devil:
 

Thanks for the advise guys. I am intending to set the budget of 3k - 4k. :)

hi motionstills, how much would the tokina 11-16mm be? where do i get all these cameras and accessories from? i heard there's a very good shop in amk.
 

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Thanks for the advise guys. I am intending to set the budget of 3k - 4k. :)

hi motionstills, how much would the tokina 11-16mm be? where do i get all these cameras and accessories from? i heard there's a very good shop in amk.

ok la, your pockets deep enough can play in this field~!! haha..

get the good stuff, dont scrimp and save then realise the pics not good..
 

Thanks for the advise guys. I am intending to set the budget of 3k - 4k. :)

hi motionstills, how much would the tokina 11-16mm be? where do i get all these cameras and accessories from? i heard there's a very good shop in amk.

that's MS COLOUR

google for their location + number and can call them for quotes.
 

Thanks for the advise guys. I am intending to set the budget of 3k - 4k. :)

hi motionstills, how much would the tokina 11-16mm be? where do i get all these cameras and accessories from? i heard there's a very good shop in amk.

Good lens. But I am going to wait for TS to post that question later...

"why buildings shot with my Toki 11-16 not straight ar?" ;)
 

Good day & welcome to CS.

dollishchic, some good advice here from fellow CSers.

I'm just a newbie n just sharing my 2 cents, if u don't mind...

"good camera", "good photos", "good rates", "very good shop" - these r all very subjective.

Good camera + good lens does not always = good photos.... or maybe i'm just not good enough... :sweatsm:

"very good shop" does not always = "good rates"... u need to know what u want, do some homework here in CS... look at price guides, etc; and be careful of add-on accessories. Don't expect a "very good shop" to give u "good advice" on what to buy, the pros & cons, etc. And if u do go to that shop & willing to plonk >$3k, perhaps look for the lady boss.

And.... if u r serious into architectural photography (perhaps a job requirement?), take bro daredevil123's advice in post #4.

Sorry very "lor soh"...

Have fun.
 

Get 5DMKI and a sigma 12-24. About there liao.
 

Proper tools for architectural photography can be very expensive as daredevil123 said. They can be quite a handful to handle too if you are not experienced. I certainly did not start with FF cameras and tilt/shift lenses and I don't see that need for you to splurge on them if you are not making money out of taking photos of buildings, unless you are willing to spend.

I'm reluctant to ask you to spend too much so my advise for you is to get an low-mid range DSLR like the EOS 550D or D90, together with a wide angle like the Canon 10-22mm or Nikkor 10-24mm to start with. If you have enough working space, you can keep the perspectives in check without needing tilt/shift lenses. That would easily cost you in excess of $2k already. You'd probably want to add a 35mm or 50mm lens for taking close up details of buildings. A wide angle is useful for architectural stuff but that does not mean you are limited to those.


Here's some examples of architectural shots taken with a variety of lenses. Hopefully, you can identify your area of interest and purchase your equipment accordingly.


Sometimes, its not even necessary to correct the perspective. A wide angle lens, when used properly, can be used to accentuate perspective distortions to create a dynamic composition. This was taken at 14mm.

3624475993_9ef2cfd0d2_z.jpg



With generous working distance, you don't need tilt/shift lenses to obtain corrected perspectives. Taken at 24mm.

4232702768_56720b516e_z.jpg



Here, I used a 35mm lens to isolate the roof structure from the rest of the building.

3580562623_1f25ebdb68_z.jpg



Taken at 70mm to isolate part of the building.

4738788062_d513043fd7_z.jpg



At 155mm, I can do a further close up of the building's details.

4746892360_e76c50173a_z.jpg

 

Here's some examples of architectural shots taken with a variety of lenses. Hopefully, you can identify your area of interest and purchase your equipment accordingly.


Sometimes, its not even necessary to correct the perspective. A wide angle lens, when used properly, can be used to accentuate perspective distortions to create a dynamic composition. This was taken at 14mm.

With generous working distance, you don't need tilt/shift lenses to obtain corrected perspectives. Taken at 24mm.


Here, I used a 35mm lens to isolate the roof structure from the rest of the building.


Taken at 70mm to isolate part of the building.


At 155mm, I can do a further close up of the building's details.


as always Kit is the Guru to ask for architectural photog...

great pics to demonstrate range and effect~!! like it~! :thumbsup: