Cameras for cattle

[drl]

We are looking to get serious taking our own calf pictures for sales this year. We were looking at getting the Canon T1i or the new T2i. Does anyone have some tips for what camera or what to look for in a camera for taking good cattle pictures?

 

[Bulldaddy]

I have used a Canon EOS 1D for a few years.  Uses the same lenses as my old 35mm SLR Canon.  Great camera but expensive and heavy.  I often grab my wife's G9.  It is lighter and handier.  Photo quality is exceptional.  I don't think you can go wrong with any of the mid price canons.

 

[HGC]

My wife just purchased the Canon Rebel T1i and she absolutely loves it.  She takes all of our cattle pictures and I think it does an excellent job. 

 

[Shady Lane]

I have a Canon rebel SLR I think it's 10 or 12 megapixel, sorry I forget the exact model#, I've been very happy with it so far, takes great shots and fairly simple to use.

I'm working on expanding my collection of lenses now.

 

[husker1]

Everyone tells me to get a Rebel.  Had a friend get one for Christmas via an ebay shop and got a whole slew of assessories for $600 included.

 

[Freddy]

I have had a EOS Digital Rebel for must be  ten years , have taken a bunch of pictures, also use Adobe photoshop , I have learned to use some of it by trial an error ...The lenses that I use is TAMRON AF 75-300mm
FOR  livestock  an the cheaper lenses that came with the ccamera for photo an closer shots,,,, I had a little over 1500 in it when Ibought it an it seemed pretty high priced ,but it has more than paid for it self ...I really get a lot of satisfaction out of a good picture, an especially  of my own cattle, getting quite a group of pictures ....Jamie

 

[spectator]

I love my Rebel. It does everything I could wish for and survives heat/cold, rain/snow, dirt, dust, and and more . . . gets whacked while climbing a fence every now and then.

 

[Bone2011]

JBH your up.

 

[DHF]

How does the Canon SX20 stack up with new cameras?  I just bought this new and have one week to upgrade or not.  It has 12 megamixels and 20 OpticalZoom.  Will this get great, clear, sharp  pictures  for the show magazines?  I'm interested in quality.

 

[jbw]

GC- JBH is suppossed to be working on a video right now.  (pop)

 

[Bone2011]

GC- JBH is suppossed to be working on a video right now.   (pop)

Haha

 

[jbh]

JBH your up.

Sorry....about missed this one.

I'm gonna take a different angle......I'd buy as much camera as I had COMPUTER for.....if you've got plenty of GB's on your computer.....I'd buy as much camera as I had MONEY for.

BUT...you go to clicking off 200 pics here and 200 pics there....with a high-end camera.....your gonna have to have an external hard drive or alot of built in memory.

The Canon Rebel is a nice, friendly camera.....good for kids and adults both.....BUT I'd climb on up the Canon ladder if you've got $1500 to spend....you'll definitely NOTICE the quality difference.

The only other breed of camera I'd check out is the NIKON's....I've used some NICE NIKONS (D90) and they're pretty cool too.

Lastly....remember your lense is just about as IMPORTANT as your camera body.

 

[DavidSinclair]

There is no question in my mind that you should go with a Canon. There is a reason that Nikon has to pay for product placement on shows like CSI and you almost always see real pros using Canons.

With that said I would recommend that you buy the highest end camera (Canon) that you can afford. Assuming that is in the SLR level I would also recommend that you buy Canon lenses instead of the cheaper ones. You will notice a big difference.

The first time any real thought or knowledge comes into the equation is in knowing the appropriate lens to use for the shot. It amazes me the number of “professional” cattle photos you see that have obviously had the background blurred on the computer instead of off of the camera. There are only two reasons for doing this in every picture. A. your camera sucks  B. you are jacking with the photo and trying to hide something.  (If you don’t have enough light you may not be able to use a fast enough shutter no matter what lens you are using to blur the background shooting black cattle)

I have been using a 5D since they first came out and I still love it. I don’t see any reason to upgrade unless I also want to be able to shoot HI-Def video with my camera. (I would rather have a video camera separate from my still camera) Before that I shot with a 10D. That is what I took About Time’s picture with and that one paid for every camera I will ever buy and then some.

Hope this helps and good luck with your pictures!

 

[cotullaguy]

I only use Nikon.  Canon is for amateurs...LOL

 

[drl]

Thanks everyone who replied. The T1i and T2i both do hidef video as well. I missed out on a deal at bestbuy a couple of weeks ago where they had the t1i, a standard lens, and a canon 55-300 mm telephoto lens. At that price the big lens was only another $100 bucks over the camera and standard lens when the big lens was selling for 300.

 

[Cattledog]

I'm glad this topic came up.  I'm currently getting ready to buy a camera as well.  If I would go higher than a Canon Rebel how big is the learning curve of using all the extra features?  I feel I'm pretty tech savy and really do pick things up quickly.  I just don't want to buy a camera and not use the features that I paid extra for.

 

[jbh]

I'm glad this topic came up.  I'm currently getting ready to buy a camera as well.  If I would go higher than a Canon Rebel how big is the learning curve of using all the extra features?  I feel I'm pretty tech savy and really do pick things up quickly.  I just don't want to buy a camera and not use the features that I paid extra for.

I'm sure David can answer a little more technically.....but there really are no EXTRA FEATURES that I can think of......you're just moving up in horsepower basically.....cramming MORE pixels into the picture for clarity and size.

 

[DavidSinclair]

I'm glad this topic came up.  I'm currently getting ready to buy a camera as well.  If I would go higher than a Canon Rebel how big is the learning curve of using all the extra features?  I feel I'm pretty tech savy and really do pick things up quickly.  I just don't want to buy a camera and not use the features that I paid extra for.

I'm sure David can answer a little more technically.....but there really are no EXTRA FEATURES that I can think of......you're just moving up in horsepower basically.....cramming MORE pixels into the picture for clarity and size.

Brad is exactly right. Think of it as better / faster instead of more / different. You get better image quality, faster start up, faster frame rate, faster shutter speed and faster more accurate auto focus.

My wife has a powershot that she carries in her purse and every time I try to use it I want to … well it’s not a pleasant experience. You push the button and about 5 minutes later it will focus (about 50% of the time on the intended subject).  It then takes another 3.5 years to actually take the photo and another half a day to write the file to the card. Obviously I am exaggerating but this is what the experience seems like compared to my 5D and they both have pretty much the same functions.

 

[Cattledog]

I'm glad this topic came up.  I'm currently getting ready to buy a camera as well.  If I would go higher than a Canon Rebel how big is the learning curve of using all the extra features?  I feel I'm pretty tech savy and really do pick things up quickly.  I just don't want to buy a camera and not use the features that I paid extra for.

I'm sure David can answer a little more technically.....but there really are no EXTRA FEATURES that I can think of......you're just moving up in horsepower basically.....cramming MORE pixels into the picture for clarity and size.

Brad is exactly right. Think of it as better / faster instead of more / different. You get better image quality, faster start up, faster frame rate, faster shutter speed and faster more accurate auto focus.

My wife has a powershot that she carries in her purse and every time I try to use it I want to … well it’s not a pleasant experience. You push the button and about 5 minutes later it will focus (about 50% of the time on the intended subject).  It then takes another 3.5 years to actually take the photo and another half a day to write the file to the card. Obviously I am exaggerating but this is what the experience seems like compared to my 5D and they both have pretty much the same functions.

Thanks for clearing that up.  That's exactly what I needed to know!