Appraiser Cameras

[Bill_FL]

Yeah, I took the New York Institute of Photography correspondence course too.

If people can't look at an image and know that it required a wide-angle lens that may induce some barrel or pincushion distortion, they don't need to be reviewing appraisals.

I use the lens required to get the entire subject of that photo into the frame - I am not hung up on some camera distortion being 'misleading'. You have over-interpreted that word for appraisal use IMO. Otherwise, we ALL need DSLRs specifically with PC (perspective correcting) lenses since we often have to tilt the camera for exterior photos on uneven lots since we can't have any non-parallel lines in any of our photos by your (unrealistic) standard. Well, maybe you don't, since Florida is basically flat compared to my state of NC.

No, a misleading photo is "fixing" things in it, like cracked floors, or adding or taking away something in Photoshop that you do/don't want seen that was or wasn't actually there. A little perspective, barrel, or pincushion distortion are photographic anomalies, and do not rise to the level of being 'misleading'. Plus, interior photos are intended to simply show the interior condition/quality, not the size of the interior. Or do you lay out a measuring tape in-frame so they can see how big each room really is since scale in photos has always been an issue? (think straight on "dog nose" photos where the dog's nose is 2X the size of his body due to the distance relationship - and why do CSI's lay a ruler by evidence before imaging it? To establish scale and has nothing to do with the lens choice.)

Really, good on you for being a photographer and knowing your stuff, but you are way overthinking the term 'misleading' when it comes to the photography end of appraising. I've never had a callback or any other issue with any of my photographs, dating all the way back to the Polaroid days. And of the numerous cameras I own, the only ones I've never used (never tried to use) for appraising was my YashicaMat 124g TLR and my 5x7 view camera...and if I owned a medium format film scanner, I may have even used the TLR a time or two just for kicks. I love the 6x6 format - better than 4x6 anyway. And the view camera can do the aforementioned perspective corrections in a snap, but dragging the tripod and hood through the home for interior photos may take too long to be cost effective.

Sorry, never even heard of the NY course you speak of. My point of the post was that you were putting down what others use, when in fact there are things that could be argued about the equipment you use.

I have one of those paper weights on my desk as well (the YashicaMat 124g). I did have a blast shooting Sebring races with it in the mid 80s. Panning race cars with a TLR can be an exercise in coordination. I like the 500CM better.

A good appraiser camera is simply the camera that the person is comfortable with. One that they can operate and get decent images out of. A good photographer could hand someone with a point and shoot their D3x and take the point and shoot, and still produce better images than the amateur. Shoot what you like. That is really all that is important.

 

[Randall Garrett]

Working on PDF update

Hi Folks,

I am seriously behind on updating my Appraiser Cameras PDF and I apologize for letting things slip. What became the PDF started off with me updating an MS Word document that one of our Assessor space salespersons had with more recent devices, just as a quick favor. I found the quirky formatting to be a royal pain as I am certainly no MS Word expert, so updating it is very time-consuming. I had take a few stabs at creating an XLS or XLSX as a template, but I just keep running out of spare time... (if anyone wants to volunteer to send me a template, I'll gladly take it, LOL!)

Anyway, I intend to update the old PDF this weekend. It will unlikely be expanded beyond the "current" format due to the difficulties mentioned above, but at least it will have some new devices... I had intended to make it more complete since there are several more relevant devices, but it looks like I'll just be swapping out old cameras with new ones until I can get a more workable template/format to work with...

The good news is that there are some really nice new entries, some updates to some old favorites and the price/performance ratios are generally better

Regards,

-Randall Garrett-
..Apex Software..

/end/

 

[Randall Garrett]

New (partial) PDF uploaded

Sorry for the delay in posting this PDF. I was only able to get 8 24mm cameras into the PDF for now, but I wanted to get something up before the day ran out. I will work on getting the rest of the cameras into a document this week, hopefully in a much better format so I can simply be more complete.

As usual, when I update the PDF, I will leave the previous PDF uploaded for a few days before removing it.
** (If no PDF document is found attached to this post, check for a later post with and updated file.)**

Hope this helps for now!

-Randall Garrett-
..Apex Software..

PS - Please feel free to offer constructive criticism - i.e. other items to list, format, etc. - on the PDF so I can improve it for your needs. With as much problem as I have had working with the original MS Word document formatting, I have a feeling that I am about to throw up my hands and commandeer a programmer to write me a little web app that will make entering and updating the document more convenient. TIA...

/end/

 

[incognito]

The Casio looks like a good appraiser choice. Cheap, competitively small and light, great range of focal length (is that all optical, Randall, or is the 120-240 digital?) It is getting to the point where it ALMOST does not make sense to go to EBAY once year to buy another Kodak V570, hands down the best appraiser camera ever made!

Thanks for the update, Randall. Now If I could only get a hint on the new pad computer you keep hinting at. Whatever it is, it will be obsolete soon if it does not come out in the near future. We have been teased now for most of this year!!! My guess is the Notion INK Adam???? (Newly dubbed the "Genesis" today...). Right price range, but not due until December:

http://www.slashgear.com/notion-ink-adams-sdk-teased-called-genesis-1898145/

Throw me a bone Randall and let me know if I am on the right track???

 

[residentialguy]

You like the 570, huh? I have been reading the review and they say that there is a good amount of distortion/grain. Have you noticed this?

I use the Luminex with 24mm....decent camera, but 23 beats 24

 

[Randall Garrett]

Incog,

Yes, those are the optical zoom specs - I never show the flaky digital zoom specs as I consider those to be all but worthless except in an "emergency" situation.

As far as the best model for the typical appraiser, I still favor the ruggedized models (not listed in the last PDF - yet!) I find that the folded optics and dirt/rain/drop protection afforded by these cameras make them a better bang for my buck. As a group, we're not exactly gentle on our equipment, LOL.

The device you mention - the Adam - is one of my favorites. ("Genesis" is simply the recently public name for their SDK.) The 3Qi screen is everything you may have seen in the YouTube videos, etc, but actually better in person. Simply blows away the dismal iPad screen the fanbois consider to be "magical" and "outdoor capable." I posted a compo shot between the Gen1 3Qi and an iPad in direct sun in another thread here. The 3Qi is what I spoke of when I first actually saw it at a display conference in SA a bit over a year ago. Notion Ink was the first to show it at CES early this year and the advancements shown at Comdex this summer are huge advancements toward opening it up to more mainstream adoption. We should see the Adam before Christmas and there are a couple of others due out just around EOY, too. I believe we will see an announcement from one more major player soon. I plan on doing a "tablets" doc similar to the camera PDF when that happens, but if the announcement is not forthcoming soon, I'll simply put up what I have.

Hope this helps!

-Randall Garrett-
..Apex Software..

/end/