Randall Garrett
Senior Member
- Joined
- Mar 6, 2004
- Professional Status
- IT Professional-Appraisal Related
- State
- Texas
WH,
I agree with Metamorphic on the battery thing. I understand the notion of easily replaced regular batteries (really, I do) but I believe you are fighting a losing battle and perhaps concentrating on the wrong item as a major factor in which device works out best for everyday use. We find (as also reported by our volume customers) that the most practical thing for dealing with a possible loss in power when out in the field is to carry a car charger for mobile devices. You can usually find something that will work for several devices (phone, laptop, camera, whatever) via adapters. Those that need "immediate" power when away from their vehicle(s) tend to just purchase another spare battery and then pop in in when needed. As Metamorphic correctly recommended, it is best to cycle batteries, but in real life, most folks don't run out of power mid-job and tend to rarely use the second battery, much less cycle them... ;-) Still, we see a lot of appraiser/inspector types order second or extended batteries for their mobile devices... I think a good car charger is a better use of money. How many people buy extended or extra batteries for their cell phones?...
FWIW, most ("shooter") cameras today come with pretty decent batteries which tend to handle several hundred shots (even with flash) before they need recharging and most spare batteries are in the $20 - $30 range. Car chargers, especially generic ones tend to run in the $15 - $25 range. We used to recommend the $17 car charger over the $45 extended battery back in the early Pocket PC days...
As far as shooting comparison pictures, that is a little difficult. This level of camera does not have specific FOV "stops" - they typically have "zooms", so all you can count on is an approximate of their extents - i.e. the minimum and maximums. I have shot comparisons before with different cameras and because of the manufacturing differences between them, it is hard to tell the difference between (say) a 24mm (equiv.) and a 25mm shot. You can, however see the difference between a 28mm and a 25mm or 24mm. Of course, there is a huge difference between a 35mm and 24/25mm. I really don't understand why any appraiser would choose a 35mm lens over a 28mm lens for most residential work. FWIW, the way things work, we tend to be able to discern a (say) 10% difference (i.e. 28mm to 25mm) at the "wide" setting more than we would a 10% difference at the "tele" setting - i.e. 120mm vs. 132mm. Anyway, for most residential work, having a decent wide angle lens is more important than having that "super zoom" capability - i.e. that 380mm or 420mm telephoto. I have an extensive rural appraising background and I understand the need for a zoom when shooting from a distant road, but what I'm discussing is the typical urban/suburban residential assignment where lot sizes are getting smaller and smaller and those back yard shots are more difficult...
I do have, however, a comparison shot (shamelessly ganked from a photography site) which compares a "normal" and wide angle shot from virtually identical cameras (actually a previous model and a new model whose major new feature was a wider angle lens) which was done by a pro. I believe it was something like 36mm vs. 28mm... I will have to search for it and post it later.
Hope this helps!
-Randall Garrett-
..Apex Software..
I agree with Metamorphic on the battery thing. I understand the notion of easily replaced regular batteries (really, I do) but I believe you are fighting a losing battle and perhaps concentrating on the wrong item as a major factor in which device works out best for everyday use. We find (as also reported by our volume customers) that the most practical thing for dealing with a possible loss in power when out in the field is to carry a car charger for mobile devices. You can usually find something that will work for several devices (phone, laptop, camera, whatever) via adapters. Those that need "immediate" power when away from their vehicle(s) tend to just purchase another spare battery and then pop in in when needed. As Metamorphic correctly recommended, it is best to cycle batteries, but in real life, most folks don't run out of power mid-job and tend to rarely use the second battery, much less cycle them... ;-) Still, we see a lot of appraiser/inspector types order second or extended batteries for their mobile devices... I think a good car charger is a better use of money. How many people buy extended or extra batteries for their cell phones?...
FWIW, most ("shooter") cameras today come with pretty decent batteries which tend to handle several hundred shots (even with flash) before they need recharging and most spare batteries are in the $20 - $30 range. Car chargers, especially generic ones tend to run in the $15 - $25 range. We used to recommend the $17 car charger over the $45 extended battery back in the early Pocket PC days...
As far as shooting comparison pictures, that is a little difficult. This level of camera does not have specific FOV "stops" - they typically have "zooms", so all you can count on is an approximate of their extents - i.e. the minimum and maximums. I have shot comparisons before with different cameras and because of the manufacturing differences between them, it is hard to tell the difference between (say) a 24mm (equiv.) and a 25mm shot. You can, however see the difference between a 28mm and a 25mm or 24mm. Of course, there is a huge difference between a 35mm and 24/25mm. I really don't understand why any appraiser would choose a 35mm lens over a 28mm lens for most residential work. FWIW, the way things work, we tend to be able to discern a (say) 10% difference (i.e. 28mm to 25mm) at the "wide" setting more than we would a 10% difference at the "tele" setting - i.e. 120mm vs. 132mm. Anyway, for most residential work, having a decent wide angle lens is more important than having that "super zoom" capability - i.e. that 380mm or 420mm telephoto. I have an extensive rural appraising background and I understand the need for a zoom when shooting from a distant road, but what I'm discussing is the typical urban/suburban residential assignment where lot sizes are getting smaller and smaller and those back yard shots are more difficult...
I do have, however, a comparison shot (shamelessly ganked from a photography site) which compares a "normal" and wide angle shot from virtually identical cameras (actually a previous model and a new model whose major new feature was a wider angle lens) which was done by a pro. I believe it was something like 36mm vs. 28mm... I will have to search for it and post it later.
Hope this helps!
-Randall Garrett-
..Apex Software..
Good camera, just doesn't fit my needs.