Looking for some help on buying an adapter for camera

[liam tumilty]

I am looking to buy an adapter for my camera so i can start getting some good pictures off birds from a distance i have seen a few people with the big long ones attached to a camera and am wondering what good ones are out there for a resonable price and where to get them from
thanks

[IanF]

It would help to know what sort of camera you've got first and what sort of budget you're thinking of.

Some compact cameras can take a conversion lens that fits on the front of the lens. Some can be fitted with an adapter so the camera can be used with a spotting scope. A DSLR camera body can take different lenses of varying lengths but generally the longer the lens the more expensive they are.

[liam tumilty]

HI i have a finepix s5600 camera and at the minute i am just looking at prices so budget isnt really an issue at the minute
thanks for quick reply 

[IanF]

Ths S5600 has a 10x opical zoom which is a pretty decent reach - equivalent to around 380mm on a SLR. The only way to extend the reach would be to add a teleconversion lens. These are small converters that fit on the front of the cameras lens. They extend the reach of the lens but usually at a cost of sharpness.

Raynox make a range of conversion lenses. The Raynox DCR-1540PRO 1.54x conversion lens would extend the reach to around 580mm retailing around around £100 and the Raynox DCR-2020PRO 2.2x conversion lens extends the lens to 830mm - for a price of around £200.

[liam tumilty]

Thanks for getting back so quick.
where is the best place to buy them from and maybe anywhere where i could go and test them on the camera before i bought one? as im new to buying lenses for my camera and im not to sure what certain stuff means and how much of a difference it will make towards making pictures better aswell as adding extra zoom onto the camera
thanks again for your help.

[IanF]

They're a little bit specialised so availablity isn't great. It's the sort of thing you have to order online - for stockists simply do a web search of the make and model. You may find a local camera shop can order one for you but usually they'd expect you to buy rather than just to try it out. Some local camera shops also take in second hand equipment and can be worth checking but it's a long shot.

From my own experience with such converters I wouldn't expect too much from them. Image quality drops quite markedly using a conversion lens especially at it's maximum range. Personally I think you'd be better off putting the money towards a DSLR and a longer lens to go with it - else a compact camera with a longer zoom range.

[Dan hymer]

There are many adapters available on e bay! Obviously this comes with its own dangers!

[liam tumilty]

Thanks for all the help
so what DSLR and lens would you recommend to buy
thanks alot

[simonduck]

we bought our camera from rgb in middlesbrough on newport road about 5 doors down from jessops but a lot cheaper very close to internet prices.check out what you need on the internet so you have an idea on price.the staff are fairly knowledgable and that way at least you can see what you're buying before you buy.i've bought memory cards off the net but wouldn't recommend much more than that.

[IanF]

Thanks for all the help
so what DSLR and lens would you recommend to buy
thanks alot

Really it's up to you as to which brand to get. Any of the manufacturers make suitable camera bodies so it's then a question of which lens to get. Ideally for bird photos you need something at least around 400mm - you've already seen what a 380mm lens can do on the Fuji S5600. Sigma and Tamron are the main independent lens manufacturers and both make decent lenses in this range for different camera bodies. Few camera manufacturers make lens of this length - really just Canon and Nikon but prices tend to be higher than independents.

[liam tumilty]

so i am i best to buy a lense for from fuji s5600 or buy a new camera and lense together
thanks   

[IanF]

so i am i best to buy a lense for from fuji s5600 or buy a new camera and lense together
thanks   

I dare say it depnds on your budget how far you want to get into photography.

The S5600 is a 'point and shoot' camera meaning you can just pick it up and often get decent results without knowing too much about photogrpahy. A conversion lens for the S5600 will set you back either £100 or £200 depending on which you get. You'll get a little more reach but the image quality will be medicore. Personally I'd stick with the S5600 and concentrate on getting closer to the subject either through fieldcraft or making use of locations such as feeding stations or in the garden or local ponds and beaches where the S5600 will perform admirably.

A DSLR and a 400mm lens will cost in the region of £700-£1000. The equipment will be capable of producing much better results but whilst DSLRs are more user friendly nowadays making them easier to use the results can still be very disappointing unless you understand a little about the technicalities of photogrpahy.

[sidwemn]

i've bought memory cards off the net but wouldn't recommend much more than that.

You need to be aware that a significant number of memory cards bought off the internet, especially from sites such as E-Bay are counterfeit. Most work OK but not at the speeds claimed!  I would recommend only buying from reputable dealers.

Martyn

[Dan hymer]

I purchased a 8mb compact flash card off the net for 99p and works fine! But not all sellers are the same!

[dean smith]

another thing you have to account for is if your willing to carry the gear around and a decent tripod which will cost at least £100 (legs and head) to be stable enough for a telephoto lens, if tripod shooting isnt for you then you may be looking at image stabilised lens this is called a number of different things depending on manufacturer canon call it is, sigma call is os (optical stabilisation) and vr (vibration reduction) on nikon (i think) all do the same thing and allow you to use faster shutter speeds which is vital for bird photography.

rgb in middlesborough are a friendly lot and very good prices i bought a 40d and a sigma 150-500mm lens from there and when it came to selling it i made my money back and some, they also gave me a discount for being a tmbc member.

personally id go for ianf's advice stick with your point and shoot and find out if bird photography is for you, then upgrade and buy decent gear first time round it costs more but in 6 months you wont be wishing you spent a little more and have to upgrade.

my biggest tip though would be to learn fieldcraft and some basic photography no how first no matter how much you spend if you dont know how to use it then its not going to get you the results you want, likewise if you arent to clued up on habitat and behavoir your probably not going to see anything to take photographs of

birdforum has a classifieds section, transactions are at your own risk but ive bought and sold on there with no problems and you could pick up a 2nd hand 20d body on there pretty cheap which is a good starting DSLR and has good user feedback for being built like a workhorse so would last you as long as you needed it

lens are alot harder to come by people invest money in them and tend to upgrade around them keeping there lens and buying new dslr bodys to fit them


hope this helps, id also 2nd everyone elses comments about ebay even cheap accessories, grey imports dont have the build quality and if your memory card ect failed whilst shooting you'd be pretty miffed !

rgb also sell 'white box' lens cheaper than the going rate, there perfectly fine and brand new its just basically bundle kits that they split up

all the best, DS