wolf2009
02-17-2009, 10:28 AM
I am going to be reviewing hardware for a website.
So please help me find a cheap camera, a tripod, and some lights.
Budget is really tight, like $150 max. Even $150 is stretching it.
Thanks.
kyzen
02-18-2009, 11:14 AM
I assume you'll be resizing these down to small sizes, and not actually printing the images, so most any camera will do. In which case I'd suggest one of my favorite affordable little point and shoots:
Powershot a470 (http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-Digital-Camera-Optical/dp/B0012YA6P2/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1234980158&sr=8-1)
If that's too much, just keep an eye on local sales, or spin by Circuit City and pick up a clearance camera. For smaller images, even one of those plastic wrapped brightly colored Samsung cameras would be fine.
Where you're really going to be hurting is lights. You could get a small product shooting studio, like this (http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Concepts-Ps-101-Portable-Lighting/dp/B000FBF400/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1234980187&sr=1-1) (or any of the other, similarly priced options on Amazon). However if you're going to need to take pictures of bigger things, you'll probably want a full sized tripod, and larger lamps.
For a cheap camera, especially with a lot of light available, tripod quality is a non-issue for you, so any cheap 50" or larger tripod will be fine for you.
Lamps I really can't help you much on; you could technically go to Walmart and just buy a bendy light for cheap, however that will add some yellowing to your images. There are more professional things like this (http://www.amazon.com/PHOTOGRAPHY-CONTINUOUS-LIGHTING-UMBRELLA-Fluorescent/dp/B000GX484U/ref=sr_1_339?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1234980672&sr=1-339), but that obviously takes a big bite out of your budget, and you'd probably want 2.