i’ve gotten the idea that i need a camera to sort out my belongings by taking pictures of stuff and documents but i know next to nothing about cameras nor using them. i’m looking for something that will let me take documents, pictures and videos that would connect and show up nicely on the ipad. something small and light. what should i get?
I’m a little unclear about your purpose, but something with a macro feature will let you take close-up, detailed pictures of belongings. A wide lens will also be helpful. A scanner might be better for documents.
Cameras are lousy for taking pictures of documents. A flatbed scanner is much better for that.
As for the rest, any basic digital camera will do what you need. You can buy a simple camera for roughly $100 that will take serviceable photos. What’s your budget? The iPad won’t be an issue for any camera.
well, a flatbed scanner aren’t portable and it takes too long (i think) to scan a picture. basically i’m thinking of something compact and portable that could quickly snap pictures and videos that would look great on the ipad. that is, i’m not going to be printing them out or something, so as long as it’s not grainy looking when viewed on the ipad, that’s fine. i’ve tried the ipad 2, and the video it takes is definitely grainy. i’m assuming that something that would take good videos would take good pictures of documents too?
i don’t have a budget and it is not an issue, but i am guessing my requirements aren’t much so i don’t want to overspend on features i am not going to use? i’m sorry if i’m vague cause i don’t know what’s available. online reviews are hopelessly filled with jargon. i don’t even know what it means to have a wide lens, besides literally. a macro feature i’m guessing is a quick setup button for switching between scenery and closeup shots?
I picked up a printer/flatbed scanner for 40 dollars, with ink. It’s cheaper then a camera.
It does take longer, but it’s automatically on your computer. So when you factor in the time it takes to transfer a photo from a camera to a computer, it’s quicker.
Macro on a compact/point and shoot changes the focusing distance, allowing you to get closer to things and allow them to still be in focus.
These days most digital cameras will produce fine pictures in good light, and okay pictures with flash, so you’re unlikely to get a “bad” camera. However some cameras are much better at taking close-ups than others… hence the link to the “macro” list. In photo talk “macro” usually just means shooting detailed close-ups. A camera with good macro capabilities focuses close (inches rather than feet), focuses close at both wide angle and telephoto, has a lens that stays sharp when focused up close, and doesn’t require special settings to shoot close.
As several others have mentioned, for copying small flat objects --papers, stamps, photos-- a cheap scanner beats an expensive camera.