Water Ouzels?

[fouram]

When I was (much) younger--I would hike up the small set of rapids at the tag end (before the highway) of Jones Creek and would usually see at least one water dipper (ouzel)--now wonder if they are still around?--I suppose I will have to try to get out there soon and see if there are any around?--Al--I have always found them to be a rather interesting bird, walking--gliding from rock to rock, while underwater, looking for their supper---I imagine a hard way to make a living )

[Gord]

Hi Al, Ive always found lots of Dippers (Water ouzel! I havnt heard that name for them for a long time! ) up at the Vedder River. The Allison Pool campsite is a great place to view them, and also, they are relatively tame and will come fairly close to you. Ive had them when Ive been fishing inches from my boot. Of course, no camera handy.

I love watching them at work too, but man, makes me chilly sometimes watching them monkey around in the water in mid Jan!!!

[fouram]

I have only 2 goals for this year, one is to try to get into some semblance of "better" shape, and the other, more benign, is to get a digital camera, so that I can begin to save some of the birds that I see in my travels. As far as the "getting in shape" is concerned, I, of course will have to that by myself, however, does anyone have any ideas for me for a camera, so that when I do get out (on my days off) to catch ouzels and other birds, I will be happy with the results, and may also be able to share with posts?--Happy for feedback--Al

[kastern]

You asked for some camera ideas. I'm on my 2nd and 3rd digital camera and my husband also has one. Here is my advice re a camera - you want what is called a Compact Camera, they are a step up from the simple point and shoot, usually cost in the $500 range. You want 12 x zoom (optical) - don't worry about the digital zoom - it's best to use just the optical and then crop on your computer to get a closer view - and you want at least 4 mega pixels and you want the camera to have image stabilization (different brands call it different things) You want the camera to be light enough and small enough so you can hang it around your neck and not notice it. My first digital camera was an Olympus and it was an excellent camera, although the one I had was only 10x zoom - they now come 12 x and it was before the invention of image stabilization, in fact I'm not sure that Olympus has this feature yet. My husband (and daughter) have the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ5 and both are happy with it. I have both a Konica Minolta Dimage Z3 (no longer available) which is 12 x optical zoom and 4 mega pixels and was the first camera on the market with image stabilization and I also have a Pentex digital SLR which is 6 mega pixels which I use a 80 x 320 lense with, which actually works out to something like 420 mm or about 14 or 15 x zoom. The Konica Minolta is by far the more versitile of the two, I can tuck it in under my jacket and take it anywhere, all the time. It is more reliable in bad lighting situations (probably because I know how to use it better) and also in situations such as a rocking canoe. Because I am using an older lense on my SLR I can not use it in automatic so have to manually focus, which in some instances is better, but not in instances where a quick response is required. All of the cameras now have pretty fast start up and response times so that isn't really a concern anymore. One thing to check before you actually purchase a camera is what sort of batteries it takes. Both my cameras use 4 double AA's, rechargable of course, you will want to have a spare set and a charger. A set of 4 double AA's is about $20.00 and I have one set that is now 3 years old and has been recharged innumerable times. I find that batteries last a long time in both my cameras but I rarely use the LCD screen. On the other hand, the batteries for my husbands camera were close to a hundred dollars so having a spare battery (which is a must) is a little pricy. As for what size memory card to get, I have been perfectly happy with my 128 mb card although I have a larger one in the SLR. I prefer to download my card frequently (carry a lap top with me when away for any length of time). I have concerns about having 'all my egg's in one basket' so to speak so prefer to have several smaller cards rather than one with a huge capacity.

Hope this helps.
Kathy

[fouram]

That absolutely helps, and thanks for the quick reply, I have already started to look at cameras, and you sage advice already has me looking in a slightly different direction. The one camera that I was looking "at" is no longer an option, and the "other" camera, is in both my (the) price range and also has most of the features that you have mentioned--again, thanks for the knowledgeable, and quick reply--Al

[Gord]

Kathy covered it well.

Optical zoom is the money stuff for good pictures. Digital zoom is just the optical zoom and the pixels are just enlarged or something, which drags down quality. Still, more than suitable for a longer shot of something you want to be able to identify, but maybe not blow up and hang on your wall.

I like an SLR which would be my optimum choice for me, but you are also tacking on a few hundred extra plus lenses which will run over $300 to match the power of the lens on the compact camera Kathy suggested. You're looking at probably over $500 extra which may not be worth it to you when the compact cameras do quite well for many reasons.

Excellent advice on the memory cards Kathy! Sometimes bigger isnt better. I was considering getting a larger card, but maybe it will be better to stick to a card that holds 75-100 images instead of one that can do well over 200 of the size image Im saving to it. Thanks!