I Need to Finally Get a Good Camera

[jlc123]

So, watches are my passion and I LOVE taking and sharing pictures of them. Unfortunately, my pictures aren't great as I use my Iphone. So, I'm coming to you photography experts for some advice. I want something that is relatively easy to use (I'm not a camera guy) and can take some decent pictures. I'd like to stay around $400, thanks in advance!

[uscmatt99]

If you can stretch your budget a bit to $500 (who can't just a little bit) then take a look at the Olympus XZ-2. Here's a link to a review of the camera for macro (close-up) shooting.

http://robinwong.blogspot.com/2012/1...macro-and.html

For watch photography, a small table top tripod is helpful as well so you can use long shutter speeds to do lume shots. Look this one up:

Manfrotto Table Tripod with Photo Head MTT2-P02

Have fun! Here's one I took with a more advanced rig, where I used a small light-tent and some off-camera flashes.



You can do this with natural light and the camera/tripod above as well. Here are the settings if you get a camera:

Set up the picture in a dim room. Right before you trigger it, shine a flashlight on the watch to charge up the lume.
Shutter priority mode (S on the dial)
ISO 100 or ISO 200
Shutter speed between 10-30 seconds to get the sweeping second hand.