Good camera for detailed close ups?

[ffd]

I used to have that issue occasionally, the FD-1 flash diffuser solved it for me. It is annoying to have to buy an accessory to get basic reliability out of the device but on the other hand it turns the camera into what would otherwise be a very bulky piece of kit, a camera with flash and diffuser mounted. The ISO can stay as low as possible and the flash captures motion as if the shutter speed is much faster. These are my observations, the majority of them are taken with the TG6:

https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/observations?place_id=any&user_id=ffd&verifiable=any&iconic_taxa=Arachnida,Plantae,Insecta

[bvcz]

From what I’ve read after discovering the issue in this thread, Olympus considers it a design trade-off (an optical side-effect of having the lens fully enclosed for durability/weather-sealing) rather than a defect so I’m not sure they’d cover it.

[nellse]

I will try that, thank you. The LG-1 didn’t make much of a difference.

[jonathancampbell]

This is exactly the setup I’m looking at getting! My old Panasonic Lumix TZ80 (which I love dearly) is beginning to give up the ghost, so I think I’m going to move to a two camera set up, and I settled on the Olympus TG6 and the Canon SX70. Glad to know the set up works!

What do you tend to use for just travelling about normally (to work etc)? The Olympus? Have you ever been in a situation where you were frustrated you couldn’t snap a bird because it was too far away for the 4x zoom?

[broacher]

Yes. I was considering mentioning this too. Sorry! It surprised me a lot to learn that the purple blob affected all three models – but not every camera – at least not to the same degree. And you would think that a company with such a great macro reputation would have corrected it, right?

Many have said that it’s a physics problem to do with the tiny sensor size and it’s actually a reflection of the sensor off the lens. Hmm. I dunno. It seems to happen to me in lower lighting situations, but it also has happened in bright sunlight.

In any case, I did come up with a workaround using Lightroom (or Photoshop). I add a fuzzy circular mask to the area (repositionable with handles in the brush selection tools) and adjust the colour temp and tint to match the area it is discolouring. I also apply Dehazing to the same ‘blob’. Works pretty well except if the blob overlaps too many colour areas.

Here’s a hurried example based on your postings:

I bought my T5 used. ($150) It was going cheap because the anti-reflection coating was totally scratched up. I just removed it completely with some solvent
cleaner and other than the ‘blob’, no real problems ever since.

It’s still my ‘go-to’ choice of camera to grab when I’m going anywhere I can’t hide a bulkier camera.

BTW, don’t forget to invest in a camera screen protector.

[nellse]

Wow, thanks for your effort. Unfortunately I know nothing of Photoshop et al. and I don’t want to edit every picture. I’m looking for the quick and simple package for the moment. I’ll bookmark this tutorial, maybe I’ll need it someday

Today I was out for ~ 1 hour and 80% of the pictures had a blob, no matter what settings and angles I tried. But then, in the 20% there are pictures like these:

I really hope the flash diffuser will do the magic because aside from the blob problem the TG6 is a gem

[tiwane]

I almost feel like we should have a general Olympus TG series thread, since it’s such a popular iNatting camera.

Great shot, @nellse! Macro photography is so unforgiving.

[permiandon]

Use when traveling or commuting: I usually tuck the Olympus in a side pocket in the car. I often carry the Canon as well, though. Sometimes a Pentax DSLR too.

And yes, if I have just the Olympus I don’t even bother with distant wildlife. No point.

Notes on the Canon SX70:

1. Just the other day I pulled off the lens cap, and a thin plastic ring which fits around the front lens came off with it. I put three tiny drops of cyanoacrylate glue on the ring and reinserted it. A bother to have to fix something straight from the factory, as another poster mentioned.

2. The Canon shouldn’t be abused. I was shooting with my old SX60 during a warm summer fog on the Gulf of Mexico when the motorized zoom began malfunctioning. I looked down and saw water dripping from the camera body and running off the lens barrel. The camera lasted several more years, but that was the beginning of the end.

[phiala]

I have a Sony DSLR with decent macro lens, but what I’m actually using most is a clip-on macro lens on my phone. It is small, light, gives decent photos, and records time and location (because phone). If the best camera is the one you have with you, it wins.

DSLR is absolutely better for planned shoots and studio; the phone + lens is (for me) enormously superior for out and about/hiking/etc.

I purchased a very inexpensive one to play with, but am planning to upgrade. Still, even that is giving me useful photos.

[tanyuu]

As a novice who only got into cameras due to iNat, sometimes it’s a matter of what you’re comfortable with.

I have a Nikon d3400 and have gotten great results with it, but the GPS function depends on me remembering to let it sync with my phone beforehand (which my ADHD brain never does). However, since I’m often shooting around my home, it doesn’t matter so much since I upload in batches on my desktop.

Third party lenses are great, but check what features your camera will allow. I have one macro lens that gets very nice photos, but you have to shoot in manual mode, and it can’t autofocus (which may not be the fault of my camera). I get around this by stacking, but I have access to Photoshop and Lightroom.

[nellse]

So.
I tried the flash diffuser and it does a decent job. But, these are different photos of course; with flash, light altered and so on. I basically know nothing of photography and am ok with that. I don’t want to fiddle around with manual ISO and aperture and whatever for every picture. So that won’t be my solution.

So I bought a new TG 6. About 2 years later, different shop, even different color and, you might guess by now, absolutely the same problems. I took both cameras and they make identical blob pictures in all tested situations.

That’s it for me with this camera model. Maybe a TG 7 someday.
If anyone could point me to a comparable camera, I would be happy :)