Grant Erwin wrote:

I often want to shoot a picture of some detail just to post it as an adjunct to
a discussion, as "a picture is worth a thousand words". I have terrible trouble
shooting closeups with digital cameras. I have finally found the method that
yields the best results:

use minimum aperture for max depth of field (f2.8)
no flash
macro mode
manually adjust exposure
autofocus takes a long time, wait until macro focus lights
shoot multiple images - bracket exposures
use LCD display to adjust exposure, focus

but it's still pretty miserable. I want to know if there exist any digital
cameras in the under $200 price range which can actually shoot closeups. I don't
care about much else, as the cameras we have now can handle other jobs.

I'm looking for precise model suggestions from actual owners, NOT general
suggestions like "nikon rocks" or "have you tried sony" or "google on reviews".
There are about a trillion review sites but it's a whole boatload of work to
sort through them all and I'm hoping one of you has a camera, knows what I'm
talking about, likes their camera, knows it's still currently available, and is
willing to post the exact model number.

Thanks!

GWE

I can't suggest a specific model camera, but I can say that I've had
excellent results with my cheap 3.1MP Kodak DX4330. To a very large
extent the issue is in technique, not equipment.

As a number of people have mentioned, good closeups require a good
external lighting (not flash), a tripod and a little computer work
afterwards.

A digital camera without a fancy macro mode like mine (does have a
closeup setting) may not be able to fill the entire frame with the
detail image you want, but the resolution is there to allow cropping to
get the area you want and when viewed 1:1 has plenty of detail. A newer
5 or 6 MP camera has even more capability.

As Iggy mentioned for flat stuff a flatbed scanner does exceptionally
well. I once tested a new flatbed scanner ($100 model) by scanning a
box from an Intel CPU that was nearby. The detail it captured from the
hologram sticker was amazing.

Pete C.