camera that won't break the bank

I can't help with questions 1 or 3 *is also looking for those answers*
but for question 2, I'd say definitely a tripod (there are really great cheap ones out there), around 4ft full height should be good

 

I think you would have to set a range of what "inexpensive" and "too much money" mean to you since that's pretty subjective. When I finally broke down and bought a digital camera this year I bought a Sony Nex-5R because I wanted something that was:

1. Really small so I take (or possibly sneak shots) shots in art museums while on vacation
2. Could shoot raw files since I want excellent quality image
3. Would let me use old manual lenses (and shoot manually) since most of that auto-focus stuff is a pita to me

For my real work I shoot film. My large format camera and lenses cost around $5k so the Sony with a kit lens at $700 seemed pretty cheap to me. But that ain't the price range that most people think is cheap.....I really only shoot digital for vacation snaps and doll photos but I'm pretty happy with that camera. But you can get excellent image quality at way, way less money than that. For shooting dolls you can get a good point and shoot camera for $100 that will give you nice jpegs for viewing on your monitor or publishing to the web. I'm sure people here will chime in but for online research the B&H Photo web site is an incredible resource.

And Chibi_rat is correct, a tripod is a must have item.

 

I'm by no means a professional photographer, but here are some suggestions of what I use...

1. If you're looking for something in the range of a point and shoot camera to begin with, I would suggest getting something with a built in function to take shots of food. It might sound strange, but that setting is geared towards close-up pictures or focusing on tiny details. (Never use the Auto-Intelligence setting, it will never get the right exposure, especially when taking photos indoors). I have use a Lumix (still my favorite for portability and ease) with and a Nikon. ($120-$350)

This picture was taken with the Lumix on the above mentioned setting at night (I didn't adjust anything, I just cropped the corners):

The camera is 14 mega-pixel and only has a 5x zoom, which I almost never use for taking photos of my dolls.

2. A tripod is an awesomeness must... I have a neat one with flexible legs that allows me to attach it to verticle surface like tree branches and fences. I also tape a small square of white paper towel or thin paper over my flash when I take up-close pictures, it works amazingly well to diffuse the light if you don't want to buy/make a lightbox ^^

3. I would avoid buying a camera built especially for taking video (unless you want to take videos) because I find they sacrifice a lot of the little feature for the sake of streaming, etc...

I hope this gives you a place to start

 

If check amazon I'm currently stalking my dream camera there waiting to be able to afford it nice cameras used at a cheaper price

 

ellipses - That shot is excellent. Great points! So many people today are putting their meals up on social media sites that macro shooting is "in" which is good for us since manufacturers know it has to perform. There was a photo teacher at UW that swore by the quality of the Lumix cameras and it's what he carried with him at all times when he wasn't shooting with his mega buck dslr.The paper towel over the flash is awesome advice since diffused light is best. Since I have lightboxes, umbrellas, etc I never think about that stuff but it's the same thing, a way to light indoors evenly. Bjd's are espcially tough with that bright reflective skin. I have a friend in L.A. who was going to buy some studio strobes but she started manipulating her on-camera flash by putting different kinds of white fabric over it and it works well. DIY is good!

 

Thanks Dollhausen! I will admit I lust after the professional equipment, but I just can't justify if ^^ I've had a string of Lumix camera for a while now, and I swear by mine too

 

LOL That's why you get one with a food option, it's built for focusing then ^^
The camera I used above cost about $170 on Amazon (Lumix DMC) which is pretty affordable, I don't know if you'd be able to find something decent under $100.

 

I use a nikon coolpix. the newest version of my camera is avaliable for less than 100 dollars and its got 20.1mp with a 7x optical zoom they are really nice for a point and shoot

 

Depends on what you define as 'inexpensive'. What I do recommend is to go for average price camera that can actually shoot great photos and be used for a long period of time.

Before I had my SLR, I've been shooting with my mom's Canon S110. The price is more expensive that what the others suggest here (around 350$). Still, I truly believe it's a great camera and the result can be surprising.

Example of the shots I took under different conditions:

Indoor with decent amount of sunlight



Indoor without sunlight - http://www.flickr.com/photos/hermeia/10491498214/
High Key - http://www.flickr.com/photos/hermeia/10096986034/
Low Key - http://www.flickr.com/photos/hermeia/10837069225/

Be reminded that I don't use Auto but Manual.

Also, you may want to venture into Raw images (I believe most camera supports that) as you'll be able to adjust the colours and lightings in your computer just by playing with the sliders. For extra lighting at the doll face, you can always use an A4 paper as your reflector.

 

I'm what you call a bloody newby with camaras, and I don't really get the hang of them.
But I can give you my bit of advise. Let people that hopfully know what they are doing on their job, assesorate you, or just plainly follow your heart. You have a limmited amount of money, don't force more. Having your first camara in hand, makes choosing a lot more easy, buying online will be great when you know what camara you want from the start.
Select the one that gives you the most/best options and feels right and still is in your price range. (compaire, compair and compair some more)

My favorite doll shoot was with a 40 Euro (around 50-60$) camara at sunset.
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/s...ind-(Jean-Armand-Luts-event-head-on-BBB-body)
(pics have only been croped)

A year and a half later, when I knew I would stay in the hobby for some time and I enjoied taking doll pics, (well and I had a job and some money to spare) I got an upgrade and bought a Fujifilm finepix hs 30. Still a digital camara, because I would have no idea what to do with a DLS, but a somewhat upgraded one from the first (aprox. 350 Euro).
She takes nice pictures, feels right.

Now I prefere shooting ondoors, because I'm lazy like that. Outdoors you'll always have to carry all your stuff with you, and have a million eyes around you watching out^^

 

I have a very basic, old camera with just 3mp - but I tweak all my photos using photoshop elements - it is almost as good as having a better camera, but elements 5 only cost me £12 used from an amazon seller. The only essential thing on a camera for me is macro - for close-ups. I always use macro setting, and always use natural daylight, never flash. I would say the other thing to think of with a camera is rechargeable battery! Mine drives me mad as it eats AA batteries and always runs out of power when I need it!