Need inexpensive used digital for interior shots - wide angle?

Question

I know film cameras. I dont know digitals very well. All I want is a point and shoot digital, 2MP is fine for my needs. But I need to show interior rooms of houses so what would be digital terms for a 28mm lens? When ebaying wide angle digitals nothing cheap comes up. For example is 3.0mm common ? or 3.2mm ? My searches are not working. My 5.1mm is too narrow.

Answer 1

Actually there are a few point and shoot cameras out there with both a wide and regular lense.



Kodak made a EasyShare V570 that featured two separate lenses. (SCHNEIDER-KREUZNACH Lenses; RETINA Dual Lens Technology: ultra wide-angle lens (23 mm equiv.) plus 3X optical zoom lens (up to 117 mm equiv. telephoto) system. Provides 5X optical zoom range 23 mm–fixed (35 mm equiv.) f/2.8 39–117 mm (35 mm equiv.) f/3.9–f/4.4)



Kodak's V610 also featured two separate lenses. (SCHNEIDER-KREUZNACH dual lens technology; 10X optical zoom

38–114 mm (35 mm equiv.) f/3.9–f/4.4

130–380 mm (35 mm equiv.) f/4.8



And Kodak's V705. (ultra-wide: 23 mm–fixed (35 mm equiv.) f/2.8, SCHNEIDER-KREUZNACH C-VARIOGON Lens

3X zoom: 39–117 mm (35 mm equiv.) f/3.9–f/4.4, SCHNEIDER-KREUZNACH C-VARIOGON Lens)

Answer 2

I use a Nikon D series camera with the Nikon 12-24 mm lens. That lens costs as much as your budget ... but well worth it. How did you decide on your capital investment budget? Based on research or did you just come up with a number? If you use a tripod, you can take shots of up to 30 seconds, so the performance of a camera at high ISO's is not necessarily a concern. P&S cameras just don't have the angle of view you need for what you are attempting to do. Today, I used a Nikon D300 with 12-24 mm lens on a tripod and remote shutter release to shoot the interior of a restaurant. I have been using this lens for over seven years. The camera bodies come and go based upon technology. You can do the same thing with a Nikon D40 with the new 10-24 mm Nikon lens (about the same price as the 12-24 mm but with a wider view still).

Answer 3

Well point and shoots are strange that way, and I dont know of any point and shoot that goes wide enough to take interior shots. You really would have to get a DSLR with an ultra wide angle lens and then correct for any distortion. I know its kind of difficult to get film developed in good quality these days, but why not just hack it out for a bit until you can save up for a DSLR with a wide angle lens.