Dental camera

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does anyone have any suggestions for a point and shoot type digital cameral for clinic? it would be mostly for intraoral shots.

thanks
How good do you want the images? Not many, if any, point and shoots will give you near the quality of image that you will want. There's an entire section o dentaltown related to photography. You will probably be better off buying an older version of the d90 (or canons version) and also a ring flash if you want a decent photograph.
 
How good do you want the images? Not many, if any, point and shoots will give you near the quality of image that you will want. There's an entire section o dentaltown related to photography. You will probably be better off buying an older version of the d90 (or canons version) and also a ring flash if you want a decent photograph.

D90 is an awesome camera; probably a way too much for an introductory photo novice. I can ASSURE you , the most important part of close up photography (aka- macro/micro photography) is going to be the lens. A better option would be to spend about $500 on an SLR, $500 on a macro lens , and $200 on a ring flash that will diffuse light softly for close up photos and not blow them up.

Two great options from Canon and Nikon:

Rebel XTi (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/613611-REG/Canon_3818B001_EOS_Rebel_T1i_Digital.html)

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Canon 100mm f/2.8 lens (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/194451-USA/Canon_4657A006_100mm_f_2_8_USM_Macro.html) :used one myself for mouth shots, great setup

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Bower Ring Flash (Canon brand is just way too high; http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/630902-REG/Bower_SFD52C_SFD_52C_Dual_Intelligent.html)

Or for a Nikon setup....


Nikon D5000 (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/615742-REG/Nikon_25452_D5000_Digital_SLR_Camera.html)

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Sigma 105 micro lens (much cheaper than Nikon alternative; http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/341922-USA/Sigma_257306_105mm_f_2_8_EX_DG.html_)


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Ring Flash (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=ring+flash&ci=643&Ns=p_PRICE_2|0&N=4294204370+4294955931)

Not trying to plug B&H, they just have tons of Camera gear and good information (as well as prices).

If you can't afford nearly that, then it looks like you'll just have to go out, bring a friend to an electronics store, and take pictures of their mouth close up using the digital cameras there. Otherwise, most P&S cameras will be about equal.
 
If you want an intraoral camera, buy a Solarcam off ebay for $59 bucks. It works just as good as the $2000 ones for taking photos and getting insurance preapproval for crowns.
 
I forget that not everyone is a photography enthusiast. But Jay is right, definitely buy the best lens you can afford.

D90 is an awesome camera; probably a way too much for an introductory photo novice. I can ASSURE you , the most important part of close up photography (aka- macro/micro photography) is going to be the lens. A better option would be to spend about $500 on an SLR, $500 on a macro lens , and $200 on a ring flash that will diffuse light softly for close up photos and not blow them up.

Two great options from Canon and Nikon:

Rebel XTi (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/613611-REG/Canon_3818B001_EOS_Rebel_T1i_Digital.html)

+

Canon 100mm f/2.8 lens (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/194451-USA/Canon_4657A006_100mm_f_2_8_USM_Macro.html) :used one myself for mouth shots, great setup

+
Bower Ring Flash (Canon brand is just way too high; http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/630902-REG/Bower_SFD52C_SFD_52C_Dual_Intelligent.html)

Or for a Nikon setup....


Nikon D5000 (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/615742-REG/Nikon_25452_D5000_Digital_SLR_Camera.html)

+

Sigma 105 micro lens (much cheaper than Nikon alternative; http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/341922-USA/Sigma_257306_105mm_f_2_8_EX_DG.html_)


+

Ring Flash (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=ring+flash&ci=643&Ns=p_PRICE_2|0&N=4294204370+4294955931)

Not trying to plug B&H, they just have tons of Camera gear and good information (as well as prices).

If you can't afford nearly that, then it looks like you'll just have to go out, bring a friend to an electronics store, and take pictures of their mouth close up using the digital cameras there. Otherwise, most P&S cameras will be about equal.
 
If you want an intraoral camera, buy a Solarcam off ebay for $59 bucks. It works just as good as the $2000 ones for taking photos and getting insurance preapproval for crowns.

Excellent advice if you are just taking intraoral photos; but for full profile pictures and smile lines, etc..you should eventually invest in a macro SLR setup.

And buy a book like myself if you are unfamiliar with how DSLR cameras work so you can fully utilize they capabilities.
 
Point-and-shoot cameras just don't work well for IO/EO photography. They're fine for dental school presentations, but if you're going for publication-quality photos (case studies, posters, etc), or want to catalogue your work, you'll need an SLR setup -- GOOD quality macro lens (most important part) and a ring or side-mount flash to provide you with an even light distribution - no more shadows. Check out the dental town message board -- under imaging there is an entire section devoted to dental photography.
 
Any Canon dSLR with a Sigma 105mm EX DG macro lens (~ $325 used) and a Sigma EM - 140 DG Ring Flash (~ $250 used) are great options for dentistry and will give you great shots that look just as good as buying the Canon macro lens and Canon ring flash. You can find the gently used camera items on eBay. Most of the faculty members at my school use the Sigma gear instead of the Canon because it performs similarly but is about half the price.

I also use a Canon SD1400 IS (point and shoot) for extraoral patient shots (before and after of denture patient, etc.) just for my own records, but it won't work well for the intraoral shots that you need for presentations, dental school projects, case portfolios etc.

I have an eBay intraoral camera from China too, but I actually don't use it that often. I have used it a few times to educate patients, but the pictures are not the best quality...

Hope this helps!
 
I ended up with the Canon G12 and bought a macro closeup lens and ring light. total setup was about 600. thanks
 
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