Digital Camera Advice (merged)
Ok, so I went to Japan for six weeks this summer and had my laptop (a Compaq....help me plz) and my mom's 2.0 MegaPixel FujiFilm Digital Camera. So after taking around 700 pics and a couple dozen videos, I've begun to think I should have one for myself.
Therefore, I throw myself at the mercy of those who have spent more money than I on digital stuff and politely ask for some suggestions.
Just two things: I have USB 2.0 and IEEE 1394 and I can't afford something over $300.
Thanks guys.
Therefore, I throw myself at the mercy of those who have spent more money than I on digital stuff and politely ask for some suggestions.
Just two things: I have USB 2.0 and IEEE 1394 and I can't afford something over $300.
Thanks guys.
Comments
Hope this helps.
BTW, get a Mac!
Tiny and average picture quality (from smallest to largest):
Pentax Optio S
Casio Exilim Z3
Minolta Dimage Xt
Canon Powershot S230
Average sized and decent pic quality:
Canon Powershot A70
Olympus Stylus 300
Sony Cybershot P72
My dad just bought a Dimage Xt a few days ago to take with him on a trip to Australia. For a camera you can take anywhere, anytime, it seems pretty decent. Also go to www.dpreview.com to read the reviews there...
Pros
* Very very small, fits in your pocket easily
* Decent picture quality
* Comes with two AAA batteries and a charger
* A number of presets to reduce red-eye, take fast-action shots, long distance shots, portraits, etc.
* Simple interface
* Convex mirror on slide-off lens cap for framing pictures of yourself, or for your subject to adjust their pose
* Decent resolution (2 MP)
* Good price ($200)
Cons
* Very small LCD screen makes it hard to preview pictures
* Comes with only 8 MB of memory, you must buy more for it to be useful
* No zoom
* Movie mode can only take super low resolution 15 second movies with no sound
* Can't scroll around a preview picture when zoomed in
* Lens cover can accidentally slide off and cause the camera to turn on if you're wearing somewhat tight pants (especially jeans)
I've heard good things about the Canon Digital Elph as well, and those are also very small.
TigerDirect
Also, worth checking out www.dpreview.com - it has very good and up to date reviews.
If you can afford a bit more than $300, I would invest in the S45 or S50
No, I don't own a Canon digicam, I use a Nikon d-SLR but recommend Canon for a good point-and-shoot digicam.
Some things to look out for in a digital camera aside from Megapixels:
1. zoom range (optical is much better than digital), usually listed in 135mm equivalents, e.g., 35mm-85mm zoom, etc. The lower the number, the wider the view angle, the more you can fit into the frame. Good for buildings and stuff, bad for portraits. Zoom in and take a few steps back for better portraits.
2. largest aperture/lowest f stop (same thing), i.e., f2.8, f3.5, etc. The smaller the number, the more light reaches the sensor. Lower numbers make it easier to take pictures in low light, and are better for portraits if you can control that.
3. Look for good white balance presets, or if you can set up a custom WB. You can avoid most post-processing if you get this right when you take the picture.
4. Look for good exposure presets like portrait, sports, night portrait, fireworks, sunset, etc. Some cameras have more presets than others, and they're usually programmed rather well.
5. Try to see how easy it is to do a quick review/delete of a picture, and how easy it is to play them back and go through many of them at once.
6. Watch out where the power button is! some Nikons and probably others put the power button in the absolutely wrong spot.
7. Decide whether you want standard AA NiMH batteries or proprietary ones. The proprietary ones last longer but are more expensive (always buy one extra anyway) and you can't just run into the local Walgreen's for an emergency one f your other two lose power. The standard batteries are available everywhere and are cheap, but eventually lose their ability to recharge over time if they can even recharge at all, so you end up buying more of them.
8. Decide if you're going to transfer your pictures directly from the camera using USB (I find it maddening that almost no cameras have better than USB 1.1 unless you're willing to spend $1500) or if you're going to pop in your media card to a reader. The USB connection is very convenient and is free with the camera including the plug, but your camera batteries drain during the transfer. If you use a media card reader, the transfers are MUCH faster and you save battery power, but you have to shell out for the media card reader, and you have to pay more attention to what type of card you're going to use: Compact Flash, Memory Stick, etc.
9. Finally, see how the camera feels in one hand, whether you can reach the shutter and other buttons comfortably, hold it for a while, etc. I can't tell you how important this is get the right "feel" and to avoid the nuisance of a non-ergonomic camera.
I'll shut up now?
A friend had a new Minolta Xt, which is about the same price, it was so thin it wasn't noticeable in a breast pocket. The picture quality wasn't nearly as good as with the IXUS series, though.
Great image quality, reliable performance.
Check out reviews of cameras here.
That way, your never going to be stuck with a fancy camera half way up the khyber pass with a flat Iondrive Dx-dss45 battery..
If you intend doing any travelling to wild or remote places, chances are they wont have a replacement for you.
But AA's are universal....
That's why I have stuck with my Nikon Coolpix 700 ( 2.1 pixels ).
But there are new cameras such as the Olympus 5050 that do take AA's...
There is safety in Numbers... & AA's is a safe bet...
It's a 6 millions pixel cmos camera, and it cost 1300 ? with a zoom, but i have seen offer at 1000 ?.
The previous cheaper reflex with various optics was the D10 selled 2000 ?.
If at the end of the year ,the taxes do not eat all my income, i will consider to buy one.
Originally posted by s.metcalf
I'm thinking of buying a camera for a friend's trip to Europe. Any suggestions on what a good value mid-range camera is? I'm currently looking at some of the Canon cameras such as the Powershot A80, but if there are any other suggestions, please let me know.
There is a lot of good mid range digital camera. I will suggest to buy in promotion the Canon G3 : it's a good semi-pro 4 Mpixel camera.
Anyway this thread belongs to digital hub. You should do a search here, many advices have been posted about the subject in the past.