Digital Camera Recommendations

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I'm in the market for a digicam. I was thinking about the Canon A520 or A95. Anyone have experience with these? Other recommendations are welcome. Thanks!
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 36
    thttht Posts: 5,421member
    Don't know much, but we bought a Canon Powershot S2 IS for our vacation to Italy. My first new camera in 12 years! The reason we bought this particular model? It felt solid in our hands. That was pretty much it.



    I was originally intending to get a Powershot A95 ($200 cheaper than the S2 IS) but it felt cheap and flimsy to us. It is a highly recommended camera though. It's been end-of-lifed, so it may be hard to find. Same deal with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ2 we were looking at.



    As far as imaging quality is concerned, I really couldn't tell you the differences between photon shot noise or chromatic aberrations in different cameras. Who can? It just seems that the differences between digital cameras is like the difference between 95.5921 and 95.5732 (as opposed to 95 and 87).



    Anyways, my only real input is:



    Digital Photography Review has multipage camera reviews of things I have no idea the importance of (to me).
  • Reply 2 of 36
    i have the A85.. and i would suggest going for the cannon elf.. its small, and all that nifty stuff.. and i heard its good pic quality also...
  • Reply 3 of 36
    danmacmandanmacman Posts: 773member
    I am looking to get my first ever digital camera as well. I was looking at the new Exilim EX-S500
  • Reply 4 of 36
    apoderapoder Posts: 49member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by DanMacMan

    I am looking to get my first ever digital camera as well. I was looking at the new Exilim EX-S500



    Woah that thing is pretty slim. I don't know anything about digital cameras but I get the feeling that these ultra portable cams are limited in functions.
  • Reply 5 of 36
    voxappsvoxapps Posts: 236member
    One advantage of the A-series Canons is that they use AA-size batteries. That makes them a bit larger than some other cameras, but it also means that you can get batteries just about anywhere if you're on vacation or whatever. If you have a camera with a proprietary battery and you forget your charger or your battery fails, you're hosed.



    Canons are well-made and their included Mac software is good. Another Canon model to consider would be the SD-410 Elph (Ixus in Europe), which is being discontinued and can be found for under US $250. It's smaller than the A-series cameras (due in part to its proprietary small battery), but is literally pocket-sized and has solid construction.



    Whatever you choose, if you're serious about your photos, be sure to get a camera with an optical viewfinder, not a camera with just an LCD. Why? You need to hold a camera steady to avoid camera shake and to ensure it's parallel to the ground. It's also a lot easier to compose a picture when you can see what's going on. Looking at an LCD requires you to hold the camera away from your body which makes it harder to see your subject and keep the camera from shaking. (An analogy for gun owners: would you fire a rifle while holding it out at arms length?)
  • Reply 6 of 36
    regreg Posts: 832member
    My parents have a Canon SD400. The SD400 is about $100 more than the A520 or A95. Canon support is good and the pictures from their camera are very good. One thing you will need is another memory card. All the ones that come standard are way too small. Unless you are using the flash a lot, the batteries last a long time. It also has more functions than most people have time to play with them. My parents were making 360 degree pictures using the stitch function in the Canon software in less than a week and they are not geeks and the pictures were good.



    reg
  • Reply 7 of 36
    hmurchisonhmurchison Posts: 12,419member
    I have the A520



    Good camera! Good battery life great pics..haven't delved too much into the controls but I'm very happy.
  • Reply 8 of 36
    powerdocpowerdoc Posts: 8,123member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Apoder

    I'm in the market for a digicam. I was thinking about the Canon A520 or A95. Anyone have experience with these? Other recommendations are welcome. Thanks!



    Both are very good cameras. You should check what specifications suits more your needs.
  • Reply 9 of 36
    I love me Casio Exilim Z55



    Thinest, most pictures on battery charge (400+), and biggest screen in its category. Up to 2.7 inches.



    Casio Exilim
  • Reply 10 of 36
    adamraoadamrao Posts: 175member
    I have the PowerShot A95 and love it. If you want a camera that has some 'body' to it (i.e. NOT a super-slim), then the A95 should fit the bill quite well. If you're looking for a camera the size of a deck of cards, look elsewhere.



    The quality of the images on the A95 is excellent (purple fringing the only real 'problem' I continually encounter) and I love the way the camera handles and feels. Lots of modes, lots of customization, etc.



    Check http://www.dpreview.com for their review and see what you think!
  • Reply 11 of 36
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Apoder

    Woah that thing is pretty slim. I don't know anything about digital cameras but I get the feeling that these ultra portable cams are limited in functions.



    They are very nice cameras since I have one. Did as much as my Canon SD110 and more. I love splicing two pictures together with my camera.
  • Reply 12 of 36
    mikefmikef Posts: 698member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by hmurchison

    I have the A520



    Good camera! Good battery life great pics..haven't delved too much into the controls but I'm very happy.




    I echo this sentiment.



    I am very pleased with my A520. Battery life is excellent (even though the A510/520 only take 2 AAs compared to the older A70/75/80/etc). My next step will be to a Digital Rebel XT.
  • Reply 13 of 36
    matsumatsu Posts: 6,558member
    I have an A75 and like it a lot, but there's better out there now.



    The controls are fun, I get shots that I shouldn't get given the sensor's limited range, but I have a pretty steady hand. I lose shots due to subject motion, but ah well.



    I wish I had camera that I could crank up to ISO 800 (maybe even 1600) and ignore the flash. I can do this on a D70/100, but I haven't yet met a P&S that allows this. Which brings me to...



    The Fuji f10. It has a bad menu system, aparently, and it's got limited manual control -- bad. However, it has the best ISO 800-1600 performance of any minicam on the market. I've seen a few samples out of capable hands, and the results rival DSLR results (at ISO800, 8x10 print)



    There is no other digicam that can do this, and there is likely a 9MP version coming soon...
  • Reply 14 of 36
    apoderapoder Posts: 49member
    Thanks for all the input guys...Really helped.



    Anyway, I decided on the Canon Pshot A520. I'm still playing around with it but it seeems pretty nifty. Also has a lot of features I'll probably never use/learn to use.
  • Reply 15 of 36
    matsumatsu Posts: 6,558member
    Don't get bogged down in techno babble, go shoot. Visit your local bookstore too, most have a pretty good selection of how-to, though I have no idea how proficient of a photographer you may be. I'm crap, but I've come a long way in the last couple of years just by reading the various how-to's out there...
  • Reply 16 of 36
    aquaticaquatic Posts: 5,602member
    I have the A80 which is basically the A95 with a smaller screen and 1 less megapixels.



    Damn good camera. The way the screen swivels out like a camcorder's gives you unique picture-taking capability. If you are a photographer it is a must. It lets you adjust shutter time, exposure, focus, etc. Quality is great, feels solid, everything about it is great. I spent a long time looking for cameras. I am very satisfied with it. They're doing great things with their cameras right now.



    The batteries as AA is also a huge advantage. I bought rechargeable AA but I have 4 AA in the case just in case. And I know I can go in to any gas station if I need more batteries, which I've had to do at times. Or steal from my remotes and my mouse!
  • Reply 17 of 36
    mikefmikef Posts: 698member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Apoder

    Anyway, I decided on the Canon Pshot A520. I'm still playing around with it but it seeems pretty nifty. Also has a lot of features I'll probably never use/learn to use.



    Tip #1: use the camera in "P" mode (everything should be AUTO by default) and disable AiAF. This 'great' feature (on the feature list) is next to useless and will mess up more pictures than it helps.



    This tip applies to all Canon cameras with AiAF.
  • Reply 18 of 36
    apoderapoder Posts: 49member
    A quick question to the Canon Powershot users on here. I'm currently using a PC to load pics from this camera (A520) and there doesn't seem to be an option which allows me to safely disconnect the hardware. As of now I just yank the cord off and everything still works but I was wondering if there was a more safer way. Thanks
  • Reply 19 of 36
    cakecake Posts: 1,010member
    When I used to connect my old PowerShot S10 and my current camera (a Sony DSC-W7 - which I highly recommend) to my XP machine, a little green arrow would appear in the System Tray of the Taskbar.



    You simply click the green arrow and up pops a message saying "Now safe to remove hardware".
  • Reply 20 of 36
    apoderapoder Posts: 49member
    Yeah thats the message/icon I'm looking for. Nothing seems to happen when I plug in/pull out the cam so I guess it should be fine
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