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Photo Forum / Digital Photography / Point & Shoot Cameras / December 2004Need mid-level camera suggestions
OK, I am about to make my first digital purchase. I guess I want an SLR poseur because my next digital will be a Nikon SLR as I have lenses for it. Looking through ads and some other stuff, I've figured out that optical zoom is a high priority, so most of the ones I'm looking at have about 10x. My finances limit me to about 4mp. So far, it seems the Kodak 6490 is pretty good. But then there's the Olympus 765 too. They both seem about equal in many ways. One is smaller than the other, which is attractive, but I want strong manual controls for those artsy shots, and I have the impression (wrongly so, perhaps) that the smaller the camera, the less manual controls it may have. I have visited some stores, from Best Buy to Ritz. I have to limit my purchases to these kinds of stores due to the financing they offer. Hence, I can't shop via mailorder. Other cameras I've checked are some Fujis (5100 nice, but doesn't seem as nice as the others?; the 3100 is almost a nice cheap compromise, being $100 cheaper than my limit with the others), a Minolta DiMage Z2 (somehow, I don't recall this being as nice as the Kodak), the HP 945 (high MP but I've been told this one is not as good as the others), Nikon 4800 (seems overrated compared to the others), and I think that's about it. I know there are a few more, such as the Kyocera M410R but I haven't seen it yet. I am curious what some of you would recommend and why? If you can give good reasons (rather than one like the guy at Best Buy who recommended the Canon S1 IS as being great and the lack of 4mp won't matter - BS!) this would be very helpful - thanks! Diego [] > I am curious what some of you would recommend and why? If you can give > good reasons (rather than one like the guy at Best Buy who recommended > the Canon S1 IS as being great and the lack of 4mp won't matter - BS!) > this would be very helpful - thanks! Having seen some 8 x 10s from a 3.3MP Nikon Coolpix 990 recently I would ask why you consider the advice bad? If it fits your budget, the S1 IS is a nice little camera with good movies (if that matters) and an image stabilised zoom (which certainly /does/ matter if you want 10X zoom). David > [] > > I am curious what some of you would recommend and why? If you can give [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > David I just joined the group. Lots of good discussion here. I thought I'd chime in. I have a 3.1 MP Olympus C3020 and I have managed some good 8 x 10s off it as well. My experience when I went looking is that the resulting picture is a function of both the number of megapixels AND the camera's optics (with a small nod to the processor). I have seen 2.0 MP cameras that will blow the doors off some 5 MP cameras, simply due to optics. One of the best all-round cameras I've ever seen for point-and-shoot images is our old office Kodak DC280. Heavy, bulky, ate batteries etc and definitely not a modern digicam, but awesome saturation and VERY clear images for a 2.0 MP camera. It's a corollary to 35 mm film. A $10 point-and shoot and a $5,000 SLR both use 35mm film, but the results vary a bit! Here's a good website for comparing cameras with a reasonably scientific approach to the comparison images. There are a LOT of cameras there: http://www.imaging-resource.com/ Click on the "compare sample images" option on the left side and go to it! Good luck. Jeff Reply by removing the obvious.... > Having seen some 8 x 10s from a 3.3MP Nikon Coolpix 990 recently I would > ask why you consider the advice bad? If it fits your budget, the S1 IS is > a nice little camera with good movies (if that matters) and an image > stabilised zoom (which certainly /does/ matter if you want 10X zoom). Hi, David, thanks for your response. To answer your question . . . despite me not really going to blow up any pics, I have a feeling that 3.2 is going to be somewhat obsolete when it comes to selling the camera in the future. I know with 4.0, it will be a bigger selling point. In addition, I used to do some free-lance writing and if I get into the game again, I'd like to make sure my photos are of the highest possible quality without compromises. As I don't know how much a pic will need to be blown, I'd rather defer on the side of caution. I s'pose that I like to be slightly ahead of the curve with my purchases, and the S1 IS appears to be just current. But I'm a newbie, and I have to rely on the opinions of others to get the real skinny. A friend of mine, who takes a lot of car pictures, has the Olympus 770 and swears by it, so that's one of the reasons why I am leaning in that direction. Aside of subjective issues like how it feels in my hand (not to mention my pocket), I am just interested in getting the best for my money. How important is image stabilization? What is it, exactly? What situations is it an asset? Is there a situation where it's not necessary? Thanks, Diego [] > How important is image stabilization? What is it, exactly? What > situations is it an asset? Is there a situation where it's not [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Diego I think that camera and in particular lens quality are more important than the absolute number of megapixels, and this should also reflect in the resale value (although resale value is typically very small in any case). IS reduces camera shake - and as you asked about a 10X zoom lens, I assumed that taking extreme telephotos was important to you. In lower than ideal lighting or if you shake the camera more than average (your hands are shaky or it's windy), IS will let you get sharper pictures. You don't need it if you use a tripod, however it can still be an advantage in less-than-ideal taking conditions. Having used a camera with IS, it is difficult to swap back to one without. Cheers, David Canon a95 5mp-- 303.00 with zipzoomfly.com excellent online store >OK, I am about to make my first digital purchase. I guess I want an >SLR poseur because my next digital will be a Nikon SLR as I have [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > >Diego Thanks, guys - I bought the Olympus 770. It was more than what I wanted to spend, but the NY stores had it for the same price as Best Buy's 765, so I got my mom to pay for it (airline miles, after all) and I can pay her in installments. Thanks again, Diego |
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