I need info about small digital camera (vanity)

03/30/09 | Doogle

[Doogle]

I'm looking to purchase a small digital camera and need feedback from FReepers. Experiences, likes,dislikes, models, makes......

[Doogle]

...the mouse trap bait post worked so well (and was successful) and it told me FReepers were very helpful and there's a big mouse problem in this country...rats too. *grins*

[SWAMPSNIPER]

What will you be using it for? Different models have different strengths and weaknesses. Do you need long range of wide angle? Indoors or outdoors?

[Salamander]

The whole Sony DSC W-*** series kicks butt.

My last was a W-100 and it *never* failed and the battery life is just insane.

I have a mini-tripod mount on the handlebar of my Harley for it and can record an entire day’s ride on a single 4Gig card and one battery.
[but I carry a spare, just in case]

I recently replaced that with a DSC H-50 and gave hubby the W-100.

Small, sturdy, fast response, sharp photos *and* it shoots good, clear video.
It’s a super “point and shoot” pocket rocket.

[Doogle]

both indoor outdoor....mostly outdoor, use.. from Tea Parties to car shows. I'm not looking to make the small videos that some do, more for photos.

[Doogle]

when the video bug hits (which it will) I'll keep that in mind....

[Red_Devil 232]

I have a Kodak EasyShare Z1285. 3.5”W x 2.5”H x 1”D. Takes great pictures. See my home page for examples.

[Salamander]

I record my rides to keep me sane in winter.

When it’s 3 degrees outside, I’ll stick the ‘chewing gum stick” memory card into my DVD recorder card slot and watch and listen to a few hours of loud pipes and rolling, summer countryside on a 52” screen.

Ahhhhh..........;-D

[I also record our benefit runs consisting of *thousands* of bikers because the local new channels conveniently ignores them]

[Doogle]

Thanks....they are clear

[Doogle]

yeah, I’m always checking out the vids on youtube with the mounted cams. (cobras).

[GLDNGUN]

I, too, love my sony.

[Doogle]

thanks

[MyTwoCopperCoins]

Buy the one with the biggest lens possible. Bigger the lens, greater the light available, better the image quality will be. Don’t bother about megapixels above 12.

There was an extensive revew of compact cameras on Engadget.com and Gizmdo.com. You should consult these two websites before making a purchase.

[Doogle]

...got em, Thanks

[Salamander]

Better clarify that with “fastest lens” possible.
Look for “F Stop” numbers like “F 1.8” or “F 2.0” which will be written on the lens.
That’s the maximum aperture “speed” versus shutter speed.
The -smaller- the number, the “faster” the lens which means better performance in low light situations with a trade off of depth of field.

[fella]

I agree the Sony DSC-W150 I got for 25 years at work is great. I gave my Panasonic DMC-LZ3 away because of it. The screen is bigger and clearer and you can actually see it in the sunlight and it also has a viewfinder. But I still would rather have a SLR designed camera with a set of lenses.

[jimtorr]

Personally, I like the Olympus line. I did extensive hands-on research a few years ago, and Olympus seemed to have the best display for use in direct sunlight. That can be important if you take a lot of outdoors shots.

[Doogle]

thanks

[ccmay]

The Canon SD series is excellent. My family and I have several and they are everything we need. About the size of a pack of cigarettes. They’ve been mistreated and never missed a beat.

[raybbr]

Go here and start reading. The best thing to do is read customer reviews. Also, B&H is the best place to get camera gear.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/shop/8612/Digital_Cameras_Point_Shoot_Digital_Cameras.html

[DieHard the Hunter]

Doogle, I absolutely swear by the Canon IXUS range of cameras. I’m on my third one now: they look nice, they have a steel case and they take great pictures without you needing to meddle with the settings. I carry one on my duty belt when I’m doing Guardian Angels work, which can sometimes get rough-and-tumble. Now, they aren’t shockproof so it is possible to break them, but they are more rugged than others.

Point-and-shoot, zoom if you like. The default settings are all sensible and well thought-out. Shoots well at nite, shoots well during the day. My About page has a photo taken with it at nite. I’ve been asked if I used any special settings to get the picture — nope.

Highly recommended. When this one has done its duty, I will buy another Canon IXUS.

[Pistolshot]

Canon suggestions.There are other cameras out there, but I just did 3 weeks of research and found these excellent price/quality cameras. Most camera shops will let you play with each model, take some pictures, and generally get a feel for capabilities.

PowerShot A1000 IS Good value camera. Great pictures.Pocketable, powerful for it's size.

PowerShot SD970 IS A little more upgrade from above, also very portable.

The camera I purchased. PowerShot SX10 IS Massive amount of features in a great package. Rotating screen, 0 macro distance, all the features of an SLR without the price.

If you want samples of what this camera can do, Freepmail me.

[MyTwoCopperCoins]

That’s correct.

I thought Doogle wanted a compact camera, where these details are not as easily available, unlike lens diameter and megapixels.

[KeatsforFirstDog]

I had/have the Canon PowerShot SX10 IS and it’s a great camera...loved it!

I upgraded about 1 1/2 years ago to the Canon EOS 350D (Digital Rebel XT) and absolutely LOVE it. It has SLR and I can take multiple pics in seconds, which is nice because it’s hard to miss the perfect shot. It’s this one:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos350d/

Both Canons are fairly easy to use, but the second one with SLR is going to cost ya about 2x the first. I chose to upgrade because I take a lot of pics of my kids for my business and need prefer the SLR function and higher megapixels.

I’ve heard good things from a lot of e-friends about the entry level Nikon SLR camera, too, but I’ve personally never used it.

[southlake_hoosier]

The first thing you need to ask is what features you want.

If you want the smallest camera with the best zoom, then the Panasonic’s the best. It is the smallest camera with a 10x zoom. Some of the pictures I have taken with it are amazing.

Canon cameras usally have the best image quality, but if you want a better zoom their cameras are a bit bulky.

Sony also makes a nice camera, but again if you want zoom, too big.

Bottom line for me, Sony or Canon for best picture quality (without a great zoom), Pansonic for best zoom (still great picture quality, but not as nice as Sony or Canon).

[KC Burke]

Canon SD880i for just under three hundred.

Widest glass lens of the bunch with all controls on the back for one handed use.

Lens quality is superior to others in the series and that generally trumps mega pixel count.

Now, when you get ready for the SLR a Nikon 18-200 zoom on the D-90 is a real killer but we are talking major life purchase range for an outfit starting with that.

[BuffaloJack]

I bought a very small Kyocera camera. Although it took excellent photos, the rechargable battery was good for about 12 to 15 pictures. And before you say it was a defective battery, I bought 2 spares and none of them lasted more that the same 12 to 15 shots.

[SWAMPSNIPER]

You'll do better if you don't get something shirt pocket sized. Cramming full features into tiny packages isn't good for image quality. I use the Panasonic FZ30 as my main camera, like it so much I have 2 of them, but it may be too big. It is a handful.

Some folks will be upset, but I do not like Kodak stuff these days, build quality is marginal, and the extra stuff Kodak builds in, "easy share" etc, does nothing for image quality but takes resources away from it. You pay for everything in the camera, best go for function not bling.

Look at cameras, search for reviews on line, see what folks are saying on the photo forums, and go from there. Advertisements don't mean much. If you aren't going to print circus posters 8MP is plenty. Cramming too much MP output on a small point and shoot camera sensor ruins image quality. Even 8MP is pushing hard. I've got an old Olympus 2MP that will flat kick butt against many of the newer, larger cameras. It's 10 years old, no breakdowns, but I'm getting ready to throw a 3 year old Kodak P850 in the trash, it's been garbage from the start.

[Trust but Verify]

Canon Power Shot has my vote for a compact camera. Easy to operate, good opticals, VERY small. You can literally carry it in your pocket.

[SWAMPSNIPER]

Some of the Canons don’t have threads allowing a tube adapter to be used. For an outdoor camera the ability to use a filter on a tube is critical, it keeps the lens barrel from pumping dirt.

[Rum Tum Tugger]

The Canon SD series is excellent. Yep.

We have 4 of them. Wouldn't buy anything else.

[NoControllingLegalAuthority]

Canon "Power Shot" A1000IS. Available at Wal-Mart and others for under $200. 10 Megapixels. It's one of the few digitals that still sports a physical view finder you can look through to see the subject of your photo.

It has the digital display screen, too, of course, but it can be hard to see in bright light.

Depress the shutter button partially and the camera focuses automatically.

I was doing the same research as you are. My brother-in-law recommended this camera to me and I bought one.

You can't believe the quality of pictures this thing can take.

[6SJ7]

For any cameras that interest you, dig into the company’s website and look for the owner’s manual for the specific model. You can really get a lot of good info by reading the manual (how do you change the battery, how difficult is it to change settings, etc.)

When shopping for a digital camera for my Mom, I wanted one that was simple. A quick look at the size of the user manual was a clue to the complexity of the camera.

[RaceBannon]

dont buy a small one

the lens’ are too small to get a really nice picture

get one of those that looks like a mini 35mm, they would be about $250 or $300 and the [picture quality is hugely better than a small digital

If you have $700, get a full size digital SLR, it is worth it

[TADSLOS]

What will be your end state with the images? Art photography or "happy snappies"? Will you be mostly printing images that you take or will you be posting them on a web album? If printing, will you be enlarging any images beyond 8x10? Also, what level of post editing will you be doing with your images? Simple crop and details enhancement or extensive layers, HDR, special effects, etc...

Consider the end state that you intend your images to be, then back track to the kind of digital camera you need to get there. BTW, agree with other posters ref the Canon series. My pocket camera is the Canon SD1100 IS. Great little camera. Go here for research:

DPReview

[raybbr]

Now, when you get ready for the SLR a Nikon 18-200 zoom on the D-90 is a real killer but we are talking major life purchase range for an outfit starting with that.

I got a D40 with the 18 - 55 and 55 - 200 lenses for $434 last February. I love the camera and I am able to take great pics with it. The D-90 is way out of my price range.

[JimRed]

I am a real estate agent, and do property valuation reports sometimes requiring multiple photos along with residential sales & listings. I also have the world’s cutest grandkids who need to be photographed frequently. < /opinion >

I bought a Fujifilm FinePix, 5.1 megapixels, small and simple, a few of years ago. I have been satisfied with the results.

[ken in texas]

Some good comments so far. Another thing you might want to consider is the type of battery used by the camera.

Some use a battery that must be recharged, others use off the shelf batteries. I'm still using an old Canon Powershot A20... standard AA batteries that you can buy anywhere.

[Auntie Mame]

Stay away from Kodak. They don’t allow anyone but themselves to service the cameras. I paid over $400 one of their cameras, took less than 500 pictures, and the camera lens froze. Kodak won’t fix it and the only thing they were willing to do is give me a 20 percent discount on my next Kodak purchase.

I don’t think so.

[KC Burke]

The D-40 is a great buy and covers most of the features carried by the 60 and 90.

I went for the D-90 for its video on an SLR feature and my purchase was a “last I’ll ever buy” type purchase. I figure that it will last fifteen to thirty years and that matches my trajectory for my brain. LOL.

The lens was about as much as the body and except for low light portraits I never have to change lens. I got the big seperate flash to give me dual slave capability and a 1.4 50mm which shoots like a 75 with the lens factor.

Like I said — once in a lifetime type purchase. Its the only SLR I’ve bought in 17 years — I was still shooting film

[aimhigh]

I sold a Sony to get a Canon, and regret I lack the funds to go back to Sony. I don’t like Sony’s proprietory storage cards, but Sony has the best menu to work with.

[Doogle]

just posting and sending...nothing about presentations or anything like that...

[Doogle]

Thanks, to all for your info and guidance

[THX 1138]

Just recently got a Panasonic Lumix 8.1 megapix, love it. Tons of features, uses standard AA batteries, large LCD. It’s a little picky about memory, stick with Sandisk Ultra ll.

[Chickensoup]

bought my daughter a red kodak at 8 mpixs. Great service nice pics. saw it on sale for 99. good buy.

[762X51]

Canon! Canon! Canon! Get the Powershot A590IS or higher model and you’ll be pleased. I’ve owned Canon point and shoots for years and I’ve always been pleased with the photos they take. I like the results from my A570 as well as those from my Nikon D40.

[sharpee]

If you are looking for a durable little camera that can take a lot of knocking around. Look at the Olympus waterproof camera. It does not have a pop out lens but it can be dropped and can even be used under water. A videographer(?) who films high end Safaris recommended it one night over a couple of Tuskars at the Slipway in Tanzania. I use it for pics and short films the grand kids swimming both on the surface and underwater.

[Doogle]

*smiles*...you sound like Higgins from the old Magnum PI series...Thanks

[sharpee]

Actually there was a guy a lot like that at the Slipway. He was on my flight out of Amsterdam. He dressed like Higgins. What was odd when I first saw him in front of me at the gate was the woman with him she was quit a bit younger. It could have been his daughter she dressed casual but with a little class. When we got on the airplane he sat in front in first class and she was in back with us in coach. She was his girl Friday. When I did get to talk to him he said that they were visiting friends who ran a safaris in southern Tanzania (those are usually hunting safaris). What a trip!