Recommedations for digital cameras??

[dani blaski]

My DH and I are leaving May 15th for our delayed Disneymoon!!
We currently do not own a digital camera and would like to get one for the trip. Can anyone recommend one that is idiot proof and takes great pictures??

thanks in advance!!

[dcg0317]

I have a Sony Mavica CD500, it's pretty easy to use but also has alot of bells and whistles with it. I can't just recommend one that is better than another. I went to this place http://www.steves-digicams.com/ read about all the digital cameras and then pick out a couple I thought I would like and went to a store and tried them out. He gives a very good an honest opinon on each camera. Good luck.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

I love the new Nikon and the new Olympus.
I hate anything with Kodak or HP on the label. I used to sell those two brands (along with others) and they had a very high return rate.
The models I think are great for beginners are the Nikon Cool Pix 4200 and 4300.

In Olympus, the Stylus 300,400 and 430 are fantastic.

I avoid any camera that does not have standard media, IE: compact flash or smart media. The zoom zoom goes like he** new stuff is expensive and not an industry standard. Little tiny cds are cute, but, expensive and cannot be erased and recorded over again. (unless something new has come on the market) Compact flash and smart media can.

[littlestix]

I have a Fugi Finepix A303. I love this camera. It has 3.2 pixel with a 3X optical zoom and a 3.2 digital zoom. This camera takes a XD card. I think it's pretty simple to use although it does more advanced things that I never use. It comes with an usb cord to hook right up to your computer.It's also small and lightweight. Get recahrgebal batteries and a charger because digital cameras will drain regular batteries really fast.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by littlestix
I have a Fugi Finepix A303. I love this camera. It has 3.2 pixel with a 3X optical zoom and a 3.2 digital zoom. This camera takes a XD card. I think it's pretty simple to use although it does more advanced things that I never use. It comes with an usb cord to hook right up to your computer.It's also small and lightweight. Get recahrgebal batteries and a charger because digital cameras will drain regular batteries really fast.

also an excellent camera, just don't care for the xd card.

[Disbug]

I also use a FuJi FinePIx 3600Z which I have used for all of my Trip Reports if you want to see the quality of the picture. It uses Smart Media and is pretty easy to learn and to use. I was at Best Buy the other day and a camera which looked just like it but had a slightly different model number was only $99! Wow! It was a 2.0 MegaPixel. I thought that was a pretty good price. Nowadays, 3.0 MP and up are the norm!

[callahanjulie10]

Love my Fuji S3000! It uses regular batteries, has 3.2 megapixels, 6X zoom, the cards are not too expensive and it is SIMPLE to use!!

[bobcat]

Just make sure you have time to play with your new camera before you go on vacation, especially if you have never had a digital camera before. There is a learning curve no matter how easy the camera is to use.

I too have the Fuji S3000 and love it! It is pretty easy to use and I have the option to have more control over my pictures as I learn and get more involved in my picture taking. The 6x zoom is great and the price is dropping on these cameras.

Gail I'm curious why you don't like the xD cards? Also thanks because you were a tremendous help in educating me about digital cameras.

[melanie18]

I have a Nikon Coolpix 4300 that I bought a month before our trip in Oct 2003. It was plenty of time to learn how to use it and pictures are great!
:)

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by bobcat
Just make sure you have time to play with your new camera before you go on vacation, especially if you have never had a digital camera before. There is a learning curve no matter how easy the camera is to use.

I too have the Fuji S3000 and love it! It is pretty easy to use and I have the option to have more control over my pictures as I learn and get more involved in my picture taking. The 6x zoom is great and the price is dropping on these cameras.

Gail I'm curious why you don't like the xD cards? Also thanks because you were a tremendous help in educating me about digital cameras.

I don't care for the xd cards only because they are not an industry standard, yet.
I am very happy to hear I could help you and you did get a very nice camera. I really should have included the Fuji cameras in my favorites.

[Jaci]

I got one before going on my last trip to the Bahamas. It's a great camera. 10x optical zoom, 3.1megapixels.
I also looked at the Fuji Finepix S5000. Also a good camera.
Got the best deal on the Minolta.

HTH

[pjlla]

Another recommendation for Fuji here. We currently own our third Fuji digital camera. We have tried a few others, including HP and Canon (I think) and were not happy with them. We just keep going back to Fuji! We currently have an older Fuji Finepix 2600Z and a relatively new Fuji Finepix F700. Love them both...P

[JKanownik]

Originally posted by GAIL HAYDEN
I don't care for the xd cards only because they are not an industry standard, yet.
I am very happy to hear I could help you and you did get a very nice camera. I really should have included the Fuji cameras in my favorites.

xD cards are also more fragile. Fuji decided that faster read/write speeds were more important than the durability of the cards (even at a higher cost!), but as of yet none of the other major digicam manufaturers agree with them.

-Josh

[mtblujeans]

Walmart has a good deal on a battery recharger: For just under $17.00, you get the recharging unit, the power cord, a power cord that plugs into your cigarette lighter (car) and 4 rechargable batteries. (I have seen this same kit at Staples for $29.99) I got one for our trip to WDW this Fall. I have more batteries but I can switch them and recharge in the car if I have to. I think it sounds great for travel.

[dani blaski]

WOW! Thanks to everyone for the great feedback:)
This will help with our decision. All of you are great resources!

[disneyfan551]

I also have the Minolta Dimage Z1 and it is AWESOME! I know, everyone will have their own opinions and think theirs is the best. And, many people may not really have anything else to compare it to. I spent weeks reading about digis on the 'net, from dpreview.com, and steve's site listed above, and many more. There are alot of options. My truly favorite thing about my camera is the 10X zoom. Everyone that sees my photos, say they want one just like it!

I bought mine at Costco, even though the closest one is 3 hours from my house. Their return policy is wonderful.

Re: chargers, I bought the Lightning Pack from ripvan100.com. It's compact, and plugs right into the wall, no cord! Study up on these as well. The speed chargers are not necessarily the best!

Good luck in your decision! ;)

[pjlla]

We also tried the Minolta Dimage after seeing great reviews online. We used it for about two weeks and then returned it. We just didn't think it was as good as a Fuji. But different strokes for different folks!.....................P

[Tiger Fan]

I have a Cannon Sureshot A70 and we really like it. It's 3.2 megapixels and it's very easy to use. It's small, fits great in your pocket and the pictures turn out fabulous. Good luck as you decide. You should be able to get this camera for around $279.
Lisa

[DisneyDope]

I got a Fuji FinePix S7000 almost 3 weeks ago. I got it on clearance from Best Buy for $455. There is also a $100 rebate. The features that attracted me were:

- 6x optical zoom
- full manual control in addition to automatic
- uses standard AA batts
- can use the xD or CompactFlash media
- the super-macro capability
- tons of settings to play with (I'm a gadget freak)
- the final price after rebate

This is a 6 megapixel camera (that can be 'up-converted' to 12 megapixel - don't ask). This might be overkill for just vacation pictures, but I do other stuff too (little league and other sports).

Some cons that didn't dissuade me from getting it:
- lens not the best for low-light situation, sometimes autofocus won't work
- known battery drainage problem (due to certain CF cards)
- doesn't fit in a shirt pocket!

I learned all about it from the review and message forum at dpreview.com, and reviews from steves-digicams and other places.

Another digicam I was strongly considering was the Olympus C-5050Z.

Al (a happy S7000 user)


:)

[COMPSPEED]

All the brands mentioned are good. A very important consideration is battery life. Cameras that use rechargeable AA batteries will chew up and spit out batteries like there is no tommorrow. I have had a Sony going on 4 years now that came with it's own LION (lithium ion) battery. It gets close to 200 minutes of life per charge. Realize that you don't leave you camera on all the time. I have used this Sony on 2 trips to Disney and really didn't have to charge to battery even after 2 days of use. It still had around 30 mins on battery time. Of course time will vary depending on your LCD display. etc. I can only tell you of my experience and and have been more than pleased with the Sony from an ease of use , quality, battery life and picture quality standpoint.

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by COMPSPEED
All the brands mentioned are good. A very important consideration is battery life. Cameras that use rechargeable AA batteries will chew up and spit out batteries like there is no tommorrow. I have had a Sony going on 4 years now that came with it's own LION (lithium ion) battery. It gets close to 200 minutes of life per charge. Realize that you don't leave you camera on all the time. I have used this Sony on 2 trips to Disney and really didn't have to charge to battery even after 2 days of use. It still had around 30 mins on battery time. Of course time will vary depending on your LCD display. etc. I can only tell you of my experience and and have been more than pleased with the Sony from an ease of use , quality, battery life and picture quality standpoint.

My Nikon 950 uses 4 aa batteries and they last for at least 200 minutes. I use the LCD display when I am shooting all the time.
The Nikon 5000 uses the same type of battery you have and I seem to get the same amount of time with it. I have spares for both and chargers for both.

[SonicLogic]

The Nikon CoolPix 4300 is the best of the lot. It is user friendly to the novice, yet it has features that surpass most other cameras for more experienced users. You can't go wrong with this camera.

[Tink10]

I just got a Sony DSC-V1 & absolutely love it......It's compact with a ton of features & the pics are fabulous.......The rechargable batteries are great too.

Entertainment card holders get an additional $50 off at Dell.....So, when they're running their 10% off digicams, there are some great deals to be had.

[LaurieA]

anyone use or know about the olympus stylus 410- i like that it is "splash proof".

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by LaurieA
anyone use or know about the olympus stylus 410- i like that it is "splash proof".

Yep, it is a GREAT camera and one of my top picks.

You can read all about it on the Olympus web site.

[elgerber]

I have the Fuji A303 too, and we love it. Someday I would like more optical zoom, but we bought this because it was small and easy to transport. It takes AA batteries, and we bought 4 rechargeables, so we always have a spare set. On our last 8 day trip, I only changed them once. I love the xd card, I know it's not standard, but it's tiny and easy to carry several extras.

Erika