Can someone recommend a camera for me please???

[maslex]

I am thinking of buying a new digital camera. I would like it to have a panoramic setting, great quality, take great night shots, great action shots (boys are in soccer) and possibly a great firework shot once in a while.

I am in NO WAY a good photographer, I just take pics as I go along. I have a Kodak Easy Share CX6330 (3.1 MP) camera now, and while that is okay, I'd like to upgrade a bit.

I will be taking a 9 day trip to WDW in July of this year and then on a Disney cruise this coming April. And I would LOVE to get some GREAT pictures.

I know cameras can run hundreds and sometimes thousands of $$$, but I'm looking for something that has most (if not all) of the characteristics that I listed that is reasonably priced. I'm not looking for something with all kinds of bells and whistles, just basically a point/shoot kind of camera.

Can ya help me?

 

[claribella]

Well if you would like to stay in the Kodak family and like the pocket cameras I'd suggest the Kodak V803. I have it in Golden Dream color and it's a really good camera for being a pocket. I also have a Kodak P712. But I'm saving up for a Canon Rebel.

 

[Groucho]

Such a camera simply doesn't exist... if it did, we'd all use it. We'd also all be putting pro photographers out of business.

There are lots of good point-n-shoot cameras out there, but you have to work within their limitations, the one that causes the most complaints being poor low-light ability. This is the nature of the beast, with the cameras being so small. Of the PnS cameras, the Fujis should generally have the upper hand in terms of sharpness and low-light ability due to larger sensors than the competition.

 

[LPZ_Stitch!]

I am thinking of buying a new digital camera. I would like it to have a panoramic setting, great quality, take great night shots, great action shots (boys are in soccer) and possibly a great firework shot once in a while.

That's asking a lot from a P&S, even the good 'advanced' ones: Canon S3 IS/G7, Sony H5/H7/H9 or Fuji S6000fd/S9000/S100....

For example, the Fuji's are excellent in low light. They've got the highest usable ISO of all the advanced P&S cameras ... but, they don't have IS which makes using the 10x zoom for action/sports a little harder. I don't know if the Fuji has a panoramic mode.

The Sony's and the Canon's take great action shots and the S3 (I know for sure, 'cause I've got one) has a panoramic mode, but they are not that good at low-light; to get their best, you need to use the manual settings or rely on Noise Reduction software to deal with their noisy high ISO pics. However, they do have IS (image stabilization) which makes it possible to use slower shutter speeds (in lower light conditions) without getting too much blur from shaking the camera -- however, IS can't do anything about moving subjects.

Just about all of the high-end P&S can take a good firework shot. Most of them have "fireworks" as a mode right on the dial or in their menus....

I'd highly recommend that you read the reviews on the Digital Camera Resource Page ... he does (IMO) very fair and unbiased testing and lays out all of the good and bad for each camera. He also takes very similar shots (or the same exact shots) to test features like ISO.

Unless you've got the $$$ to spend on a DSLR and good lenses and the desire to learn to use them, you'd probably be best served by one of the "superzoom" P&S cameras -- they're the ones with a zoom of 10X or better on the DCRP list of cameras.

 

[tinksdad]

You might find this article from PC World helpful.

 

[claribella]

You might find this article from PC World helpful.

That is a great article....I would say this was what stood out for me:

"It isn't the camera that makes eye-popping photos possible; it's the person behind the lens."


Very true. Thanks for sharing that.

 

[YEKCIM]

I'll throw my $0.02 in the ring, for whatever it's worth. First off, I'm prejudiced toward Fuji, where PnS cameras are concerned primarily because I own one and am familiar with it. However, before buying the S5200, I agonized like you would not believe, over the tradeoffs between brands and models. I'm sure no one else has ever done that

One of the attributes that sold me on Fuji was the low light performance of Fuji cameras. At the time I took the plunge (early 06), no other maker had a super zoom PnS that came close, high-ISO wise, and that figured prominently in my decision. Is the S5200 a perfect camera? No; it has its limitations (crummy flash, IMO, no IS, some awkward control functions come to mind...) but, for $225, it has produced some amazingly good images, and I have not regretted the purchase. I've moved on to dSLR-Land now, but still regard the Fuji as a very capable tool, if used properly (and it took me quite some time, practicing, to get the hang of it).

Having said that, let me reiterate what Groucho said, that the camera you describe does not exist (yet). There are some very good cameras out there, though, that excel in different areas, and I would encourage you to research your choices based on what kinds of photographs you generally take, and give weight to those factors that are *most* important to you. While the Fuji proved to be a good choice to me, based on my needs, your needs are probably different and might be better met by a different model or brand, or even type (dSLR vs PnS).

Here is a link to a tool that might get you started in the right direction, or at least narrow your choices down a bit:

http://www.myproductadvisor.com/mpa/camera/inputSummary.do

Good luck!

~YEKCIM

 

[Groucho]

Put it another way... asking for a camera with all those features is like going into a car dealer and asking for a car that's as comfortable as a Mercedes, as fast as a Ferrari, handles like a Lotus, goes through snow like a Subaru with winter tires, is roomy like a minivan, tows like a diesel truck, and gets 100 miles per gallon. Oh, and it'd be nice if it was a convertible, too. And it should cost as much as an entry-level Kia and be as pretty as an Aston-Martin. That's my kinda car.

It sounds easy enough but in the real world... you have to make compromises.

I hope I'm not coming across (too) snarky. There are certainly lots of decent PnS cameras out there and it's certainly possible to be very happy with them. But you have to understand that you lose some image quality and low-light ability when you go to these small consumer cameras.

 

[photo_chick]

That is a great article....I would say this was what stood out for me:

"It isn't the camera that makes eye-popping photos possible; it's the person behind the lens."


Very true. Thanks for sharing that.

Yes that is so true. I know many people who have purchased a DSLR thinking it will magically make them a good photographer then are angry when it does not. I do think you can get great shots with a p&s, if you learn to use all the settings.

I am also in the Fuji camp for a p&s. I have 2 older ones (circa 2000 and 2003) and they are great little cameras, for a p&s. I was able to get good fireworks shots with it on a tripod. The newer one only gets really good action shots when there is a lot of light and the older one did not get good actions shots at all. Both are not really good for hand held low light shots, but I have read the new features have improved that. My last one is 4 years old now, so I am sure they have imporved many things on them.