Canon Powershot Questions

[M 'n C]

My post originally was just going to ask about which compact flash card brands were recommended by yall since I'm in the market for a new card or two. But after reading back 7 pages worth of posts I have a few more questions. I have my manual out so I'm consulting it and trying to understand my camera as I ask yall questions as I would rather do anything besides study for the tax portion of the CPA exam right now .

For background purposes: I am using a Canon Powershot A95 5.0 MP camera as a basic point and shoot camera for everyday use. Right now I'm using a 128 mb Lexar Compact Flash Card and have my settings on Auto (shooting mode), Medium 2 (M2) for resolution (1600x1200 pixels), and have the compression set to Fine. I usually upload images to either dotphoto or photoworks.com and choose the 4x6 photo size option. I have been happy with the quality of the images I have been taking.

So if you don't mind here I go.

1. After reading the posts I see the general consensus maybe instead of getting 1 2gb card I might to better with a few 512s instead (I get parinoid too as I reburn all photos to dvds every few months to ensure backing up photos I've downloaded). I've read good reviews on San Disk and was thinking of that brand but then I heard about Kingston (??) being good also. Are there any others I should consider in my research before buying?

2. As far as write speed I cannot tell so far in my manual so based on camera specs given would it be worth it to get a faster write card like the san disk ultra or just stick with the regular cards?

3. Is there a way to tell before purchasing a card and putting it into the camera how many pictures it will hold roughly?

4. Are my settings appropriate for my camera? To me they seem fine but would tweaking them increase my photo quality? I'd rather buy 1 more compact flash card for a better quality photo but if its not that much of a difference then I'll stick with what I'm happy with.

Thanks in advance for the help!! I have about 50 days before my disney trip so I have some time to learn more about my camera and to try out different things if yall think it might help me out

 

[Anewman]

1. After reading the posts I see the general consensus maybe instead of getting 1 2gb card I might to better with a few 512s instead (I get parinoid too as I reburn all photos to dvds every few months to ensure backing up photos I've downloaded). I've read good reviews on San Disk and was thinking of that brand but then I heard about Kingston (??) being good also. Are there any others I should consider in my research before buying?

My take on this is that you have the right idea but are taking it a bit too far. Yes you dont want to put all your eggs in one basket, but do you really want to carry around 4 baskets?

IMO two 1gb cards would be better than 4 512mb cards, I just couldnt handle switching cards 3 times in one outing. I am also willing to bet that lost cards outnumber failed cards by a huge margin.

I dont use cards smaller than 2gb, but I shoot raw so that only gives me like 250 shots per card.

2. As far as write speed I cannot tell so far in my manual so based on camera specs given would it be worth it to get a faster write card like the san disk ultra or just stick with the regular cards?

The speed of any current "regular" media card will outperform the A95, only time you will notice any speed benefit with faster cards is downloading to your PC via a card reader and on a card 1gb and smaller you will not notice it unless you pull out a stopwatch.

3. Is there a way to tell before purchasing a card and putting it into the camera how many pictures it will hold roughly?

Yes, you can do the math.
The A95 max file size(2592 x 1944 JPEG Super Fine) is about 2.9mb.

4. Are my settings appropriate for my camera? To me they seem fine but would tweaking them increase my photo quality? I'd rather buy 1 more compact flash card for a better quality photo but if its not that much of a difference then I'll stick with what I'm happy with.

I would never buy a 5mp camera only to shoot @ 1.9mp, but that is just me.

 

[M 'n C]

Thanks for the quick response. I didn't realize I was only shooting 1.9 mp pictures which is horrible. Do you have any good websites to recommend where I can learn about my camera. I'm not finding the manual too helpful after learning this tidbit.