Great camera recommendation for taking pics in the park/trip

[oceanmarina]

Hi all,

I'm in the market for a new camera. I've seen some fantastic pictures on this board (esp. in the trip reports). I was wondering if anyone could recommend a great camera. I want something that takes pictures fast, and great/vibrant colors in the pics as well would be a plus.

Thanks,
Marina

 

[AFwifelife]

I really like my Nikon DSLR but it's a beast to carry around the park.

 

[minnie mum]

There are a lot of great photographers on the photography board. Maybe ask there?
http://www.disboards.com/forums/photography-board.97/

 

[mom2rtk]

What are you looking for in a camera? Do you want something that can fit in a pocket? Something that will take good low light photos? What's your budget?

There is no camera that is small, takes great low light photos and is inexpensive. So you'll need to identify your priorities then others can help you find some good alternatives.

 

[tinkerbellmagic]

I can tell you what not to get... don't buy a Nikon Coolpix. It is the worst camera I have ever owned. It cannot take a clear
crisp picture of anything. And it wasn't a cheap camera either. I have been taking pictures my whole life. Nikon Coolpix is worthless and un-cool. I have had to stop using it.

 

[mom2rtk]

I can tell you what not to get... don't buy a Nikon Coolpix. It is the worst camera I have ever owned. It cannot take a clear
crisp picture of anything. And it wasn't a cheap camera either. I have been taking pictures my whole life. Nikon Coolpix is worthless and un-cool. I have had to stop using it.

Nikon makes some great cameras. But my husband had a Coolpix a few years back and thought it took terrible photos as well.

 

[oceanmarina]

What are you looking for in a camera? Do you want something that can fit in a pocket? Something that will take good low light photos? What's your budget?

There is no camera that is small, takes great low light photos and is inexpensive. So you'll need to identify your priorities then others can help you find some good alternatives.

I have been saving up all year so yes it can be expensive. Yep, I know most really great cameras are not pocket sized.

PS - I love your pictures from all of your amazing trip reports!

 

[mom2rtk]

I have been saving up all year so yes it can be expensive. Yep, I know most really great cameras are not pocket sized.

PS - I love your pictures from all of your amazing trip reports!

You are very sweet. Thank you!

I do love my DSLR and highly recommend one if you want high quality photos in a variety of conditions. Because you can swap out lenses, you can choose what is right for you..... a big zoom at Animal Kingdom, a fast small prime for times you want to travel light and get great low light photos. It gives you the most control at your fingertips.

Many swear by the smaller mirrorless cameras and have happily ditched their DSLRs to go that direction. I have not yet done so, but there are some great photographers on the photography forum linked above who can help steer you in the right direction if that's what you want to do. Generally, those have similar IQ to the DSLRs in a smaller package, also with a lot of control over your shots, but in a smaller package.

I don't know if any mirrorless will match the high ISO performance of my 6D so I'm not ready to jump to mirrorless. But if I was starting over, I'd sure be taking a long hard look at those models.

 

[MeganMango]

I bought a Canon XL530 wifi enabled for my last trip. It has 50X optimal zoom and i got some amazing bird shots in AK (just as great as a DSLR.) I wish I knew how to post photos on DIS boards, but sadly, I don't! LOL. Read the reviews on amazon, it's 4.5 stars and the camera is $279 which is a deal for the quality!!! Like I said, I got some amazing shots! No viewfinder, so if that's important, you'll need a different camera. I really wanted a viewfinder but I found I didn't need one after all! You can still see the screen in the sun, which I was concerned about. I bought an extra battery, but only needed to change it once. I was in the parks for long days, at least 12 hours. So the battery life was excellent. Wifi was awesome to have on it too, for quick sharing to friends/family.

 

[SarahSnow]

I can tell you what not to get... don't buy a Nikon Coolpix. It is the worst camera I have ever owned. It cannot take a clear
crisp picture of anything. And it wasn't a cheap camera either. I have been taking pictures my whole life. Nikon Coolpix is worthless and un-cool. I have had to stop using it.

I have a Nikon Coolpix L820 and I love it. I usually don't have a problem with the camera taking clear pictures.

These two were taken on the Coolpix:

Lots of zoom used for this picture and still pretty good quality.

 

[disneybirds]

I recently purchased a Canon 70D and I love it. I typically carry my DSLR around the parks on some days. I also carry a Sony RX100 everyday into the park which will fit into a pocket. It is a great small camera where you can adjust the settings.

 

[mom2rtk]

I have a Nikon Coolpix L820 and I love it. I usually don't have a problem with the camera taking clear pictures.

These two were taken on the Coolpix:

Lots of zoom used for this picture and still pretty good quality.

Most cameras, including cell phones, will do pretty well outdoors in bright light. It gets trickier when you move indoors or have low light.

 

[soniam]

Our current Nikon Coolpix aren't bad, but we mainly got them because they are water and shock proof. I would use them any day over our iPhone 4S or probably any camera phone for that matter. I work in cellular phone design and I'm a life-long amateur photographer, so don't try to convince me that your phone camera is good However, the camera body is important, but most important is the lens. I know you said expensive, but how "expensive" are you really willing to go. It's really relative. We recently bought a new Nikon body, 3 lenses, and a doubler, which came to about $10,000 I was actually a little shocked by the price too. I am ecstatic with our choices though and would do it again in a heartbeat. Here's a bad pic with a bad camera; I couldn't take a good pic without the good camera





We got a Nikon D810. The D750 was our second choice. For lenses, we got all Nikkor. The AF-S 24mm f/1.4 is a single focal length and no vibration reduction (VR). It's the night/low light lens. This is the lens that you want if you want to take pics in Haunted Mansion or Pirates without a flash. The AF-S 24-70mm VR f/2.8. This is the good all-around lens. It works during daylight and indoors and low light without a flash. I use this most of the day. The AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII. This is the telephoto lens that you use on the Kilimanjaro Safari. We have a lens doubler too that lets us go to 400mm with the telephoto lens. Definitely, go to the photo forum and go to a good camera shop and talk to them and handle the merchandise. A reputable shop will sell you something to meet your needs and budget. Good luck and have fun. Be sure to take a class or buy a book to get the best out of your equipment.

 

[mom2rtk]

Our current Nikon Coolpix aren't bad, but we mainly got them because they are water and shock proof. I would use them any day over our iPhone 4S or probably any camera phone for that matter. I work in cellular phone design and I'm a life-long amateur photographer, so don't try to convince me that your phone camera is good However, the camera body is important, but most important is the lens. I know you said expensive, but how "expensive" are you really willing to go. It's really relative. We recently bought a new Nikon body, 3 lenses, and a doubler, which came to about $10,000 I was actually a little shocked by the price too. I am ecstatic with our choices though and would do it again in a heartbeat. Here's a bad pic with a bad camera; I couldn't take a good pic without the good camera


View attachment 176338


We got a Nikon D810. The D750 was our second choice. For lenses, we got all Nikkor. The AF-S 24mm f/1.4 is a single focal length and no vibration reduction (VR). It's the night/low light lens. This is the lens that you want if you want to take pics in Haunted Mansion or Pirates without a flash. The AF-S 24-70mm VR f/2.8. This is the good all-around lens. It works during daylight and indoors and low light without a flash. I use this most of the day. The AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8 VRII. This is the telephoto lens that you use on the Kilimanjaro Safari. We have a lens doubler too that lets us go to 400mm with the telephoto lens. Definitely, go to the photo forum and go to a good camera shop and talk to them and handle the merchandise. A reputable shop will sell you something to meet your needs and budget. Good luck and have fun. Be sure to take a class or buy a book to get the best out of your equipment.

You should have waited for the model that came with a Sherpa to carry it in the parks.

I kid, but only because I struggle routinely for the right balance between quality, cost and convenience myself.

 

[soniam]

You should have waited for the model that came with a Sherpa to carry it in the parks.

I kid, but only because I struggle routinely for the right balance between quality, cost and convenience myself.

It is heavy. We didn't bring the big lens last trip, but we will in July. I think we will leave it in the car when we don't need it. In fact, all of those lenses and the body don't fit in the camera bag. Just the body and the 24 and 24-70 in the bag are pretty heavy. I figure I am getting exercise while taking my photo We knew it would be heavy though. I just hate taking bad pics. So, it's really sort of all or nothing for me. Last trip was the first one with the new camera. I rarely took pics before that, because I didn't like our previous DSLR that much. It's taken me a while to get use to digital. I think 20 years was enough for me to feel that it's as good or better than analog/film

 

[SarahSnow]

Most cameras, including cell phones, will do pretty well outdoors in bright light. It gets trickier when you move indoors or have low light.

True its tricker but not impossible. I've have plenty of good shots from the coolpix of fireworks, indoor concerts etc.

 

[photo_chick]

Getting the shot is 90% photographer, 10% camera. I was recently humbled by the work of fellow dance moms at my daughter's dance concert. There I am with 10K worth of gear and they were getting shots as good if not better than mine with their little point and shoot. Technology has come so far that DSLR's are loosing their advantage and high end cameras aren't necessary to get the shots any longer. The biggest advantage to an interchangeable lens camera is control. You can have total control of the camera in every way. Some of us demand that in our equipment. Some don't. The only one who can answer that question for you is you though. My advice is to think about what you really want out of a camera. How much do you want to carry? Ease of use? Are you good with changing lenses and the time that takes? Do you plan to keep it on auto or do you want to learn to venture into manual settings? All of these will factor in to finding the right camera for you.

 

[mom2rtk]

It is heavy. We didn't bring the big lens last trip, but we will in July. I think we will leave it in the car when we don't need it. In fact, all of those lenses and the body don't fit in the camera bag. Just the body and the 24 and 24-70 in the bag are pretty heavy. I figure I am getting exercise while taking my photo We knew it would be heavy though. I just hate taking bad pics. So, it's really sort of all or nothing for me. Last trip was the first one with the new camera. I rarely took pics before that, because I didn't like our previous DSLR that much. It's taken me a while to get use to digital. I think 20 years was enough for me to feel that it's as good or better than analog/film

When I carry more lenses, I just remind myself that the doctor recommends weight bearing exercise.

I've been digital for 12 years now, but just went full frame 2 years ago. There's just no looking back.

For me, the cost/benefit analysis says it's worth it. Others might have other conclusions.

 

[Happy_Haunt999]

We carry a Canon T3 in the parks and love it. I don't think they make them anymore tho so you would be looking at a T5 or T6.

 

[Jude71]

I recently bought Sony cyber-shot DSC RX100M3 and used it on our trip to Disney in May. I mostly used automatic and it took brilliant shots including those in low light. It is compact and I bought the case with a long strap so that I could wear it around my neck/across the body. I was looking for a high quality camera with a pop up viewfinder so that I could see what I was photographing in bright light! If you are looking for a good quality compact camera that takes super shots then do have a look at this.