Help Needed with buying a Digital camera

[usewickhouse]

Hi, I am new to this board and need some help! My birthday is coming up and my dh would like to buy me a small digital camera. The question is what is the best out there now? There are so many choices and I want one that will take GREAT pictures, be easy to use and will last a good amount of time. It seems like every 2-3 years I buy a new digital camera and have always been disappointed with my choices. The first one came from QVC or HSN was a kodak 1 MP took aweful pictures but was fun. Then came the Hewlitt Packard 2 MP that came along with a photo printer and again the pics were terrible. So I went back to my Canon SLR which takes AWESOME pics but it is so much stuff to take to the parks with kids and bags and all. So, PLEASE give me your thoughts on which digital small not SLR type would be your pick!!! Thanks!!!

 

[timned88]

this is a topic that has come up on various forums, including mine, from time to time. the following is a copy/paste from a reply that i posted on my site in response to almost the same question... hope it helps.

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my opinion on megapixels isnt "more is always better". there are other issues to consider, such as manual or semi manual controls vs. full auto, quality of the lens and zoom range, cost of upgrading (will your flash cards be compatable, etc.), and how happy you are with your current camera. if you have a particular model that you are interested in, i would suggest going over to www.dpreview.com, www.fredmiranda.com, or www.steves-digicams.com/, and look up the reviews for that model.

 

[Master Mason]

Just my opinion, but if you have been shooting with a film SLR, you will never be truely happy with any point and shoot.

I went to the P&S world for a while, but I was never happy with the pictures, yes it was easy, and having you camera fit in your pocket is a great convience, but the picture quality will never be the same.

 

[Steve's Girl]

Just my opinion, but if you have been shooting with a film SLR, you will never be truely happy with any point and shoot.

I went to the P&S world for a while, but I was never happy with the pictures, yes it was easy, and having you camera fit in your pocket is a great convience, but the picture quality will never be the same.

I second this. Tried that! Now the proud owner of a new dSLR. Just when the kids outgrew the diaper bag, now I have a camera bag to lug around. But the pictures are so worth it! I use a messenger style bag and really don't mind it that much.

 

[usewickhouse]

Question...are you all referring to a standard P&S or the Digital kind? I thought a small 8 MP or higher would give me photos that are close to my SLR? My poor DH has already bought the digital camera but is waiting till my BDAY on Friday to gove it to me. I told him to wait until I got some help and he said "that's what receipts are made for"! So HELP!!!

 

[Master Mason]

Yes I am talking any kind of P&S. They will take some great pictures. Just take a look at some of those you see on the board. But I know that I was never as happy with them as I am with the ones I can get from my dSLR. I think that having the control that the SLR gives you can not be duplicated in a p&s.

So it becomes a trade off, ease vs quality.

If you know the camera he bought look at steves or dpreview and see what they say about that model. They have very good reviews there.

 

[Steve's Girl]

My P & S is a digital and my biggest issue was the shutter lag. The new ones are much better, but with small kids that split second is the difference between capturing a great shot and missing the shot altogether. If you are always going to do "posed" shots a P & S will be fine. But I prefer to take candid shots and got so frustrated with missing the shots. With my dSLR I got a picture of my 3 year old jumping in mid air with her pony tails flying. I could never have gotten that shot with a P & S. Some are able to get around this shutter lag issue with pre-focusing, but I found it to be next to impossible to do that with small kids. You never know which direction they are going next! My dSLR also auto focuses very fast. The P & S simply cannot focus that fast. Just my opinion. The dSLR is better for my style of picture taking. But others will have their preferences as well.

 

[Groucho]

The higher the mp on a PnS, the more likely the pictures will be very noisy and unpleasant... 8mp is a lot to get out of a DSLR sensor, and those dwarf the tiny ones in PnS cameras. I would definitely check reviews verrry closely before considering a PnS with that many mp. Chances are that the same camera with a 5mp or 6mp configuration will produce better pictures.

My old 5mp PnS was much faster and had way more pictures than my really old 2mp one, but it could never take pictures that looked as good. Image-quality-wise, the only thing better was the movie functionality - other than that, I would have been better off sticking with the 2mp one.

 

[usewickhouse]

Yes I am talking any kind of P&S. They will take some great pictures. Just take a look at some of those you see on the board. But I know that I was never as happy with them as I am with the ones I can get from my dSLR. I think that having the control that the SLR gives you can not be duplicated in a p&s.

So it becomes a trade off, ease vs quality.

If you know the camera he bought look at steves or dpreview and see what they say about that model. They have very good reviews there.

Thanks for all your help and everyone else's too. You have all made me second guess my thougts of getting the Digital P&S? I think he bought a Sony 8MP but he has not given it to me yet. I will try to get him to let me have it tonight so I can see what kind it is so I can go look it up and read the reviews. So from what I can gather you are all saying is that your Digital SLR's take AWESOME pictures? I have a film SLR Canon Rebel which takes great picts but not as good as my OLD Canon AE1 programable. That old camera still takes the clearest pictures. I am so glad I asked about these cameras before I opened the box. I would have never known they did not have good quality, THANKS!!

 

[Master Mason]

Please note. I am not knocking the quality of P&S cameras. I have seen some fantastic photos from people that use them, right here on this forum. One that comes quickly to mind is Yeckim. And there are many others.

What I am saying is if your used to using an SLR, I think you will be disipointed in anything less than that. I was forever thinking when using a P&S that if I had a SLR, I could do this or that....

Find out what camera it is, read the reviews, that should let you know.

 

[manning]

Take a look at the Sony H2 & H5, Canon S3is, Panasonic Fz50,Fz7 TZ1. They are 12x zoom camera. The Sonys use memory sticks, Canon and Panasonic SD cards.

I own 4 canon film SLR cameras. Used them professionally and recreationally. Loved them. Now I have a Canon G1, Sony F707, T1, H5, Panasonic TZ1. Love them all.

Key to getting amazing pictures...knowing how to use them.

Why I don't have DSLR? Just got tired of hauling all that stuff around. Great cameras, just don't want to carry all that stuff around.

Also I get the pictures I want.

Don't get caught up in the pixel race. The CCDs have to be small to have small cameras. The more pixels you put on the same size CCD the noisier they tend to get. If you do not plan on doing super cropping the most you need is around 5-7 MP. More 5 than 7.

 

[ndelaware]

. So from what I can gather you are all saying is that your Digital SLR's take AWESOME pictures?

Using a DSLR is no guarantee of great pictures. A good P&S camera will take excellent images with a lot less user input than what a DSLR requires. So many people who move up to DSLRs from a quality P&S are dissapointed with the results due to the fact that the P&S does much more incamera processing (sharpening, saturation, etc.) than a DSLR. If you want creative control of your images and don't mind the amount of user input required to get great images a DSLR needs, get a DSLR. If you want to get great pictures without alot of fuss and don't feel like carrying around a big DSLR and whichever lenses and accessories you feel you need, get a quality P&S camera. If you do some research at sites such as www.dpreview.com and www.stevesdigicams.com and purchase a quality P&S camera, you may very well be much happier with the smaller P&S camera.

For the record I own a DSLR.

Take a look at the results that can be achieved with a Sony H2: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sonyh2/page15.asp

Or a Canon S3IS: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons3is/page15.asp

 

[boBQuincy]

So from what I can gather you are all saying is that your Digital SLR's take AWESOME pictures?

Digital SLRs have surpassed film SLRs in almost every way. In many cases the newer sensors are capable of more resolution than a lot of lenses, even good ones. Grain is gone (but noise is here), good color fidelity is available in almost any light, and filters are (mostly) a thing of the past.

The P&S cameras are very good, but the dSLRs are excellent. To me, the P&S is like an electronic device that takes pictures, the dSLR is like a camera that doesn't use film.

 

[usewickhouse]

Take a look at the Sony H2 & H5, Canon S3is, Panasonic Fz50,Fz7 TZ1. They are 12x zoom camera. The Sonys use memory sticks, Canon and Panasonic SD cards.

I own 4 canon film SLR cameras. Used them professionally and recreationally. Loved them. Now I have a Canon G1, Sony F707, T1, H5, Panasonic TZ1. Love them all.

Key to getting amazing pictures...knowing how to use them.

Why I don't have DSLR? Just got tired of hauling all that stuff around. Great cameras, just don't want to carry all that stuff around.

Also I get the pictures I want.

Don't get caught up in the pixel race. The CCDs have to be small to have small cameras. The more pixels you put on the same size CCD the noisier they tend to get. If you do not plan on doing super cropping the most you need is around 5-7 MP. More 5 than 7.

In your opinion what type and brand should I buy? I want something that is easy to use, takes good to great pics, and does not need a lot of lenses and extras. I am a complete novice and just really want to take photos that will stand the test of time of my family. We go on several mini vacations a year and I never end up taking pics due to hating to get out my Film SLR. Yes it takes great pics but I end up having to lug it everywhere. We have 2 kiddos and right now I just really wanted something that was easy but GREAT. I know he bought the Sony 8MP, should I return it for the 6MP? Or just get a Film P&S and stay clear of digital? Thanks for you advice!! It really is wonderful to have the DIS to ask about this stuff!!

 

[Groucho]

Or just get a Film P&S and stay clear of digital?

Good grief, don't do THAT!

You need to think about your requirements more specifically than just "good to great photos"... for example, how long of a zoom do you want? Anything longer than 3x usually means an "SLR-style" camera design. How small do you want it to be? How important is shutter lag, or low image noise especially at high ISO, or manual settings? Do you want to be able to take decent-quality movies with it?

I think that you can be happy going from a film SLR to a PnS digital. I don't think you'd be as happy going from a DSLR to a PnS digital. But there are so many out there that you really need to think specifically about what's important to you - once you do that, then it's our job to help you figure out what's hype (megapixels, digital zoom) and what's important (low noise, optical zoom, shutter lag, etc.)

 

[usewickhouse]

Good grief, don't do THAT!

You need to think about your requirements more specifically than just "good to great photos"... for example, how long of a zoom do you want? Anything longer than 3x usually means an "SLR-style" camera design. How small do you want it to be? How important is shutter lag, or low image noise especially at high ISO, or manual settings? Do you want to be able to take decent-quality movies with it?

I think that you can be happy going from a film SLR to a PnS digital. I don't think you'd be as happy going from a DSLR to a PnS digital. But there are so many out there that you really need to think specifically about what's important to you - once you do that, then it's our job to help you figure out what's hype (megapixels, digital zoom) and what's important (low noise, optical zoom, shutter lag, etc.)

Gee you sure have me beyond confused. Okay you asked me what I wanted and to be honest I don't think I know? I really just want a small, liteweight camera that I can throw in my purse but one that takes really great photos. I do not want to mess with lenses and flash. I have that in my film SLR. I really wanted a digital P&S that I could take with me anywhere, one that takes great pics and one that I could email my family some pics of my kids. I do not need a professional setup. I am in lala land thinking that there is a digital P&S out there that will fit these needs? I know you all must be flustered with me but I am new to the photog boards as well as digital photog. I know everyone has a different view due to their own personal needs and wants. I am going to take ALL of your points of view do some research and make a decision this weekend. As I have already said my DH bought me the Sony P&S 8MP, I am going to use the above websites and go check it out. Thanks Again, you have ALL been very helpful and I appreciate it.

 

[Steve's Girl]

The best thing you can do is go to a store and try the various models. Many of the reviews are written by professional photographers and what is important to them may not be important to you. Take your time with each of the models and find the one that you like the best. I know when I tried different cameras, there were models that got great reviews that I simply didn't like. Your husband may have picked the perfect camera for you - after all he knows you pretty well and husbands are pretty good at knowing what we like.

 

[manning]

usewickhouse - Wait until you get your new camera and try it out before you make up your mind if you like it or not. You know nothing of the camera so it is impossible to pass judgement on it. You may be perfectly happy with it.

It is pretty hard to indicate which camera you should buy because you are not me. What I like in a camera you may not and vice versa.