opinions needed on these cameras

[OUR 1ST DISNEY TRIP]

i have been looking at the following cameras. In your opinon which one should i go with to replace my 2.0 2xzoom for our up coming disney trip.

Canon PowerShot A610 Digital Camera
Canon PowerShot A530 Digital Camera
Nikon Coolpix® L1 Digital Camera
Panasonic Lumix® DMC-LZ2 Digital Camera
Panasonic DMC-LZ3 Digital Camera
why is the panasonic 2 priced higher then the 3?

looking for the good and bad to the above cameras?
which have the best features?
are there any others i should look into?

 

[Kelly Grannell]

Get either the Panasonic LZ2 or LZ3. IIRC they both have OIS.

 

[OUR 1ST DISNEY TRIP]

but what about fireworks what was holding me back from those were reviews that you cant take good pics in low light.

 

[jann1033]

i liked the canon a620( about $10-15 more than the 610 same camera but 7mp)because it has some nice swap color features ( like one thing red, the rest of the pic B&w), in camera rather than with a photoshop program. the pictures are really good although the zoom is only 4 and no image stablization although don't know you'd need it really( my daughter has it and some of her meds make her hands shake slightly but her pics are clear) it has a fireworks mode and a kids an pet mode ( among others)although i've never seen a pic from the fireworks I know it is decent in low light as she has taken a few pics in her barn at night( not well lit as barns go )

i would go someplace and hold them all though.. i was trying to decide between a few and ruled some out because they just were not comfortable ( to large, weird buttom placement etc ) in my hands

 

[Anewman]

Canon PowerShot A610 Digital Camera
Panasonic Lumix® DMC-LZ2 Digital Camera
Panasonic DMC-LZ3 Digital Camera
why is the panasonic 2 priced higher then the 3?

I do not know where you priced them. But the LZ2 was the 2005 model and its MSRP was higher than the MSRP of the LZ3, just because digicams are cheaper now. My local Costco had the LZ2 for $145, we ended up buying the LZ3 for $175(circuit city).

I would really rule out the LZ2 because of lack of auto focus assist beam, it will hunt with it so I can not imagine owning a camera without it.

My pick would be between the Canon A610 or the LZ3 depending what was most important to you, overall image quality vs 6x zoom with OIS.

Canon does have the edge in overall image quality and their ISO performance is a little better than panasonics.

Panasonics image quality is very acceptable and the ZOOM has longer reach. ISO 400 is not as clean as Canons, but IS makes it possible(at times) to shoot at ISO 100 when the canon may require ISO 400.

Neither will yield GREAT fireworks shots without a tripod, but I would give the Edge to the Canon. The Panasonic does not have TRUE manual settings that I would use for fireworks, but it does have a FIREWORKS mode that I have not tested.

I would also consider the LZ5, which features a bigger LCD(2.5) and an extra megapixel, $225 at bestbuy right now.

 

[Anewman]

but what about fireworks what was holding me back from those were reviews that you cant take good pics in low light.

Well Image stabilization gives you at least 2 extra stops
Which means that if a digicam(without IS) needed ISO 400 for a low light shot, the Panasonic might be able to capture the same shot(blur free) with ISO 100.

How that translates to fireworks depends on your plan, If you are taking a Tripod that would nullify the the IS factor but it would also cancel out the High ISO noise since you may end up shooting @ ISO 100.

No the Panasonics ISO 400 is not as clean as Canons, I think everyone can agree with that.

BUT try taking this shot without IS

AND

Camera model: DMC-LZ3
Date/Time: 2005:07:10 18:23:06
Resolution: 850 x 638
Flash used: No
Focal length: (35mm equivalent: 37mm)
Exposure time: 0.040 s (1/25)
Aperture: f/2.8
ISO equiv.: 400

 

[bazzanoid]

Regarding the lighting - these two shots were taken at the same time under the same lighting conditions using a Panasonic LS2 (you're correct kelly, it does have OIS). The first shot was in ordinary full-auto mode with flash disabled (wasn't permitted where i was snapping), and the second was with a couple of tweaked manual settings. Both without a tripod:

EXIF for the second shot:

Camera model: DMC-LS2
Date/Time: 2006:06:30 14:52:39
Focal length: 5.8mm (35mm equivalent: 35mm)
Exposure time: 6.000 s
Aperture: f/2.8
ISO equiv.: 80
Whitebalance: Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure: program (auto)

EDIT: Added space between photos, resized first photo to make it more eye-friendly..... (was 1280 x 960)