PLEASE HELP! Camera rookie - What's a good small camera?...... to take to Disney?

[Spoisal]

We just got back from a week long trip & we were displeased with some of our pictures - especially the night time pictures of Fantasmic & indoor pictures of the WL lobby. Probably a mistake, but we purchased a Kodak Advantix camera right before the trip - it was such a great camera to travel with - easy to load, no red eye in the pix, small, lightweight...etc etc - but we were displeased with some pictures (we used 800 speed film if that make a difference - i'm a camera novice).

My husband has a Nikkon camera that is huge, heavy, etc. takes good pictures, but I just wanted something that I could fit into my waistpack.

So - i'm willing to spend some money - what I want is:
small - lightweight - possible zoom (can you have this feature in a tiny camera?) - takes great pictures even indoors & at night - etc etc. Oh, & I don't want a digital camera at this point.

PLEASE HELP! What are your opinions?

 

[dylansdad]

Sometimes its where you get the pics developed that causes a problem. I got one roll developed at the poly and the quality was bad cause they overexposed the negatives. The other rolls were fine developed at my local rite aid store. Also I would use a more well rounded film like 200 speed for the advantix. Pics would be less grainy. Night pics are always tougher better to use quality camera and film and if you could a tripod. Give the advantix some more practice. Is it auto focus where you push down a button for it to focus?

 

[Herbie]

We bought a Cannon ELPH camera before our last cruise. It will fit into your (his) shirt pocket. It uses advantix film , and did a great job. It takes three sizes of pictures. we bought it at Circit City for $50. Now we use it more than our expensive camera.

 

[Herbie]

I forgot to add, unless you are taking pictures of race cars, or the space shuttle taking off, you dont need more that 200 speed film. You are wasting your money on high speed.

 

[Gillian]

Personally, I don't like advantix cameras. The elphs are sooo cute, but film costs more, developing costs more, and I find that the print quality is not as good as 35 mm. That said, if you are going with another APS camera, check out the Elphs. Several of my friends have them & are happy.

I love my olympus 35 mm. It think it's epic stylus zoom 80, with date. It is compact & takes nice pictures. It has a zoom out to 80. That's usually enough for me. The most important thing for us is that it remembers to stay on the red eye reduction flash. DH & DS get major devil eyes without it! I don't want to have to remember to reset it each time I turn on the camera, like I do with my Kodak digital.

I use sam's club developing because they have cheap triple prints, which I need for scapbooking, in case I mess up I usually use 200 film, and sometimes 400 if I'll be inside a lot. For outdoors in Florida 200 should work well.

 

[Spoisal]

Thanks everyone! I see I made a big mistake on the 800 film, huh? Is 200 film ok at night? Or is 400 film a better choice - this is all new to me!

Anyone else have any camera brand/model ideas? Oh, and i'm NOT stuck on "Advantix" - I would gladly go with 35mm - I didn't realize the developing cost until $126 later!!

 

[docswkids]

We are very happy with our Olympus Stylus. It has a 38-140 Zoom lense, it is quite small, easy to hold and we chose the model that is weather resistant with a "clamshell" that closes the camera quickly and easily when the camera is not in use.

 

[MulanMom]

I usually stick with 200 ASA film for pretty much anything indoors or outside. The best prints are with 100, but I don't like to be forced to finish a role outside. The 200 is versatile. 400ASA is useful for action shots, however, like someone else noted in this thread, the picture quality is grainier. For nighttime shots where I do not want to use a flash or where a tripod cannot be used or the picture involves movement, then I go for as high of an ASA as I can get. I don't do that very often because the camcorder usually does a good job capturing nighttime stuff. However, when I do, I make sure I get it developed at the photo center in Epcot.

Sorry, I can't help you with a camera recommendation. I love using my Minolta 3xi, and loved using my Pentax "all-manual" 35mm before that!

Sharon

 

[DisTwix]

Hi there!

I have a Fuji Endeavor - which I bought specifically to take to Disney. And now it's the only thing I'll use! It is small, APS (which I happen to like) and has a fairly strong zoom. It's about 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" - so it is truly tiny.

I use both 200 and 400 speed film while at Disney. The 200 is perfect for all those daytime shots (unless it's BIG action) - especially if you want to take any home and enlarge them. My camera has the ability to do a mid-roll change - a handy feature, but you do have to keep track of half-a-roll of film. My camera also has a feature called "nite port" which is a special flash meant for night-time shots - and let me tell you - I have some AWESOME pictures of the Mainstreet Electric Parade.

Also - I only use Fuji film. It's a personal preference - but having had Kodak and Fuji developed from a very reputable shop, the Fuji is always better color and picture in general. That said - I try and only have my film developed where they use Kodak paper - it is heavier and the color seems to have more depth.

So.... I leave this afternoon, after I get out of work - with 4 rolls of 200, and 3 rolls of 400 - headed for Disney. Also - I happen to have one roll of B&W. Gonna try something new!

Are you sorry you asked??? That is just my own quirky take on the camera/film thing....

 

[scanmom]

we have had 2 canon sure shot max cameras. they are both great ! we use 400 speed film and have always had our pics turn out SUPER! the only reason we have the 2nd is because we wanted a camera with the zoom feature! and we stayed with the canon brand because of the great pics we had with the 1st one. now my DD's use the older one and they even get good pics (they are 12 and 14)!

 

[sharonRNms]

I bought a Canon Sure Shot at Wal-Mart just before our December trip and this was the first time I used it. They pictures turned out great. Everyone says they look like postcards. It was only $68 at Wal-Mart.

 

[KaraJade]

Ok, I have an Advantix camera too. Used 400 speed film the whole time. It worked GREAT for the nighttime pictures of Spectromagic, I mean they are BEAUTIFUL. However on overcast or sunny days, it was a bit darker/grainier than I'd have liked. I got my shots developed at Walgreens... BF uses Kroger photo department and his pictures taken same time/ same place/ different camera with 400 speed film were a lot brighter.

 

[rkalm]

My vote is for the Olympus Stylus Zoom as well. Very durable (my eight year old has one). Go for the bigger zoom (I think 140). Good lenses. Fairly small. The leading consumer mag (CR) rates them very well. But why not go the digital route if you already have that Nikon?

 

[SamSam]

I definitely add my vote to the Olympus Stylus! I consistanly take wonderfu pics with this camera. I get fantastic close ups, and excellent actions shots. I also have an advantix Minolta Vectis 30, which is a good camera, but the Olympus outperforms every time. It's reached a point where I will only take my Olympus, because even though there are good panaromic shots I won't get, the majority of my picuture taking is sooooooo much better with the Olympus that I find it's definitely worth giving up the panaramic.

 

[BigJohnG]

Well, up until this past summer (2001), I exclusively used 35mm cameras of all sizes. However, I bought a Sony DSC-S75 digital camera, and WOW, what a difference!!

Its a little larger that an average Point-and-Shoot 35mm, but with a 128MB memory stick, I can take nearly 100 3 megapixel images (this resolution gives INCREDIBLE enlargements up to 8x10). The battery lasts hours (nearly 4). I can shoot small mpeg movies. I can do almost anything with this camera that I can with my semi-pro 35mm SLR. I will be taking lots of pix in May when we are at WDW/Seaworld.

BigJohnG

 

[rkalm]

There is a deluxe version of the Olympus which gives you the panoramic function.

 

[Mrs. Snowgod]

We have both an Elph2 that I've had 2 years, and a Digital Elph that DH got 4 months ago. He is a Computer Technician and has a laptop for his business and personal use. Having the Digital camera and downloading the pics at the end of each day at WDW was AWESOME!!!! Not that I'd recommend going out to buy a laptop to go with a digital camera purchase, but if you happen to have these resources, it's a great way to go.

I LOVE my Elph2, and have used it extensively for travel, with many excellent results. 100 or 200 speed film will help.

 

[Luv2Roam]

We have had ours just over a year and we are happy with it.
The only thing I will say I learned from WDW picture taking experience is the night photos are not so hot, unless you are right there facing your subject.
I took too many photos January '01 of Illuminations. Of course what could I expect? Fireworks and bright lights at a distance.
I have noticed a difference with the developers. I took six rolls last month at WDW. I took three rolls into a local grocery store for 1 hour developing. It was gray days while we were in FL and either the camera of the developing came out on the dark side.
But the camera is a handy little thing. I am a novice too. I usually just buy 400 speed in a large pack at Sam's. I can buy several rolls at Sam's for what two rolls usually cost elsewhere.
Our camera goes from 23-69 mm.
And tis camera has many functions, incl wide angel and taking pics through glass.