response time on digital cameras for WDW

[nuzmom]

We're heading to WDW in Sept. Last trip we used our 35mm camera, but are leaning towards using our digital camera this time.

We own a Sony 2.1 mp Cyber-shot with all the "extras" (stick reader, xtra sticks, etc.). As a whole, I like the camera, but I'm a little concerned with taking a picture with the characters and then waiting to be able to take the next picture. I think it's really only about 5 seconds before I can snap another picture, but it seems like forever.

What are your thoughts on the response times for digital cameras. You know, the time between taking one picture and being able to take the next.

Also, the delay between pressing the button and the actual picture being snapped is VERY annoying. At birthdays and such, I ususally just miss the picture I wanted and get the "1/2 second later" picture.

Are the new digital cameras not like this?

I've read a lot of camera recommendations. If you recommend that I buy a new digital camera, please tell me about the delay in picture taking and the delay between shots.

Lastly, I don't want to spend a lot of money (definitely not more than $500, probably more like $300). Also, I have sony memory sticks and charger and battery, so another sony may save me some money. The way I look at it $300 would buy a lot of disposable cameras.

Thank you so much for your help.

 

[disneygang]

We are looking at the Kodak DX6490 Easy-Share Digital Camera.

The majority of the reviews have been good to great and it is a 4 megapixel camera. We found it at digitalphotoclub.com for $338.85. Check on Bizrate.com or epinions.com to compare.

Good luck!

 

[bigbabyblues]

I got this camera for my birthday last week, and I LOVE it! It seems to have a little time in between pics, but no more than my Minolta 35 mm, maybe less. It comes with a rechargeable litium-ion (?) battery. I don't know much about digitals, this is my first one, so I probably can't help more than that. It's awesome with the 10x optical zoom though!

Steph

 

[all4fun]

Hi, we also own a Sony Cybershot 2mp. We bought it when they first came out so I'm not sure if it's just like yours or not. We love the camera but also have the same problem with the lag time. We did use it a lot though when we took our twin neices to WDW in '02. We took a ton of character pictures with them and I don't remember the lag time being a problem when it came to that. It is a problem though when you're trying to get an action shot, like in a parade or show.

We finally broke down a few months ago and bought a Fuji Finepix F700. We wanted a Sony because we already have the memory sticks plus our computer is a Sony Vaio with the stick reader built right in. We found out though that the new Sony's have smaller size memory sticks (like half the size of the old ones) so since we were going to have to buy new ones anyway we found the Fuji had really great reviews and decided to buy it. We got an excellent deal, under $300 but I think they normally sell for about $350. We bought a larger size memory card (258mb I think) for it at Costco and our last trip it was adequate. Costco had the best prices we could find at the time.

One nice thing about our new camera. It has a "burst" feature where it will take up to 5 shots simultaneously, with one press of the button. Uses more memory but you can just delete the shots you don't like and you're more likely to get that "1/2 second later" shot you wouldn't have gotten with the single shot camera you now own. If you decide to buy a new camera, I highly suggest you look for this feature. I believe it's becoming a little more common now on the smaller cameras.

Here's a great site to read up on all the different camerasclick here

HTH!
Cheryl

 

[LisaZoe]

I just bought my first digital camera yesterday. I borrowed a couple from friends to try out before buying and, like you, I didn't like the delay between when the shutter button was depressed and when the photo was actually taken. After doing some research on the basics I wanted and a price range ($300 or less), I went to a big electronics store in my area. I told the employee who helped me about my concerns regarding the delay and he said that Sony and Olympus were the ones with the shortest delay. I tried a couple he suggested that also had the other features I wanted.

I ended up buying the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-P73 (4.1 MP). So far, I've been very happy with the response time when taking some "snapshots" of DD, almost 3. The one drawback is that it comes with a memory stick that is only 16meg so you pretty much have to buy another if you plan on taking more than 8-12 photos (highest res) before loading them to your PC or other media.

BTW: I had purchased a different camera at WalMart yesterday and did not like the response times on it so took it back before buying the Sony. You might consider trying a camera in this way before your trip - of course after you make sure what the return policy is since some stores might only offer "in store" credit.

FYI: After experimenting a bit this morning with it, I found that if I turned off the "Red-Eye" correction mode, the delay between shutter click and photo taken was much less noticable.

 

[llp479]

I just bought a Sony 5.1mg Cycbershot p93 for $250 from Best Buy. It came with the battery charger and a 32mg memory stick that is exactly the same size as the others I have for our Sony camera.

It has numerous features and available accessories. I purchased it as a baby shower gift for my SIL and expect it will get much use when we take our new niece on her first WDW trip in '05.

 

[mareed]

I think the key to getting the shot you want and not the 1/2 second later shot is to pre-focus the camera by pressing partially down on the button until the focus locks. With my camera (Minolta S404) the delay is in the focusing. I'll just pre-focus before I want to take the picture and then wait for the perfect moment to actually take the picture. I hope this makes sense, but this little trick is really a key to getting good pictures IMO. It also gives you a chance to re-focus in case the camera doesn't get a good focus-lock the first time.

 

[nuzmom]

DH and I looked at cameras tonight. We liked the Kodak DX6490. It's funny, I couldn't remember what everyone had said and we ended up liking the same one that two of you liked. We ran out of time tonight, but I'm going tomorrow to try it out some more in the store. We pretty much liked the 10x zoom and the way you can preview 9 pictures at a time. It also has a "burst" mode to take multiple pictures at one time.

I think I might end up purchasing one and taking it for a "test drive" so to say.

Thanks for all of the advice.

 

[montblanc]

Interesting....

Another post had an issue with delay time and this is obviously a consideration in buying a camera.

Prefocusing does help but if you really need to simplify the process you could do the following:

1. Buy a camera with a really fast startup and shutter interval (I have seen models where the delay in between pictures is .12 of a second).

2. Buy a camera that has a burst mode of shooting (like professional SLR's do).

I don't know the quality but this model is an example of fast response time:

"Ricoh Caplio RX with world’s fastest shutter response"

When buying equipment like cameras I don't go to discount outlets or major electronics chains to make my decisions (only to purchase them sometimes). I go to a professional camera store staffed with experts, ask them for what I want, and get a demonstration. I always get extremely helpful and detailed information...

 

[disneygang]

The Kodak DX6490 Easy-Share Digital Camera is our choice. Opened it up and it looks nice. Bought a 256 mb stick with it for all our pics. Anticipating alot of opportunities to photo our 5 wonderful children on their first Disney Trip. I will post a follow up based on the quality of picture and the ability to get quality prints for photo albums. I hope you find a comera that will give you what you want.

I went on epinions.com and found the best pricing.

Good luck,

 

[disneygang]

The Kodak DX6490 4 mp Easy-Share Digital Camera is our choice. Opened it up and it looks nice. Bought a 256 mb stick with it for all our pics. Anticipating alot of opportunities to photo our 5 wonderful children on their first Disney Trip. I will post a follow up based on the quality of picture and the ability to get quality prints for photo albums. I hope you find a comera that will give you what you want.

I went on epinions.com and found the best pricing.

Good luck,

 

[disneygang]

The Kodak DX6490 4 mp Easy-Share Digital Camera is our choice. Opened it up and it looks nice. Bought a 256 mb stick with it for all our pics. Anticipating alot of opportunities to photo our 5 wonderful children on their first Disney Trip. I will post a follow up based on the quality of picture and the ability to get quality prints for photo albums. I hope you find a camera that will give you what you want.

I went on epinions.com and found the best pricing.

Good luck,

 

[bigbabyblues]

Disneygang--Congrats on your new camera! I got mine almost 2 weeks ago, and I love it!

Steph

 

[Kendra17]

I had the same problem. I had a Polaroid that I loved. . .minimal waiting time, great pics, etc. however, after a long while, the flash stopped working, and it cost too much to fix. So, I purchased a Vivitar with good reviews. It also used a Compact flash card, and I had those and a card reader. that was a priority. Lo and behold, the camera is HORRID. The waiting time is too long, one has to turn a little dial to go from taking picture mode to viewing picture mode, and it's just very poorly designed. To top it off, the photos seem to always be a little green no matter what I do.

So, about 4 days ago I ordered another Polaroid. It hasn't been delivered yet, but it's designed just like my older one, just has a few more features. I loved my old one.

I've heard great things about the Kodak. And, if it uses the same memory cards, maybe that's the way to go.

 

[disneygang]

I have taken pictures from the time the battery charger was done till now. The zoom is very nice and to switch from taking a pic to looking at what I have taken is a simple button. The LCD viewing screen is very nice and big. If you can try out one at a local store I would suggest doing that. I am happy so far.

Once we get back from the Kingdom I will post my review and maybe a few pictures for you to see.

Richie

 

[nuzmom]

Disneygang, thanks for you comments. Wow, you're counter is almost 0 - have fun on your trip!!! We have looked at the Kodak at one store and that's what first got us interested in it. They had taken a picture of one of the high powered lights in the ceiling of the store and you could actually zoom into the bulb on the picture and read the writing on the bulb!!! The salesman was saying how great it is for adjusting to different lighting - we were very impressed.

Let me know what you think of the delay between pressing the button and the actual snapping of the picture and also the delay between taking one picture and being ready to take the next one. I know it has that "burst" mode which seemed pretty cool to use to ensure you "get the shot" - let me know if you used it at WDW at all.

Right now we're between the Kodak and the Panasonic Lumix FZ10. Ritz camera had the Panasonic and it's AMAZING, but pricey!!! Lowest price (on-line) is $490 with shipping. Ritz didn't have the Kodak in-stock at the store we were at - I'm going to try a different store and give it a better try.

Thanks so much for your help and HAVE FUN (like it's even possible NOT to have fun at WDW ).

 

[Kendra17]

Hi. . .I know you're probably sold on the Kodak--which I saw at Best Buy and was very impressed with. I probably would have bought it if it took Compact flash cards.

But, my Polaroid came yesterday, and I just wanted to let all of you know that I love it. All the polaroids are similarly designed, whether 2 mps or 4+mps. Because I just wasted money on that Vivatar (actually 2, because I bought my daughter one, as well), I only bought a 2.1 mp cameral that was reduced in price (because most everyone is looking for 3 or higher), but takes pictures that can be clearly printed at 5X7 size--which is all I need.

There is no button switching to view what you just took. . .the newest picture is right on the screen when you take it (and it takes the shot FAST--no delays), and you can delete immediately if you don't like it. To view all the pictures you saved is also fast-no dials, or anything like that. It's really the simplest cameral. And, I'm not a pro, by any means, but I had one of the first digitals (a Kodak, but not one of these newer ones), then my first polaroid, then the vivitar. This one is just great and I'm very happy with it. The color is so true to life, too, and although the flash can be adjusted, the automatic flash use has been completely right on target.

 

[donkeysleuth]

disneygang- I've had the same question regarding digital cameras-I really want to find an good inexpensive one that would take great pics, and it seems you may have found one. I'm anxious to hear how your experience was with the camera. We'll be going end Oct/beg November & I'd like to budget in a new camera if I can. Does anyone know if you can buy additional memory sticks, should you & are they expensive? Hope you had a great time!

 

[javaj]

Kendra17,
Would you mind sharing the exact Polaroid brand of camera you got and where you got it for a good deal? I'd really be interested in a camera with no delays and uses a compact flash card. We recently "upgraded" to a 3.1 MP and sold our 2.1 MP at a garage sale, big mistake, the delays on our 3.1 MP Olympus are horrible. Thanks!

Originally posted by Kendra17
and it takes the shot FAST--no delays

 

[Kendra17]

Hi,
The Polaroid I got is only 2.1, though. . .it's the model is a Polaroid PDC 2050. I am VERY happy with this camera. I imagine that the 3+mp cameras would even be better. My old one, a 1300, I think, was a bit bigger--and heavier, which I thought meant was sturdier. However, now that I've had this a few days, I'm glad it's more lightweight and smaller. The layout of the buttons, etc., are comfortable, too.

But, let me tell you what I just found out. . .and, it was NEW news to me!

I wanted a compact flash card big enough to take pictures for a full week. . .I only had 64mb card, and I decided to buy a 512 mb. I found this one store online, Asenashop. I thought the memory cards' function was to keep the pictures, period. Actually, the speed of the card is very important. . .I bought a 40X speed 512 mb lexar card for $90 (by the way, with a 2.1 mp camera, it can hold 568 pictures at the highest resolution--if you have a 3mp camera, it can hold 426 pictures at the highest resolution.

This is from their site:


Spend More Time Taking Pictures
A photo opportunity lasts only an instant. If your digital camera is busy processing the last one, you're sure to miss the next one. That's where we come in. Our high-speed digital film helps your camera capture images faster, so you spend more time taking pictures and less time waiting on your camera.

Lexar Media CompactFlash cards are individually speed rated so you know the minimum capability of the card. We use the same rating system used by the CD-ROM industry, where data transfer rate of 1X equals 150 kilobytes (KB) per second. The higher the speed rating, the faster your camera will be able to write images to the memory card.

Digital Film Designed for the Professional Photographer
For the professional shooter who needs immediate confirmation they've captured "the shot" or wants to identify accurate exposure, levels, or bracketing range--Lexar Media's patented 4X, 12X, 32X and 40X speed (1X=150KB/sec.), (4X=600KB/sec.), (12X=1.8MB/sec.), (32X=4.8MB/sec.), and (40X=6.0MB/sec.) transfer rate respectively) is critical. Ideal for fast-paced applications such as photojournalism, sports and fashion, Lexar Media's High-Speed Series and Professional Digital Film brings out the ultimate performance from your professional equipment.

Maybe you knew this, but I certainly didn't! Anyways, I bought a high speed 512 card on Saturday and it was delivered TODAY! Can you believe that???

That could make a difference, if you didn't realize. . .which, I definitely didn't.