Suggestions for a digital camera

[Helene]

We are planning an 11 day excursion in August and definitely want to purchase a digital camera before this trip. A few basic questions:

Any specific recommendations for the camera?? (ie. brand)
How much "life" can I expect to get out of one battery??
Any other issues to keep in mind when planning on having the camera available for use all day??

Thanks for your input!!!!

 

[disneyfan551]

Digital cameras are so different! There is no canned answer. I recommend that you visit the following sites... www.dpreview.com (good reviews, great forums broken down by camera brand!), and www.imaging-resources.com (i think!) for very detailed reviews! Take the time to learn about them before you purchase. Pictures are a very important part of our vacation (and life!) and having the wrong camera can make you very sad... Trust me, I've been there!

HTH... Good luck!

 

[liznboys]

A peice of advice about batteries... Buy the Lithium kind! They are more expensive, but they last much longer than rechargeable ones..atleast from our experience.

We have a Kodak digital camera and love it. Good luck!

 

[lsayd]

I have one set of rechargeable batteries that I recharge every night in the hotel. I also keep a set of regular batteries with us, just in case the rechargeables die on me (I take a lot of pictures, anywhere from 100 - 300/day - so those batteries are getting a work out!). This has always worked (we've had a digital camera for 4 years - used for 5 WDW trips) for me. Don't forget those spares - there's nothing worse than seeing that low battery symbol and not having extra batteries!

 

[jmminarik]

Originally posted by liznboys
A peice of advice about batteries... Buy the Lithium kind! They are more expensive, but they last much longer than rechargeable ones..atleast from our experience.

We have a Kodak digital camera and love it. Good luck!

But the rechargable ones will probably be less expensive over time. My kodak 4900 has the rechargable kind that came with the dock-kit and i've got NI-MH rechargables for my SLR flash that I take as backup.

One thing that the OP should be aware is the 'type' of battery needed for a digicam. If it can't use AA batteries or it's own rechargable battery, batteries can quickly be an 'expense'. Battery type should be a factor in your decision.

Hope this helps,
Joe

 

[Memaw2Wm]

Love my Canon G3 ... it takes wonderful photos and I can recharge the battery right in the camera. But best of all I can take photos all day at Disney w/o worrying about running out of juice!

This is a "prosumer" camera that allows the user to manually adjust it or just turn the dial to the green square and it works like a point 'n shoot.

 

[liznboys]

jmminarik-Yeah using the rechargables IS cheaper of course. But they are a pain in the butt to recharge! We have the Kodak DX3600 that came with the rechargable batteries and the dock. Those batteries lose their charge so fast now, we never use them anymore. And for awhile we were using Energizer rechargable batteries, but even those lose charge too fast for our taste. So now we just buy the Lithium and it's totally worth the money for us.

 

[jmminarik]

Originally posted by liznboys
jmminarik-Yeah using the rechargables IS cheaper of course. But they are a pain in the butt to recharge!

I guess it's all a matter of perspective...having to go buy batteries is more of a hassle to me...which is probably why my old PDA never gets used. Of course, I could buy some AAA rechargables...

But, regardless of the battery technology, one that uses AA batteries is going to be cheaper to use than one with a less common form factor.

-joe

 

[sunshineclarity]

Hi, I am an electronics specialist @ Target and I always usually reccomend an Olympus. (Mainly b/c I have one and love mine) I don't know what kind of price range you are looking at, because I love the new Sony 5.0. Just make sure you get at least a 3.0 and I also reccomend getting lithium batteries. My camera eats up AA's in a matter of hours! Any other questions, you can e-mail me at sunshineclarity@msn.com

 

[Helene]

Thanks to all who have responded. I'm going to do some research and I'll be back to the board if I have more questions.

Helene