Upgrade my Olympus SP-510UZ?

[ms_mckenna]

I have only had it since Oct but I think the time has come. I love the camera and I think it has been a good one for us for the most part. It is an Olympus Sp-510UZ 7.1 MP with 10X optical zoom and 2.5" LCD screen, also has a motion stabilization. I will continue to use it but DH and I have talked about how many pictures we have missed without both of us having a camera. So I would really like to buy another camera. It has to be pretty simple or at least CAN be pretty simple to operate. My husband is a point and shoot kind of guy, and honestly I am as well. The shutter speed is the main thing that is making me insane with my Olympus. Pictures at baseball games and cheerleading things. I just do not like the delay. I would love to move up to a DSLR but I think my husband would kill me if he figured out I paid that much for a camera right now. That probably will not happen until the fall of 08 which is probably when I will be my next upgrade after this. I am looking at spending lets say less than 400 but I will entertain the idea of higher prices up to 600. My big thing I look for in a camera are clarity in the pictures. We go on our next trip at the end of July so I would like to at least by the first of July so I can get used to it for the trip. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. I always feel like if I just follow what the salesman says I am just lining thier pockets and probably not getting the best camera for us.

 

[ukcatfan]

Here is the DSLR I have. http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=PKK100D1855 It is currently $479 with a $50 rebate, so it is pretty close to your $400 limit. If you want to keep it under that, their next lower model is currently $396, but no rebate. http://www.buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=PKK110D1855

The only difference in the two is that the K100D has IS in the body, so it works on every lens. Pentax lenses cannot be bought with IS in the lens. For the $30 difference, I personally feel like it is worth it.

Kevin

 

[ms_mckenna]

Thanks for the info I am taking a look at it now. How is battery life on that camera for you?

 

[ukcatfan]

I forgot to mention that if you also buy the DA 50-200mm at the same time the rebate goes up to $150 and the total before rebate would be $718. That would give you a total range of 18-200mm. In 35mm terms it would be 27-300mm, so it would be a little wider than your p&s, but it would not have as much reach as your p&s by a small amount. The image quality would be much better though, so you could crop to get results that would most likely be better than the p&s at the max focal length anyway though.

 

[ukcatfan]

Thanks for the info I am taking a look at it now. How is battery life on that camera for you?

It uses AAs, and I usually need to recharge the bateries b/c they have been sitting around for too long rather than running out while I am using them. A typical rechargeable battery has charge loss just sitting around and should be charged after a couple of weeks. I am going to have three sets with me at WDW. I will have one in the camera, and extra with me, and a third in the room charging. The lithium rechargeables that come with most DSLRs do last a little longer per charge, but extras cost about $40-50 where an extra set of AAs is about $7-8.

 

[ms_mckenna]

One more question. My husband prefers a point and shoot ... if he is using the camera is it something he could fairly easily operate?

 

[ukcatfan]

One more question. My husband prefers a point and shoot ... if he is using the camera is it something he could fairly easily operate?

Have you thought about making the Oly his camera and having the new one be yours?

Anyway, iIt has a completely automatic mode. Actually, the auto mode on the Pentax is sort of unique where it evaluates the situation and picks a scene mode that best fits it. It also has a "P" or Program mode that is like auto with the ability to control ISO and flash. It is a good mode to use to learn a little more about manual settings. Because it is still an entry level DSLR, there are plenty of scene modes if you like using them.

About the only thing that needs to be thought about more on a DSLR in auto compared to a p&s is the depth of field(DOF; area in focus). Because the image sensor is so much larger on a DSLR, the aperture of them cannot be thought about the same as a p&s and DOF is smaller. For an auto p&s user, it can at first seem like a problem, but it is actually a very powerful tool. It is almost impossible to intentionally blur a background with a p&s, but using a wide aperture(like f/2.8-3.5) on a DSLR, it is easy.

If you do not want to blur the background, then I feel like the aperture priority mode is the best. If you keep the aperture fairly small(f/8-11) then the DOF will stay farily broad like a p&s. If you keep it small like that, sometimes the shutter speed(not shutter delay) will get slower and you might need to raise the ISO to make it faster. Do not worry about that too much though on a DSLR. Based on my extremely unscientific tests, it seems like ISO 1600 on a DSLR is about equal in terms of image noise to ISO 200 on a p&s. FYI - the ISO range on the K100D and K110D is 200-3200, but 3200 is very noisy and should only be used as a last resort(like ISO 400-800 on a p&s).

Basically, if you want to maximize the DOF and still have the camera act like auto in aperture priority mode, set it to aperture f/8-10, auto ISO from 200-1600, and auto white balance. You would still have to decide when to use flash or not, but it would be close to auto mode from a p&s in terms of results.

Please feel free to ask as many questions as you like.

Kevin

 

[ms_mckenna]

Thanks so much Kevin. The Olympus would become his camera ... but I know him he has huge beginnings of a shutter bug. He rolled his eyes at me even when we bought the Olympus but our last day at MGM he took it and had a good time. Actually he took some really amazing shots so I would love for him to get more comfortable with a camera so maybe I could actually get some decent pictures of me and the kids lol. I know that whatever I buy he will be using as well and I do not want him to get easily frustrated with it. If that makes any sense at all.
Do you think that in the order of natural progression that a DSLR is my next step up? I have recently rejoined the world of trying to be serious about photography. Life unfotunately got in the way of my old obsession. I am going to pick up some books and hopefully get more back in the swing of things.

 

[ukcatfan]

Your current model is a "bridge" model, so upgrading to another p&s is not going to change class levels. I am not familiar with your current model, but even going to the best in class for that level is not going to be much of an improvement. If you do not go DSLR now, I suggest saving your $$ towards a future DSLR purchase instead of buying another p&s. It is usually not the shutter delay that really frustrates p&s users b/c they are pretty fast these days. It is more the auto focus speed compared to a DSLR. You can pretty much point and do a full press of the shutter with a DSLR and still get the shot before the action is gone, but on even some of the best p&s cameras, it can take seconds and the shot is lost.

We also have a Canon S2 IS and when I use it, it is very frustrating after knowing what a DSLR can do.

Kevin

 

[Groucho]

I would have to agree with Kevin - you're not going to get much of an upgrade if you switch PnS cameras. A Fuji will give you better low-light shots but you lose image stabilization. You really shouldn't go to a higher megapixel level. You might be able to gain a little bit of responsiveness...

But really, if you're looking at another long-zoom camera, you're probably looking at spending $300+, and you'll get a lot more camera by spending the little bit more for a DSLR, even though if you get just the "kit lens" that is included, you won't have as much zoom. The K100D + kit 18-55m lens + 50-200mm lens is a really terrific deal, and all lenses are image stabilized, and it's easy enough to anyone to use.

Nikon, Canon, and Olympus also make competing entry-level DSLRs (and Sony's is getting closer to entry-level prices), each with its own sets of pros and cons. The best news is that there's pretty much not a bad DSLR out there, they're all very nice and every one is capable of stunning results. You can also grow with them and move into the aperture/shutter-priority modes as you can more comfortable with the camera.

By the way, Kevin touched on this, but the image sensor in a DSLR (except the Olympus, which is slightly smaller) is almost 15x larger than the one in your current Olympus. This is a big part of why image quality can be so much better, especially in night photos.

 

[ms_mckenna]

Thanks for the info guys. Looks like we are going to upgrade. We have been discussing it lol. For some reason my husband thinks since I just bought a camera in Oct I should wait at least a year lol. He will come around I will just have to help him a little ... wonderful subtle hints etc. I did manage to talk him into going to the camera store with me when he gets back from out of town to "look" around.

 

[handicap18]

Another point to consider. The Pentax K100D is in your current price range with 2 lenses. You mentioned that you were going to upgrade again in the latter part of '08. Well if you get the K100D now, then your future upgrades would then become lenses instead of whole new cameras. So in the end you actually save money. Next fall you could get yourself the 50mm f/1.4 for about $250 which is probably less than you would be spending on another new camera.

Your being financially responsible.

 

[Groucho]

That's true. Chances are that your DSLR (the body itself) will keep you satisfied a lot longer than a PnS will.

The Pentax 50mm is actually only about $175 after rebate currently... an absolute steal for such a stellar lens.

 

[ms_mckenna]

LOL I like the way you guys think I never thought of using that angle with him. Thanks for the info I will let you know how it goes.