What brand camera to buy ?

[pooh2001]

OK - time to get into the digital world.

Best Buy is having a digital camera sale.

Cannon PowerShot 8MP ELPH Camera with 3X Optical Zoom $249.99

Kodak EasyShare 7MP with 3X Optical Zoom $129.99

FujiFilm 8MP Camera with 3X Optical Zoom $149.99

Sony Cyber-shot 8MP Utraslim Camera with 3X Optical Zoom $279.99

Casio Exslim 10MP with 3X Optical Zoom $249.99

I would need super easy to use, simple to print/download pictures, and nice picture quality.

What is 7MP, 8MP, 10MP ?

Please help. Thank you !

 

[mommytoone]

I have the Sony. I love it!!! It is really easy to use. The pics are great. The only downfall is the zoom. I wish it was more that 3x. But IMO I would get the Sony.

 

[momof3girls6712]

I have the casio and the kodak. They both are nice and have good features. The casio is so thin and small it is my favorite. However, it is so small that DH does not like it. The casio has a better flash, but the kodak has really nice features. I have a cradle for both cameras which makes it super easy to upload to my computer. The Casio came with the cradle and the Kodak I had to but the cradle. I had a Sony about 3 years ago and it took nice pictures as well. What I do is go to the store and play with each camera. Really feel it out to see which one fits you best.

 

[momof3girls6712]

I forgot to add the mp is megapixels. The better the megapixels the bigger you are print the picture and it look good. Pixels are the dots of color that make up the picture.

 

[irky416]

I have loved all the Canon cameras I have owned. However, I have a suggestion. Our current Canon has Image Stabilization and it is an AMAZING feature. It steadies the shot, so you can zoom in and have it not be blurry if your hand is shaking. I have zoomed in very far (with a digital zoom) and have had perfect pictures come out because of the IS. I could never do this with my old camera that didn't have this feature.

I would strongly suggest buying a camera with this feature. I doubt I will ever buy another one without it.

 

[NAN0112]

Sony al the way. The cybershot cameras are great and not to bad on $$$$

Small and compact too

 

[cjstarr]

OK - time to get into the digital world.

Best Buy is having a digital camera sale.

Cannon PowerShot 8MP ELPH Camera with 3X Optical Zoom $249.99

Kodak EasyShare 7MP with 3X Optical Zoom $129.99

FujiFilm 8MP Camera with 3X Optical Zoom $149.99

Sony Cyber-shot 8MP Utraslim Camera with 3X Optical Zoom $279.99

Casio Exslim 10MP with 3X Optical Zoom $249.99

I would need super easy to use, simple to print/download pictures, and nice picture quality.

What is 7MP, 8MP, 10MP ?

Please help. Thank you !

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What is 7MP, 8MP, 10MP ?
This will help explain it

http://www.scrapjazz.com/topics/Photography/Digital_Photography/413.php

Here is where the saying goes "you get what you pay for".
We have a Kodak EasyShare 6.2mp and it is ok if you have no desire to take pictures from a distance. (We gave it our DD) The best advice I can give you is to buy a Nikon, Canon, or Sony DSLR in the 6.2 to 8.2mp range.
Check out the two below, both will give you much better photos then the ones you're looking at plus you can always get another lens that will give you much better zoom capabilities then those with a fixed lens.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8139169&type=product&id=1158323379076

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7026069&type=product&id=1099394810083

Note With the two cameras above you will not lose enought megapixel to notice the difference between a 10mp and a 6mp camera.


I know this will cost you somewhere from $500 to $700 and it is $200 to $300 more then those you are looking at but trust me you will never regret it.
I have a Canon 24mm (35mm to 80mm & 80mm to 200mm Lens) that we purchased in 2001 while on vacation at WDW (About $900 worth) and it takes some of the best pictures that I have ever taken with a camera. The drawback was the $180 I spent on having the film developed that we took at WDW that year. So I went and bought a Kodak EasyShare 6.2mp.digital.
It took some the worse pictures that I have ever taken with a camera while I was in NY on business. Don't get me wrong they where good if the subject was near. The problem was no control over the focus when trying to zoom in.
Now I have a Sony A100 10.2mp DSLR that takes great pictures along with a 80mm to 300mm zoom lens and I don't regret the money I spent for it.
Take a few days to do a little research before you buy. The link that I put below is one that I always use when looking at digital cameras and will give you a lot of information.
If there are any questions that I can help you with just let me know.

http://www.dpreview.com/

 

[mikehn]

All will give you high quality pics. The cheaper ones are usually the simplist to use. The pricier ones have tons of bells and whistles, 90% of which you'll never use.

 

[cjstarr]

All will give you high quality pics. The cheaper ones are usually the simplist to use. The pricier ones have tons of bells and whistles, 90% of which you'll never use.

mikehn
My Sony A100 DSLR is just as easy to use as any of the little Automatic digital cameras out there. The fact that I can and do use the different setting is a plus that can mean the difference between a photo that comes out good or one that is bad.
The biggest different is the DSLR digital cameras gives you the adjustments.
The cheaper Automatic digital cameras do not.
This will be the difference between a picture turning into a shot that you will want to remember, and one that you wish you had a camera that would have gave you a picture to remember.

I will edit this post and show you the difference between the two as soon as I up-load a few pictures.

Four photos, first 2 w/Kodak Easy Share 6.2
Last 2 w/Sony A100 DSLR 10.2

Taken With: EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY KODAK Z7...

Taken On: 2006:01:29 16:49:04

Taken With: EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY KODAK Z7...

Taken On: 2006:01:29 17:34:46

Taken With: SONY DSLR-A100

Taken On: 2007:07:21 10:51:15

Taken With: SONY DSLR-A100

Taken On: 2007:07:20 16:12:54

 

[Melanie98]

I am on my second Fuji. I have had great luck with them. They take great pics and they can withstand all the wear and tear they have to endure in my care. The first one cost about $300 three years ago. The newer one was purchased last year at Sam's for $200. They both have features on them that I never use, but they are fairly simple to operate overall. I love the photo quality most of all.

 

[juliana_sd]

I recently got the Canon SD1100IS - super small, has image stabilization, it's a great pocket camera. I love it! It takes really great pictures and the IS really makes a difference. It's the blue/brown/pink one on the cover of the ad. I have the blue and it is really pretty in person. FYI though, $249 is the regular price, not a sale price. You can find it cheaper online... $222.99 on Amazon for example.

Don't worry about MP... anything they sell these days has more than enough, unless you are planning to print 18x24" pictures.

 

[kc5grw]

I upgraded to a Canon G7 before our trip in June 2007. I've always been a big film SLR fan, but when it comes to the digital cameras I want something a bit smaller. One of the big reasons I bought the G7 was its ability to shoot low light photos very well. The G7 is a 10MP camera with a ton of features. I have included examples below of the Canon's low light capabilities. All of these pictures were shot in the G7's ISO3200 mode and all were handheld, no tripod or other support. The G7's daylight capabilities are equally impressive. Click on the thumbnails for the full sized image.

 

[cjstarr]

I upgraded to a Canon G7 before our trip in June 2007. I've always been a big film SLR fan, but when it comes to the digital cameras I want something a bit smaller. One of the big reasons I bought the G7 was its ability to shoot low light photos very well. The G7 is a 10MP camera with a ton of features. I have included examples below of the Canon's low light capabilities. All of these pictures were shot in the G7's ISO3200 mode and all were handheld, no tripod or other support. The G7's daylight capabilities are equally impressive. Click on the thumbnails for the full sized image.

Those are some of the best picture I’ve seen in a long time from a compact digital camera. They're clear, with no noise distortion that I can see.
Where you using a flash, and from what distance where you from the subject?
Also do you have a photo using the zoom in daylight and dark that you can post? I would like to see more from that camera.
Are you able to post a side by side comparison of the Canon G7 and a SLR for reference in size?

Thanks

Charles

 

[Stacy's a freak]

I think most cameras take very similar pictures, but I have a Sony Cybershot (7.1 mp) and I LOVE this camera. It's very compact and I have it with me all of the time. But note that the picture viewer is a good size and very easy to see your pictures.

Conversely, my co-worker has a Kodak and it is very large. She originally bought it for its beefiness (her husband didn't want to use a small camera with his big hands), but now they hate the fact that it's so large that they have to find a place to put it.

So for me, size matters And this case, the smaller the better.

 

[Ashlander]

I have the Canon 750...and I love it!!!! Not only does it take great pictures, but it takes awesome videos.

 

[mgilmer]

I have loved all the Canon cameras I have owned. However, I have a suggestion. Our current Canon has Image Stabilization and it is an AMAZING feature. It steadies the shot, so you can zoom in and have it not be blurry if your hand is shaking. I have zoomed in very far (with a digital zoom) and have had perfect pictures come out because of the IS. I could never do this with my old camera that didn't have this feature.

I would strongly suggest buying a camera with this feature. I doubt I will ever buy another one without it.

I agree with all of this. I would recommend the Canon A720. It has the image stabilization and also has the following good things:

1. An optical viewfinder -- great on bright sunny days when you cannot always use a lcd screen to compose a photo

2. Uses AA batteries -- great when you find that your batteries are exhausted. You can find AA batteries almost anywhere.

3. It has a great movie mode so that you can use it just like a camcorder. It can record up to 30 minutes of very high quality video if you use the maxium 4 gb sdhc card.

 

[kc5grw]

Those are some of the best picture I’ve seen in a long time from a compact digital camera. They're clear, with no noise distortion that I can see.
Where you using a flash, and from what distance where you from the subject?
Also do you have a photo using the zoom in daylight and dark that you can post? I would like to see more from that camera.
Are you able to post a side by side comparison of the Canon G7 and a SLR for reference in size?

Thanks

Charles

I did not use my flash for any of those pictures. I was on the right side of the boat when I snapped the picture from Pirates I honestly don't remember how far it was. We were in the second or third row of the theater when I took the pic of Ariel, 30ft maybe. I took the parade picture from the upper level of the train station at the end of Main Street.

Here is a link to a review of the G7 that I used when I bought the camera. http://www.steves-digicams.com/2006_reviews/g7.html This guy does really good and detailed reviews with plenty of sample pics.

 

[Corjack]

FujiFilm 8MP Camera with 3X Optical Zoom $149.99

I have one of these and am very disappointed wiht it's use overall. It does not take good pictures when you zoom. I frequently have "blurry" pics. Outside it is fabulous, but indoors it is really disappointing.

My BF and SIL have Kodak cameras and REALLY love them.

Jackie

 

[Manda]

I just got the Canon SD1100 IS for my pocket camera (I've got a Nikon DSLR that's my "real" camera). I'd really recommend getting a camera with stabilization - it really does help on these point and shoot cameras.

The thing that I find most bothersome about digital point and shoot cameras is the shutter lag. You push the button and it waits a bit before actually taking the photo. Especially with kids, you often miss the shot that way. Almost every (non-SLR) digital camera has this problem except for in very well lit and high contrast areas. My S400 had this problem in spades and is most of the reason that I went to a SLR. However, when I went to buy a new point and shoot, I researched and found that the new Canon SD1100 has one of the shortest shutter lags out there. And that's what sold it for me. While not dSLR speed, it is lightning fast compared to other digi cams.

Example photos (I've only had it for about two weeks, so I don't have much):

Landscape...

Macro enough to show my gross keyboard...

Good white balance...

And it comes in pretty colors (and again... decent white balance and exposure considering it's a bathroom mirror shot with no flash)...

Editing to add: And like someone else said, $249 is NOT a sale price - that's regular price. I got mine for $229 (?, I think) with free shipping from Amazon.

 

[pigletof4]

Don't forget to compare prices with overstock.com. I've actually been looking for a new camera and I've been following this thread. I saw one of the Canons yesterday at Wal-mart just playing around. I have an older Kodak easyshare 4.0mp, so I'm ready to upgrade to something smaller.