Digital camera help

[LT Rich]

Ok gents ( and ladies) here is the deal. I have recently been doing a lot of research on digital cameras. the problem is that without seeing them, using them and feeling how they are made, it is hard to tell what all the stuff the reviews means, how important some of the flaws that they find really are. I figure that there are a few tech savy people on here that will be able to help me out.

What i am looking for is a compact (smaller the better) camera with at least a 2.5 inch display, vewfinder is a plus, that takes pictures with good clearity and color. Good movie taking capability is good too. I have talked to mmblz (however you spell it!) about his camera, but i would like some second opinions. I am trying to keep the price tag around 300-400. Extra goodies are a plus, and it would be fun to learn some things about photography with the manual settings, but it isnt real important.

Oh and my computer has a slot for an SD card, so that would be good if i could find something with a match for that, though it is not real important, more of a novelty.

Thanks guys,

LT

[illuminatus]

Panasonic DMC-FX7 or DMC-FX8. The 8 is the newer model, with longer battery life, but other than that, it's very comparable to the 7, and the 7 can be had for cheap on ebay (new, not used). I've been out of the industry for about a year, but the FX7 was my favorite camera when I left. It's tiny, huge display, with an anti-glare screen protector, an extra brightness button so that you can actually SEE the LCD when you're outside in the sun (works very well outdoors), optical anti-shake (it's a floating lens, versus digital correction in cheaper cameras), and it uses Leica lenses, which are some of the best lenses in the industry. Battery life is good, replacement/spare batteries are CHEAP (check out lenmar.com for ANY rechargeable battery you may need, we used to sell them.. they're way cheaper than OEM, and work just as well).

That's just my . If you have any specific questions, feel free to PM or email me. I sold electronics for about a year (and was very well trained, unlike some of the bozos at places like best buy or circuit city.. no offense to any BOTL employed by either of those two companies), and am pretty familiar with most brands of cameras. My brand preferences, in order are: Panasonic, Canon/Nikon (Tied for second, with canon maybe a hairsbreadth ahead), minolta/konica minolta, Sony. I absolutely despise sony, and all their products. Even without my personal bias towards Sony, their products fall at the bottom of the list of features, and at the top of the price list. Again, just my

[White97Jimmy]

Never had any problems with my Sonys. In fact, I rate them much better than the Kodak I had.

[joshua]

This is a good site for reviews http://dpreview.com/

They have sample pics and everything.

[Bigwaved]

This site is worht a look as well as the dpreview:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/

[GhostDawg]

I bought a great digital camera a while back and use it almost daily. Its a Nikon Coolpix 4200. Its very small (fits easily in my front pocket), but takes great pictures (4 megapixels). It has a rechargable battery that tends to last about a month. It uses memory cards and the 1 gig card I have takes about 1,500 pictures.

Other neat thing I discovered is it also works as a video camera. You can set it to video and it will take as much video as there is free space on the card. This I find this very handy when I get together with friends or go out to events. And the video downloads to laptop just as easily as the photos do.

Have read some reviews that were so/so, but in my experience, its a great camera.

[mikey202]

I have a Canon Powershot A520 4.0 mega pixel.....It is a great camera..got it here http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...uctCode=162536 its a good site.

here are some pics I took with it.....[IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG]

nice camera for under $200..

[illuminatus]

Just for the record.. the DMC-FX7 is the only camera that's been suggested so far with a 3.0" (or is it 3.5") LCD screen, which is around the size you want.

[why1504]

Originally Posted by joshua

This is a good site for reviews http://dpreview.com/

They have sample pics and everything.

Rich this is a great site. I have a Canon Digital Rebel and my wife has a Nikon Coolpix. Different cameras fulfill different needs. I have a backpack full of lenses and accessories. My wife has a fairly simple Point and Shoot. I have been a photographer for 30 years so first you need to answer a few more questions:

First, what kind of photos do you want to take? In what light conditions, action, landscapes, snapshots?

How do you want to print? How large?

My suggestion is that you pic as simple a camera as will fit your needs. The COOLPIX my wife has may very well fit your bill.

Remember, the most important factor in photography is the lens speed (f-stop) The lower the low number, the more flexible the camera. This number identifies the amount of light the lens allows to reach the sensor. The lower the f-stop, the lower the light, or the faster the shudder speed.

No photographer will argue with a choice of Canon, Sony, or Nikon. All will take great photos. I don't know what your availability is like over there but B&H Photo in NYC is a very reputable dealer.

[rumballs]

Originally Posted by illuminatus

Just for the record.. the DMC-FX7 is the only camera that's been suggested so far with a 3.0" (or is it 3.5") LCD screen, which is around the size you want.

The screen is 2.5", which is the size that most new models have.
The Sony DSC-N1 and Canon SD630 have 3" screens. There are probably a few others too, but most are 2.5". At least one I read about had 2.8", forget which one.

[rumballs]

for anyone else looking for a camera, this is a link I sent LT Rich:
http://www.photoxels.com/reviews-matrix.html

It links to all the other good review sites and organizes all the info in one place - a great place to start.

[PanamaJo]

try cnet.com . they usually have unbiased and detailed reviews and ratings. i have a sony which has worked well for over a year now. but it's time for me to get a new one.

[illuminatus]

dpreview (already posted) and ecoustics.com are good free consumer rating websites.

[hatred]

understanding your job, this might be of some help... i got a Nikon, actually last year's model, a P2. it's small enough to fit in a Pelican micro case (1010), has an exceptional battery life, 2.5" screen, SD card slot, 5.1 MP and wifi capability. i got mine for about 200, and i understand it's replacement is not much more. i'm not an expert on digicams, but i can vouch for what it's been through, and is so far holding up rather well. as for size, even in the Pelican case, it's small enough that i have it on my IBA permanently.

[LT Rich]

Ok, i have been looking closely at the Sony N1, along with others, does anyone have any experience with this camera?

LT