View Full Version : OT: Compact digital camera advice
I know we've got quite a few decent photographers here, and I'm looking for input about compact digital point and shoot cameras. This will be the "big" present from me to my wife this Christmas and price is not an issue so long as I am paying for features that she will appreciate. We already have a very nice high-end Sony digital with 12X zoom, but it is too big for her to lug around to most events, and the battery life is terrible. It takes outstanding photos, but she really needs a compact camera that she can throw in her pocketbook and use easily. I have read dozens of reviews and my head is spinning about how many megapixels are really necessary, how much optical zoom is needed to be useful, etc. I am inclined to limit my options to Canon, Nikkon and Sony, but I can be persuaded to vary if there is another quality option I'm overlooking. I also want the camera to have some video capacity, because we don't have a digital video camera and I'd like to have the option to take some short videos, especially of our kids as they grow up faster and faster. Here are my priorities:
Compact enough to put in a pocket
Easy to use without much fiddling or instruction
Decent battery life
Good video function
Good quality photos
Short delay between shots
Durable
Any insights on good or bad experiences you have had with these types of cameras are much appreciated. Thanks.
BigBill
12-01-2008, 12:20 AM
One of the key features I used in choosing a pocketable compact digital was battery type. I wanted one that took AA batteries. When those lithium batteries drain down, the camera is useless until you can get back home or the hotel and charge them for an hour or more. Of course, if you are willing to invest another $40-$50 in a spare... The one I ended up with was the Nikon L18 8-megapixel the uses AAs. Twice I have replaced the batteries while out and about, and have captured shot I would have otherwise missed. and it takes great pictures.
Just one amateur shutterbugs opinion.
Carolina Beadhead
12-01-2008, 12:32 AM
One of the key features I used in choosing a pocketable compact digital was battery type. I wanted one that took AA batteries. When those lithium batteries drain down, the camera is useless until you can get back home or the hotel and charge them for an hour or more. Of course, if you are willing to invest another $40-$50 in a spare... The one I ended up with was the Nikon L18 8-megapixel the uses AAs. Twice I have replaced the batteries while out and about, and have captured shot I would have otherwise missed. and it takes great pictures.
Just one amateur shutterbugs opinion.
I totally agree with Bill. Easily replaceable, rechargeable batteries are important to me.
The other thing, aside from optical zoom, is how well it does in low light since I tend to like to take pics at music events indoors (read:bars LOL). I have not been too successful with my current camera but it is fairly old, in technology years.
jolie
12-01-2008, 12:57 AM
I have a Sony Cyber-shot 10.1 mega-pixels (not sure of the cost as it was gifted to me last Christmas)
I love, love, love it!!! So far I really haven't had the need for 10 mega pixels and even some of my photographer friends say it's rarely needed....wish I had a lil more zoom instead. I do have 2 lithium batteries that I alternate.. esp convenient for travel.. keeping one charged at all times.
Lord knows its sturdy as it has been dropped, left in the rain, lost, etc and keeps on ticking.
Belle
12-01-2008, 06:17 AM
One of the key features I used in choosing a pocketable compact digital was battery type. I wanted one that took AA batteries. When those lithium batteries drain down, the camera is useless until you can get back home or the hotel and charge them for an hour or more. Of course, if you are willing to invest another $40-$50 in a spare... The one I ended up with was the Nikon L18 8-megapixel the uses AAs. Twice I have replaced the batteries while out and about, and have captured shot I would have otherwise missed. and it takes great pictures.
Just one amateur shutterbugs opinion.
I totally agree with Bill. Easily replaceable, rechargeable batteries are important to me.
The other thing, aside from optical zoom, is how well it does in low light since I tend to like to take pics at music events indoors (read:bars LOL). I have not been too successful with my current camera but it is fairly old, in technology years.
Daggone right. That was my first requirement. Been there done that with others. We bought a Canon PowerShot A520. Very happy with this one. Check it out. Has what you wanted.
The flip-side is that AA battery replacement can (over the long run) cost a lot more than a rechargable lithium. I guess I'm pretty obsessive about powering my camera down (or at least turning off the display) if I'm not going to shoot again for a few minutes, and I can always get thru a full day at the Fairgrounds and night on the town (about 150 shots) on a single charge. And I always remember to recharge overnight.
For that sort of high usage, I think rechargables are best.
But I agree, if Mrs Lit is looking for a throw-in-the-purse, a-few-shots-a-day, don't-want-to-worry-about-it 2nd camera, then AA's may make sense for that.
sophisticated sissy
12-01-2008, 08:23 AM
I use a Sony Cyber-shot. There are a lot of great products out there, but what sold me on this one was the 10X zoom & the Carl Zeiss optics. It is so easy to use, a 6-year old could master its use in 10 minutes. It meets all of your criteria for requirements, as far as I can see.
The Nikon CoolPix is also very, ah, cool. My daughter uses one and they are a lot of fun.
mdfest
12-01-2008, 08:37 AM
http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/recommended-cameras.htm
This guy has great recommendations.
We have a Canon sd870is. By far, the best camera Ive ever had (used to love Sony, but no more). Battery life is great. Unless she takes 200 photos/day, with flash, and cant charge it, your fine. And a backup battery on ebay or somewhere is usually pretty cheap, smaller than a couple aa's to carry around, and much cheaper in the long run. I always buy a second battery (havent needed one for the 870) and tuck it into the camera bag.
Love
MD
Thanks all. It's looking like the Canon SD 880 IS, which is the successor to the camera mdfest recommends. I apppreciate all the comments; very helpful. While I appreciate the point about being able to use AAs, we have that option with our larger Sony now and the battery life is so poor that it almost defeats the purpose. I agree with mdfest that good rechargable lithium batteries, with a backup, is the way to go for us. Thanks again.
mdfest
12-01-2008, 11:42 AM
Thanks all. It's looking like the Canon SD 880 IS, which is the successor to the camera mdfest recommends. I apppreciate all the comments; very helpful. While I appreciate the point about being able to use AAs, we have that option with our larger Sony now and the battery life is so poor that it almost defeats the purpose. I agree with mdfest that good rechargable lithium batteries, with a backup, is the way to go for us. Thanks again.
Is MdFest, proper name;)
Be sure to put my name on the card please.
Carolina Beadhead
12-01-2008, 12:16 PM
The flip-side is that AA battery replacement can (over the long run) cost a lot more than a rechargable lithium. I guess I'm pretty obsessive about powering my camera down (or at least turning off the display) if I'm not going to shoot again for a few minutes, and I can always get thru a full day at the Fairgrounds and night on the town (about 150 shots) on a single charge. And I always remember to recharge overnight.
For that sort of high usage, I think rechargables are best.
But I agree, if Mrs Lit is looking for a throw-in-the-purse, a-few-shots-a-day, don't-want-to-worry-about-it 2nd camera, then AA's may make sense for that.
FWIW I use rechargeable AA's and carry a couple of spare sets with me. The other plus is that if you need a set in an emergency you can buy AA's just about anywhere.
FWIW I use rechargeable AA's and carry a couple of spare sets with me. The other plus is that if you need a set in an emergency you can buy AA's just about anywhere.
That's what we've done with our larger Sony. We actually bought three sets of rechargeable AAs so we had two charged spare sets of rechargeables with us at all times. The problem we encountered is that the spare sets appeared to lose their charges even without being used if they sat for a while between charges, so we would drain them almost instantly after replacing the drained pair of rechargeables. Then we bought a large pack of regular AAs to have backups for our backups, and those do not last very long in that camera either. From what I've read, we can expect much longer battery life with the rechargeable lithium batteries in the Canon camera I have settled on, and I now understand better how to preserve and extend the battery life between charges too.
duende
12-01-2008, 02:46 PM
From what I've read, we can expect much longer battery life with the rechargeable lithium batteries in the Canon camera I have settled on, and I now understand better how to preserve and extend the battery life between charges too.
Great choice, and the new Elph's are amazing - my wife has the 8 meg IXY (gray mkt japanese version) with image stabilization, great videos, etc. I still have issues finding the photo-stitch mode in her camera functions versus my older Elph, which had the stitch mode on the main selector button. The cheaper large capacity SD cards seem to slow the thing down a bit, but 4-8 Gig's should get you through most days ;)
We're sold on the SterlingTek battery upgrades, and use the stock battery primarily as backup for our two Elph's. http://www.sterlingtek.com
mdfest
12-01-2008, 02:49 PM
In an ironic twist, the lcd on ours developed a few horizontal cracks this weekend and was shipped back to Canon today. Its probably our fault, but they seem ready to fix it under warranty.
Maybe they will send me an 880!? Probably not.
jazzjones
12-01-2008, 03:08 PM
+1 on the CoolPix praise.
I've had great success with my CoolPix cameras, including some Jazz Fest pix that have been published with mag (http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/reviews/live_review_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003580025) reviews.
I use a Sony Cyber-shot. There are a lot of great products out there, but what sold me on this one was the 10X zoom & the Carl Zeiss optics. It is so easy to use, a 6-year old could master its use in 10 minutes. It meets all of your criteria for requirements, as far as I can see.
The Nikon CoolPix is also very, ah, cool. My daughter uses one and they are a lot of fun.
My current camera is the Coolpix S10.
I like it a lot. I think it's been discontinued, but is still available if you look a bit. In any case, it is a bit heavier/larger than what Lit said he was looking for.
I've given serious consideration to the comparable versions of the Nikon Coolpix and Sony Cybershot. Swag's Coolpix S10 is just a bit larger than what I'm looking for. As I've noted, we've already got a larger Sony Cybershot with a 12x zoom that takes incredible pictures, but it's also a bit too bulky and has very poor battery life. The smaller Nikon Coolpix are true to their name--i.e., very cool, sleek and small. What ultimately steered me away, however, were several less-than-glowing reviews of the video function. A good friend also has one and the video I've seen from his camera was very rough (granted, he was just learning how to use the camera then). The comparable Sony also looks very cool, and the new touchscreen feature would be nice. But there the drawbacks seem to be poor battery life (like the Sony we have now) and longer lag times between shots. It seems that the Canon has the least "cool" design of the three, but the best combination of features that I think Mrs. Lit will most appreciate. Thanks again to all of you who shared your insights. They helped a lot more than the many other on-line reviews I've read.
duende
12-01-2008, 06:33 PM
I almost forgot - the main reason we stuck with the Elph's (time does march on, and all the new cameras have excellent features) is the cool audio limiting feature that attenuates the volume for live music video captures. We noticed it with my older S410 - once the volume "clips" the normal range, it's nicely compressed and doesn't distort at all. Most of our youtube live band stuff is only watchable because of that neat feature.
breambob
12-01-2008, 07:00 PM
Price no object?
Go with Leica, the D-LUX 4. Superior optics, design and electronics to anything mentioned here so far. You will want a case and extra battery and charger, though. But these are cheap compared to the cost of the camera. Wish I could afford one...
Price no object?
Go with Leica, the D-LUX 4. Superior optics, design and electronics to anything mentioned here so far. You will want a case and extra battery and charger, though. But these are cheap compared to the cost of the camera. Wish I could afford one...
Well I just bought the Canon, but you piqued my curiousity so I checked this out (had never even heard of the name before). The D-LUX 4 looks a bit too complex for her needs, but the C-LUX 3 looks very good. I would have considered if I hadn't already purchased.
The Krewe of Chew
06-18-2009, 08:59 AM
Bump for Cindy
Thanks, Lit. Who need Consumer Reports when you've got Threadheads?
BTW Cindy, I also followed Duende's advice and purchased a backup lithium battery from Sterling Tek: http://www.sterlingtek.com/. It was something like 75% cheaper and even better specs than the one that comes with the camera. We got a good sized memory card from them as well. Their prices are great and they are extremely helpful if you call with any questions. As I said in the other thread, the battery life has been exceptional, but it is good to have a fully-charged spare at all times, and it is small enough to fit in a small camera bag with the camera.
I should also mention that I posted this same query on another message board at the time and the Canon we ended up buying came out on top there too; and my independent research showed it to be one that was well-recommended by many other sources also. The optical zoom may be slightly less than what you think you need, but there is also a large digital zoom range on top of that, and I think the wide angle lens makes up for a lot too. It is definitely noticeably less optical zoom than our Sony (12x), but it is so much smaller and so much more functional in so many ways that we don't miss the difference very often.
funkkjunkie
08-10-2010, 07:43 PM
I'm camera shopping. I want lightweight, easy to use and crystal clear photos. I currently have a sony cybershot with a 5xzoom and 10.1 megapixels. It's too heavy and many of my pictures have a red tone to them. eded tried to fix it and it's a bit better but not great. as mentioned above, the batteries are pathetic and i carry 2 extras, adding more weight to the pkg.
I read a review that praised Pentax optio s6, canon powershot sd450, casio exilim ex s500 and casio exilim z750, and coolpix s3. Thoughts?
I can tell you that we're still loving the Canon I purchased as a result of the process I went through when I started this thread. And we have since purchased two lower-end Canons for our two older daughters. Each of the cameras do what they're supposed to do very well. I should also add that two of the three needed to be sent back for repairs (for things I suspect were probably our fault), and Canon accepted them under warranty through an extremely easy on-line process, sent us an e-mail when they received them, and when they repaired them, and when they shipped them back to us a few days later, all at no charge.
We are very satisfied Canon owners.
funkkjunkie
08-10-2010, 10:02 PM
thanks, lit.
Orleansnj
08-10-2010, 10:12 PM
I have a Canon SD 800-IS - it takes great photos, has video, beaucoup settings and controls, a nice clear screen when taking photos, continuous shot capability, a crazy zoom range to 15x, 7.1 megapixels, has incredible battery life and it fits in your jeans pocket. love it, love it, love it. When I bought it - i think I paid about $225 - (I think I bought it in 2006)
completejohn
08-11-2010, 02:38 PM
Consumer Reports LOVES the Canon Powershot, so I bought an A1000. Now I'm pretty tough on my cameras because I take them skiing and fishing, etc. So when my camera lens wouldn't open one day, I figured it was ME that was the problem. So I went online and discovered a LARGE population that had the same trouble. Many of them had sent their cameras back and spent lots of money doing so, but the online "fix" was to bang your camera against your hand HARD. I tried it - it worked FOR A WHILE. But only so many times could I get it to work. I'm ready to buy another camera, but with all (seriously hundreds if not thousands of reviews) the people having the same problem, I think there's a design flaw in that Canon. I wrote Consumer Reports and told them so, and told them where to find all the online complaints that they, apparently, had not seen.
So thanks to everyone who commented here cuz it will help me buy my next non-Canon camera.
Consumer Reports LOVES the Canon Powershot, so I bought an A1000. Now I'm pretty tough on my cameras because I take them skiing and fishing, etc. So when my camera lens wouldn't open one day, I figured it was ME that was the problem. So I went online and discovered a LARGE population that had the same trouble. Many of them had sent their cameras back and spent lots of money doing so, but the online "fix" was to bang your camera against your hand HARD. I tried it - it worked FOR A WHILE. But only so many times could I get it to work. I'm ready to buy another camera, but with all (seriously hundreds if not thousands of reviews) the people having the same problem, I think there's a design flaw in that Canon. I wrote Consumer Reports and told them so, and told them where to find all the online complaints that they, apparently, had not seen.
So thanks to everyone who commented here cuz it will help me buy my next non-Canon camera.
Did you ever raise the issue with Canon?
PaulC
12-22-2010, 12:57 PM
for you last minute shoppers....
http://www.cameta.com/Nikon-Coolpix-S8100-Digital-Camera-Gold-55139.cfm
this appears to be an incredible deal.... 12.1 mp,.. w/ a 10x's zoom... and full hd movie capability... the package deal only comes in gold though..... they are shippin' it my way today....
spoke to matt,.. the store owner/manager... nice guy...
Nikon Coolpix S8100 Digital Camera (Gold) with 16GB Card + Battery + Case + Flash + Accessory Kit
The Nikon Coolpix S8100 features a 10x wide-angle zoom Nikkor lens with the performance benefits of Nikon's innovative EXPEED C2 digital image-processing concept. With 12.1 effective megapixels of sharp resolution, a flat body with 3.0 in. LCD screen that fits right in your pocket, and a low-light sensitivity of 3200 ISO
Condition:
Brand New USA Model
Availability:
In Stock
Our Price:
$257.95
Price reflects Nikon $50 Instant Rebate
Kit Includes 10 Items
1. Nikon Coolpix S8100 Digital Camera (Gold)
2. Transcend 16GB HC SecureDigital Class 4 (SDHC) Card
3. Precision Design USB 2.0 SecureDigital (SDHC) High-Speed Memory Card Reader
4. Precision Design Memory Card Storage Wallet
5. Spare EN-EL12 Battery for Nikon
6. Zeikos ZE-DC1 Neoprene Digital Camera Case (Black)
7. Sunpak FL-VL Combination Camera Slave Flash / Camcorder Video Light with Bracket
8. Precision Design Flexible Tabletop Mini Tripod
9. ImageRecall Digital Image Recovery Software
10. Microfiber Cleaning Cloth
------------------------------------------
"Cameta Camera is a real "brick-and-mortar" full-service camera store and photographic equipment retailer that has been in business on Long Island for over 25 years."
-----------------------------------------
bennyboy
12-22-2010, 01:49 PM
I got a Canon SX 20 and I gotta tell ya, BEST CAMERA EVER! Long zoom, wide angle. Image stabilzation. Fairly fast (wish I had two more stops), Swivel screen (the best thing ever IMO!). Th ebest thing is is that it is legal at shows. usually they don't want detachable lens cameras, but this is a P and S. But with better stuff that a SLR...
Doesn't go through batts and uses 4 AA's. I have some rechargables but can throw some storeboughts in there in a pinch.
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_ZxcZ33CXvLo/TMj3v9tN6bI/AAAAAAAARDU/DGTy8kNLO6Y/s640/IMG_0356.JPG
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_ZxcZ33CXvLo/TMj3xpyLnGI/AAAAAAAARDk/LeBGhD01IBo/s640/IMG_0360.JPG
bobatude
01-05-2011, 02:22 PM
i know that christmas has come and gone, but this is a great thread for those who need cameras for the upcoming events in our lives, last year before the the 2010 jazz fest i did quite a bit of homework, my choice was a canon power shot sx210is . this camera is remarkable, like any point and shoot cameras, it has some drawbacks. overall perfomance is wonderful, my only problem has been shooting at a distance in the dark and this is a personal problem not totaly familar with those settings
lhttp://i364.photobucket.com/albums/oo88/bobatude/IMG_0351.jpg
Jacquesimomo
04-13-2011, 12:43 PM
Bump for Jacquesimomo
Thanks Lit...still lovin' your Canon? And which model did you end up purchasing?
I have a Canon SD750 (???) and it still works but it's been dropped a few times so the connection to the battery got messed up. Even when it's fully charged I sometimes get an error message to change the battery pack. This interrupts the picture-taking ability (DUH!) because I then have to take the battery out and put it back in. By then, time passes and I miss the shot. Very frustrating. But, I'm not surprised by it since I've treated this thing like an amateur juggler treats her bowling pins...
Thanks Lit...still lovin' your Canon? And which model did you end up purchasing?
Yes. We ended up with the Canon SD 880 IS and have no complaints. It does what we wanted it to do and works well for our purposes.
bennyboy
04-13-2011, 01:15 PM
batteries that run out. Open the batt comparntment and roll them around a bit. Yesterday i got 100 shots out of batteries that the camera told me to change. Also turn them over, that works too after you spin them.
Jacquesimomo
04-13-2011, 01:48 PM
batteries that run out. Open the batt comparntment and roll them around a bit. Yesterday i got 100 shots out of batteries that the camera told me to change. Also turn them over, that works too after you spin them.
Thanks for the tip but I'm thinkin' this has more to do with a bad connection internally than the battery itself. Stilll, I'll give it a try.
bennyboy
04-13-2011, 01:57 PM
Done this on three different cameras, all different makers, all high end point and shoots and it works every time. 100 shots. MORE>