Posted: 6/16/2004 4:49:35 PM EDT
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My family is looking to get a new digital camera and I thought I would tap the collective mind. We need a good quality, but low-medium cost camera. Durable, good photo quality, etc. Proably used for pictures of construction siter/remodeling jobs, and just a family camera, but cost is a big factor here. We have a HP 210 camera, but it is just not good enough. We would also like to have a 10x or better optical zoom, but that is not real critical, but an optical and not digital zoom would be nice. Any Ideas? Sugestions? |
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Another vote for Sony, Just got the Sony P93, really like it so far. Lots of manual adjustment, and a great digital zoom. When I was shopping for one, the 10x optical zoom cameras were too expensive to get all the other features. Picked it up from Clickfordigital.com, good price and good customer service, they actually called me with a shipping question. |
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That 10X optical zoom requirement will limit your choices. These all zoom to 370mm or 380mm equivalant. Olympus C-740 UZ Fujifilm FinePix S5000 Z Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z2 Kodak DX6490 Canon PowerShot S1 IS Kyocera Finecam M410R Olympus C-730 UZ Olympus C-2100 UZ Kyocera Finecam M400R Minolta DiMAGE Z1 With your stated uses though I don't understand why exactly you are specing the 10X optical zoom. What is the price range sub $200? Sub $300?
38 mm - 114 mm (3x) zoom lens |
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Might want to look at a sony Mavica MVC-CD1000. Its not the newest tech out there and is only 2.1mp, but nice optics. 10x optical and another 10x digital (20x total). Stores picts and short video on mini cd-r. No memory cards to buy. I picked mine up on e-bay 2 years ago and love it! |
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Most are really good nowadays, tough to go wrong. A few years ago I think doing more research payed off much more. Most manufacturers make a pretty decent model nowadays. This guys link is an excellent resource, ranks cameras by price, uses, quality, etc... has very detailed reviews for many models. Worth clicking on. www.imaging-resource.com/ |
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I used to have an olympus c2100 ultra zoom. I sold it and got a cannon S400 (4 mpxl elph) because I wanted something more pocketable that I'd be more likely to have with me when I see dead bodies on the side of the road. I regret it because I miss the 10X image stabilized lens. Even at 2 mp, that thing took better pictures than my 4mp canon. I may be in the market for a replacement digicam with a big optical zoom lense. Hopefully with the image stabilization. |
that picture isn't really a good example of great quality |
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The digital camera market is starting to go upside down. The computer or consumer products companies are starting to be squeezed out by the traditional camera manufacturers. Who, by the way, manufacturer most of those other cameras that are just rebranded. It is good to go cheap now. The litmus test among the industry analyst is when the digital sensors reach the 35mm format size. At that point, it will be back to Nikon, Cannon, Olympus, and other traditional companies for digital cameras as HP and what not will not be able to rebrand and mark-up. |
| I've got a Canon A70, under $400 and it is nice. Everything from auto point and click to full manual control. Audio and video recording, low light focus assist, macro etc. Best thing is that it uses AA batteries instead of the expensive propritary batteries so for $20, I get 2 packs of NiMh batteries and I'm set. Small and compact but not too small. |
I'm too lazy to search ... what was the camera that you posted about a while ago? digital rebel? |
I own a Digital Rebel, which is a 6.3MP digital SLR that sells for about $1000 with a 18-55 lens. |
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There are a few in the 8x to 10x range optical. Olympus has there ultrazooms at 10x and Minolta has the Dimage (sp) with 8x lens. I'm on my sixth digital camera now and HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you actually put your hands and eye on the camera before you buy it. What comes easy for me having spent 30 years with professional quality cameras might not be as easy for you. The controls that fit my hands might miss with yours. The view finder that works for me might not work for you. My mother needs a huge eye piece to help her out, I can deal with anything. A camera is just a tool to capture light so make sure that it have good glass and a good flash. I would recommend that rather than focus on the high end of the zoom range you focus on the lower end. Those cameras that have 28mm (equalivant) lens allow you to get wider shots inside then those with the 35mm ones. You can't back up any farther when you're up against the wall. One the other end of the zoom factor there's a good possibility that you can get closer to your subject. I have a Olympus with a 10x lens that is great for candid shots of people as you can stay out of their vision and get great natural shots. If you plan on getting serious indoors I also highly recommend getting an external flash for the camera. The cheezy built-in ones have guide numbers of 7 to 12 meaning that if you can reach out and touch the subject the picture will look fine - shooting your daughter across the school's gym floor ain't going to cut it. An external flash will have a GN of 35 to much higher - above a hundred is possible. I spent more on my flash, cords, bounces, and brackets then I did my camera. I would also recommend having a look at the New York city used camera dealers. These cameras have gone though a professional inspection and test before being sold and come with a warantee. I buy though Cameta and get a 90 day no questions asked exchange and a one year parts and labor. I've bought several thousand dollars worth of film and digital cameras from these guys and have been recommending them for years. www.dpreview.com These guys do very detailed and unbiased reviews on cameras. The numbers don't mean as much as the quality and they'll show you with (huge) photo samples that a high quality 4 Mb camera can out shoot a cheap 5 or 6 Mb camera. Just for guidance a 2.1 Mb camera will produce great pictures to 8x10 size and sending five of the camera's pictures to grandma will fill her mail box. At 4 Mb and 5 Mb you're looking at 20x30 inch poster size prints which cost more than a few bucks  to print out. So size isn't all that important ... it is how you use it.
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Yup! That be the one... and it's worth the money. http://home.comcast.net/~labradorx3/IMG_0170.jpg |
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Ditto on Digital Photography Review. They have reviews and individual forums for every camera type. I'm a regular over there. I have a DReb and I love it. However, I grew up using a Pentax K-1000 manual SLR and have 20 years of experience with things like f stops, shutter speeds, film speed, etc... The casual point and shooter will likely be unhappy with an SLR unless they are willing to learn the concepts. The DReb has some nice auto settings where you can get some good stuff from it. However, nothing beats a SLR (single lens reflex) camera for photography. It gives you finite control over every aspect of the exposure, plus you can change lenses to meet your needs. It's expensive though and the camera body is actually one of the least expensive parts of the cost equation. The real investment is in lenses, however they will last a lifetime if they are cared for, and they are generally upwards compatible with new camera bodies. Pick a lens platform and stick with it. It's an investment as lenses tend to really hold their values. Bodies have a shutter life and wear out. It's going to be a while before sensors come up to true 35mm resolution. That is estimated to be in the 40 megapixel range. There are 20 and 30 megapixel backs for higher end medium format cameras like Hasselblads and Maimya, but they run $15,000 to $30,000. For regular old point and shooters, I would look at the Minolta DiMages. |
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Panasonic DMCFZ1 $291.00 at onecall.com ww1.onecall.com/PID_23394.htm I have one and it is a hell of a camera. 12x, 35mm-420mm Optical Zoom Stabilized lense made by Leica. Only 2mp, but the glass is worth $300 all by itself. Ever price a 35-420mm stabilized lens, they are $800 and up. This is a great deal on a good camera.    
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Whats the Price Range? I wouldn't go under 4megaPixel for a point and shoot. There really isn't much difference between them all. If you're hoping to take photos of construction sites/remodeling jobs and willing to spend around $1000, go with a Digital SLR; Digital Rebel or Nikon D100.... That way you can get all sorts of lenses(read: Wide Angle) that are available on the 35mm SLR market, and all of the other advantages of SLR cameras. Ebay is great for camera shopping. I got a 4MP Canon Elph for my wife for christmas, 256MB CF card/reader for $400. Adjustable "aperature" and exposure settings, off ebay. |
 A 2.1 Mb camera photo from my three year old camera. I had to crush the heck out of it to fit the 150K file size limit so the .jpg artifacts are a whole bunch higher than they should be if this was in the 2.1 Mb native resolution. In Photoshop this is a low medium quality compression. My newer Olympus E-10 is even better but I would have to use even more compression to get it to fit in 150K. |
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Rather than recommending a specific camera, a few generic comments: The number of pixels is now pretty much a moot point, since virtually any of the current models have more resolution than you'll ever need. Generally, unless you're shooting photos for full-page magazine advertisement layouts or huge posters, 2 or 3 megapixels is all you'll ever need - you'll simply never notice any difference with a higher resolution at any reasonable print size. The kind of battery the camera takes is very important. Some cameras with a proprietary battery will only charge the battery when it's inside the camera – which means you can't use the camera until after the battery finishes its charge. Also, proprietary batteries tend to be expensive, which means you can't afford to buy a few spares. However, with a camera that can accept AA cells, you can easily afford to buy a couple extra NiMh 4-packs and a charger for well under $20. This means that there's never any excuse for missing a shot due to dead batteries. Also, in a pinch, these cameras can accept ordinary AA alkaline cells, which can be purchased anywhere. The memory format is also important. You'll probably want enough memory to store at least 128 MB to 256 MB of images, which is kind of pricy in some formats (if it's available at all) . Personally, I like CompactFlash – It's super-cheap (quite a bit cheaper than Memory Sticks or SmartMedia), is available in larger sizes (up to several GB for the microdrive-based products), and is sold just about everywhere. Most of the professional cameras use CompactFlash, and for good reason. Check ebay for some super prices on it. Don't overlook ebay as a source of used cameras. Digital cameras depreciate even faster than computers, and many folks trade in their high-end cameras as soon as a newer model is introduced. This makes it possible for you to pick up a "pro-sumer" model that cost $2000 two years ago for under $400. Most manufacturers still support the older high-end cameras with factory service and parts (unlike the cheap "throwaway" consumer models). The digital camera rewiew websites are great for picking out older models that appeal to you – Then, you can check ebay for their current prices on the used market. |
I have a Nikon CoolPix 3200. More than likely not what you're looking for but a hell of a nice 3.2 megapixel camera that is super easy to use. Also try researching over at www.cnet.com/ Example Pics:   
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