Digital Camera Buying Help.

santucci218 · #1 02-04-2010, 01:53 AM

I know a few of you guys are far more camera savvy than I, and i want to make the best choice.

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/c...7160~0~1332376

if that link worked correctly, it should be every digi cam they sell for less than 200 dollars. I read somewhere on this forum that megapixles dont matter as much as ______, but i cant remember what it was! I was trying to keep it around 120ish, but im flexible up to 200 if its really that much better. Please, let me know what you guys think.

santucci218 · #2 02-04-2010, 01:57 AM

oof, last thing i want is that it doesnt suck down batteries, or at least suggest some rechargeable batteries that you have used?

Auzzie-Phoenix · #3 02-04-2010, 03:05 AM

Depends on what you want in the camera. How advanced do you want to go with your picture taking. Point and shoot with ease, or point and shoot with advanced features.

The link just takes you to the main dell store page, so that's not going to work. Stay away from sony if you value your money. You'll get less features and more proprietary requirements (sony memory stick vs. sd memory/ sony battery pack vs. AA's).

Canon, Panasonic, Fuji, and Olympus all make fine models for the budget conscious. Most of those should use the standard SD/SDHC memory card. Most point and shoot cameras run on AA batteries. Battery life is dependent on certain aspects of usage, such as screen brightness, ability to turn the view display off/on, anti-shake usage, etc...

For max batt. life, turn the view display down a notch in brightness, and don't use the flash unless you have to. The flash will drain batt's like a kid drains a pixie stick.

As per rechargeable batteries, they're really all about the same. The important factors are type, and how many Milliamp Hours they're rated for. NiMH batteries are fairly standard among rechargeables, so you would want to find a battery that has 2300 or higher as the maH rating for longer use time. However, fine as they may be, they're no match for alkalines even at best. I would recommend chunking down the change for a set of Lithium batteries. They'll last you the longest, so the cost gets absorbed. The ultimate rechargeable batteries tend to be Lithium-Polymer, but they cost a pretty penny making them unfeasable. If you go with lithium batt's and use the power saving tips and tricks, the batt's should last you quite a while.

Amazon is your friend. You can get a better deal on cameras via amazon, which will stretch your purchasing power. Focus on models that have a physical zoom feature. This will allow you to take better images. Digital zoom just blows up the image that you took which will make the image break down more and more the higher you "zoom". This is where your megapixel rating comes into play. The higher the megapixel rating, the less the image will come apart when using digital zoom. The key feature to any camera is resolution. The resolution rating will be listed as something like 3220x2740, in which case, the higher both numbers are, the better.

A flash is a must-have feature for almost anything less than a well lit room. You can learn a few tricks for better low-light photography, but unless you want to spend a lot of trial and error time messing with settings, I'd recommend getting a model with a built in flash unit.

If you need advice on specific models, ask Ivar. He probably knows all about a wide range of cameras, and can help you pick a really good model.

santucci218 · #4 02-04-2010, 09:33 AM

that was super useful, thanks a ton guy. Now for me to do some research with the new understanding, ill be back soon.

Edit...Is optical zoom and physical zoom the same thing? A lot of these cameras dont list the resolution numbers unfortunately.

anyonefortennis · #5 02-04-2010, 09:40 AM

I'm a fan of the Cannon SD#### series if you are after a point and shoot camera. They use a proprietary rechargeable battery that you can take a ton of pictures on a single charge but have a limited life. My battery lasted about 3 years before I had to replace it and it was not cheap (about $40).

Avoid digital zooms - optical is the way to go. Digital zooms is the equivalent of zooming in a picture on mspaint, quality of the image is lost.

Chunk-O-Funk · #6 02-04-2010, 09:48 AM

In that price range I'll just suggest you get the camera that has the best performance in whatever mode you will be using it for the most.

For example, some cameras will do a quick shutter speed like "sports mode" better than others, especially indoors. Some will have a better night mode than other, etc.

If you have anything in particular you need a camera for just look for that feature and it's performance compared to the next camera.

santucci218 · #7 02-04-2010, 09:50 AM

Ok. So, i did a little more reading, and here is what i got. I can't get the posted links to work, so ill try this... http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/c...7160~0~1332376

Copy and paste that link. hopefully it works. That is all their cameras for under 200. all the ones i mention will be under there. EDIT. sorry, i cant post a link for who knows what reason.

FujiFilm F70EXR

This one seems cool. Has a built in rechargeable battery. 10.0 MP's. Highest resolution JPEG is 3616 x 2712. Seems like its good for what I want, though it has a lower MP rating than the others, but depending on exactly what the zoom means, maybe that wont matter as much? Here are other ones on the site that got good reviews and are around the same price point from the companies you said.

Nikon Coolpix S570

JPEG 4000 x 3000 Max Res. 12 MP. Built in rechargeable, and a flash.

Samsung SL620

JPEG 4000 x 3000 Max Res. 12.2 MP. Built in rechargeable, and a flash.

Olympus Stylus 7010

JPEG 3968 x 297 Max Res. 12 MP. Built in rechargeable, and a flash.

They all pretty much seem comparable, so that kind of has me stumped, haha. Some have slightly bigger sd cards included, some slightly smaller. I dont really so much care about this, as sd cards are cheap..Any more input?

EDIT. not one of my links worked, aag. hold on here men, ill just post the model #'s.

Chunk-O-Funk · #8 02-04-2010, 10:08 AM

Without looking at the specs I would go with either the Nikon or Olympus, just by their reputation. I've had a Fuji for a while that was a great camera as well.

Mega Pixels/resolutions that high won't make much of a difference, if at all. Not unless you expect to be cropping a lot of your pictures. I have an 8mp camera and the files are huge.

The only thing I would be leery about would be the life of the internal rechargeable battery. All rechargeable batteries have a finite amount of times they can be recharged.

Check out Megapixel.net
http://www.megapixel.net/html/index.php

They have a lot of reviews and often do a "top ten" style shoot-out, comparison review.

Steve's Digicams is another great site.
http://www.steves-digicams.com/

Chunk-O-Funk · #9 02-04-2010, 10:13 AM

Here ya go!

http://www.steves-digicams.com/knowl...---part-2.html

santucci218 · #10 02-04-2010, 10:17 AM

seems like steve really likes the Fuji Finepix F70EXR and the Nikon Coolpix S570 i posted and mentioned earlier, and of the two, the Fuji. The Review seems pretty positive.

**Eric Perry** · #11 02-04-2010, 03:30 PM

For me, it would be Nikon, Canon, or Olympus. I currently have a Nikon DSLR I love, and a Canon point and shoot that takes amazing pics for it's price point.

DudeistMonk · #12 02-04-2010, 03:44 PM

Cannon SD are nice I have one and it still runs great, I took tons of photos with it at Yosemite over 3 days on one charge.

If you want battery life makes sure the screen is small, also digital zoom is BS, it does nothing you couldn't do in a photo editor after the fact. Optical zoom however is very important.

Auzzie-Phoenix · #13 02-04-2010, 03:55 PM

Yes, optical and physical zoom are the same thing. As others have said, be wary of the ones with internal rechargeable power. Other than that, best of luck. With all the help you're getting, you should find something that suits your needs that you'll like quite a bit.

Webtroll · #14 02-04-2010, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by santucci218

Nikon Coolpix S570

JPEG 4000 x 3000 Max Res. 12 MP. Built in rechargeable, and a flash.

Fan of Nikon products myself and I have this camera (5X optical if I recall, I have the digital zoom portion disabled) as well as a D50. The S570 is portable and easy to use.

tplyons · #15 02-04-2010, 06:54 PM

As a bit of an amateur photog., I can't recommend anything more than Canon products. I carry a Canon SD600 everywhere, have a spare in my car, and one had been dunked in beer... TWICE.

Anything by Canon or Nikon would be a great camera. Olympus is great too, but a lot of their models use disposable batteries rather than rechargeable ones.

My personal recommendation? Canon SDxxxx series.

santucci218 · #16 02-05-2010, 07:22 PM

unless someone can tell me that there is a better one out there, i think im going to go with the Canon PowerShot SD940

You guys said the powershots are great, and thats the one i dig the look of more than the others. There is another model...the SD780 for 50 dollars less, but the 940 seems a lot nicer for only 50 more dollars.