Digital Cameras

[WickedPissah]

Friends, Romans, Countrymen, I come here to ask you about digital cameras.

My birthday is coming up, and I have been thinking about getting a simple, inexpensive digital camera. I've narrowed it down to either the Canon Powershot A720 IS or the Fujifilm FinePix S7000 Z. I have a side-by-side review, but I can't form a good opinion based on it. I was hoping that maybe one of you has experience with one of these and could help me decide. I have until thursday or friday to pick one. Please help me out. Thanks.

[Essthreetee]

I have no help for those particular models, but we have had a Fuji Finepix in the past and it was great. But now that my wife has decided to go professional with her photography she uses nothing but Canon...you all think that Basses are expensive, don't EVEN get me going about lenses But it is cool.

[Snakeman1066]

Depends on what you want to do with the camera...do you just want to take general snapshots...or do you want to do something a little more intense with the camera?

Buy the most OPTICAL ZOOM you can afford....not Digital Zoom

the result will better quality pictures with cleaner prints....especially if you want to do close up work...i.e. macros

These days also i wouldn't buy anything less than six or seven mexapixels..

You should be able to pick up a decent six or seven Mexapixel camera with 10x or 12x optical zoom fairly cheap

[santucci218]

My friend just bought the Fujifilm Z, great little thing, but i feel if it was dropped once it would be broken, make sure you get a case.

[mactac]

1. canons are better as a genral rule, but |i don't know about those 2 models.

2. if you go to dpreview.com , they have huge, in depth reviews with photo samples & everything.

3. go to the store, try them both out & see which takes the picture the quickest, with & without flash. (actually dpreview times them, so you can look there) slow camera - crappy pictures because your subject moves. seriously, this is one of the most important things about getting a good camera

[santucci218]

www.cnetreviews.com

[Tim Cole]

Originally Posted by santucci218

My friend just bought the Fujifilm Z, great little thing, but i feel if it was dropped once it would be broken, make sure you get a case.

I just dropped my week and a half old fuji f40fd, and knocked the lcd to where it looks like you're viewing in infared. ****ty.

Great camera, and takes indoor low light pics without a flash like no other. I wonder if the more recent models perform as well in this aspect.......

[WickedPissah]

THANKS, and Mactac, that dpreview site is where i got the side-by-side review. They both look about even to me so i was looking for firsthand experience. THANKS

[mactac]

try checking out the in-depth reviews if you already haven't .. they are really, really good and they are based on firsthand experience.

i've bought many cameras based on dpreview & te are always exactly as they describe

[FL Knifemaker]

Go with the best Nikon you can afford. I started out with a 990 years ago and worked my way up to a D200. Both kids and my wife have Nikon point and shoot cameras and love them. Every Nikon I've owned has taken incredible pics and never gave me a single problem. Most people that I know who start out with other brands often end up with higher end Nikons.

[Tsal]

Many people have their favourites, but most digital cameras in low price range are very much alike, so you can't really go wrong if you pick a brand-name camera that you think is nice. It's pretty much like choosing a beginner bass. Only things that make difference, in my opinion, are optical zoom and possible image stabilization and a external flash connector. Mpix is just a marketing number, it doesn't really matter and can be ignored.

Typically, you need to make a choice between size and zoom - a camera with a 6-10x zoom will make nice walk-around camera since you can get detailed pics from further away (in daylight, that is!), but tend to be bulky and typically you want a bag to carry them around for any longer period of time. Smaller cameras go into the pocket more easily, but have less zoom.

[dave64o]

First thing you should do is check out DP Review and Steve's Digicams. You can do comparisons, check out reviews, see sample pictures, etc. on those sites.

Now about those two cameras .... I bought my son the previous Canon (A710IS) and love it. I often ask to borrow it when I just want to "take pictures" (as opposed to taking my Digital Rebel XTi when I want to do "photography"). It's a nice little camera, decent image quality for the price, effective image stabilization, pretty good movie mode for an inexpensive still camera (handy for short and spontaneous clips, but won't replace a real videocamera), and the 6x OPTICAL zoom on a camera in that price range was impossible to beat. I'm seriously considering getting an A720IS for myself since they're about $75 cheaper than the one I bought my son last June. I have two main gripes with it. First, it only uses two AA batteries (though I LOVE being able to use AA's rather than a proprietary battery) and recharging after a flash shot can be slow. Also, you can compose in the viewfinder but you get no info in it. You more or less have to use the LCD screen to take shots, which I don't like. I get steadier shots when the camera is close in rather than being held out so I can see the display. Still, it's a really nice camera for the price, especially when you factor in FULL MANUAL controls. The combination of control and optical zoom make it a tough package to beat (at least the A710IS, I hope the A720IS has the same or better image quality) and the size is still pretty small and light. There are also much smaller and lighter models but they won't have the features. It depends what's important to you.

I've never used the Fuji S7000, however I do have the S9000 and that's a VERY different camera. I remember correctly the S7000 was similar to the S9000, though an older model. It won't be a carry-it-in-your-pocket kind of camera, it's much closer to a dSLR in terms of size, weight, price, and features. However, it's still got a small sensor like a pocket-sized camera and may or may not give you noticeably better image quality. It doesn't have IS, and claims to improve low-light performance with higher ISO but then you get a grainy picture. I'd prefer IS. I REALLY like the 10x (optical) zoom on it. With a monopod I was able to get some really nice action shots of my son's soccer games even at full zoom.

That being said, I really do like my S9000, but now that I have a dSLR and a few decent lenses, I'm planning to sell my S9000 and replace it with the A720IS. That way I can cover both needs well - practicing photography and simply taking pictures.

Also, don't get hung up on how many megapixels of resolution the camera has, especially on a point and shoot kind of camera. A 6 megapixel camera does not automatically suck because a competitor has a similar model with 7 megapixels. The sensor in these cameras is very small and packing increasing numbers of pixels onto those small sensors gives impressive sounding numbers that a sales staff can exploit to sell units, but it does NOT necessarily give you a better picture. They can even get noisier than a camera with lower resolution and look worse. Make sure you instead focus on image quality and you'll be much better off.

And as others have said, digital zoom is USELESS so don't fall for any sales pitches that include it. The last time I looked (well before Christmas) the 6x optical zoom on the Canon put it ahead of other cameras in that price range. I'm sure there are others that are worth checking out too, so spend some time on DP Review and Steve's Digicams narrowing the choices to cameras with the features, performance, and price you want and then try them out in a store. A $200 camera won't give you professional results, but you can stil ltake nice looking shots with them.

[Bryan316]

I've always used quick easy Canon Powershots, like the A50 and A40. Simple, easy. But not powerful in the slightest. Especially quickness of shots, flash delay, and zoom strength.

My buddy just got himself a Canon Powershot S5 IS:

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/co...&modelid=15207

I love how fast it takes a shot compared to when you press the button for autofocusing. I love the sport mode where it'll focus, then just start snapping pics every 0.9 seconds. Take twenty, keep two of the best shots from that group! Very nice. 12X optical zoom which is KILLER, mounting point for an external flash if you ever find a cheapo flash you wanna use, and can take a 4GB memory card. Meaning THOUSANDS of pics. My buddy took just under 200 shots of my band last Friday, and there's TONS to pick from. Even at a one-out-of-five keeper ratio, I'm loving it!

Now that I've seen what a good medium-cost camera can do without going to full SLR pricing, I'll be keeping my eye out for this puppy to go on sale.

[WickedPissah]

i'm looking for a cheap one with manual focus so that i can do rack focus and mess with depth of field.

[middy]

Originally Posted by dave64o

A $200 camera won't give you professional results, but you can stil ltake nice looking shots with them.

Yeah, for professional results you need a $10 camera.

[Bryan316]

That article amazes me, and intrigues me. I wanna see more shots from that Holga!

[dave64o]

Originally Posted by WickedPissah

i'm looking for a cheap one with manual focus so that i can do rack focus and mess with depth of field.

I understand the need/desire to focus on a nice rack, but for those kind of shots I STRONGLY suggest getting the longest optical zoom possible. Without it, you'll have to get dangerously close to the subject and if that happens you'll run a much higher risk of attracting the attention of and angering a boyfriend/husband.

[tplyons]

I'll take a Canon over a Fuji any day. Canon has been in the digital market for YEARS and have the most experience just about.

I'll use nothing but Canon's. I've bought Nikon's for people and they work wonderfully too, but Canon's have the best mix of reliability, image quality, features, and warranty, IMO. It's usually worth a few extra bucks for the Canon, IMO, and frankly, the Canon IS is WONDERFUL.

[P. Aaron]

Consider this: I bought an Olypus 530FE at Best Buy. It is a nice camera. The salesperson said I would need an xD memory card to "realize the full function of the camera". The card they carried was a Fuji card xD.

I needed this camera for Realty work (pictures of houses: interiors & exteriors) for internet marketing. Anyhow, I dug the fact that the memory card had cavernous storage capacity and I could shoot hundreds of pics & video and the card always seem to have enough memory.

The camera's menu page has icons that display what features are available. One icon never seemed to highlight: Panorama, or photo stitching. It was one of the reasons I bought the camera. Figuring it was a software load I needed to do, I decided to look into it when I got the time.

Over Christmas I finally sat down with the CD maual (as the printed one was lacking pertinant info) and on P.19 of the PDF it stated: Panorama function will operate with Olympus xD memory card only. Curious, I googled this and found out that the Olympus Panorama function was "write protected" for Olympus digital products exclusively.

I was pissed. especially at Best Buy, but also at Olympus, for not educating Best Buy about the write protection of that feature.

I took the camera, receipt & memory card to the Best Buy where I bought it: Manager said: "Sorry man, you've waited too long, No REFUND!" I explained: "This camera had NO CHANCE to function as you and Olympus advertise. I have not received what you have said I did". Best Buy was firm.

I called Best Buy's "Customer Care" line; (yeah right) talked to a supervisor: "That sounds like a problem, but you've waited too long to bring it to our attention". I shot right back: "I notice here that Best Buy does not even stock the Olympus xD memory cards online. So, you're telling me that it's my problem you sold me something that is incomplete?" The call guy said:, "Thanks for informing us of the problem, but you've waited too long, thanx".

I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Best Buy admitted fault, and still refused to refund me for the memory card($65.00) or offer to correct the problem! I also sent a letter to Best Buy's corporate HQ, and cc'd Olympus America's HQ. Waited a week...crickets.

I then copied & pasted my chain of mail from the BBB including Best Buy's admission of fault & refusal of refund, and linked to Best Buy's corporate page where they display the video of their employees & managers saying "I pledge to help your community, you as a customer, and to treat you fairly & honestly" and I sent all that to their PR department.

I then called Olympus. They had my letter, and I was on their 'people to call' list. They offered without being prompted, to replace my memory card with an Olympus xD card of equal size, provided that I traded cards with them...which I agreed to do.

Best Buy finally got the hint, and called without apology. But would only refund me $55.00 of the $65.00 the memory card cost me.

Best Buy's overall attitude, was never concilitatory, and the customer relations guy who finally offered me the $55.00 gift card (refund) was as persnickety as any of the other contacts I had at Best Buy.

I may never buy another Olympus camera, but they stepped up once they found out there was a problem. But I will always be buying DVD's, or CD's, and other electronic gear, I'll just skip going to Best Buy.

[WickedPissah]

ANY last endorsements? I've got to report my choice to the mater familias tonight so that this camera will be waiting for me Sunday morning.