Shopping for a camera

[SDHNTR]

I'm looking to spend about $300-350 on a digital camera and have no idea what to look for. I'm a total rookie with this stuff. I just know that I want the best image quality and highest zoom power available in that price range. Compact size and lightweight would be nice too as I'll be toting the thing around in my pack. I have looked a bit online and just don't know what to choose. I also don't know what I am looking at. For example what is the difference between digital and optical zoom? I could use a little help.

I'll be using it mainly for hunt photos and wildlife along the way. I will also be uploading them onto my Mac, possibly printing some and adding some to my online album. Any suggestions?

 

[Speckmisser]

Hey SD,

Some of these guys are probably a lot more knowledgeable than I am when it comes to digital cameras (finally semi-retiring my 35mms), but I am pretty happy with my Sony CyberShot dsc-h2.

It's 6 megapixels, and it has a 12x zoom (plus 2x digital zoom), so you can get pretty up close and personal. For the price range, it was about the most bang for my buck that I could find. It takes pretty dang good pictures too. It is a little bit bulky, but it fits in my thigh pack OK and it weighs almost nothing.

It's available at Best Buy right now for about $349. If you shop around, you could probably do a little bit better.

I've always used Canons before, and they do have a camera that looks about equal to the Sony both in feature/functionality and price. After handling them both, though, I just felt like the Sony was a better pick.

By the way, after Christmas I'm going back to pick up one of those Olympus Stylus 710 cameras. It's pretty small, but with 10 megapixels and a decent zoom, it's also waterproof. I'll use it for a pack camera on more extreme hunts, and when the weather is foul. My Sony sat in the truck half the time at Chopper's because of the rain.

 

[SDHNTR]

I've had my eye on that exact same Olympus Speck, but it doesn't seem to have much zoom, only 5x or something, I could be wrong.

Can someone please explain the digital/optical zoom for me. What is the actual zoom power? Why would you use digital over optical or vice versa? I think I also read something about combining the two types of zoom for the greatest overall magnification. Can someone please clarify?

All I want is a somewhat compact camera that takes good quality images and has enough zoom that I can take decent pics of a deer 150+ yards away.

 

[gil850]

SDHNTR, here's 4 of the best. Speckmisser's on the right track.


Canon S1 and S3 IS and Sony H2 and H5


A few little pointers:

- Digital zoom is pretty much worthless - optical zoom is what's important.
- Cameras with Image Stabilization or Vibration Reduction (IS, OIS, VR, etc.) have a big advantage over ones that don't have it. When the lens is zoomed the way out, little handhsakes become big blurs - just like looking through a scope. Image stablization compenstes for your shaky hands and keeps the pics sharp.
- Don't worry too much about Megapixels - a 5 MP camera can take just as good pictures as a 10 MP camera (sometimes more megapixels is actually a bad thing).

If you start getting a feel for the various features, you can use this site to search for almost every camera on the market.

Camera Search Page


Gil

 

[SDHNTR]

Thanks, that helps. It seems like in order to get any decent zoom, I'm going have to look at an SLR type camera. The compact models don't seem to have much optical zoom. Is that about right?

Should shutter speed be taken into consideration? The Cannon's are faster.

And Speck, is the Sony noisy? Is the shutter click going to be spooking game?

 

[Speckmisser]

It is confusing, SD. I did a ton of reading before I decided which way to go... and I'm a fairly experienced photographer.

It was real tough not going with an SLR (I had my heart set on a Nikon D-70), but the cost and size of a good one really were the deciding factors. I just couldn't see dropping a $1000 camera in my fanny pack to bounce through the wilderness. It's bad enough with a $350 camera.

The Sony is pretty quiet. You can turn the "click" sounds off, and the focus and zoom are relatively soundless. I've taken some pretty decent wildlife shots with it, although I have yet to take the time to really work with the capabilities. It does a lot more than I do.

The 16x zoom is great, too. Gets you pretty close and personal. With the anti-shake feature, those zoomed photos get pretty clear, too, even when I'm shooting from horseback. I've tried taking zoomed photos from my wife's old Olympus from the horse, and it looks like pictures taken during a car wreck.

As far as shutter speed... I'll leave that to some of the more technically savvy. Both the Sony and the Canon allow you to manually adjust it, or to let the camera do it for you. Unless I'm shooting from the tripod to do some special shots, I prefer to let the camera handle it. Unless you're doing some real fancy work, I don't think the difference in available shutter speed is really going to make much of an impact.

 

[BigSwad]

Hey SD. I just purchased one that might fit your bill. It is a Panasonic DMC-FZ7. I got it at Circuit City for $299. 12x zoom with 4x digital zoom. Supposed to be a real good camera. I purchased a high speed 2 gig SD card to go in it for $75. I am charging the batteries as we speak. I wanted a camera to take to Africa with me this year and this seemed to be a pretty good deal with all the features it has. Kodak has one about the same thing but a little less money. I looked a Olympus to, but the guy at circuit city said that he liked the panasonic better for the features it had. Anyway, its probably like buying hunting equipment. They all are pretty good, just which features do you want and what is the best price.

 

[Shane]

I went the same path as BigSwad. I got mine at Amazon for $280 with a 1GB card for $15.

 

[hntnnut]

You might want to give the Panasonic Fz20 a look.


Richard

 

[Hideandwatch]

Hope I can get this to work.
check these links out.

Holiday Wish List for 2006

http://www.steves-digicams.com/holiday2006/holiday2006.html


Best Cameras

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

 

[5.9cummins]

I havent been watching point and clicks. I just got a Digital SLR for xmas but it would be out of that price range. My advice is go with the most optical zoom you can get. Digital just blows up an image (crops it) and it gets really grainy. You dont need a really high Mega Pixel count (look in the best of the best post at the photos i posted, they were taken with a 4.1mp). That range should be more than enough for what you need. I would also look at some of the sites pinned at the top of the main photo page (specifically dpreview.com, its a really helpful site).

 

[Speckmisser]

Woohoo!

So I just opened a round of Christmas presents last night and found myself the happy owner of an Olympus 720SW! This'll make the perfect companion to the Sony, as now I can drop this little weatherproof camera in my pack for all weather, and use the Sony under good conditions.

 

[Arrowslinger]

I have the Sony H1, which has now been replaced by the H2 & H5.....i know aboslutely nothing about cameras, but this one was easy to open and point/shoot. Would highly recommend the Sony and realy like the 12X zoom, great for critter pictures.