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| Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 https://mail.karaokescene.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=9756 |
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| Author: | Steven Kaplan [ Tue May 01, 2007 2:59 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
I've looked at the Nikon D-40, and the Panasonic (with leica lens which is point and shoot). While I've read 6+ megapixels are suggested to allow for enlarged photo's. I know there are many other factors such as lens capability, etc. I don't need small and compact, and have always liked tweaking and learning certain things on my own, Which is what I liked about the SLR's such as the Nikon D-40 and the more costly D-40X and D-80 (yet those are too costly). Olympus has a metal frame point and shoot, and THAT certain seems like a nice thing, althought it's over $350 and not sure how it compares with other comparable makes these days. I like sturdy chassis too, yet these are tough to come by these days. Thanks. |
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| Author: | Tad [ Thu May 03, 2007 6:46 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
Steve, I really like my Canon Digital Rebel XT SLR with the kit zoom lens! It's been replaced by the newer and better XTi. The kit (with the zoom lens included) can be had for under $700 if you are patient. Dell often puts it on sale or you can apply one of their coupons towards it. For a compact, I like the Fujifilm F31fd especially for its low light shot capability. It can be had for around $250. Check out the reviews of these and other cameras at: http://www.dpreview.com --Tad |
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| Author: | philli1025 [ Thu May 03, 2007 7:04 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
I think in general Canon uses the better quality lenses and materials for their cameras.... no matter which category you are looking for... the powershot is a pretty good camera... compact enough and offers you a variety of shooting modes plus features... |
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| Author: | Tad [ Thu May 03, 2007 9:23 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
In general, I favor Canon as well! The problem with compacts in general though is that they have poor low light performance so that only ISO 100 or ISO 200 or below produces photos with a reasonable amount of grain (or noise if you prefer). The sensors that are used in these cameras are just not big enough to have the sensitivity to perform well in low light situations (like indoors). The Fujifilm F30 compact series are known for having usable ISO 800 or below performance. This is important if you want to be able to do any indoor shots without relying on the flash. The flash on a compact won't get you very much! If indoor performance doesn't matter to you I'd definitely strongly consider a Canon compact model. If size doesn't matter, get the Canon Digital Rebel XTi for sure! --Tad |
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| Author: | Steven Kaplan [ Thu May 03, 2007 9:40 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
Quote: Steve,
I really like my Canon Digital Rebel XT SLR with the kit zoom lens! It's been replaced by the newer and better XTi. The kit (with the zoom lens included) can be had for under $700 if you are patient. Dell often puts it on sale or you can apply one of their coupons towards it. For a compact, I like the Fujifilm F31fd especially for its low light shot capability. It can be had for around $250. Thank you (both). I know Canon at least did make good optics (at least as of a few years back). My Camcorders are Canon. What I think I'll do is head to XPBargains. (This is a great site for ALL btw, in all hardware areas). I don't think many will mind if I post it. This might give some ideas at least regarding rebates/coupons, etc.. btw, A photographer at Ritz Camera was explaining to me something about Fuji's technology regarding their lenses, they have something like a beehive type octagonal configuration that covers more light gathering area, or a wider angle ??? (Or something like that). Of course my only concern was that the sales people at Ritz do in fact get a higher commision selling Fuji cameras HOWEVER, if they are good cameras now-adays, the price point on fuji is very good, and this isn't a problem. Olympus is supposedly gaining respect after a slump period too, but I have no idea. http://www.xpbargains.com/ I personally like NewEgg too, however don't know what they carry. Top of the line CS IMO |
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| Author: | Tad [ Thu May 03, 2007 9:53 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
http://dealnews.com/ is a good site for bargains as well! Thanks for your link! --Tad |
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| Author: | Steven Kaplan [ Thu May 03, 2007 9:58 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
and thank you. I have bought quite a few computers and items using XP as the source for pricing. Great site. They do our bird-dogging regarding savings for us ! Naturally when I call Dell, they aren't overly enthusiastic to acknowledge certain stacked coupons, but.. Oh well 
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| Author: | Tad [ Thu May 03, 2007 10:40 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
Steve, Do be sure and check out the professional and user reviews of what-ever camera you are considering. I like http://www.dpreview.com/ because I think their professional reviews are relatively unbiased. They also have user input available. Some other sites good for reviews are: http://www.dcresource.com/ http://www.imaging-resource.com/ http://www.steves-digicams.com/ --Tad |
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| Author: | eben [ Thu May 03, 2007 11:01 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
Tad @ Thu May 03, 2007 10:40 am wrote: Steve,
Do be sure and check out the professional and user reviews of what-ever camera you are considering. I like http://www.dpreview.com/ because I think their professional reviews are relatively unbiased. They also have user input available. Some other sites good for reviews are: http://www.dcresource.com/ http://www.imaging-resource.com/ http://www.steves-digicams.com/ --Tad Even more off topic, does anyone have a good site like these for camcorders? I am looking for a compact camcorder that is HD and provides an excellent image. Thanks in advance. |
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| Author: | Tad [ Thu May 03, 2007 11:40 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
eben @ Thu May 03, 2007 1:01 pm wrote: Even more off topic, does anyone have a good site like these for camcorders? I am looking for a compact camcorder that is HD and provides an excellent image. Thanks in advance.
Try: http://www.camcorderinfo.com/ http://www.adamwilt.com/ http://www.digitalfaq.com/ http://www.gizmodo.com/ http://www.engadget.com/ That's all I've got that might help you... --Tad |
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| Author: | Sandshark [ Sun May 06, 2007 3:06 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
It has been just over a year since I was in the market for a new camera to take on a very special trip. I ended up buying the Panasonic DMC-FZ30. It's a bit bulky -- looks a lot like an SLR -- but since you mentioned the possibility of an SLR, I figured you wouldn't mind that. Now there is the FZ50, which is 10MP where mine is 8MP but not changed in functionality, and its right at the top of your price range. There might be something else new out there that I'd buy today, but I'm pleased with my choice and likely would go with the FZ50 today.. This went against my usual thinking of "you buy a camera from a camera company, not a computer company". But the Leika lens pushed that aside. You buy a camera from a camera company for the lens -- the rest of a digital camera IS a computer. What type of pictures/situations you will use a camera in makes a big difference in what you buy. I bought a tiny (purse/pocket size) Casio for my girlfriend because portability was important and she wanted it mainly for family photos and such. I bought the Panasonic for me becasue I needed the long zoom. optical stabilization (CRITICAL with a long zoom), a lot of manual options, and external flash capability. The lens on the Panasonic does not retract, which adds to its bulk. But I've read horror stories on the net of folks with Nikons that give a "lens error" because a grain of sand or something got caught in it when retracting and the camera was then unusable for the duration of their trip. No retracting lens also saves battery. The zoom on the Panasonic is manual, via a zoom ring. I find this MUCH easier to get the desired zoom than on my old Olympus with the slide switch. And it's another battery saver. Manual focus, when selected, is also via a ring (though it's really activating the focus motor). For close-ups in paricular, this is SO much easier than push-buttons. I do a lot of manual focusing to control what's in and out of the depth of field in scenics with people or other objects in the foreground, so this was also important to me. It will accept olmost ANY hot-foot equipped external flash (limitation is on the trigger voltage, but only some REALLY old ones are incompatible). My old Vivitar from the 80's, with a Canon personality module, (with a range of 65 feet in telephoto mode or filling a room in wide angle) works great (took a bit to find the right settngs). A lot of digitals will only accept select external flashes. If you get one of these, be sure you like the available flashes. Accessory size is a very common 55mm (also a plus for me, since I had 55mm's from my film days). The 12X optical zoom is a bit more than the 10x on my old Olympus, but I can take better pictures at full zoom hand-held. Most of that is the optical stabilization, but the better grip of the Panasonic, including being able to put a hand under the lens easily, also helps. I hold this one just like my old A1 -- couldn't do that on my old digital. The FZ50 stabilization is supposed to improve on this as well. With high-speed SD media, you can take an endless series of shots to get just the right one in high-motion environments (though it does not refocus between them). It'll also auto-bracket any shot, which is what I did mostly (it disables this in flash mode). The view screen swivels and even reverses for protection when not in use. Being used to a viewfinder, I use mine only when taking overhead or similar shots where the swivel makes a big difference. The veiwfinder screen is quite usable, even with glasses. One drawback is that the attached flash does not extend up enough and the lens hood causes a shadow at the bottom of the picture if it's installed in wide-angle flash pictures. You just have to remember to take it off (which will take a little time to remember every time). You can reverse it for storage, but that covers the zoom and focus rings. I'm not sure if this remains the case for the FZ50. Battery is proprietary, but most of them are. I found some replacements and an external charger cheap on the net, so I now have 4 batteries. Never used up more than 3 in a day (and on that day, I filled a 1GB SD card and then some, including a lot of flash shots). Battery life is rated longer on the FZ50. The reviews on the FZ30 are not so hot for low-light pictures. But they are looking at the pictures at high magnification. My real-world performance has been quite good. And the FZ50 is rated much better in this area by most reviewers. I've pretty much retired my Canon A1. This camera covers almost the full range of my old SLR lens set (ultra wide angle being where it's not quite there). Soon as I get an underwater digital, I may never see another roll of film. Ritz/Wolf sells them, so you can go in and try one out -- but you'll find much better prices on the net. |
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| Author: | philli1025 [ Mon May 07, 2007 7:51 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
i recently bought a samsung 10 megapixels camera.. it's got good zoom... good features.. VERy compact for all that it offered. but yea it just doesn't WANT to take "great" quality ictures... so i regret it a bit... but i guess there's always the time when i can afford the rebel series camera... |
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| Author: | Steven Kaplan [ Thu Jun 07, 2007 9:11 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Kurt (sorry a bit off topic) Suggestions for decent SLR digital cam, or point and shoot for under $500 |
I'm narrowing things down to the final two, and you might find this head-to-head interesting. Won't settle for just this article however to determine whether the Xti or D40X are the right camera for me. http://www.dpnotes.com/canon-eos-400d-d ... ikon-d40x/ Nikon D80 and Nikons quality in their consumer brand reasonably priced Camera Lens, camera feel and quality are making Nikon look quite appealing for ease of use without substituting photo quality UNLESS a person has ability to tweak intricate areas and wishes to online. The "straight from the camera" quality of Nikons SLR camera photos is so-far quite appealing to me. Canon EOS rebels appear too gimmicky and if tweaking afterwards to get that type photo quality must be done on a computer that's not my idea of comparable lens quality given apples to apples. |
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