Digital Camera

[pc8775]

I am in the process of buying my first digital camera and I have been looking at the Cannon Power Shot A610 model.  It is a 5mp camera.  From what I have read   it seems to be a good camera for the money.  Was just wondering what some of your opinions are about it??  

If someone has another recommendation I am open to suggestions.  Budget wise I am looking at cameras around $350 max. Thanks   Paul

[flyboy 28]

May I suggest this site?

http://www.dpreview.com/

Very well put together and gives you a general understanding of pricing.

Good luck.

[Rifleman]

In order to offer suggestions for any camera, first off, we need to find your intentions for the camera......if you're not sure of what you really intend to do with it, then sit down and search within yourself to get some necessary answers.......

1. Printing......yes or no - home printing or professional
2. Still subjects or stopping some form of motion
3. Batteries - do you shoot lots or not lots of images (proprietary batteries are more expensive than regular AA cells) I carry two extra sets of AA's with my camera
4. Daylight or lowlight shooting
5. Macro necessity (ultra close-ups)
6. Long Zoom capability
7. Programmed exposure or full manual control

Probably more than these questions should be answered, then you will have a list of features to look for in your quest for a first digital camera.

[MattNW]

As Rifleman said it depends on your uses for a digital camera but try to stay away from the dirt cheap models. They are usually very poor quality and don't last long. I had a Kodak cheapie that didn't make it a whole year.

Also if you are the type who doesn't take many pictures at all or just for special events then you may not even want a digital camera. Those little one shot cameras with the film in them are great for things like vacations, birthday parties or family reunions.

Main reason I got a digital camera was to create textures for FS. This saves the step of getting a photo developed and scanning it in. Just plug it in to your computer and go. Of course I didn't need much of a camera for that.

If however you are a photography buff or need several of the things Rifleman mentioned then you should go for a good digital. Preferably one with the ability to change lenses and all the bells and whistles. Of course you'll pay for one of those.

[Hagar]

If however you are a photography buff or need several of the things Rifleman mentioned then you should go for a good digital. Preferably one with the ability to change lenses and all the bells and whistles. Of course you'll pay for one of those.

This is not necessary as most digital cameras on the market have all the features that Ken (Rifleman) listed, even inexpensive models. I took Ken's advice before purchasing my first digital camera a couple of years ago & never regretted it. Although I've since progressed to a more expensive model I still carry the old one almost everywhere & use it for the static shots of aircraft I post regularly in the Photos forum. I helped my friend choose his first digital camera this time last year & we settled on one similar to my first one for less than

[Rifleman]

Just to quickly show my camera and contents of the case I carry it around in, here is the lot layed out for all to see........

Itemized from the front left.......two pouches of dessicant to keep moisture to a minimum, old lens cleaner cloth, three spare memory cards....
Next row, camera remote control, new lens cleaner cloth, spare lithium batteries...
And finally back row, my trusty old 2.1 MP Olympus C2040z from 5 yrs ago complete with hand strap and lens cap lanyard attached, Mini Tri-pod, tv out cable, second set of NiMH 2300MaH batteries(one set is already in camera)

The remote is real handy for shooting from the tri-pod in the dark so I can get in the image and not have any camera shake, but it also doubles as a viewing remote when displaying on a tv for "old" people like my parents, who think a computer isn't a necessity in this day and age.......
Lithium batteries are the last resort for me to shoot with, as they have great shelf life. I find I can fill my four mem cards without any trouble, on only the NiMH cells......
Balance of stuff is pretty self-explanatory........

The main reason I got this camera in the first place is the SuperBright F 1.8 lens which allows me to shoot images in low light without flash.....unless you go to a digital SLR, I don't think you will find that wide an aperture on many cameras these days........quite a fast lens !


Image shot with Wendys Fuji Finepix 2800.

[Rifleman]

OOPS.......and at Wendys request, here is her camera and batteries, shot with the Oly 2040.........she normally takes her USB cable, along with her two spare sets of NiMH batteries and a rubber eraser, to clean fingerprint oils off the battery terminals, spare mem card is always in too......we're not sure where the single extra cell came from.....
Tri-pod is necessary for low light images shot with her F2.8 lens....

[Hagar]

In comparison here's my Fuji Finepix F401.



2 years old*, well-used, point & shoot, 2.1 Megapixel, 3x zoom lens, macro lens, auto-focus, auto-flash, integral automatic lens cap, 128 Mb memory card, lithium rechargeable battery, neck strap & convenient docking/storage tray c/w AC charging adaptor. Small enough to fit in your shirt pocket & ideal first digital camera. I regularly take over 100 photos with this little camera at air displays & the battery & memory card last me all day. It's obsolete now but you should be able to pick up the current version with a much higher spec for something like

[pc8775]

Thanks to all for the advice.  After doing some research and talking to the camera salesman I ended up with the Cannon powershot A610. ( Early Christmas Present ) It has point and shoot ( so the Mrs. will use it  ;D) And it also has some more advanced features that I am more interested in.  Now I just need to figure out what all those buttons do  ;D .  I think in the long run I will be very happy with this paticular one.  I will post some pictures after I figure it all out.    Thanks again.  Paul

[bbstackerf]

Ifin you want a digital thats small, easy on the budget (300-400), and has oodles of pixel power there's only 1 camera to look at and thats the Sony P200  thats 7.2 megapixels of clarity. You won't find many in it's class with that kind of power. Check it out... you will be impressed.

My wife is a digital camera buff. She's got the P200, the DSC717, DSC828 and the Nikon D50. All awesome cameras, but the P200 - her first - takes killer pics and those extra Mps don't hurt either - come in quite handy when you zoom in on the tex pics later on for the details.

Keni

[TacitBlue]

I have an Olympus D-540. I've been pretty happy with it for a while, and my only complaint so far is that is devoures batteries. My four extra sets of NiMh batteries just barely got me through 4 days of AirVenture. The trick is to turn the monitor off and use the eye piece. Other than that, it's a pretty good camera. Even after I upgrade early next year (tax return money ) I'll still keep it around for everyday use.

[smashie]

One point I would like to add is that you should go to a shop and try various models (ignore the salesman as much as possible). The size of the camera is very important but one of the most critcal thins is the delay between turning it on and being able to shoot and the delay betwenn pressing the release and the shutter firing. My 350D (Rebel  XT) has a startup delay of 0.2 secoonds but my A75 has a 2 second delay. Enough that you could miss 'the' picture.