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I'm thinking of getting a Digital Camera and I've been looking at different ones. I picked two in my price range and if anyone has got either one of them, could you give your opinion please?
Sony DSC-P52 (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00008J1BE/ref=br_lf_ce_11/202-1567725-6959053)
or
Canon Powershot A300 (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00008R9NY/qid=1057450241/br=3-3/br_lfncs_ce_3/202-1567725-6959053)
They both look like decent " mid range " cams Mal, IMHO and limited ( very ) check out the memory card prices, battery life ( mine is ridicules ) and development charges.
BTW.. enjoyed the X-rated links that came with the links for the cams :)
Originally posted by bopdude
BTW.. enjoyed the X-rated links that came with the links for the cams :)
:confused: :confused: What do you mean? :confused: :confused:
Sipowicz
06-07-2003, 02:11
It is worth having a look at internetcamerasdirect (all one word) they have independent reviews on most popular cameras (as well as selling them) They link to on-line magazine reviews and have the reviews from the people that have bought from them!
Don't get bogged down in the pixel debate (higher is obviously better) the quality of the lens will always be important. It is no good having a 4megapixel camera, with only a blob of plastic for a lens!
Either camera you mention, come from reputable and quality manufacturers. Canon have been making quality cameras and lenses for years. Sony are great with the electronics and some of their cameras use Zeiss lenses. The memory card issue is important. Sony Memory Stick (MS) has not been taken up as well as Compact Flash (CF) But MS has other applications (esp with a sony PDA) CF cards can be obtained quite reasonably and can be used in MP3 players. CF cards will soon be available in 4gb capacity and one manufacturer has promised a 6gb card by the end of the year! But $8000 is the guide price (yes dollars!)
If you have the cash and want some control and not just point and shoot, look at the Canon G3 (the dogs biscuits in 4megapixel cameras) Me? I drive a Nikon coolpix 885 (3mp) have considered the G3, but I am taking the leap into Digital SLR to complement my 35mm system (all Canon)
Good luck!
(And I don't work for any of those mentioned above!):wavey:
Just seen the Canon on your link! Don't rely solely on a digital Zoom, always go for the highest Optical zoom!
Well when I open the links I get this amongst others..lol
Not that it bothers me but you never know who's looking,
IMHO, post pics of cams, links to cam sites and not amazon...:D
I got my misses a Canon A40 and it is really good, it cost me £200 but that was 6 months ago so may be the price has dropped a bit since then?
I have a Nikon Coolpix 775:) Haven't looked back since.
Mines a canon ixus 2 megapixel, it's great. btw, the 3 megapixel is out now:rolleyes: .
They are easy to use, very small, battery life is great (bopdude) and they look cool:cool: :D
Sipowicz
19-07-2003, 01:35
If you can afford it, go for the Canon G3 (or even the G5)
I was a bit naughty and blew a bit (I'll say!!) on a Canon EOS 10D digital SLR (6.3 megapixels). IMHO the dog's biscuits, especially as I have a 35mm EOS system and the lenses fit!
I do use a camera a lot. This week I have taken over 150 pictures and have been known to take 170+ in a day (Airshow, motorsport etc) The cost of the camera over savings on processing film during the year, will pay for at least half of the initial outlay! So to me it's worthwhile.
:wavey:
(oops! didn't read my own earlier post above...deja vu - almost!!)
Originally posted by Sipowicz
[B]If you can afford it, go for the Canon G3 (or even the G5)
I was a bit naughty and blew a bit (I'll say!!) on a Canon EOS 10D digital SLR (6.3 megapixels). IMHO the dog's biscuits, especially as I have a 35mm EOS system and the lenses fit!
The problem with the G3 is that it is too big. One of my requirements is that the camera easily fits into a pocket. I know that I am comprimising on picture quality but if my camera was bigger I would not carry it around as much and therefore would not take the pictures in the first place.
If you want a case for the G3 (great camera) - I can recommend the LowePro 25, great snug fit and has a waterproof cover in the back if the weather turns. Never found anything like this for my CoolPix 990 (another great cam - excellent Macro shots!)
I just got a Sony Mavica MVC CD500. 5.1 Megapixels and writes to mini cdr or cdrw. Info lithium battery.
Looks complicated but I soon got the hang of it...
... and it's £200 cheaper than the last model!
Sipowicz
21-07-2003, 23:09
Originally posted by Ramrod
The problem with the G3 is that it is too big. One of my requirements is that the camera easily fits into a pocket. I know that I am comprimising on picture quality but if my camera was bigger I would not carry it around as much and therefore would not take the pictures in the first place.
Point taken Ramrod!
Just seen the G3 at the great price of £399 at warehouse express (.com) More than a bargain if you ask me!!:D
Originally posted by Sipowicz
Point taken Ramrod!
Just seen the G3 at the great price of £399 at warehouse express (.com) More than a bargain if you ask me!!:D
I know that Jessops will price match a website if you take a print out, I did and got mine for £410
Sipowicz
21-07-2003, 23:19
I think Digital Depot (.com) have an offer on at the moment. They will chuck in a CP-100 sub printer (direct printing of 6x4) for £70 when you buy selected Canon Digicams.
If anyone is interested, but then again I do tend to waffle on a bit......
:shrug:
I have an HP Photosmart 620, 2.1 MP camera. I was on a tight budget and I got it like 5 months ago.
These were taken with the camera. They are all shrunk though, from 1600x1200.
I'm very, very happy with it. It sometimes blurs pictures though. I guess the shutter speed ain't fast enough.
http://home.cogeco.ca/~johannj/personal/sword2.jpg
http://home.cogeco.ca/~johannj/personal/sword3.jpg
http://home.cogeco.ca/~johannj/personal/crazyfriend.jpg
http://home.cogeco.ca/~johannj/.roadtrip/06-30-2003%20016%20(Large).jpg
and
http://home.cogeco.ca/~johannj/.roadtrip/06-30-2003%20017%20Large.jpg
Just read through this thread again, since my camera was pinched today, (my fault I suppose) :mad:
So I was hoping for some advice any of you may be able to give before I purchase a replacement.
The Camera would be preferred with the following spec:
Four megapixels plus 4x optical zoom,
Rechargable battery version, (my old kodak used to eat battery power like there was no tomorrow) until a firmware update became available :)
Movie facility (with or without sound) although this is not absolutely necessary.
256Mb Secure Digital Card.
I have had a gander on the net and found this model which seems to fit the above requirements
http://www.digital-cameras.com/shop/images/pentax_optio_550.jpg Which can be reviewed here (http://www.digital-cameras.com/shop/showproduct.asp?id=1139) ,
but before I lash out, I was hoping for any possible assistance or referrals.
I am willing to spend between £350 - £500.
Stuart W
05-08-2003, 02:58
I have an Olympus C-220 ZOOM. 2.0Megapixel
Batteries last A G E S even with the flash and it takes up to 128MB Smart Media, but comes with an 8M card, so a couple of 128MB cards was purchased almost seconds later!!!
BTW, pics are excelent and it has a 12sec 'live video' feature, which is fun, but not realy that usefull.
Zoom is only 5X optical, with 2.5X digital on top, so the first 5X zoom is pictur perfecxt, but as soon as you go into the next 2.5X, it can get grainey.
This site has an extensive collection of digital camera reviews and sample shots. It's well worth spending some time there.
http://www.steves-digicams.com/
Personally, I would go for something that uses as many standard accessories as possible - it makes it cheaper and easier later on. Of all the different types of expansion card I prefer Compact Flash. This is, by far, the most versatile. Did you know that, for example, in one of its interface modes, a Compact Flash card behaves just like an IDE hard disk drive?
http://linitx.com/products/compact_flash_ide_adapter/
At the moment I am attracted to the Canon A70 at about £210 + vat. It uses Compact Flash and standard AA batteries - well worth a look IMHO.
Stuart W
05-08-2003, 11:05
Compact Flash? versatile?
Not sure what you mean here... I use the SmartMedia cards with my camera.
As soon as I plug the USB lead in, a new drive appears in My Computer and all my photo's are jpg's in that drive.
[User Edit] Sorry, just clicked the link on your post :spin:
I can drag and drop executables there if I wish, so the SmartMedia is also 'drive space'.
I can also use my SmartMedia cards in the front of my PC, where they do exactly the same!
When you say you prefer CompactFlash, I asume you have used both. What did you find Compact could do that Smart couldn't?
What is Compact Flash?
http://www.compactflash.org/info/cfinfo.htm
Compact Flash memory is cheap - particularly in large capacities.
http://www.dabs.com/products/prod-search.asp?action=search&tid=441&ob=price&stab=ref
Compact Flash memory is faster than any other sort:
http://www.digitalfilm.com/digfilm/benchmark.html
You can get a hard disk drive in Compact Flash format:
http://www-3.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/document.do?lndocid=MIGR-4NXRRH
http://www.dabs.com/products/prod-info.asp?quicklinx=SXP
In Compact Flash format you can get: barcode scanners, Bluetooth adaptors, mobile phone adaptors, Ethernet adaptors, GPS adaptors, serial I/O adaptors, wireless LAN adaptors, 56K modems.... and many more.
http://www.socketcom.com/
You can use a Compact Flash card in a PC instead of a HDD.
http://www.ultim8pc.co.uk/index.asp?section=products&idd=12
http://linitx.com/products/compact_flash_ide_adapter/
All digital cameras for professional use have Compact Flash sockets. Just as in lens mounts, many manufacturers of comsumer products have introduced proprietary Flash standards in order to lock-in the user. IMHO Compact Flash is the most open and versatile standard with the broadest support.
http://www.compactflash.org/guide/guide.htm
THe one I have seen win more reviews in magz than any other is the Canon A70. Which is about £70 more than you wanted to spend.....but quality isnt cheap
Just to let you know, I got the Sony DSC-P52 (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00008J1BE/ref%3Dbr%5Flf%5Fce%5F11/026-8808682-1558050).
It seems to be a very good camera. Good quality pictures, very easy to use and very easy to transfer to the computer.
Still messing with it. :)
Well, thanks for all your help guys, but I am still undecided after reading some peoples recommendations :o
Emperor Ming
06-08-2003, 01:29
yesman ask yourself this question first
What will I USE the camera for ?
This will be your biggest guide to what camera to go for, coupled with your budget .
This should help you come to a conculsion and not get sucked into all the hype about mega this and that :eek: that manufacturers tend to bull about.
check out the lens manufacturer for the camera more important than all the singing and dancing knobs and whistles.
plus how does it feel while holding it and using
Don't go to Dixons, but check out your local camera shop trying out all models then search the web for the best deal
above all take your time :)
my recommendation
either Fuji or Olympus but I am a semi pro at this.
your Lord and Master
Ming :smokin:
For reviews I've always used : www.dpreview.com
For purchases I start with : www.internetcamerasdirect.com and then goto Jessops for a price match!
Lord Nikon
06-08-2003, 07:18
Originally posted by Drudge
[B]Stuart W asked:
"What did you find Compact could do that Smart couldn't?"
With CF you can get cards upto 1Gb whereas SM don't seem to make bigger tham 128Mb ( or didn't a couple of months ago.
1Gb SD cards out now...
though they are expensive
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