Camera thoughts...input

[kelA]

For all you knowledgable photographers on here, I am looking at purchasing a new camera and would like your input on the following camera. Is this a good brand as far as cameras go and how is the price vs. quality feature. I am a novice but want a decent camera and know nothing about what to look for at this price point. Thanks for any input.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9225359&type=product&id=1218062421291

[BLSamuel]

I don't know as far as the quality... I was intrigued by some of the Olympus Stylus models for my wife / daughters as they were weather resistant to some extent but they just didn't feel right to my wife or our daughters playing in the store and they, like me, are really annoyed by digital cameras with no optical viewfiender. Only the LCD.

We ended up getting my wife a Canon Digital Elph in pink but only 3X zoom and 8.0 megapixels, the same model as this blue one: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8739948&st=Canon+digital+elph&type=product&id=1202429847720

She loves it. It is very comnpact.

There is a 10x zoom Digital Elph at the above site but no optical viewfinder. I've not seen an LCD that's easy to see in bright sunlight.

Good luck in your search

just my 0.02 lumens

[oldenough]

I can thoroughly recommend Canon's S3 iS, tho I believe there is a newer generation. Looks and feels like a small SLR....LCD and optical viewfinder.

[RichardP]

For reviews of many models, take a look at www.kenrockwell.com (for a pro photographer's perspective), as well as amazon's user reviews (of current models). Rockwell likes Canon digital point&shoots. I got one a couple of years ago, the A570/590/etc series, which I use for casual shooting (I have a Nikon digital SLR). Aside from very good performance and quality, as well as the optical viewfinder mentioned above, that Canon series also uses AA batteries; most other cameras use dedicated/proprietary batteries not as easily replaceable. Consider how much you will use the camera. If for occassional snapshots, you don't need a $400 camera. Also, ignore number of pixels; all cameras will have enough. Five years ago, professional photographers were using $3000-5000 6-megapixel cameras, so anything nowadays is plenty.

There are so many cameras out there now, it may actually be hard to find a bad one. Stick with camera manufacturers/brand names, and you will probably like what you get.

[kelA]

Thanks for the insight guys. Apparently the display is new technology where you dont run into the issue of difficult to read in sunlight. I will try to find some reviews on it.

[Fotog]

For all you knowledgable photographers on here, I am looking at purchasing a new camera and would like your input on the following camera. Is this a good brand as far as cameras go and how is the price vs. quality feature. I am a novice but want a decent camera and know nothing about what to look for at this price point. Thanks for any input.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9225359&type=product&id=1218062421291

As I use Nikon Digital SLR's, I cannot speak to your particular Olympus linked camera. I can provide some thoughts for you regarding your consideration process.

1. $329 price range has many many P&S (point and shoot) cameras in it. Nikons, Cannons, etc.

2. An optical viewfinder is the most natural to me, however optical viewfinders on P&S cameras typically are not identically matched to the lens and have a grid within the viewfinder to "center" your subject - when using. Failing to use the grid can result in the subject being off location in the final print.

3. 12 megapixels is way more than you need. 6 megapixels will easily produce 11x14" prints of Museum quality - given the correct glass (aka lens).

4. The view screen on digital P&S cameras has a tendency to get scratched, so manufacturers have screen covers that are sometimes available. At least consider one with this option.

5. http://www.dpchallenge.com/ is an international photography site with some outstanding photographers on it. It also has a cameras list with actual photos taken with that particular camera. I would check there.

6. Battery life is very very important to photographers. Choose a camera with either long battery life, easily acquired batteries (like 2A) or both.

7. Lens focal length is important. The greater the "OPTICAL" range like (18mm-200mm) the better. The electronic zoom range is nothing more than an in camera crop of the longest optical focal length. If you camera has an optical zoom of 3X then from your smallest focal length (typically 28 or 35 mm) then 3 times that number is you maximum lens focal length. A 28mm would be an 84mm and a 35mm would be a 105mm. These numbers are found typically near the ring surrounding the lens glass and might read something like 28-84mm or 35-105mm. The OPTICAL zoom is the only important number. The wider the spread the better. Like an 18-105mm would be great - wide enough to get good landscapes and long enough to get decent frame filling portraits.

8. The most important element in photography is light. The part of the camera that captures light is the lens. Therefore the most important part of the camera is the lens and specifically the glass. Better lens glass costs more money as they can more easily capture the light.

[kelA]

Thanks for the information Fotog. Very insightful.