Camera recommendations
 

Wow cameras have gotten complicated! I'm here again looking for advice from the knowledgeable on the most important features you consider when purchasing a travel camera. Compact, of course, but I'm unsure what some of these features are on the digital cameras. I've always taken shots with manual, film cameras (my sister's a photographer so she helps me with the f-stops & shutter speeds, but she's not a traveler), so I need advice on these digital ones.

I'm thrown by these megapixels and optical zooms, but I know from checking out the pictures posted here that I do want to spend the $$ on a camera with an image stabilizer. I do want compact, but will go for a bigger camera for a better quality picture. Can anyone explain what these things are? Specific camera recommendations are welcome, too!

try the Canon powershot series. excellent digital cameras.

Thanks! I've glanced at them but didn't know how to differentiate between the megapixels and memory cards.

BTW - wisc edu? What school? I went to college in WI.

Talk about taking this way off subject, my son, who's going to be a senior this year, is leaning heavily towards UW-Madison. Any thoughts?

And since I'm jumping in on your camera thread to ask about schools :D, I'll tell you that before our trip to Ireland we bought a Nikon Coolpix 5600. I'm about as far away as you can get from being an expert on cameras! But I can tell you that we're happy with the purchase. That camera kept the aforementioned son very happy on our trip. And he took some wonderful pictures!

What I consider most important is that the camera still offers a traditional view finder apart from a good display. It is hard to see the displays in the sun and the traditional way helps you to focus properly. BTW, this excludes the majority of cameras from manufacturerers not traditionally in the camera business.
Canon, Olympus or Nikon would still have them usually. Sony, Panasonic and Casio usually only have the displays.

I can't speak as an undergrad alumni, since I completed my masters at UW, but I can honestly say that Madison is the quintessential college town. Mid-sized city full of college students, plenty of entertainment, restaurants, outdoor activities, very nice people, extremely safe, close to Chicago...Your son will love it...unless he's against long, cold winters. Were it not for the winters, Madison would be amazing. I come from a tropical environment, so the winters were rough on me. Other than that, I really enjoyed my stay there. The university is one of the best in the country, with numerous departments ranked in the top 10. Very liberal for a midwestern university...think Berkeley.

regarding the cameras...don't worry about the included memory cards. Most cards included with cameras are relatively small capacity. You'll want to buy a large capacity memory card (528 MB or greater, preferably 1 GB). As for megapixels, anything above 5 or 6 MP is considered excellent image quality.

btw, what's your budget for a camera + memory card?

Thanks, frrodriguez! We live in the Chicago suburbs so the winters wouldn't be an issue (although I do think Madison tends to get hit worse than we do). You've pretty much confirmed what I've been reading about Madison. I suspect our son would be very happy there. And, considering that our daughter goes to school in Massachusetts, I'd be lying if I said I didn't like the idea of having him closer! Madison is far enough to be really going away, but close enough to come home for the occasional weekend! The liberal bias plus a good sports program both really appeal to our son (he'd like to go into sports journalism).

only point and shoot, compact, Canon digital camera with image stabilizer:

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/co...;modelid=13019

This is a great website that I've spent hours on learning about various cameras. Some things might get a bit more in-depth than you are looking for however.

http://www.dpreview.com/

Because of that website I bought a Canon Digital Rebel XT and also a Epson P2000 to store my digital images in so I wouldn't have to buy a dozen memory cards to store my pictures on...

95% of these pictures were taken with the Digital Rebel:

http://www.tylernofziger.com/message...wforum.php?f=9

Hi

Just bought this one which takes video as well - http://panasonic.com.au/products/det...?objectID=3121. They are calling it the "traveller's camera". My only reservation is the lack of a traditional viewfinder. However my previous digital had one but it was useless - you'd look through it, take a photo but it didn't match what I wanted. I'm sure I'm not going to miss this "feature' although new models might be alot better.

Check Kodak. They are designing and building digital cameras that are 'easy' to use. A simple image stabilizer is a tripod or monopod. Along with learning how to operate your camera take some lessons about taking pictures. Your camera will have a setting that automatically sets f-stop/shutter speed. If you don't use a tripod, remember to first depress the shutter partially, check your pic and then finish pushing the shutter button. Practice!

Lots of good info. to go through!

Tyler - your photo tour is actually what got me researching a camera this early, your photos are amazing! I've got the Canon Digital Rebel XT on my list because of your shots, but it's currently listed at a tad more than I wanted to spend. I might splurge though my photographer sister will insist it's too much camera for me. I'm a writer, though and pictures are a great help to capture the flavor when I'm too awestruck or active to put it into words. So perhaps it's well worth the splurge. However, could you explain the Epson P2000?

FR - Thanks for the heads up on megapixels & memory cards, I'll take the memory card specs off my list of requirements. I don't have a real set budget, but I'm thinking $200-500 hoping to keep it closer to the $200 but willing to fork over for an excellent, durable camera. I haven't owned one in years so it's about time.

CAPH52 - said exactly what I would've about UW-Madison. A great school, a great party school. The first I know by reputation, the second I know from experience as UW-Madison was the place to go when I was a private college girl in Milwaukee.

hsv - I'm glad you mentioned the viewfinder so I could add it to my list. It also reminded me that I don't want a camera that only allows for automatic focus as it often tries to focus on certain things in frame when I'd rather focus on other things.

worldinabag - added your panasonic to the list (well, not yours specifically, I'll buy my own), but it is a little more than I'd like to spend, though again it might be worth it.

GSteed - Kodak is on my list to try out as well. I've got a photographer for a sister, so I've gotten some great training in manual camera use from her as well as composition, lighting, et al. However, she's become quite a busy woman, and I'm not sure how much time she'll have to help learn the ins and outs of digital, but from what I'm seeing is available I should do fairly well. Thanks!

The Canon S2 IS is a great point and shoot digital camera, with image stabilizer and 12x zoom and many other features (I don't even know them all yet), including movies. I bought one for a recent safari and got awesome photos with just autofocus since I didn't have time to learn to use it. Good battery life too. One drawback is that the viewfinder isn't the greatest but with some getting used to, it's okay.

They've just come out with the S3 but I haven't read any reviews. You can get the S2 now for around $300, compared to $550 a year ago. You'll find reviews and helpful information on the website posted by Tyler.
For digital SLR I've heard that the Canon Rebel is a good series for beginners.

panecott - I'm adding the Canon S2 & S3 to my list. Since my trip isn't beginning until March 2007, maybe I'll luck out and catch a great camera on a good deal. That's why I'm looking now, so I can make a decision and then wait patiently for a cheap price.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ7. It's within your budget, has image stabilizer technology, manual focus, auto focus, has image viewfinder, 6 megapixels. Not compact, however, but not a brick either.

I have a Canon A610, which I like despite its slightly crappy build, for travel, and a Canon d20 for more serious stuff, though I'm lusting after the Nikon D200. For compact cameras I would just stick with Canon. Everything else is much more likely to be junk.

But -- here's the thing. I met recently with an old friend who was showing me year-old photos on her digital. She doesn't know how to upload to her computer or to camera store printer. So why have a digital? I think there are a lot of people out there who should be shooting film, but who shoot digital just because that's what everybody else is doing.

Was going to add the Canon 620 into the mix. 4X zoom, 7 mp, Digic II processor. $214 at B&H. Lots of serious photographers have one as their P&S.

johng -- what is it about the Nikon D200 that you like? I've heard they have noise problems. Do you think it has much over the 20D?

We have an Olympus C-5000 and an Olympous Stylus 300 and are pleased with both.

After a lot of research, I bought my daughter a Canon A620 for Christmas, and she seems to like it very much. One of the things many people overlook when choosing a P&S digital camera is shutter lag, but the A620 is far better than most P&S digitals in that respect. Image stabilizer is good for a camera with an 8X or 10X zoom lens, but not as important for a 3X or 4X zoom camera.

Johng, I have been lusting after the Nikon D200 as well (I already have a D70) but simply can't justify spending an extra $1K when the D70 has most of the same features. Today I put my dreams aside and ordered a D70s spare body. Do you really want to change from Canon to Nikon and then have to start a new lens collection?

A very nice feature of the Canon S series is the rotateable LCD panel. This makes it possible for you to take pictures over your head or basically almost around a corner.
Shop the Amazon sales. They give free shipping (in most cases) and will sell a warranty policy.

While I agree that the Canon S2/S3 cameras are very desirable, they are a little big for carrying around. I have a Minolta Z6 with Image stabilization, and 12X zoom, but it is a similar size to the S2, and while it takes beautiful pictures, it is a pain to carry around.

Iwould look at the smaller Canons. The Ixus 6 (this is the UK designation - they differ depending on part of the world) is small enough to fit into a mens shirt pocket, has a good zoom, and takes great pictures.

My Powershot A70 is small enough to go into a coat pocket, and I find it far more useful than my "posher" Minolta. The latest versions are of similar size, but "more megapixels".

One more thing - I learned the hard way to never buy a P&S camera for travel unless it takes regular AA batteries. We were in Costa Rica last year with my old Nikon Coolpix and the battery fell out on a horseback ride. Try replacing one of those things in the boonies somewhere.

Pausanias, my wife shoots pro with a Nikon F100's (film) and the colors and depth she gets is so much better than anything I shoot with my Canon - but she has friends who use the D200, and the image quality is comparable.

HD - my glass is junk and I can (maybe) borrow my wife's if I upgrade.

Honestly, I would probably just go into your largest local camera store and ask them all the questions you can think of until they physically remove you from their store.

They are going to be able to deal with all the first timer questions extremely well because they hear those exact same questions a million times a day.

A lot of people go to camera stores for research and advice and then end up buying the camera on the internet from sites like buydig.com because you can get things far cheaper than local stores. HOWEVER, I would rather spend my money locally and reward them for their time and advice... but that's a personal choice I suppose.

The Epson P2000 has two little slots on it that accept both CF (Compact Flash) memory cards and also SD memory cards. Those are probably the two most popular types of memory cards... however if you get a Sony camera for instance you probably won't be able to use the Epson to store photos.

After you insert your memory card into the Epson you can pull all of those pictures off of your memory card onto the Epson for storage and viewing. I took roughly 20 gigs worth of pictures and could have never fit them on memory cards. The Epson holds 40 gigs worth of pictures (now they have an 80 gig model) so I have room to spare.

And the second I got home I simply plugged my Epson into my computer at home through the USB port and copied all of my pictures onto my computer. Now I can edit them till my hearts content or just print them out. I prefer to copy them to cd's and go print them out at camera shops.

Johng, it sounds like the D200 is the camera for you then, especially since your wife already has compatible lenses. You don't suppose she might be the one doing the borrowing, though?

Digital SLRs are not compatible with film lenses.

I'm not sure I see the need for the Epson p2000.
If you must download on a trip, it can be done to an IPod. $500 is a pretty good amount of money.
Memory cards are cheap. I don't think even I could fill a 1 gig card, unless I took a lot of movies.

I've been very happy with my
Kodak Easy Share Z740 it has a 10X zoom and it takes AA batteries. It's not as compact as some of the other models and it doesn't have an image stabalizer (that has to be done by me) but I like the zoom when I want a detail on a tall tower.

I did miss a good zoom on my trip. I only took one lens and even though I LOVED the lens... I wish I had had a second for zooming.

Carrying multiple lenses might be a bit more hard-core than you want to go. Getting a nice multipurpose camera with built in Image Stabilization is probably better in your case.

I would still go digital though.

Actually you can get an Epson P2000 for about $376.97 after mail in rebate rebate from Buydig.com

Or you can get an 8 gb CF card from Buydig for about 420$...

Or perhaps 8 1 gb cards at about 60$ each... whatever floats your boat.

Of course I don't know how many pictures you take. I've heard people say that they can fill up their Epson's 40gb hard drive in a week... other people barely fill up a 1 gb card in a month.

The average person might only need a couple gb's worth of storage for a 2 week trip depending on the resolution of their camera.

I was really looking into using my IPod to store photos but I've just heard far too many horror stories about people losing their entire trip's pictures due to Apple's shaky software. I have 2 Ipods and have nothing against them so don't get me wrong. I just think travel photos are too important to risk to save a few dollars.

In fact, what my friend and I did in Europe was occasionally burn a bunch of photos onto cd's and mail them home... just as a backup...

I got a camera stolen (all pictures included) in 2004 after seeing about 15 countries and it nearly ruined my trip.

"Digital SLRs are not compatible with film lenses."

Where did you get that idea, Gretchen?

I'd suggest carrying a moderate number of smaller cards. First of all, they're cheaper on a per-bit basis, and second, you don't have to worry about losing every picture should anything go wrong.

256mb memory sticks are about $10 - get a half-dozen or so and relax.

Hi CEB,

For some years I used a Canon A60 with 2 Mpx and a 3:1 Optical zoom. I later bought a 2:1 telescopic lens.

I was was quite pleased with this camera.

I recently purchased a Canon S3 with Image Stabilization, 6Mpx and a 12:1 Optical Zoom.

I am in hog heaven.

I also looked at the Panasonic Linux and the Sony H3.

For a combination of ease of use, quality of lenses and pix quality, I went for the S3.

You can use it as a simple point and shoot camera by just leaving it on AUTO.

You can also spend weeks going through the manual and learning how to use all of the features.

It also records video (up to 1 hr) with stereo sound.

You will want to get several 1 or 2 gb 60X or faster SD cards.

Hope this helps.

((I))

this website has what looks like a tutorial on a first-time digital camera purchase, including websites on which you can read about camera reviews. http://tinyurl.com/ztvnw
Like others, I've been very happy with my Sony, it's small and the pictures have been good.

"Digital SLRs are not compatible with film lenses."

Where did you get that idea, Gretchen?


I think that depends on the lens/camera.


ira mentioned a great camera in the S3

This is the official S3 site:

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/co...;modelid=13077

And you can get it for 419$ here:

http://buydig.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=CNPSS3

Those larger digitals are nice because they give great quality pictures with good features and you don't have to buy lenses for them.

It's an option to think about anyway :)

Our family has become big fans of the Canon Powershot digital elph cameras. We have bought four over the past three years: two 3 mp, a 4 mp and a 5 mp.

I'm a big fan of the quality of Canon's pictures, and these cameras have spoiled me with their size. I can fit the camera in my jeans pocket or the inside pocket of my jacket and just go. The freedom is amazing - I used to travel with a SLR and a couple lenses. I'm not a professional photographer or a camera techie but I do like good pictures. There are a few situations where I miss the 28 to 300 capability I was used to having, but overall I love the fact that I can travel light and still get really really good travel pictures.

There's a new SD700 that has IS and I think can be bought for under $500. http://tinyurl.com/mduqa By the time you are closer to your trip, it will undoubtedly be lower in price.

Many have told me that you cannot use your great SLR lenses with a digital SLR. There are adapters, I think, that make it possible. I recently read about it for a Canon, I think. There is a difference in focal length/size of image for digital vs. film. Check it out.
As far as size of the S series of Canon, I do not find them "large". They are not vest pocket==mine does fit in my raincoat pocket if I need to. However, digitals are quite light, unlike their film SLR counterparts. I have found no problem travelling with my S1.