fishee

Nice pics Ira! Saint George at sunrise was great.

Using my BF's dig SLR in Paris, the pics were unexceptional except for the Eiffel Tower shots which I didn't think I could capture using a smaller digital. And I was even in the wrong mode and some still came out. I was having a hard time focusing, BF said pics were giving him a headache.

Would you mind terribly taking a quick look and telling me if you think this powershot could capture the same images of Eiffel Tower? None of these photos have been edited yet.

http://tinyurl.com/ycsv7l

ira

Hi F,

Some excellent pix. Darn good camera, too.

I think that you could do as well with the S3, or even the S2.

fishee

Thanks Ira -- if the S2 IS can produce similar images, I think I'm going to buy it.

To SLR devotees -- I fully understand my current pics don't represent the capacity of an SLR, but I'd be satisfied with this quality level if captured by a $280 camera.

basingstoke2

Sub compact cameras such as the Elph are light and easy to slip into a pocket. The downside is that they almost all use proprietary rechargable batteries. If one goes dead on a trip, you have get it recharged before you can take pictures again, or buy two batteries to keep one always charged. Most compacts will take AA batteries that are always available should you need to resupply and some such as the Canons will take many more pictures on their AAs particularly with Energizer E2 Lithium or AA rechargables, than on the sub compact batteries. Another advantage of the compact over the subcompact is that compacts often have optical viewfinders as well as the screen. That is useful when lighting makes using the screen difficult or when you want to conserve the battery by turning off the screen. Subcompacts usually do not have this feature. The size of the camera is a personal choice. I prefer the compact because I find it easier to handle and to use with one hand. The Canons are excellent. So are Fuji Finepix and some of the Nikons and Kodaks. It is hard to go wrong with any of them. I am using an older Canon A85 4mg and it has been "bulletproof" but I am planning to upgrade it for some of the reasons that NJgirl notes.

fishee

Hi basingstroke -- Your opinion of the Fujifilm Finepix E900 MP for $258?

Seems like more camera for the price over the Canon powershots?

Jed

I agree with polly. He probably knows what he wants, and whichever you get will probably be wrong. Relieve yourself of the anxiety and tell him to go shopping in the next 3 days (with reimbursement), or make him tell you exactly which one he wants. You will both be happier in the long run.

jgarvey

Ira and fishee, you guys are amazing and these pictures are brilliant! Either you both are pros,or these are some really spectacular cameras. They encourage me to perhaps spend a little more money to get this sort of product.

Thanks to all you who have chimed in this morning. I think Polly has the right idea though. My son certainly has more techo savy than I do, so give him the money and let him do his own research! I'll tell him that I will share the info I received on this site with him if he wants it.

Thanks again to all who came to my rescue last night and this morning.

JG

basingstoke2

Hi Fishee - I am not familiar with the Finepix E900 but I just finished reading the review on Steve's digicams and I am impressed. That $258 price is great - where did you find it. I am putting it on my short list. It has one feature that I really value and that is the ability to add a wide angle lens. That is something that I miss. I like them for shots of buildings - you can only step back so far.

ira

Hi J,

>Ira and fishee, you guys are amazing and these pictures are brilliant! Either you both are pros,or these are some really spectacular cameras.<

Aw shucks (rubbing toe in sand)
It's more the camera than me.

Also keep in mind that those are the best of about 850 shots.

fishee

That fuji is on amazon.com -- and price includes shipping fees.

I'm torn between the Fuji and the Canon S2 IS.

MaureenB

Canon is consistently rated the best digital cameras by Consumer Reports. We've used them for years.
>-

basingstoke2

Fishee - that is a tough choice. The S2, since added to by the S3 are fine cameras with a great zoom. The S3 also has a wide angle kit (I don't know about the S2) that gives it more zoom capability than the Fuji. It also has an advanced image stabilization system that does not degrade the image as the electronic IS does. The Fuji however has 9mgpx vs the S2's 5 and S3's 6 so it has an advantage if you like to enlarge and crop. Both have excellent lenses and image processing. The Fuji is also smaller and lighter if that is important. Looking at the great pictures that you take, I'm sure either will give you the where with all to exercise your obvious artisic talent.

nbodyhome

We bought the A620, and it is a great little for vacation photos.

We bought it pretty cheap compared with some places, around $210 with shipping, no tax.

nbodyhome

Oh - and I always go to Amazon for reviews and such, that is how I found it.

jgarvey

OK, here's the scoop--to all of you who have been my Santa helpers. This afternoon I went to Target and bought the Canon Powershot A540. Why? Because it was already late (I waited until the end of the very-close Bears game), because it was on sale for $199, because several of you mentioned it as a good choice, because it was there (the last one) and I was there, because I thought my son would like the option of shifting from automatic to manual (since he is a more experienced photographer than I am), because it also has an optical view-finder in addition to the viewing screen, because his last Canon digital (for his birthday) was stolen from his apartment several months ago (along with his Dad's antique Bronica (sp?) and Pentax), because I want to show up tomorrow with something besides a gift certificate in my hand (I also bought a beautiful, leather-bound photo album and journal--one each for him and his fiance), because Best Buys was already closed, because the time is very close to his departure for Rome, because I decided to buy one of the tiny Elphs for myself and my own trip to Rome in February, because we can trade back and forth if we want to. And just because tomorrow is Christmas, and he is my son, and I love him, and I wanted to give him something special to take on his trip to Rome.

I hope that you all approve. Maybe not the best techo-choice, but one from my heart. Thanks to all who have given me input here. I think you have helped each other as well as me, and isn't that the point?

Love and blessings,
JG

P.S. There is a gift receipt exchange included if necessary.

jent103

JG - I'm sure your son will love the gift and the thought you put into it. (And a gift receipt is always great "insurance"!)

fishee

JG -- Sounds like the perfect choice and at such a great price, and to have one left in-stock on Christmas Eve? That had to have been fate...

The album and journals are a really wonderful idea -- gives a "tech" gift a very warm, personal touch. Have a great vist with your family! (and thanks for letting us use your thread to talk about what we want to buy for ourselves...)

willit

I really like Canon digital cameras, having used a powershot A70 for several years. Given the choice of cameras in your price range I would go for the s2 or if you can afford it the S3 purely because of it's 12x zoom function.

If I had one quibble with it, it would be that it might just be a little bulky to carry around. The more compact powershots may lack the zoom , but they will fit comfortably into a coat pocket, and may be more convenient to carry around as a "point and shoot" camera.

Any of the cameras mentioned above would be great - I am sure your son woud not be disappointed with any of them.

ira

>I'm torn between the Fuji and the Canon S2 IS.<

One thing to check is whether the camera uses rechargeable AA batteries or a proprietary power pack.

Those power packs can be very expensive.

Re MPX:

A 2 MPX camera will give you shots that can be enlarged to 5x7 with very little loss of clarity.

A 6 MPX can handle 8x10 easily.

I much prefer taking a closeup, which is why I bought the 12x S3, to enlarging a pic and cropping it.

The reason is that when you take the pic there are a certain number of pixels/sq in. If you double the size of the image, you reduce the number of pixels/sq in by a factor of 4. This reduces the clarity of the image.

ira

Hi JG,

>This afternoon I went to Target and bought the Canon Powershot A540.<

A very nice camera.