Wishful Th
I've been wanting to get a new camera and since I'm planning to go to Puerto Rico soon, I really need to make sure I have one soon. Right now, I just use the camera on my phone, which isn't a bad camera. It actually takes some pretty good pictures. However, I don't want to wear down the battery of my phone with tons of pictures. And the camera I did have, was a cheaper one (was a gift) and it's been knocked around so many times, I doubt it works anymore.
What I need is something good. A good quality camera. Something that I can take shots at night as well would be nice. I'll be taking lots of pictures of nature, sunrises/sets, people, etc so I need something that can handle all of that. Also durable since I tend to drop... everything. If it's waterproof, that would be awesome. And ablity to upload pictures on my computer and/or print as well would be awesome too. ^_^
I don't want to spend a lot of money, but I don't want something cheap that falls apart the moment you look at it. And I don't want something too big and clunky because I don't want to carry around a bunch of stuff either.
I have a couple months before I go to Puerto Rico, so I do have time to save up and look around. I want to know what's good, what's a good deal and what's good quality. Tell me what you like, what you don't like, what you think I should get, and so on. Anything and everything. If you could, please include prices and/or pictures/links to the camera so I can see it as well and know how much to save up. Thanks much in advance!
Answer
I've sold cameras at a couple of different places, and I know that choosing a camera is a pretty personal thing. Its not just because of marketing that there are some many cameras out there!
Start by setting a price range to narrow down your search. Remember, electronics don't really have resell value, so spending more than you need will never pay off. On the other hand, getting a camera that falls short (or falls apart) means you'll want a new camera sooner, meaning spending more money.
Get a pad of paper out, and start listing what you haven't liked about prior camera. Look at old photos, and see what about them falls short. Look at where most of your photos were taken and think about where you spend most of your time. This will help you determine what you are going to need in a camera. - the basic features are
Megapixels - Ignore this unless you like to do a lot of after shooting editing (photoshop etc) or make lots of very large (bigger than 8x10) prints. All cameras on the market seem to be 10mp or higher.
Zoom- Look at optical zoom. 3x is the most common. ignore digital zoom, and avoid using it. It tends to mess up more photos than it helps. A good zoom is useful for photographing animals and for getting candid shots. This quickly adds to the price though.
Battery - Does it take AA batteries or Lithium ion. AA is great for long trips when you can't charge your camera. However, extra lithium batteries run for under $20 bucks (get name brand) and last longer, so I avoid AAs.
Cards - SD is usually the best bet. Most computers have a built in reader for them. This shouldn't be a deal breaker, but since most cameras use them, its nice to be able to loan your SD cards to a friend, or quickly upload your shots to someone else's computer.
You should stop by a few stores and play with the cameras. Figure out what feels good in your hand and will fit your lifestyle (ie. purse, pocket, bag etc). A high traffic Best Buy can be a great place to see what will break on your camera. Week points become apparent on display cameras pretty quickly. Pick them all up, listen for glitches, see how quickly they can shoot. If you have an SD card, sharpey your name on it, and bring it too so you can actually shoot. Play with the menu, it should feel intuitive to you to do the basics. Bring your pad of paper with you, and take lots of notes of model numbers, prices and what you liked, disliked.
Now that you have an idea of what is out there, and what you will want to do three searches for each camera. First on CNET to see a video and read the highlights of the cameras you're interested in. Next, get on Amazon and bring up each camera for CNET that you've liked. Pay attention to 'similar' cameras on CNET and Amazon to add to your list. The final search is the name of the camera and "problems" or "trouble shooting." This will give you an idea of real world issues. You can also google "sample photos from" or "sample videos" to see how they work. Flickr has a great camera finder (see link below)
After this is all done, you should have a handful of favorite cameras. Now is a good time to go to RitzCamera, or a higher end camera store, and really get to play with the camera a bit. (also check with friends to borrow their camera for a day, if you're lucky enough that they have one you're looking at). Does the camera feel sturdy or cheap? Can you hold the camera comfortably?
Take one last look online at sample videos, make sure none of the issues the camera has will be a deal breaker, and its time to buy! Make sure you get a case, and avoid the warranty (or find a comprehensive plan that covers drops, spills and being run over by a car - see it in writing before you buy! I think Ritz may still do this type of plan)
I spent the last month doing research- I'm going on vacation in May, and wanted a small fast camera that works well in low light, has a bit of zoom and was under 300. I went with the NikonS8100, and was not disappointed. Amazon sells it for $228, it can fit in a jacket pocket comfortably, has 10x zoom and start to first shot is amazingly fast. They put in a full CMOS sensor (the 'film' of a digital camera) that is the size of a DSLR (big camera)'s sensor, so it performs amazingly in low light.
waterproof digital camera?
Q. I am looking for a digital camera for my boyfriends birthday. He is outdoors a lot and as i live in Scotland he has requested a waterproof camera. Since i dont know a lot about cameras at all i was wondering if anyone could help me out or guide me in the direction to look. I have around £120 pounds to spend.
Even the smallest idea could help...
thanks!!
Answer
The best one according to the PC World magazine.Is Canon Power A590 is Point -and Shoot Camera this is very good for beginner's camera,the PowerShot A590is offers amazing image quality and superb stabilization. You cant read this Article.Canon PowerShot A590 IS Point-and-Shoot Camera
For a beginner's camera, the PowerShot A590IS offers amazing image quality and superb stabilization.
Alexa Wriggins
Tuesday, August 19, 2008 02:30 PM PDT
My digital camera expertise begins and ends with this fact: I cannot resist the urge to photograph a couple of fuzzballs named Chuckie and Violet. I'm a classic novice point-and-shooter, and the crème de la crème of my snapshots find their way onto Flickr or Facebook.
Recently, I spent some time with the 8-megapixel Canon PowerShot A590IS digital camera to see how fully it would meet my list of very basic snapshooting requirements and how well it would compensate fro my lack of technical proficiency. For a bargain-bin price of $150, it has a lot of features: 8-megapixel resolution, 4X optical zoom, optical image stabilization, face detection (which recognizes faces in the frame and optimizes the autofocus accordingly) and a smaller-but-serviceable 2.5-inch LCD screen. And conveniently it runs on two AA batteries.
To orient myself to the camera and gain insight into its features and functions, I ripped the A590IS out of the box and started taking pictures. I had no trouble working my way through various settings, quickly finding and using many of the 19 shooting modes, including portrait, landscape, and auto. Not surprisingly, the A590IS doesn't support a full range of manual settings (what do you expect for $150?), but it does let you program the shutter speed and aperture settings manually if you want to.
The big news with this point-and-shoot camera is image quality. Despite its rock-bottom price, the A590IS scored significantly higher in our image-quality assessments than point-and-shoots that cost more than twice as much and have higher megapixel counts. In particular, our judges noted superior colors and flash exposures in our subjective tests.
Image quality gets an assist from my favorite A590IS feature: the optical image stabilizer. I tried desperately to take a blurry picture--and I failed. No matter how hard I shook that camera or how much my subjects shimmied, I couldn't induce a blurry image. (Unfortunately for me, the A590IS does permit photo subject guillotinage if the picture taker frames the shot badly enough.)
Like many other Canon cameras, the PowerShot A590IS has a classic, easy-to-hold ergonomic shape with a fat thumb/hand grip on the right side. Though it's comfortable to hold, the camera body lacks rubber or textured trim on the plastic surface of its hand grip, which makes the grip a bit slick. I also wished that the camera were smaller: It's a compact camera, but not exactly pocketable. You'll need to secure it in a small camera bag before stowing it in your purse or backpack, or you'll risk scratching it up.
Though the AA batteries are great for convenience, the A590IS produced only 248 shots running on a fresh pair. Many point-and-shoots can take more than 300 shots on a single charge.
Photos from the PowerShot A590IS will never be mistaken for digital SLR output, but this camera is a great choice for anyone seeking an inexpensive, easy-to-use point-and-shoot that produces high-quality images. And don't be afraid to put its optical image stabilization to the test.
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