Digital Camera HELP!

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SuperG

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jun 26, 2003
Messages
198
Hi all,

I am interested in purchasing a digital camera. This will be the first time for me, and I know very little about going and buying one. So let me just ask all you guys out here, where is a good site that has good honest reviews of digital cameras, so I can select one. In general the one I want should have the digital camera part, and be able to take movies too. I don't need a ridiculously large mega pixel camera etc. And I don't need the best, most expensive, top of the line either. Please point me in the right direction. Thanks.

SuperG
 
SuperG said:
Hi all,

I am interested in purchasing a digital camera. This will be the first time for me, and I know very little about going and buying one. So let me just ask all you guys out here, where is a good site that has good honest reviews of digital cameras, so I can select one. In general the one I want should have the digital camera part, and be able to take movies too. I don't need a ridiculously large mega pixel camera etc. And I don't need the best, most expensive, top of the line either. Please point me in the right direction. Thanks.

SuperG
Click to expand...

Two good sites:

http://www.dpreview.com/
http://www.steves-digicams.com/
 
Neb said:
Two good sites:

http://www.dpreview.com/
http://www.steves-digicams.com/
Click to expand...


Thanks for the reply. I have done a bit of research, and I have a camera in mind. Now I would just like to get your opinions. I am considering buying the Fuji E550. It is a 6.3 Megapixel camera, and supports video. It uses xD-Picture cards (are those OK?). I know I will need to buy an additional xD card, since it only comes with a 16MB one. I looked around for some xD cards, and I noticed that the prices vary quite a bit for the same size. I don't understand why. Does that mean I have to buy only a Fuji xD card, because those were among the most expensive ones. Thanks for your input. Oh and the price is around $350, which is about what I was looking to spend, give or take $50. Thanks.

SuperG
 
SuperG said:
Thanks for the reply. I have done a bit of research, and I have a camera in mind. Now I would just like to get your opinions. I am considering buying the Fuji E550. It is a 6.3 Megapixel camera, and supports video. It uses xD-Picture cards (are those OK?). I know I will need to buy an additional xD card, since it only comes with a 16MB one. I looked around for some xD cards, and I noticed that the prices vary quite a bit for the same size. I don't understand why. Does that mean I have to buy only a Fuji xD card, because those were among the most expensive ones. Thanks for your input. Oh and the price is around $350, which is about what I was looking to spend, give or take $50. Thanks.

SuperG
Click to expand...

there is nothing inherently wrong with xD cards. they are just not as popular as other types, like CompactFlash, so tend to be more expensive. They are a fairly new type of card, so for a while they were harder to find, but i don't think that is an issue any longer. I believe thier main advantage is that they are very small compared to other types.

They are currently not considered "industry standard", as only Fuji and Olympus(?) support them. However, it's also not like support for them will suddenly dry up anytime soon. And even if it does you'll probably be in a new camera by then.

bottom line, i wouldn't worry about it.
 
xD cards a big issue for me -- they are quite expensive compared to other cards. The size is really not an issue, especially since Olympus and Fuji are not decreasing the sizes of their compact cameras because the card is smaller. the camera is still going to need to be a certain volume because of many factors because people need to be able to hold it correctly and other such factors. I have a feeling camera might get thinner, but won't get any "smaller" in the near future. Therefore a smaller card is pretty useless I think. CF cards, while big compared to xD cards, are small enough to fit in many compact cameras.
 
Thanks for all the info.

Couple of questions I still have then. First, like I had asked earlier, is it a problem to use different brand xD cards in different brand camera's? For example, if I did buy this Fuji E550 camera, and I wanted to buy an Olympus xD card (as they are cheaper than the Fuji ones), would I have any issue with them working? Second, so would you guys say that this is a good camera for the price I have set? If not, what are my other options, which have similar features/price, and maybe use CF cards or xD, doesn't really matter. Just wanted to get some opinions. Thanks.

SuperG
 
mdude85 said:
" In general the one I want should have the digital camera part, and be able to take movies too. I don't need a ridiculously large mega pixel camera etc. And I don't need the best, most expensive, top of the line either. Please point me in the right direction. "
Click to expand...

It was a joke...
 
Canon A85. Awesome camera. Uses CompactFlash and AAs (big plus, just get two sets of rechargables!). CF cards are really cheap now. I'd pick Canon and Nikon over anything....
 
Canon IXUS 40 ....not sure what they call it in NA (no its not the S400)
 
I will agree with KevC on either Nikon or Cannon. I have a Nikon and love it. Plus both use standard cards and, both have good track records as, well. Also while I hate the site you might go to cnet.com and, check out readers reviews on any camera you are considering. It is always nice to get the end users likes and, dislikes. Good Luck!
 
If you're going to spend 350, get the A95 over the A85.

See my thread, here:

A85 has proven to have a little too much noise for my taste, apparently from too many MPs shoved into too small a sensor. The A95 has a bigger sensor (1/1.8 vs 1/2.7) and should give you better low light and lower noise. Something I wasn't aware of when I popped for the A85. Given what I know now, I would either go A75 or A95, and skip the A85.

BB
 
Canon S1 IS?! Think of it as a A80 plus many more features and a tad less megapixels plus a nice zoom! Ohh and image stabilization too! =D
 
Well you guys have given me something to think about. I guess now, after BB Gun's suggestion, I am deciding between the Canon A95 and the Fuji E550. One is 5 MP the other is 6.3 MP, not a big issue. One uses CF and the other xD. One is around $300 the other $350. So I guess now it just comes down which is more reliable and takes better pictures. Also, the Canon supports CF Type I, what exactly does that mean? What is the diff. between Type I and II? One last thing, on the A95 specs, it says CF Type I, and lists up to 256MB. Does that mean it doesn't support anything higher, like 512MB? Because I saw a 512MB card, and it said CF Type I. So I am a little confused. If anyone could clear up any of these questions I would appreciate it. Thanks.

SuperG
 
Fuji - 6.3 MP in a 1/1.7 sensor
Canon - 5.0 MP in a 1/1.8 sensor. 5 MP is great for everything up to, and even a touch beyond, 8X10 prints.

The fuji uses 2 AA batteries, the Canon 4 AA batteries. That implies the Canon lasts longer on a set of batteries (and borne out by the rated # of pics per charge for each camera). BUT - you'll probably end up carrying around the same number of batteris for either camera (4 sets of 2 (one set in camera) for the fuji or 2 sets of 4 (one in the camera) for the Canon), so its probably a wash.

Check the sample pictures at www.steves-digicams.com for each camera. Make sure you look at them full size, not auto-sized to the window.

The forced use of the 12 MP interpolation mode for the highest quality pics is a bummer on the E550, because in many of the other specs, (e.g. time to shot, optical zoom) it beats the A95.

BB
 
Well I checked out both those sites with sample pictures. Maybe it is just me, but since I have not really had a digital camera before, and have not seen that many digital pics before, they both looked pretty good to me. It is hard for me to decide which is "better". BB Gun, I don't understand what the x/x.x sensor means. Which is better? Also, as I asked earlier, does anyone know about the CF cards Type I and their compatibility/size. Thanks. I doubt I will need anything bigger than 8x10 prints, so does that mean I should just go with the A95? Well anymore opinions are welcome. Thanks.

SuperG
 
Tazman2 said:
Canon S1 IS?! Think of it as a A80 plus many more features and a tad less megapixels plus a nice zoom! Ohh and image stabilization too! =D
Click to expand...

Definately check out the S1 IS. Impressive little thing. Even though it's only 3.2MP, I have seen some damn fine images come out of this thing, and the movies will make your jaw drop. I don't personally have one, but I know a few people that do. I'm thinking of selling my G3 and getting the S1 IS as a backup to my DSLR. The only thing I don't like about it is that it uses AA batteries, but to some thats a plus.
 
For sensor size primer, check this out.

Its a little detailed, but the basics summary page listed here: gives this quick primer:

Most of the current small 5MP digital cameras use 1/1.8" sensors which are about 7mm x 5mm. They have an area 25x smaller than 35mm film and about 9.5x smaller than a small sensor digital SLR like the Canon EOS 10D. You might wonder why sensor size matters and that's a pretty complex issue. The bottom line is that, for a given pixel count, the larger the sensor (and hence the larger the area of the individual pixels) the better the image quality and the lower the noise level. While large sensor cameras like the EOS 10D can operate at the equivalent of ISO 3200 (though the image does get noisy), many consumer digicams with small sensors cannot operate above ISO 400 before the noise becomes excessive.
Click to expand...

The fuji and A85 have similar sized sensors, but the Fuji packs more pixels into it, the implication being that it will have more noise, on average, than the Canon.

BB
 
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