Need some digital camera help!

[KootenayFlamesFan]

The wife and I are planning on buying a new digital camera in the very near future. We have an older Sony that isn't terrible, but has 2 strikes against it: The screen on the back is very small (around an inch or so) and most importantly, it takes a longgggggggg time between pressing the button and actually taking the picture.

We have a 5 month old daughter, and with our current camera we hit the button, a red light comes on, and it flashes twice. Needless to say, when you're trying to capture a smile or a great moment on film, having a 2 or 3 second delay before the picture is taken really ruins the moment. She goes from having a great smile on her face to looking confused at all the lights going off, nevermind the actual time it takes for the picture to capture in the first place. Very annoying.

The screen doesn't seem to be such a huge issue with newer cameras, as most that I've looked at have a 2.5 inch LCD screen which is fine.

However, I'm having trouble (being a rookie at this stuff) knowing which cameras take a quick picture. So......I have a few quick questions for all the fine folk on CP:

1) How do you know which cameras take quick pictures? Is that related to shutter speed?

2) I've read that getting a camera with a good lens is more important than megapixels. How do you know if a camera has a good lens or not?

3) How important is optical zoom? Is 3x or 4x enough, or should I be looking at at least 5 or 6?

4) Which camera makes should I look at (Canon, Panasonic, Kodak?) and which ones should I steer clear of?

5) Anyone have any suggestions for a camera they think would fit my needs at a cost of around $300-350 or less?

Thanks very much in advance for any help........I need it!

[GreenTeaFrapp]

A dSLR is really your best option but they're a couple hundred dollars out of your price range.

[BlackArcher101]

I recommend looking at some camera models you may seem interested in, then looking at them on www.dpreview.com

On that site, it reviews most camera's, close to all of them actually. It will tell you how long each camera takes from button press to picture capture and a lot of other things you'd never imagine to compare in the first place.

[urban1]

A DSLR will take better pictures but its bigger, more cumbersome, and can be a pain to carry around.

Heres a great site for reviews:

http://www.steves-digicams.com/

You can also link to forums at Steves where you can find great info and ask some questions.

Finally, go to the store and try the cameras. Bring your wife and kid and piss around with the cameras and find which one you like best.

[FurnaceFace]

1) How do you know which cameras take quick pictures? Is that related to shutter speed?

In my experience a lot of issues people have with taking pics is user error. Understand how the camera takes a pic: you press the button, it needs to focus on the subject and meter the light then figure out the right shutter speed. All of this you the photographer used to figure out but now the camera handles it. It's faster than you but it still takes some time.

The correct method is not to just tap the shutter but to depress the shutter about half way, which will allow the camera to go through the process above (the red light is for the auto focus) and then when ready squeeze the rest of the way to open the shutter. by following this method the camera will be "ready" to take that cute expression. Also by slowly depressing the button you'll help prevent camera shake which is frequently a cause of blurry pics.

2) I've read that getting a camera with a good lens is more important than megapixels. How do you know if a camera has a good lens or not?

Lots of camera now come with lenses made by a lens manufacturer (Zeiss for example) which doesn't necessarily mean it's good but it helps. Ensuring it's an all glass lens is the biggest concern however, for taking pics of your kids and printing them off on 4x6 prints or tossing on a website for grandma to see, I don't think any camera will steer you wrong.

biggest thing on Megapixels is having an 8mp camera does you nothing if all you do is print 4x6 prints. You'll have similar results with a 3mp camera. Focus on the other features like easy menus, fast start up time, the LCD, whether it gives you action modes, if it's good in low light for those birthday pics with the candles, that sort of thing.

3) How important is optical zoom? Is 3x or 4x enough, or should I be looking at at least 5 or 6?

Depends on what type of pics you take but assuming you're taking shots of your daughter and general family shots 3x would be fine. Remember if you can move to get closer to the subject do so ahead of using the zoom.

4) Which camera makes should I look at (Canon, Panasonic, Kodak?) and which ones should I steer clear of?

All manufacturers make a good camera and all make dogs so it should depend more on features you like.

5) Anyone have any suggestions for a camera they think would fit my needs at a cost of around $300-350 or less?

There are tons. Best go into a camera store you trust (or maybe someone here works at one?) and try out some models. I have in the past recommended visiting Saneal on 9th ave and talking to Steve. I've bought a few cameras from him and been in the store when someone comes in not really knowing what they want and he's given them good advice and good recommendations. He can come across a bit used car-like, but he's a good guy. I do recall him pointing someone at an Olympus because it has a feature to reset the camera back to default settings which is great in case you've played around with the settings or your daughter has mashed a bunch of buttons and you have no clue how to get out of a certain mode.

EDIT: both of the sites listed in the other posts are very good sites.

[Table 5]

stick to nikon or canon and you won't go wrong. There are other brands that can get you a good camera, but these two will almost always deliver a good product.

[FireFly]

I bought a Panasonic Lumix and LOVE it. Super easy to use, great zoom, great pictures.

[Cube Inmate]

FWIW, I have a Nikon Coolpix 4600 (16 months old)...quite happy with it.

Pros: Very small & portable, enough optical zoom for most snapshots, shutter release time is great (when I use the correct techinque, as per FurnaceFace's post), easy to use menus, good quality shots even in plain old automatic mode.

Cons: Only 4 Mpix...fine for normal shots, but can't really be enlarged. Small LCD screen--only about 1.75"...price you pay for compactness. Flash takes a long time to recharge (3-5 seconds).

[MRCboicgy]

I just got the panasonic lumix DMC-FZ8 and I totally love it, just a ton of features to learn how to use, but in 3 weeks, I've got the hang of it and it the quality of the pics is starting to show as my ability increases.

[FurnaceFace]

Originally Posted by Cube Inmate

Cons: Only 4 Mpix...fine for normal shots, but can't really be enlarged.

What are you enlarging to? I have enlarged 3mp images to 8x10 and when hung on a wall you'd be hard pressed to see any pixelation.

Interesting article on photosig:
http://www.photosig.com/articles/110...72bkdAVhOLGLMh

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Wow...........lots of great info and advice everyone! Many thanks!

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

I recommend looking at some camera models you may seem interested in, then looking at them on www.dpreview.com

I actually started looking at that site just last night. Lots of info, and zillions of reviews. Definitely a nice site for a newbie like me.

Originally Posted by FurnaceFace

info, info, info

Terrific post, Furnace. Lots of stuff I didn't know before. Much appreciated!

Originally Posted by Table 5

stick to nikon or canon and you won't go wrong.

Yeah, I've heard lots of good things about Canon.......the wife also uses one at her work and loves it. She's leaning towards that brand, but I'd still like to check out a few others first.

Originally Posted by FireFly

I bought a Panasonic Lumix and LOVE it. Super easy to use, great zoom, great pictures.

Originally Posted by MRCboicgy

I just got the panasonic lumix DMC-FZ8 and I totally love it, just a ton of features to learn how to use, but in 3 weeks, I've got the hang of it and it the quality of the pics is starting to show as my ability increases.

I was looking at a Lumix and it looked pretty appealing. Good to know you two are happy with it.

Thanks again everyone..........much appreciated!!

[prarieboy]

We just got a Canon A710IS and it has been really good. It starts up fast and is ready to go. We are also using it to photograph our young kids so I understand your concern regarding speed. It's MUCH faster that the Sony we have that just died.
Might be another option for you to look at.

[Canada 02]

Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan

it takes a longgggggggg time between pressing the button and actually taking the picture.

We have a 5 month old daughter, and with our current camera we hit the button, a red light comes on, and it flashes twice.

sounds like you have the red-eye reduction on. Even new cameras will flash twice and have a short delay in snapping the image. Newer models might be better in that they will write the image to your memory card faster than older cameras, but the best way to get around this delay is to turn off the red-eye reduction. You can always use photoshop or whatever photo editting software you use to eliminate the red-eye later.

[FurnaceFace]

I have the Canon S3 IS (as does Barnes) and it's a very good camera. Big arse zoom and lots of good features as you get more into manual mode and other options.

One added feature I actual use a bunch is it's good VGA quality video. I can see this being handy for taking quick video memories of the rugrat. The vids are no where near the quality of an actual video cam but they aren't half bad on a TV and are good on the computer monitor. I think you can get a 1gb video which is about 9 mins in time. Having sat through really long (read: boring) videos, having clips of a few minutes in length are more than enough for most to sit through.

The image stabilization on the Canon and a number of other cameras is a good feature.

[I_H8_Crawford]

I am a big fan of Panasonic and Canon - the great thing about the Pana cameras is they all come with an image stabilizer and usually have a higher optical zoom than similarly priced cameras.

Also if you buy the higher-end Panasonics you get Leica lenses - amazing lenses.

Canon also makes some great cameras.

Avoid Sony they suck.

[Canada 02]

Originally Posted by I_H8_Crawford

I am a big fan of Panasonic and Canon - the great thing about the Pana cameras is they all come with an image stabilizer and usually have a higher optical zoom than similarly priced cameras.

Also if you buy the higher-end Panasonics you get Leica lenses - amazing lenses.

Canon also makes some great cameras.

Avoid Sony they suck.

Don't know if that is true anymore. Sony uses Zeiss lenses on many of their cameras - they are right up there with Leica and Canon lenses. They also bought Konica Minolta, and have integrated their technology into the fold. The reviews on sites like dpreview.com and others sounds like Sony has some very good products.

[I_H8_Crawford]

Originally Posted by Canada 02

Don't know if that is true anymore. Sony uses Zeiss lenses on many of their cameras - they are right up there with Leica and Canon lenses. They also bought Konica Minolta, and have integrated their technology into the fold. The reviews on sites like dpreview.com and others sounds like Sony has some very good products.

The lenses are good, the problem that Sony has is their CMOS sensor isn't very good (strange, considering their camcorders have excellent CMOS sensors)

Generally speaking, if you compare a Sony Digi Cam pic to one from a Canon for instance, the Sony will have a LOT more red in it. The photo generally isn't as clear either.

Sony needs to work on their digi cam CMOS sensors, then they will have a good product. Until then, I'd stay away from them.

[Canada 02]

Originally Posted by I_H8_Crawford

The lenses are good, the problem that Sony has is their CMOS sensor isn't very good (strange, considering their camcorders have excellent CMOS sensors)

Generally speaking, if you compare a Sony Digi Cam pic to one from a Canon for instance, the Sony will have a LOT more red in it. The photo generally isn't as clear either.

Sony needs to work on their digi cam CMOS sensors, then they will have a good product. Until then, I'd stay away from them.

thanks for the info. I'm also looking for a camera and was considering a sony or a canon SLR

[Maserati]

good post..the lumix is a lovely camera

[GreenTeaFrapp]

Originally Posted by I_H8_Crawford

The lenses are good, the problem that Sony has is their CMOS sensor isn't very good (strange, considering their camcorders have excellent CMOS sensors)

Then why does Nikon use Sony CMOS sensors for many of their highly regarded DSLR's?