A camera with some serious zoom

[e_dawg]

Can't wait to see some of the pics you're going to get with this thing, Tony!

For the other digicam hounds on this thread, any suggestions on a 4 MP? My 2 MP Olympus C-2040 just doesn't have enough dpi to be given the role of official travel camera, yet I want to make the transition to digital soon. 4 MP seems perfectly adequate to me, and with prices the way they are, this year looks to be the right time to make the switch for both myself and my father.

The Canon PowerShot S400 and the S45 look very nice for point and shoot cameras. Perhaps I can trust my technophobe father to 'go digital' on one of these? They also appeal to me because they are very compact -- and because of that, would be more useful than my bulky SLR's in travel and social situations, which never make it out to parties, pubs, etc. for obvious reasons. Of course, I looked at the G3 when it was on sale for $100 off a few weeks ago, but couldn't pull the trigger when the S400 is $200 cheaper at its regular price (and is only slightly below the G3 in terms of image quality according to some reviews).

What say you, photogs?

 

[e_dawg]

Oh, perhaps I should indicate which SLR's and lenses I have in case some may be suggesting a digital SLR as well (looking for a P&S now, but an SLR will inevitably follow, given my initial (although very modest) investment in lenses.

Canon EOS 10s + 35-135 USM lens... forgot the speed
Nikon F70 + 24-120 AF-D lens... forgot the speed

Love the 24-120 for traveling. Wideangle shots of scenery and buildings that most tourists struggle to make. Too bad the package is so big... wish a P&S would do it for me.

 

[blakerwry]

Ouch! My condolences.

I realize that I could have goten it for half that price, but it wasn't my money and I really did need it today. I guess that's the price you get to pay if you're a procrastinator (im not the one who procrastinated).

 

[Pradeep]

Can't wait to see some of the pics you're going to get with this thing, Tony!

For the other digicam hounds on this thread, any suggestions on a 4 MP? My 2 MP Olympus C-2040 just doesn't have enough dpi to be given the role of official travel camera, yet I want to make the transition to digital soon. 4 MP seems perfectly adequate to me, and with prices the way they are, this year looks to be the right time to make the switch for both myself and my father.

The Canon PowerShot S400 and the S45 look very nice for point and shoot cameras. Perhaps I can trust my technophobe father to 'go digital' on one of these? They also appeal to me because they are very compact -- and because of that, would be more useful than my bulky SLR's in travel and social situations, which never make it out to parties, pubs, etc. for obvious reasons. Of course, I looked at the G3 when it was on sale for $100 off a few weeks ago, but couldn't pull the trigger when the S400 is $200 cheaper at its regular price (and is only slightly below the G3 in terms of image quality according to some reviews).

What say you, photogs?

dpreview.com has three 5MP reviews out today. The Sony DSC-V1 looks pretty good for a small compact. G5 has fantastic battery life.

For a D-SLR the Canon 10D looks like good value for money, let's hope that the 1Ds comes down in price over the next year, allowing everyone to enjoy 35mm full frame sensors.

 

[e_dawg]

The Sony looks good. I wonder whether it's worth the premium over a Canon S45 or G3, though. But enough with the stupid memory stick already...

 

[LunarMist]

Oh, perhaps I should indicate which SLR's and lenses I have in case some may be suggesting a digital SLR as well (looking for a P&S now, but an SLR will inevitably follow, given my initial (although very modest) investment in lenses.

Canon EOS 10s + 35-135 USM lens... forgot the speed
Nikon F70 + 24-120 AF-D lens... forgot the speed

Love the 24-120 for traveling. Wideangle shots of scenery and buildings that most tourists struggle to make. Too bad the package is so big... wish a P&S would do it for me.

The first thing I would suggest is to pick one brand. If you plan to buy a digital SLR in the future, Canon is probably the better choice. Unfortunately, neither of your current lenses are very good. The only item I would consider keeping is the F70/N70, but it has limited compatibility with newer lenses. If image quality is very important then you will need to either cough up serious cash for high quality wide-angle zoom lenses, limit yourself to a few single focal length lenses, or use average zoom lenses at small apertures. If you specialize in buildings and scenics and are not using a tripod, a lens such as the Canon 28-135 IS or Nikon 24-120 VR (on a newer body) might be good choices. A digital SLR other than the 1Ds (not for the novice or faint of heart!) requires even wider lenses due to the sensor multiplication factor. If you are primarily taking travel snapshots then the image quality of a 5 megapixel PS camera should be more than sufficient. The convenience factor over a 6 megapixel SLR sways many into accepting the lesser image quality and versatility.

 

[e_dawg]

Lunar,

I see someone knows their photo equipment As you say, the image quality of my lenses are not that good... but I need convenience and practicality for traveling over image quality -- i.e., a single lens that could be used for 90% of the pictures that I would ever want to take on vacation. That means no fixed focal length lens nor low ratio zooms. After purchasing the Canon 35-135, I realized that 35 mm wouldn't cut it for scenery or building shots. When I first saw the 24-120 Nikon lens, I knew that was the lens for me. Canon didn't have anything directly comparable, and I wanted the Nikon flash metering, which was better than Canon's at the time. So, a new body and lens system it was.

Anyways, I need something with 24 or 28 mm on the wide end, external TTL metered flash capability (I have always been reluctant to use a P&S mostly because of the pitiful flash range and metering), and 4 MP resolution. Is there a digital P&S that satisfies those requirements? The Sony DSC-V1 with the 0.7x converter and the monstrous external flash seems like the only candidate.

Good point about the multiplication factor of the small CCD image sensors. I forgot about that. Important especially since I need the wideangle capability. You're right about the EOS 1Ds... it's out of my league probably for the next 2 years. I wonder how long it will take for them to lower the cost of production on large CCD's?

 

[time]

If you frame your shots carefully, 4MP is more than enough for even publishing in a book. The compact digicams are more limited by their lenses.

And there's much more to successful photography than resolution ... There's no guarantee a 5MP will be better than a 4MP.

I'm probably a little out of touch here, but last time I looked, the Nikon D100 SLR had some useful advantages when compared to the equivalent Canon model, particularly speed of operation. In this country, it and the lenses are also slightly cheaper. If you were only interested in the best possible camera, that would be a Canon, but that model's so exotic as to be the stuff of dreams rather than a realistic purchasing decision.

So I wonder at Lunar's cut and dried recommendation of Canon in SLR ...

 

[LunarMist]

So I wonder at Lunar's cut and dried recommendation of Canon in SLR ...

Huh? I only mentioned that Canon is the better choice in general and proceeded to give specific advice/opinion. My reasoning is that Canon is a much larger company with deeper R&D pockets which will keep it on the forefront of technology - in both SLR lenses and digital bodies. This may or may not be important depending on how often one upgrades equipment. I may be biased by being in a computer forum, where people seem to continuously turn over equiepmt to improve speed and performance. That is true to a lesser degree with lenses, and improvements in cameras (imagers) may start to slow soon.

Believe me, there are many advantages to using the Nikon 35 mm system, especially for flash work. Many people also prefer the controls and ergonomics of the Nikon bodies (I do), but previous experience with both systems should provide e_dawg some ideas in that department.

FYI, I own Nikon, Canon, Contax (35 mm RF), Olympus and Mamiya (6x7) equipment and use the best tools for the job. Also note that the full frame EOS 1Ds and Kodak DC14n use CMOS sensors. I don't think anyone can make a high resolution, full-frame CCD sensor that would not consume tremendous power.

I can't fairly comment on PS digicams, so I won't. I have, however, been tempted to buy one for some travel grab shots. Maybe when there is a 6MP one with the equivalent of a 28-105...