What point and shoot to buy, please help?

[yoak]

I´m off on a job where we will be traveling Norway from South to the North (71 Degrees North). I will cross amazing sceenery and have to bring a camera. I´m about to get a 20D, but I´m a cameraman on a TV show and can´t carry that extra wheight with me while working.

So I´m looking into buying a new P&S as my wife will bring our old Nikon Coolpix to Spain while I´m a way.

I liked the ergonomics and size of the Coolpix, but I would like more manual controll (like ISO settings etc.) and fast start up time.

I´m thinking of spending the equivalent of 300-450 US$.

You guys have any recomendations?

 

[Abstract]

Wow, there's so many. Ever look at Olympus? Some of their models look really good, and although I'm not sure how well they compare to current Nikon Coolpix, Pentax, Canon, or Kodak products, I'm under the impression that generally, all these brands take nice photos. I'm sure they're all going to allow you to adjust ISO as well. Most, if not all, cameras that offer a manual mode will let you adjust that setting.

I have a Canon SD300 and you can adjust the ISO on this camera. It also has a fast startup time. However, there are so many cameras that fit your needs that it's hard to know where to start. But again, take a look at Olympus.

 

[yoak]

Thanks Abstract. I will have a look at Olympus now.
I have seen the Fujifilm FinePix F11 get good reviews and my local photoshop has it in stock at a decent price

 

[emaja]

I have been looking for a new digicam too and have seen good things about the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ5 ($279) and the DMC-TZ1S ($349). Not sure if they are available in the European market.

THe LZ5 is a 6MP camera with a 6x zoom and the TZ1S is 5MP, but with a 10x zoom. Both will allow you to adjust ISO up to 1600, but like any digital camera, the noise will probably be too much over 400 or so. I think they both have Leica lenses which is definately a plus.

 

[ChrisA]

Olympus.

I've been telling everyone to look at the new top of the line Olympus. It's called the SP350. If has a f/2.8 lens with 3x zoom and maual everything plus a hot shoe should yu want an external strobe some day. They make some quality wide and tele screw on lenses fo it. It uses Quictime for it's video too.
http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/product.asp?product=1188&fl=4

You know it's hard to expose outdoor scenics correcly because of the digital camera's limited dynamic range. So make sure the camera you get does raw format and that Apple handles that camera's raw format well With 4GB CF cards don't worry about the space the large files use

 

[garfield2002]

Canon S2 or S3?

If you are thinking about a Canon 20D but are worried that it is too heavy, perhaps consider the Canon S2 or S3. My wife and I recently got the S2 because it has been marked down in price with the release of the S3. We paid $325 w/free shipping from buydig.com. We were considering a Rebel XT but decided that 1, it was too expensive, and 2 it was too big for our needs. After a ton of research we decided on the S2 since there were not enough new features in the S3, in our opinion, to warrant the higher price. In short we love the S2 and its 12x optical zoom that is optically stabilized. The movie mode is fantastic, however you need a large and fast SD card. We have always been fans of Canon cameras and the images that they produce. There are three digital camera review sites that I recommend you look at.

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

These sites offer lots of reviews on most of the digital cameras on the market. For each camera there are sample images to compare each camera against the others. Especially for digital cameras do your research before buying and you'll be happier. Good luck.

 

[yoak]

Thanks again. Thanks Garfield for th input on the S2, but I´m ok with the size of the 20D, just not on this trip as I´m working with a 13kg camera on my shoulder
I didn´t know dcresource.com, thanks for that one
I´ll keep looking

 

[yoak]

I got the Fujifilm F11 today. As I was picking it up my friend called and said I could get his 20D now as he just bought a new camera. I´m off for a month to try them out. Let you know what I think when I return