Camera

Hi pingme, i have an Fuji S602zoom n its a Great Camera....
Best buy i ever did.....If you want 8x10 or larger prints then you use the 6megapixel that gives you a file size of 2832 x 2128..
Use the JPG Fine Mode...That way you can crop n still print 8x10 n have an Excellent print...It is Great with Batteries, n you can use an External Flash with it...Go to dpreview.com and read about it..pop into the Fuji Forum, best forum around and a great bunch of peeps in there......Honest m8, you can't go wrong....
Good Luck...

Hmmm...

I had forgotten to mention in my previous post that another important feature which is missing on many otherwise great digital cameras is an external flash attachment. Pretty much all the professional level digicams have it, but many of the moderately priced models don't. Bad oversite on the part of manufacturers!

:(

What does mp have to do with cropping?? I went on the dpreview and was browsing around, What an awesome site!

http://www.canon.ca/english/index-pr...23&gid=2&ovr=1

Can I make this recommendation? I have the S200. Very compact, super easy to use, and solid metal (not plastic) body.
I've had it a year and very satisfied.

Howdy

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Originally posted by pingme
What does mp have to do with cropping??

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Not sure if I can word this correct but I'll give it a try :)
Take a picture of a person with a 3 mp camera then take one from the same spot with a 6 mp camera...now crop just the persons head from each and print one of each at 8x10...You will see the benefit of 6mp. Others can be much more technical than that but that's a good practical test for you.

buck

Hi pingme, these are interesting articles, which explains MP.

http://www.megapixel.net/html/issueindex.php?lang=en

http://www.megapixel.net/html/issueindex.php?lang=en

Good luck.

Hello,

Thanks for recommending the web site dpreview, this site is awesome!!

From not knowing much about digital, I have narrowed my search down to the cameras listed below.

Canon -
Powershot S50
Powershot A70
S400

Pentax -
Optio 550

Olympus -
Stylus 400
C-50 Zoom
C- 5050 Zoom

Sony -
Mavica CD500
Dsc-P92
Dsc- p10
Dsc -F717

Kodak
LS443

Minolta -
Dimage F300

I don't know if you can call this narrowed down but it is a start.

I think the first thing you need to decide is whether you want something small that you can always have with you or a larger camera you take along for photography. I have both a Minolta D7i and an Oly C50. The Minolta is a more competent camera, but I take more photos with the little Oly because I never leave home without it. I like them both for their own reasons.

The D7i has an excellent 28 – 200 lens with a big manual zoom. Since it isn’t on your list I won’t bother you with the particulars, but I think it is better at most things than any camera you have listed.

I got the C-50 last year and several of the small cameras have come out since. I have a strong preference for 5Mp, but if you are sure you won’t need the pixels there are more to choose from. The Canon S50 is an overall more competent camera than my C50, but I wouldn’t trade even for one. The extra size and weight is a big factor for me since I always carry the thing. If you are buying only one camera and the size of the S50 is OK for you it is a great camera.

The only camera I would consider trading for right now is the Pentax 550. It is the exact same size and slightly heavier than my Oly, but has a 5X zoom. The S50 has slightly better optics, but the Pentax is amazingly good for a 5X lens on a camera that small. This is Steve’s report: http://www.steves-digicams.com/2003_.../optio550.html It is a good site for a second opinion. This is his main camera page: http://www.steves-digicams.com/hardware_reviews.html

The Canon S400 is a very competent camera if 4Mp is suitable to you. One problem with small cameras is that the optical finders typically show only 80-85% of the image. You usually frame with the optical finder, so right away you are losing 15-20% of your pixels. The Canon S400 and S50 show only 82%. Other than the 4Mp the S400 is an excellent little camera.

Of the large cameras you picked the Sony 717 is excellent for low light situations. It has a fast lens and focuses with a special holographic focus aid which is great. You can see nearly in complete darkness through the viewfinder because the internal IR filter can be completely bypassed. It shoots only in JPG because of the limitations of the proprietary Sony memory when it was released. I’m not to crazy about the Sony memory cards.

The Oly 5050 has a fast lens, but has some shortcomings I don’t like. The main one is the optical finder. They are OK in a little camera that has no room for an electronic finder, but that isn’t a pocket camera and should have an EVF. An optical finder gives no feedback and makes you go to the LCD for settings – which is hard to see in bright sunlight. It is nice that the LCD flips out – I wish my Minolta did that. The 5050 is a nice camera, but if I can’t put it in my pocket I would want a longer zoom range and an electronic viewfinder. It is also noisy and has chromatic aberration more than most.

People with the Minolta F300 really like it, but in that size camera I think I prefer the Canon S50. The one thing the F300 has that the S50 doesn’t is a full time tracking auto-focus. It keeps focusing until the shutter fires, so if you are trying to nail perpetual motion rugrats the F300 might be the better choice. My big Minolta has that feature and my little Oly doesn’t. It really makes a difference trying to get shots of something that doesn’t sit still like a 2 year old.

Both the F300 and S50 use AA batteries, so you can buy NiMH rechargeables inexpensively. But the F300 uses SD and the S50 uses CF. CF is faster and about half the cost per Mb with all the specials going on CF. You will have to get a bigger card no matter what camera you buy.

The Oly Stylus 400 is water resistant, which is nice. But it is basically point and shoot. You might grow out of it. In a small 4Mp camera I would much prefer the Canon S400. It has a focus assist lamp, manual mode, manual focus, and has CF cards rather than xD on the Oly. It also has a noise reduction built in for night shots. That combined with a much longer exposure capability give it great night shot capability. Just keep it out of the rain.

I would suggest re-evaluating your size requirements and narrowing it down to just a couple of cameras. Then go to the boards that specialize in those cameras and ask for a comparison. You can count on the Canon boards recommending Canons and the Oly board recommending Olys, but you will get a lot of first hand experience reports.

Hi Slipe, Very well put, Well said m8....Notice you in dpreview from time to time....keep up the Good Work m8.....

PingMe my friend, all good cameras you have mentioned, but before you buy, try n pop into a shop n handle a few of em...
Decide on what you are going to use it for.....
Size, zoom, cards (what cards does it take) (do it use more than 1 type of card), batteries, (i prefere Ni-Mhs), does it take Raw, Tiff, JPG, or all 3..and lots more to decide on.....If you very good in PS7 or others then consider RAW, if Not, go for Tiff & JPG..
Don't just go for size alone, you could end up being dissapointed..
As I said earlier, I have a Fuji S602zoom (you did not mention it) maybe cause you decide it's to big.....But it does everything I want, n is near to dammit as good as my 35mm...Put into a bag for shoulder or waist belt n you can go anywhere...Even put a can or two of Coka cola in, or bottle pop...
The Sony 717 is good but like Slipe says, i Don't like the Sony Memory Sticks either....
Digital is an Expencive Commodity to start with, So THINK before You Buy....Once bought, your stuck with it......
Good Luck, n Please Let us ALL Know what you decided to Buy..
Take Care...Dennis..

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PingMe my friend, all good cameras you have mentioned, but before you buy, try n pop into a shop n handle a few of em...

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Excellent advice, scarecrowdr. Make sure the camera "feels good" in use. Some of the small ones are easy to carry but difficult to use, even to the point you can't keep your fingers from in front of the lens.

Hello,

Looks like I might be buying the Olympus c-5050 soon.

Thanks

I bought the Olympus C3000 a year and a half ago and REALLY LOVE it! If Oly's other cameras are this good, I would recommend it for you.

Pick up a 128 MB card (you'll be glad you did) and I eventually bought 3 sets of GOOD NiMH batteries & charger.

These are excellent batteries (rated Editor's Choice by PC-Photo):
MAHA batteries and charger

After all the reviews I went with the Olympus c-5050. Thanks for all your suggestions. I should be getting it in 3 days.

I think you made a good choice (but I'm bias).

Respond back after you've used you new digi for awhile, and give us your opinion. ;)

Hello,

Now that I am getting my new Oly c-5050 on 6-27 I wll need to start looking for a printer. Are there any recommendations?? I am looking not only to print photos but also text. A all in one printer would be nice.