Digital Camera opinions please

[Rick Gifford]

I have a decent camera - Olympus something or other... but it literally takes 8 - 10 seconds between shots. I cant stand it anymore.

Any opinions on a camera with faster recharge time under $500?

I just take pics of family, granddaughters antics, woodworking etc. I am not needing a camera for sports photos or real high end.

Id love to find something with recommendations that takes nice pics and is quick at it too.

I know there are cameras out there that are very fast and sharp pictures, but they cost big money and I cant justify that for my use.

[Peter Stahl]

Seems like that's the way most point and shoot type cameras work. I bought a Digital SLR which will take them quickly and one right after the other but I think they are usually over $500 range.

[Stan Johnsey]

Canon G10 and soon G11 is a point and shoot on steriods right at that $500 mark if you shop carefully. It has a faster cycle time than most point and shoot.

[Darius Ferlas]

There are a few models of SLR cameras that you can get under $500. These are the same cameras that would have cost over $1K just a year or two ago - lense included. SLRs will lhave a point a shoot mode too.

Depending on various things, you may want to make sure the camera you get accepts readily available batteries. Proprietary ones are usually more costly and you can't get them in a corner store if you run out of juice during that wonderful trip here or there. I'm not a pro so I make sure I can run my digicams on AA batteries.

As for point and shot cameras there is a whole whack of them on the market. Too many to go through them here. I'd say Nikon (juicy color) and Canon are some of the best. Sony is not far behind.

I'd say one of the best sources of information and reviews is http://www.dpreview.com. Just be careful not to get caught in too much sensitivity over all of the specs. Some reviewers are pros and will notice things you and I wouldn't even know matter. At the same time, they will be perfectly happy with a $100 table saw.

[Brian Kent]

Canon Power Shot A1100 IS. 2 frames per second continuous. Under $200.

Canon Power Shot X10. $379.

Canon Power ShotG10. $489.

My kids have bought a range of Canon cameras recently and they keep on amazing me, whether the compact variety or the larger size. Lens and image quality comes first, and then they also amaze me on their eatures.

I recommend http://www.imaging-resource.com/ as an excellent resource for reviews, sample images, "Find the Best Camera for You", etc. I came up with the first recommendation by plugging in the criteria and ended up with the same camera my daughter bought.

[Mike Conley]

We just recently purchased the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS3. So far we have been very happy with our purchase.

This camera also serves as a HD camcorder.

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/panasonic/dmc_zs3-review/

[jim hedgpeth]

My wife and I have a Fujifilm finepix s1500 we bought 4 months ago. It has been great so far. My only complaint realy is indoors, the flash can wash some colors a little, and without it kind of easy to get blurring.

Outdoors, excellent. I picked this one for the big zoom and price combination. We gave just a couple bucks over 300 with extended warranty, camera bag, and a pair of 2GB sd cards There are turkey around where I deer hunt and they don't let you get very close. I haven't had a chance to get a pic of them yet but this one came out great... (sorry it didn't go where I wanted it)

You can see the dew droplets and hairs on the ? stamen? I think thats what its called. I was standing about 3-4' away looking down from the porch trying out the zoom. It does rapid shots but too, but gets slow like you were talking about in rapid fire mode. Single shots, snap push shutter button to half to focus and snap again, no noticeable lag, and we didn't even get a "fast" sd card.

Jim

[glenn bradley]

The delay between shots also drove my new camera purchase. I am no photographer so I needed a camera smarter than me. I went with a Canon Rebel. The version I have will take 3 flash shots in a row by holding the button, supports wired and wireless remote and can be completely manual all the way through full auto (my usual setting). I believe the newer version does more shots in a row, has a few more pixels and has integral image stabilization.

[Chuck Wintle]

I just bought a Canon and it works well. What the others said. get a Powershot.

[Ken Garlock]

Hello Rick.

A little over a month ago I purchased a Canon SD1200IS "point and shoot (http://www.amazon.com/Canon-SD1200IS-Stabilized-Light-Gray/dp/B001SER48S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=photo&qid=1252615847&sr=1-1)." The nice thing about it is that it has a separate view finder indepndent of the LCD screen. It also had Lithium Ion batteries. We used it on our recent trip to Redmond OR. to visit our son and family.

With 10 Mega pixels, it take very good pictures, and continuously adjusts it focus so that there is a minimum delay when setting up a picture. We shot over 100 pictures before needing to change batteries. Another nice feature is that it transfers the photo to the hard disk in less than 2 seconds, something our old camera couldn't begin to do, more like 4 or 5.

No it is not a Rebel SLR, but on the other hand it costs about 1/4 the price of the Rebel.

For an easy to use, slip in your pocket camera, we are very pleased.:)

[Alan Trout]

Rick, DPReview is a great source for expert camera opinions. Not many DSLR cameras in the under $500 range. There are some nice point and shoots available. All of the point and shoots when you get to higher ISO settings tend to get a little noisy but for most of us with the print size we use they are more than acceptable.

Like mike I recently purchased for my work a Lumix ZS1 compact surper zoom. It is basically the same camera as the ZS3 minus the HD video. It records video just not HD. These 2 cameras are pretty much on top when it comes to image quality for compact super zooms and they are really easy to use. I have been impressed with the camera and its Macro capability is very good. The ZS1 can be purchased as a kit right now at Cosco for about $240 which includes a leather case and 2 gig SD card. which is a pretty good deal.

Also the LX3 by Lumix and the FZ35 are highly regarded far as image quality go on no DSLR cameras. Most of the Lumix cameras use Leica optics.

Good Luck

Alan

[Rick Gifford]

Hey everyone I appreciate the replies on this. I am going to lookup the listed cameras. I always prefer direct recommendations over online reviews!

[Tony Joyce]

If you are talking about the recovery time between shots. The memory card can have some bearing on this, look for a high speed card 250X to 300X or Class 6. This could make an appreciable difference, besides memory is cheap now, or at least cheaper than a camera.

Just my .02 cents, free advice is usually worth what you pay for it!

Tony127641

[Jim Rimmer]

+1 on the Canon Powershot for what you describe your doing. Love mine. Takes great pics, battery lasts long time. I went on a ten day tour of Israel, took hundreds of pics and the battery didn't give out till the last day.

And if something happens to it you don't have a small fortune in it.

[Joe Pelonio]

I was amazed with the quality of my new Nikon Coolpix L100. It was a gift but I think they can be bought on sale for under $300. Huge screen, and a real lens with optical zoom. No time at all between pictures and the 4 AA batteries last for several hundred pictures.

[Josh Reet]

I have been nothing but impressed with the Panasonic LX3 that I have been using for the past 6 months. It is just a great camera. Good in low light, nice wide angle lens (wider than others here) for indoor shots, and small enough to easily carry.

That having been said, I've never been let down by any of the Canon powershot cameras I have used either. Their SD series of point and shoot cameras are great as long as you don't find them too small for your fingers. I've taken those things all across the world.

There are plenty of values out there in DSLR cameras that are a few years old. But unless you are really interested in learning photography (or have specific requirements like hooking up to studio flashes) this might not be the best bet for you. DSLR's are big and heavy and good lenses are big/heavy and also expensive. I know plenty of people who have dropped big coin on a DSLR setup only to never bring it with them because it was just too cumbersome. The best camera in the world is the one you are likely to have with you.

I've been a professional photographer for over a decade and I currently run one of the largest photography community/education websites in the world (photo.net (http://photo.net), also a good place for camera advice). So on this topic I can reasonably be expected to have sound advice.

Unlike, for example, woodworking where I am still a total beginner.

[jim hedgpeth]

Lot of nice cameras listed for you, and you know the owners are happy. If I was looking again I'd tab the specs for each and see which one fits you best. I doubt any of these will disappoint you.

If photography is something you enjoy maybe get one with "room to grow". The fuji I mentioned does multi shots, video, and has full auto well as many things that are beyond me so far.

Good luck,
Jim

[Joe Pelonio]

Here's one I took yesterday with the Nikon L100

[Dar Lounsbury]

I'm with Joe. My wife and I get very good photos from our Nikons.

[Dave Johnson29]

I have a decent camera - Olympus something or other... but it literally takes 8 - 10 seconds between shots. I cant stand it anymore.


Rick,

Instead of rushing out to spend, spend, spend, I would suggest looking at why it is taking so long.

If you have it set to auto focus and always flash then the intervals will be long. If you can set the focus to the range you are using and set the flash to either off, or fill-in both will shorten the interval dramatically.

A neighbor had an Olympus with the same problem and she was trying to take pictures of dogs and it was very frustrating for her. I went though the manual and then set the flash off and the focus to 1 to 5 Meters and she was a happy camper.

Time to drag out the manual. :D
{edit} Oh, and also turn off red-eye which shows a light a for about a second before the shutter. Another thing you will be waiting for.

[Matt Stiegler]

I think you should be considering an entry-level DSLR (Nikon D40 is the one I'd recommend, $400ish new with a nice lens included). Not as convenient as a little point and shoot, but better image quality (way better, in some situations) and a lot more room to grow, and it shoots three shots per second with basically no start-up lag. And if you shoot on automatic settings, there's no more learning curve than a point and shoot.

In woodworking terms, IMHO point-and-shoots are circular saws, and DSLRs are table saws. Circular saws are plenty for most average folks and a whole lot more portable than a cabinet saw. But if you think you might want to get a little more serious about it, that circular saw probably won't get you there.

So before you rule out a DSLR, I think its worth asking what you're looking for.