Need a New Camera - Suggestions?

[Todd Willhoit]

I accidentally removed the battery from our trusty Canon PowerShot S110 while the power was on. The lens is stuck out. I get an error message and cannot get the lens to retract with a fresh charge or factory reset.

So...I am looking for suggestions for a new camera. Something similar in form and function would be nice as my wife likes to toss it in her purse. We have had four Canon P&S cameras over the years so I may be partial to the brand.

Any ideas, thinks to look/lookout for?

Todd

[David Masters]

I don't have a recommendation, but if you Google factory reset Canon PowerShot S110, you will see instructions on how to do it.

[Todd Willhoit]

I have already tried this with no success. Believe me, I wish it would work!

[Stan Calow]

Todd I had the same Problem with my Canon. Re-set did not work. I decided I could not replace with another Canon because of the potential for it happening again. I replaced it with Nikon Coolpix, where the lens does not protrude. My main criteria was finding a camera that still ran on AA batteries, so it was an older model that I found on Amazon. I think the Canon was better quality, but in my price range and for my usage, they're all about the same.

[Todd Willhoit]

This is the first issue we have had with Canon. The first two were AA powered because I knew I could always get batteries. (As far as I am concerned, the 3.2MP A70 from 13 years ago had the best picture quality.) The LIon batteries of late seem sufficient and keep the body smaller. I bought a Panasonic several years ago and exchanged it, for a now unknown reason, for this latest Canon. Maybe the Canons are just familiar...

[Rich Riddle]

I also use a Nikon Coolpix and love it. Highly recommended.

[John K Jordan]

I've worn out several of the small Canons. I did have a stuck lens once. This might sound crazy but did you try smacking it soundly. I held it in one hand and smacked it against the heel of my other hand, maybe while pushing the power button, I don't remember. If it is otherwise hosed you won't make anything worse.

JKJ

[Dave Lehnert]

I had a Canon camera and gave up on it when I kept getting an error the battery was dead and shut down. Fresh batteries or not.
Would work for a bit then act up again when you wanted it to work like at a wedding or something important.

I have a Samsung now. Good camera but pictures not as sharp as the Canon. Good enough for me.

[Mike Henderson]

I just bought a Canon SX720HS (https://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-SX720-HS-Black/dp/B01BV14I40/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473653237&sr=8-1&keywords=canon+sx720hs) and like it. The reason I bought it was the 40X optical zoom. It has some minuses, the lack of a panoramic function being one of them. The other issue is that in auto mode, it chooses a slow shutter speed so you get blurred shots if your subject is in motion. I compensate by using the T function and setting the shutter speed.

I wanted a camera with a long zoom that would fit into my pocket. If that's not important to you, this may not be the camera for you.

Mike

[Kev Williams]

I have a Sony DSLR and a GoPro I hardly use, wife takes all the pics & movies with her iphone. I only drag out the Sony if I'm feeling 'artistic'... ;)

As for the smacking, try it- I also have a 13 year old Sony F-707, I use it to take sample pics for work. About half the time I turn it on it says "No memory stick"- at which point I give the flat backside of the camera a good slap...

[Mike Hollingsworth]

I think DSLRs are dead weight when it comes to family photos. Today's phones take incredible photos.

[Mike Henderson]

I think DSLRs are dead weight when it comes to family photos. Today's phones take incredible photos.

I agree. The only reason I have a small camera is for the zoom lens. If phone cameras had zoom lenses I'd only use the phone.

Mike

[Malcolm McLeod]

.. If phone cameras had zoom lenses ...
There are numerous varieties available for them.

[Jerome Stanek]

The Nikon p900 looks to be a real good one 83X zoom

http://www.wimp.com/the-holy-mother-of-zooming/

[Mike Henderson]

There are numerous varieties available for them.
Yes, I've looked at most of them and they all had some defect in my opinion. Some only work if you don't use a case, and all of them stick out which can catch in your pocket. When they make a phone camera with a built in zoom that is flush with the unit and allows you to use a case, I'll be happy. I want an optical zoom, not a digital zoom.

If the lens stuck out when you were using it but was flush when you weren't using it, that would satisfy me, also.

Mike

[Steve Peterson]

I think DSLRs are dead weight when it comes to family photos. Today's phones take incredible photos.

I am not sure I agree completely with that statement. Cell phones can take incredible photos, but there are also times where they take very bad pictures. The light has to be just right and you have to have a perfectly still subject. They work great for taking pictures of people in full daylight.

We just got back from a vacation where my wife had her cell phone and I had a Sony A5000 with 2 lenses. Her phone is a Motorola Droid that is less than 1 year old, so I suspect that it is at least average image sensor quality. About 3/4 of the cell phone pictures needed to be tossed because of graininess or blurriness. Less than 1/4 of the Sony pictures had the same problem. The biggest difference was when we were taking pictures from the top of a moving double decker bus. Nearly all of the cell phone pictures were blurry. The Sony still took crisp clear pictures.

Of course, the downside is the weight of the full body camera. We often leave the zoom lens behind, but have it when we need it.

Steve

[Art Mann]

I agree with Steve's assessment 100%. Phone cameras are to DSLRs what a Ryobi jobsite saw is to a Sawstop ICS. There is a narrow application range where either one will do fine but when you get into challenging situations, there is no comparison whatsoever.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

What kind of photographs do you want to take and at what level of quality?

Some cellphones take nice photographs but they can't really compete with the photo quality of a good DSLR in the hands of an experienced, talented amateur or professional photographer.

It really depends on what you want as far as quality, how much camera equipment you want to haul around, how much you want to spend in time and money to become a good photographer. Yet, the new DSLRs with autofocus can produce some beautiful images in the hands of an amateur! I know! I am a rank amateur and I just bought my 2nd DSLR for use on our upcoming trip to Ireland.

[Art Mann]

Most phone camera photos never make it out of the camera and are always viewed on a tiny screen or Facebook page. If that is all you want then a phone camera is ok. This has become the new standard of photography such that some people don't even know what good photography is. If you download your pictures to a computer and view them on a big screen TV, or print them large for hanging on the wall, then the difference in a real quality camera is immediately obvious.

[John K Jordan]

Most phone camera photos never make it out of the camera and are always viewed on a tiny screen or Facebook page. If that is all you want then a phone camera is ok. This has become the new standard of photography such that some people don't even know what good photography is. If you download your pictures to a computer and view them on a big screen TV, or print them large for hanging on the wall, then the difference in a real quality camera is immediately obvious.


This is so true - if you ever get a chance to take a cell phone apart you will marvel at the tiny, tiny cameras and other components. Compare to the lenses and sensors in a quality DSLR with a good lens and it's no wonder that the quality suffers in the cell phone cameras.

The huge value of using a "good" camera is the ability to change from one incredible lens to another as needed.

The big value of a small camera is the portability. I have a pile of good gear but when I travel it is simply more than I want to carry around (and protect). The pocket cameras today are amazing in both size and function, and of course in the cost of both the equipment and per digital shot.

The overwhelming value of using a cell phone camera is that it is always at hand. This is the first generation where a large percentage in much of the world carries a camera with them all day every day simply because it is so portable and affordable and useful. This, of course, is causing a revolution in things that seldom got photographed before, some good, some bad. This is probably not going away.

One perhaps interesting thing about cell phone cameras. Some are surprisingly good even with the tiny lens and sensors. The quality depends largely on the light, of course. I've been a "photographer" for love and career for over 40 years and have had many photos published and used professionally as well as incorporated in my own specialized field. The photo below is a milestone for me though - my first magazine cover photo taken with a cell phone! I was at a llama ranch when a crew was shooting for the big screen. Just for fun I shot a few dozen pictures with the camera I had in hand - a Motorola cell phone. This "snapshot" was selected for this journal not because of the quality but because it told the story. For many purposes, the story is far more important than the image quality. Of course, the cell phone photo of the glossy printed cover with the cell phone photo (!) suffers from horrible contrast and other problems, but the original was good enough for the editor. Fortunately, it didn't need to be full page which helped a lot!

344070

The point is: consider the use of the photos. Within the limitations, even the lowly cell phone camera can be perfect for snapshots, memories, video production, documentation, evidence, and far more. These everyday photo uses far exceed those where high quality equipment is necessary.

Just for fun, the little pocket camera can be taught some tricks which make it even more useful when you happen to be in the right place at the right time. I took the photos below with a tiny Canon PHD camera (Push Here, Dummy) in Glacier Nat park. The first photo is the camera zoomed in on the moose in the lake. I took the second picture from the same spot but with the help of my compact Leica binoculars, hand held, leaning against a log. (with extreme photo resizing and compression, of course)

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The pro, of course, might cringe at the sharpness, but it is certainly better than no photo!

JKJ