Digital Cameras

[leehack]

I really want a new camera and i simply have to put this to bed today and get one. My current compact is just not cutting it and many of the shots being taken of my lad are either blurred or simply not good enough quality to blow up. Some great photos and memories destined for the recycle bin.

I had some good advice off Jonty off forum regarding some recommended models. I have also searched the forum, but the best thread seems to be almost a year old now.

I want something that the wife can just press a button and therefore not present me with only 15 usable photos out of 80. I also want something that i can dable with and get a bit more involved. I am really undecided on whether to go SLR or compact. I want to be able to do some close ups for web photos and also want something that can take some action shots without blur and also present the facility to blow up to A3 if I want. I want quality images taken easily.

If anyone has encountered this dilemna lately or has even purchased a camera recently and you are prepared to spare 5 mins to explain, it'd be greatly appreciated. I want to get this done and dusted today. Where you got it from would be a great help too as prices seem to differ a hell of a lot.

In my head £200-£400 is what I am thinking, my breaking point is probably around £500. I want a full kit though, the camera, battery, case, card etc. I don't want to have to go elsewhere and make other confusing decisions.

Cheers

[Darren B]

Hi ya fella

Well i brought a canon ixus, there are a few varying models but perfect for the handbag and the quality is great, battery life excellent and they use sd cards so cheap for additional memory.

Now if your going for an SLR i have a prefer the canon (again) will be the EOS, these are a little over the £400 mark and come with or without lense - check before you buy. Digital format not 35mm

D

[Mark H]

"I want something that the wife can just press a button and therefore not present me with only 15 usable photos out of 80"

A friend of mine does that too, even with a high end SLR type - we narrowed it down to the fact that she presses the button without pre-focussing (as you would expect to be able to do, but very few digital cameras can really offer this). A small change in technique might help - on most cameras if you press the button down halfway it focusses the camera (maybe half to one second) then you press down all the way to take the photo when you want to. It's a pain, but if you don't do this you will have the same problem with many (most?) digital cameras.

[leehack]

I've shown her that Mark and she gets the face recognition mark and it goes green to say ok press fully now, but somehow her piccies are usually crap. The camera produces some stunning shots and then some you can't wait to see are just plain junk, especially when blown up. Enough is enough now. Current camera is an 8MP Nikon.

[Rich Brady]

Well under your budget. But I've had a Casio EXILIM Zoom EX-Z75 for just over 12 months now and whilst it's easy to use and takes a great picture it's been back twice to have the lens mechanism replaced.

The customer support however is top rate I phoned them, on this latest occasion a box arrived the next day for me to return the item. Within a week the camera has been fixed and returned.

I'm counting down now until it goes again...

[leehack]

Hmm Rich, customer service is great, but i don't really want to buy a camera that breaks regularly because it gets fixed quickly lol.

[Rich Brady]

Hmm Rich, customer service is great, but i don't really want to buy a camera that breaks regularly because it gets fixed quickly lol.

PMSL, Christ don't take that as a recommendation. I have no idea what Casio's other models are like, but I thought people, included a wise old man like yourself , would appreciate the heads up.

The plus side to this dilemma is that I don't have to worry about the storage costs associated with this camera because I very rarely have it.

Another point of note, it chooses the best time to pack up too. Half way through a 2 month trip of Oz and then the very beginning of a long weekend in Paris...

[Goz]

I bought an Olympus E-510 compact digital SLR about 7 months ago - the smallest DSLR on the market (at the time).

Came with 2 lenses - 14-42mm and 40-150mm lots more to choose from when you're ready.

I love it. The photos come out really clear. I find it easy to use. Plenty of options from fully auto to pre-programmed scene modes through to full control of aperture/shutter speed/depth of field etc.

Amazon are banging them out at £440 (which is somewhat less than I paid )

[leehack]

Cheers Andy, i wish i knew what the lens sizes meant lol.

[leehack]

Is this the Daddy?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canon-Digita...3552258&sr=1-3

[TraceyHand]

the Canon is a good camera.
I bought Nik the 350D for his birthday last year (he'd been desperate for a DSLR for ages) and he loves it. We've had some cracking shots from it too

btw, I had the same confusion not knowing what the lens sizes meant.. I managed to deduce that the 18-55 is pretty 'all purpose' but I think you need something different if you're doing close-up work? I know Nik bought an additional one for it.
I'm sure someone else can clarify.

[leehack]

I presume when we talk about lens, the front round thingy screws off and can be replaced with others for alternative perspectives/distances etc. I just want a camera that i buy it all now and need to get nothing, a great all rounder really. I have 5 minutes before i'm off to go look.

[Goz]

http://www.which.co.uk/advice/how-to...lens/index.jsp

http://www.trustedreviews.com/digita...Zoom-Lenses/p1

[Mike Hughes]

The Canons, Nikons and Olympuses are all great cameras. Go play with them at your local currys or whatever and see which one you like best.

Mike

[leehack]

That's exactly what i just did as we have a Comet and Currys right next to each other. This has helped but also hindered me I must say. The Canon 450D is just too big to be an every day camera, i cannot expect the wife to carry something like that around to take snaps of Travis. It would annoy me at times and I can appreciate why. This leads me into thinking that both an SLR and a compact is probably the way to go. An all new dilemna.....

£480 for an SLR that will not be used anything like as much as the compact is a bit silly, so i looked at some of the lesser models, the Canon 400, the Nikons and then i found an Olympus E410 that comes with 2 lenses and is only £300. They also have some good offers of cases and cards. On the surface that seems a really good deal, but then in the back of my mind, i have the 'why is it that cheap' gnawing away. You can see it here - http://www.currys.co.uk/martprd/product/seo/942260 along with all their SLR deals here - http://www.currys.co.uk/martprd/stor...1&tm=undefined

When you know so little on this stuff, i think you end up more scared of making a mistake, than you do excited about the product itself.

Then you are onto the compacts, this seems a great deal - http://www.currys.co.uk/martprd/stor...uct&sku=707054 but its much the same as the one we have now and then http://www.currys.co.uk/martprd/stor...uct&sku=826225 seems a real good camera on what i have heard about LEICA lenses and Panasonic.

How the hell do you decide, the Olympus SLR and the Panasonic compact would score what out of 10 as a package of 2 cameras to do most things? They say choice is a great thing and it is to some extent, but boy does it get confusing when you know so little about things.

Thanks to all who have responded and offered some advice, appreciate it.