Point & Shoot question

[angelsfort]

Hiya! I'm not entirely sure that this is the right place for this question BUT...

I was wondering if anyone had a good suggestion for a point & shoot camera? I would like to get one, but I don't want to end up with a piece of junk. I'd like to have a camera that small enough to have with me all the time. My DSLR is a bit to large to carry with me everywhere... and there are many times that I've been out somewhere and wished I had something other than my cell phone camera with me.

Anybody have a point and shoot that they are really impressed with?

[angelsfort]

I find it hard to believe that nobody on here has an opinion!!

anyone??

[Athena]

Sorry Dianna - I've only just seen your question. I don't often visit the snapshots forum. Maybe the same for other people?

I have a little Canon G7. I highly recommend it. There is a G9 available now that can shoot RAW, but for what I want a P&S for, I don't need RAW.

I'll move this thread to Photography Talk. Maybe more people will see it there.

[mcbit]

I recently bought a Panasonic Lumix FX100 and a Panasonic Lumix TZ-3, both of them are wonderful P&S cameras in most situations and really the only thing that lets them down is the low light performance at high ISO. The FX100 is exceptionally small with a 28mm (equivalent) wide angle at the short end of the zoom but although a little bigger I love the equivalent 28-280 zoom of the TZ3.

As a longtime Canon P&S and DSLR user it pained me to buy them but Leica WA zoom lenses persuaded me to follow the Panasonic route.

[jfrancho]

I carry an old Canon S500 Elph everywhere. Its just a 5MP and very simple, but includes a video mode, simple EC, and some other goodies. My sister has a newer model from this series, and shutter lag is greatly reduced and it has IS. Great little cameras. If I were to get a new compact digicam, it would be one the waterproof OLY models: Olympus | Stylus 850 SW Digital Camera (Black) | 226325 | B&H.

[lviperz]

I have used and love the Canon A570. I gave 2 of my kids the A560 and they love the ease of use and I love the quality of pictures. I also have an A570 at work and love the fact it has full manual control. The A570 is like having the best of both worlds, fully auto for those quick snapshots and manual when you want to get creative.

[ladyphotog]

It makes it easier if you get one that uses the same type of memory card as your DSLR as well.

[motox424]

I have absolutely loved my Kodak Z10!!!!!! Amazing quality pics!!!!

[angelsfort]

Although I am a die-hard Nikon fan... it seems as if the Canon line of p&s camera's are pretty awesome... so far, that looks like the way I'll be going! but I'm still in the "research" stage of this! Thanks to everyone for your input!

p.s. motox, I couldn't find any info on a Kodak Z10... I've got a Kodak Z740 which I love, I've taken some great photos with it (and blown a few of them up to POSTER SIZE with great results!) but I'm searching for a little camera that I can shove in my pocket and have with me all the time.

I checked out the Nikon Coolpix cameras... not a lot of reviews, for one thing, and a lot of the reviews that were there weren't very good... how can Nikon make such awesome DSLR camera's and lousy p&s??

[motox424]

Originally Posted by angelsfort

p.s. motox, I couldn't find any info on a Kodak Z10... I've got a Kodak Z740 which I love, I've taken some great photos with it (and blown a few of them up to POSTER SIZE with great results!) but I'm searching for a little camera that I can shove in my pocket and have with me all the time.

??

the Z710 is an outdated(non-production) camera like the Z740. This is a sample from the Z710--staright from the camera--NO PS!

[angelsfort]

Yeah! that's what I'm talking about. I love the Z740 for the same reasons! But it's just a tad to large to stick in my pocket! (okay, more than a tad) It's definitely lighter though that my Nikon DSLR!!

great picture!

[mcbit]

TZ3 at max zoom from about 50'. No PP

[fpm8aal]

Hi Dianna

I'm a Nikon user myself, and was looking for a smaller P&S camerra myself. I came to the same conclusion as you did, as much as I love my Nikons, Nikkors and Speedlights I could not find a P&S camera with the Nikon name on it that I liked.
So I bought my first Canon ever, a Powershot G9. And I must say I'm very impressed with the quality and usability of this camera.
Image quality is superb for a small camera, (low light situations suffers from the small censor) it has Image Stabilisation, a good videomode, and as a DSLR user you will feel comfortable using Apperture-, Shutterpriority and manual modes. I can even use my Nikon speedlight in the hotshoe (in manual mode) as it can be used as a remote flash triggered by the in camera flash.

For the price it's a very good camera. It's not too small and flimsy, and has a quality feel about it.

I'm new to this forum, so I don't know how to put images in this message, but you can see an image I took with my G9 in my gallery.

I only wish Nikon had made it. LOL

[Driftwood]

Another vote for the Canon G9 from a Nikon SLR user.

The G9 is bigger than most of the digital compacts on the market, but personally I prefer it that way as I find it easier to hold it steady.
Image quality is good at 100 ISO, but I avoid increasing the ISO if I can.

I have been very happy with prints up to 16"x12" from the G9 (ISO100). It is a lovely camera to use once you learn its limitations.

Watch out for the viewfinder. The viewfinder image is significantly less than the final image (something like a 75% crop viewfinder). However the LCD screen is excellent, and usable in all but the strongest lighting conditions.

[badpickev]

the best all around p&s available is the fuji f40 or f45. the f45 is sold only at ritz camera. it is the best low light p&s on the market right now.

[Rockbottom]

I own a Kodak Z712 IS which my son has now. He has taken some amazing shots that I would not have thought came from a p&s. Since earlier this year, the Kodak Z812 (??) has been out.
Might be worth checking out.