What camera should I buy? Please help!

[Schmecky209]

Budget

* What budget have you allocated for buying this camera? $200-$400

Size

* What size camera are you looking for? Compact or Small

Features

* How many megapixels will suffice for you? 4+

* What optical zoom will you need? Standard = 3x-4x, Ultrazoom = 10x-12x

* How important is “image quality” to you? Very important, I would rate it a 9

*Do you care for manual controls? I would like to have some manual controls

General Usage

* What will you generally use the camera for? Pictures of my dog, family/friends, concerts/events

* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not? Yes, I always seem to enlarge my photos

Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos? Yes

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos? If my dog running around counts, then yes!

Miscellaneous

Are there particular brands you like or hate? I was looking at Canon, Nikon, Kodak...but anything is fine

Are there particular models you already have in mind? I was trying to decide between the Canon A520, Nikon Coolpix 5900, or Kodak Z730 (formerly DX7440)

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? I would like macro and wide angle capabilities built in, and I want good quality video mode

***Basically I am looking for a camera that has (1) excellent picture quality, (2) great video mode, (3) some manual controls, (4) compact/small in size (5) optical view finder if possible. It seems everything out there only has 2 of the 3 I'm looking for. I'm looking to upgrade my current digital camera which is very basic. Please help me!!

[jessie25]

Based on the criteria you listed, comparing the Canon A520, Nikon 5900 and Kodak Z730 (by the way, I own the A520):

(1) Excellent picture quality - I'd rate the Canon first, closely followed by the Nikon, and the Kodak last.

(2) Great video mode - Both the Kodak and the Nikon will outperform the Canon here. The Canon only lets you record 30 second clips and the resolution isn't all that great.

(3) Manual controls - the Canon has full manual controls and the Kodak has quite a few. The Nikon has limited-to-no manual controls.

(4) Compact - the Nikon is the smallest of the three, followed by the Canon and the Kodak is a little larger. All are purse/coat pocket size but none are tiny.

(5) Optical viewfinder - all three cameras have one.

As for the rest of your criteria:

-None of the three have wide-angle capabilities built-in. I know the Canon supports a conversion lens, but wide-angle compact cameras are few and far between. If this is of critical importance, take a look at the Fuji E500/E510, though there are other tradeoffs.

-All the cameras listed have very good macro modes.

-Since you listed mostly action uses for your camera (family/friends, dog, concerts), I should mention that the Canon A520 is not the fastest camera out there. It is a bit sluggish in startup, shot-to-shot, and flash recycle times. Both the Nikon and Kodak should be better on this front.

Other cameras to consider: Fuji E550, Sony P150, Sony W5, just to name a few.

[Schmecky209]

Thanks for your reply and advice.

I looked at the 3 cameras you mentioned (Fuji E550, Sony P150, and Sony W5). Would you reccommend these over the Nikon 5900 or Kodak Z730? I like the features the Canon A520 has to offer, but I really would like a nice movie mode. Are Kodak's manual modes worth it? Does Nikon compare to the Canon (with exception of manual controls)?

Does Canon offer the best pictures quality out there? I'm just affraid the Nikon or Kodak will give me less then desired picture quality -- which I will take a weak movie mode over any day.


Thank you!

[Schmecky209]

Thanks for your reply and advice.

I looked at the 3 cameras you mentioned (Fuji E550, Sony P150, and Sony W5). Would you reccommend these over the Nikon 5900 or Kodak Z730? I like the features the Canon A520 has to offer, but I really would like a nice movie mode. Are Kodak's manual modes worth it? Does Nikon compare to the Canon (with exception of manual controls)?

Does Canon offer the best pictures quality out there? I'm just affraid the Nikon or Kodak will give me less then desired picture quality -- which I will take a weak movie mode over any day.


Thank you!

[jessie25]

There's no easy answer - a lot comes down to personal preference. The photo quality of the Nikon and the Canon is probably comparable. There are pros and cons to each. It comes down to what you prefer, so I suggest taking some of the sample shots off the reviews and having them printed, and looking at them yourself to see what you're happy with.

[braveheart]

one thing is Fujifilm has great max pixel which in F810 -- that up to 4048x3040 at 12M pixel that much bigger than other camera and it much smaller and easy to pocket -I own one and used 1GB xd-picture card (cheaper at www.mymemory.co.uk) -- it still great camera Ive used also very fast with USB 2.0 to PC by few seconds, very impressed!!

[jessie25]

The Fuji E550 isn't really 12 megapixels, the superCCD is doing something like interloping the 6 megapixels up to 12, as best as I understand. I'd tend to see it as a 6-megapixel camera.