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gafftape
05-25-2006, 02:06 AM
Budget
Maximum About $300

Size
Not super important. AA batteries is a must so that means the ultra compacts are all out.

Features
I like the image stabilizer idea but nothing really stands out. Just want easy shooting of good quality pictures.

How many megapixels will suffice for you? 4-7

What optical zoom will you need? 4-6

How important is “image quality” to you? (Rate using a scale of 1-10)
7? My old camera is a 4 megapixel/3x zoom Olympus I've been very happy with that.

Do you care for manual controls?
Not needed. I've always just used the automatic settings.

What will you generally use the camera for?
Snapshots of the kids and vacations.

Will you be making big prints of your photos or not?
I've made the occasional grainy 8X10 print as a novelty but it's usually 4X6 or 5X7. i have a Canon Pixma IP 4200 printer.

Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos?
Indoor shots of the 2 year old playing with the dog... all the time.

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?
Once in a while but not all the time.

Are there particular brands you like or hate?
I have an old 1 megapixel Canon that still works great. I love my Canon MiniDV video camera. I have a 4 megapixel Olympus and the menu buttons on the back have stopped working... AHH.

Are there particular models you already have in mind?
Mostly the Panasonic DMC-LZ5 and the Canon A700. I've also looked at the Canon 540, 610, and 620.

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hot shoe, Rotating LCD)
No, I like the image stabilization but I'm not sure if I truly need it.

In short, I want a top point and shoot camera that has the best combination of megapixel and optical zoom as I can afford. AA batteries are a must. The majority of the pictures I take will not be printed in larger than 5X7 but I do like to mess with them in photoshop, so the more pixels the better.

I've been looking mostly at the Panasonic DM-LZ5 and the Canon A700. Both are 6 megapixel/6X zooms with the came CCD size. Both have the AA batteries. Both have a variety of programmed shooting modes. I think the image stabilizer on the Panasonic could come in handy with indoor snapshots. It also sounds like the Panasonic is faster turning on and between shots than the Canon. On the other hand the Canon seems to be a lot more popular. I can get the Panasonic and 2 gigs of high speed SD for the same price as the A700.

What do you think?

GDD
05-25-2006, 03:44 AM
From what I have read your spec is close to mine.

The Canon A610 is a good family cam. Much recommended. I have handled it and to be honest if I wasn't looking for a cam with long zoom I would buy it.

A key point; the higher the zoom you can get the better.
If you wanted something with more zoom, from your spec: the 12x Zoom Canon S3-IS or S2 for you would be a good choice.

The A700 and Pan Z5 are a happy medium. I'd say in terms of Image Stablisers, from experience with the A610, to be honest there were camshake issues in some shots. So I'd plump for the Pan Z5.

To be frank Canon is the first choice for family cams. And thier flipscreen is a killer for any of the competition. (A610/S2IS)

To climb into your skin I would highly recommend the Canon S2/S3 for zoom reasons then the A610 a close second.

If you could live without a flipscreen I'd say the Pan Z5 is a good choice too. Then again I have heard it has some noise issues.

To prove I'm not trying to flog anything to you. I'm going for a Fuji S9500, its manual orientation attracted me it doesn't fit your spec.

--Note this is my opinion. Though being bleary eyed from research I'd say it is a fair one.--

bascom
05-25-2006, 12:50 PM
Size
Not super important. AA batteries is a must so that means the ultra compacts are all out.
Not so. See my posts here (http://dcresource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17419). The Casio Z120 and Pentax M10 are two small ones that use AA and may be good for you.

I agree it's close between the LZ5 and the Canon A powershots. Do you want a viewfinder? That's one strike against the LZ5. Also, based on the reviews here it sounds like the Canon A's have better photo quality than the LZ5, so I would go with a Canon. You said 4x zoom is enough so how about the A530 or A610 instead of the A700? Will save money.