money not an option

[fashionable.photographer]

hi i want to buy a digicam that has the ff::confused: :confused:


at least 2.5" lcd; usable in dark and bright conditions

over 5 megapixels

pocketable

with little manual controls

good in macro shots; will take pictures of insects, text, etc.

good in moving objects

preferably makes warm pics not some bluish stuff.


:p

[coldrain]

How small do you want it to be? Pockets come in many sizes. The smaller the camera, the less manual settings they usually have. The most important is white balance anyway.

The Sony W and Canon SD series are compact, have good lenses, and produce good colour. The Canon SD700 IS with its image stabilization will help a bit in lower light when you do not want to flash.
Better in lower light is the Fuji F30, but it is a bit bigger and also can be a bit difficult colou wise i think.

[John_Reed]

hi i want to buy a digicam that has the ff::confused: :confused:

Check out the Panasonic DMC-TZ1:
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/66360538-L.jpg
(It's the one in the lower RH corner of the magazine page. I shot this while holding an "in-flight" magazine on my lap on an airplane)



at least 2.5" lcd; usable in dark and bright conditions
Yep, it has a 2.5" LCD, I've successfully used it in bright sunight and dark conditions inside bars at night.


over 5 megapixels
Would right at 5 MP do it for you? That's where the TZ1 lies.

pocketableThe TZ1 has a "folded" optical path, making possible a very compact design, yet still having a fast lens (f2.8-4.1) over a long zoom range (35 to 350mm equivalent). I can fit it in my jeans pocket, but I prefer to carry it in a little belt pouch for easier accessibility. It's small enough to fit into a shirt pocket, but it's heavy enough to drag the shirt down in an "unfashionable" way.

with little manual controlsThat's the TZ1's "stock in trade." It's fully automatic, but with enough things one can vary through various "scene modes", as well as exposure compensation, to make it quite flexible.

good in macro shots; will take pictures of insects, text, etc.The magazine spread above shows text, and it was taken in "Macro" mode, but you can also get closer:
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/66601311-L.jpg

good in moving objects
Let's see, how about a flying object?
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/64362467-L.jpg
I took that shot while following the bird in flight to freeze its action better. Of course, at low shutter speeds, if your camera isn't moving and your subject is, it could get blurry, like in the following baseball scene, shot at full zoom:
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/94061705-L.jpg
In that shot, you can see motion blur, particularly the swinging bat, and the passing ball.

preferably makes warm pics not some bluish stuff.
How's this for warm? (Me and a friend with flash, taken by a bystander)
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/66693452-L.jpg
That image is straight from the camera, with no post-processing at all.

Certain Panasonic detractors hereabouts will tell you to stay away from the Panasonics, because they're so "noisy." I've taken only about 15,000 snaps on my Tizzy, and noise hasn't really been a big issue. Here's one more example of a night shot I took with flash in a bar at ISO 400:
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/66512364-L.jpg
This was one of the first ISO 400 shots I took with Tizzy, and I frankly expected to find some noise, but I didn't. I printed this one up at 8X10. It looked very sharp and colorful, and the couple has it framed and hanging in their living room, they liked it so well. I'm not saying I haven't seen noise, but when I have, it's been very easy to clean up with Neat Image, my NR program.

[Riley]

John
thats letting your photos do the talking :)
Im sorta partial to the LX1, but admire that range of cameras especially the Leica version, but recognise the economy of TZ1

Riley

[fashionable.photographer]

john,

thanks a lot. i'll definitely look into the Panasonic DMC-TZ1.
i forgot to include in my post that it has to be also good in low light. but since you already posted the pictures, there's no more problem. :)

[John_Reed]

Abe Lincoln of Washington, D.C., at 6:40 AM one morning (1/40 second handheld):
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/79003247-L.jpg
John Brown, hanging in a Washington gallery (1/4 second handheld):
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/80502043-L.jpg
Here's a Japanese colleague, shot at ~140mm, 1/6 of a second at ISO 400 in a Washington restaurant:
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/81585473-L.jpg
Los Angeles at night, handheld from hotel (4/10 second, ISO 200; this one required some noise reduction):
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/65394256-L.jpg
Another L.A. at night, propped on rail, 15 seconds in "Starry Sky" scene mode:
http://john-reed.smugmug.com/photos/65394272-L.jpg
For me, "low light" shots haven't really been a problem with Tizzy?