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View Full Version : Looking for first camera...Need help



Infrared Sight
11-17-2007, 02:05 PM
I am looking for my first digital camera for myself. Here is the stuff I have narrowed it down to.
Which camera should I buy?

Budget
$200-$400($400 is kind of pushing it though)

Size
I want a small camera that I can carry around in pocket/jacket pocket.

Megapixles
I don't really know. I have seen 7-12 in stores. Whatever can give me the best with my money i guess.

* What optical zoom will you need? At least 3-4 more if I can get it though.

* How important is “image quality” to you? (Rate using a scale of 1-10)
9-10. Pretty important.

Do you care for manual controls?
Not really. I do like the auto settings on my camcorder and would like that to continue.

General Usage

* What will you generally use the camera for? Shooting daughter doing stuff like indoors, outside as well like the park, beach, ect.

* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not? Probably 8x10 would be the biggest i would ever need. 5x7 and 4x6 will be the most common.

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

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos? Yes.

Are there particular models you already have in mind? No. New to all of this. Need suggestions please.

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hotshoe, Rotating LCD). If I can get them without going overbudget, but mainly the camera will be just for point and shoot kind of thing with my family.

photography555
11-17-2007, 03:12 PM
If you want a camera that is good in low light and is compact, you really only have three options-the Fujifilm f40fd, f50fd, and E900. These aren't actually as good as the f31fd in low light, but it is discontinued.
If you don't care about the low light that much, than basically any Canon ELPH would work for you. If you don't want to spend very much, you could get the Canon SD1000.
The Canon SD850 IS is also a nice choice. If you want 12 megapixels, the SD950 IS would be good.