Help Choosing A Camera for Good Prints?

[polina]

Which camera should I buy?

I would REALLY appreciate ANY advice on which cameras to look at (or any other tips, considerations, suggestions) as I am fairly new to digital photography... THANK YOU!
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Budget
* What budget have you allocated for buying this camera? Please be as specific as possible.
I am willing to pay more for a good camera, but am hoping to get something in the $300 range (I'm not sure if this is realistic for what I want!)

Size
* What size camera are you looking for? Or does size not matter at all to you?
Ideally, something on the smaller side that can fit in a pocket if possible (ie, compact).

Features

How many megapixels will suffice for you?
The more the better since I want to be able to PRINT photos (at least 7, but more would be better)

* What optical zoom will you need? (None, Standard = 3x-4x, Ultrazoom = 10x-12x, Other - Specify)
NONE.

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

Do you care for manual controls?
YES!

General Usage

* What will you generally use the camera for?
Fine art photography & daily documentation.

* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not?
YES (I'd like to be able to).

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

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

Miscellaneous

Are there particular brands you like or hate? NONE.
Are there particular models you already have in mind?
Canon Elph, Lumix DMC-FX100, or other Lumix models.

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hotshoe, Rotating LCD)
I'd love a 28mm wide angle if possible.

THANK YOU for your help!!!

[AndyfromVA]

The Canon SD870IS is small, takes great photos and has the 28mm wide angle capability.

[KCook]

I like to think my 6Mp camera makes decent prints. But then I'm not a print fanatic. To examine the ImageQuality of any particular camera, look up the reviews for it on the camera sites like this one. Just be aware that when folks on message boards make a fuss about poor IQ they are often talking about low light shots at very high ISO settings. Which is where most compact cameras fall down anyways.

The cameras mentioned so far are very good. Just for fun I'd also look at the Canon SX100, Nikon P5100, and Panasonic LX2. Here are links to more rambles on camera selection -

Wide Angle w/16:9 ~350$ (http://www.dcresource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29040)

Need advice fast -- digital camera $300 (http://www.dcresource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36491)

Kelly Cook

[David Metsky]

The Canon SD870IS is small, takes great photos and has the 28mm wide angle capability.
The SD-series doesn't have manual controls so those are probably ruled out.

[AndyfromVA]

The SD-series doesn't have manual controls so those are probably ruled out.

True, I overlooked the need for manual controls.
The only small camera I can think of that has 28mm wide angle capability and manual controls is the Nikon P50, which has received pretty good reviews.

[KCook]

"Manual" control is often cited as a requirement. But in many cases I would think that Aperture priority gets you close enough. At least it puts you in the driver's seat for controlling the aperture/shutter combination used.

Kelly

[David Metsky]

"Manual" control is often cited as a requirement. But in many cases I would think that Aperture priority gets you close enough. At least it puts you in the driver's seat for controlling the aperture/shutter combination used.
But the SD-series doesn't have aperture controls. You can change WB and ISO, that's pretty much it.

[KCook]

Yup. 'Tis puzzling that Canon would leave the AV mode out of a design with so much horsepower.

Anyways, just trying to point out that the "manual" requirement needs to be treated with some care. If only more cameras that claim a manual option really meant it.

Kelly

[David Metsky]

Yup. 'Tis puzzling that Canon would leave the AV mode out of a design with so much horsepower.
Most people who buy ultracompacts never take them out of Auto. It would be more confusing then helpful to add more modes on a camera like this. The A570/590 have full manual controls is a slightly larger body. I'd love to have it but I more then happy just having the optical view finder. :)



Anyways, just trying to point out that the "manual" requirement needs to be treated with some care. If only more cameras that claim a manual option really meant it.
I don't think I've noticed this. Can you point me to some examples? Most cameras I've seen are either P&S (just WB and ISO) or full manual (Aperture, Shutter, Manual, plus sometimes manual focus).

[KCook]

Err, you just pointed this out to me! The Canon SD870 does have a shooting mode labeled "Manual". But when you get there it turns out you can set only the ISO and WB. I'm pretty sure that Canon is not the only make that plays loose with the "manual" label.

Kelly