Which ultra compact best fits my needs?

[thepunkerguy]

Alright, well I had bought a Casio Exilim EX-Z77 7.2MP camera and am pretty disappointed. I took it with me this weekend to a car show in Panama City and the picture quality was very disappointing when I got back and looked at it, especially in low light. Here were my problems with it:

- All my night time images were VERY grainy and distorted. I just wanted a nice, clear picture of the sunset, but they all look horrible! I bet my camera phone could have done better!
- The day time pictures had quite a bit of blurriness around the edges which made them look really poor
- Overall, the low light and indoor pictures were just horrible..

Here are the things I am looking for. I want the best I can get for the money I can spend.. I need something better than this Exilim EX-Z77!

1. $200 or less price range (e-bay, or where ever, I don't care where I get it)
2. Great low light / indoor / night pictures (I take most of my pictures in low light situations and in doors at parties, but I also take quite a bit of pictures in the day time at car shows, so I need a good balance)
3. Preferably some type of image stability, I don't want blurry pictures!
4. Preferably an SD-Card slot, but if I can get better picture quality with a camera that uses something else, i'd rather have the better quality!
5. I need it to be able to fit comfortably in my cargo pocket or jacket pocket. I hate carrying the thing around all the time or having it pull my pants down from being too large and heavy in my pocket!

What can you guys recommend?
- Mike

[AndyfromVA]

The Fuji F40fd or F50fd will give you the best low light photos among ultracompacts. Also look at the Panasonic FS3 or FS5 or the Nikon S700.

[thepunkerguy]

The Fuji F40fd or F50fd will give you the best low light photos among ultracompacts. Also look at the Panasonic FS3 or FS5 or the Nikon S700.

I was looking at the F40fd, my question is, if the camera does the best in the low light situations, where does it stumble in other areas that makes it not the best overall camera in all areas compared to others in this price / ultra-compact range?
- Mike

[David Metsky]

Except for the F40, all ultracompacts are going to have problems in low light. If this is a deal breaker for you, then you have to look at the Fujis.

You shot in Auto mode, I assume. You can do better by setting the ISO to the highest acceptable value (probably 200 or 400) and using a tripod or learning how to brace effectively to keep the camera still for the long shutter speeds that are going to be needed. IS would help a little, but not really enough in this case if your subject is moving. With still objects (like a car at a car show) you would get some improvement, but people will still be blurry. The only way to fight that is to have a faster shutter speed and that can only be achieved by higher ISO or a flash.

I suspect that the Canon ultracompacts (SD850 or new SD1100) would have better bright light performance, and the Sony ultracompacts are quite good as well, but they won't perform as well in low light as the Fuji F40.

[thepunkerguy]

Except for the F40, all ultracompacts are going to have problems in low light. If this is a deal breaker for you, then you have to look at the Fujis.

You shot in Auto mode, I assume. You can do better by setting the ISO to the highest acceptable value (probably 200 or 400) and using a tripod or learning how to brace effectively to keep the camera still for the long shutter speeds that are going to be needed. IS would help a little, but not really enough in this case if your subject is moving. With still objects (like a car at a car show) you would get some improvement, but people will still be blurry. The only way to fight that is to have a faster shutter speed and that can only be achieved by higher ISO or a flash.

I suspect that the Canon ultracompacts (SD850 or new SD1100) would have better bright light performance, and the Sony ultracompacts are quite good as well, but they won't perform as well in low light as the Fuji F40.

Yeah, I did shoot with my exlilim in auto mode, but that is sort of what I am aiming for on the go. I really don't want to have to spend forever messing with the ISO settings if i don't have to. I will do it when I really want to get the best image I can. I found the F40fd for $129 at beach camera after MIR, I think that's pretty damn good. I found good deals on the F50fd as well, but from what I read it doesn't do as good at night, and the F30fd (which you can't find at a good price anymore) does the best at night out of the three. So does the F40fd have any sort of image stability or are walking people just going to be blurry and thats it? The exilim has pretty good stability control, it even stops my fan blade well while spinning, but I typically don't take pictures of moving things anyway. I was looking at the canon ultra compacts, but I don't think they do as well in low light situations :-(
- Mike

[AndyfromVA]

"Image stabilization" won't help with moving subjects. What you need is a camera that focuses quickly. Like all small cameras, the F40fd will focus more slowly in low light, but out of doors it will focus quickly, which means you should not have a lag problem.

[David Metsky]

IS doesn't freeze the fan blade, fast shutter speed does that. IS helps with slow shutter speed as mentioned above.

Changing ISO is very quick and painless. Once you get used to it you won't even notice. It's an easy way to make your current camera to more, and any future camera be better. Low light isn't easy for any camera.

The Canons are no better/worse then the Casios. Sony may be slightly better, especially the newest models. Not sure yet about Panasonic. Fuji's F30 certainly was the apex, things have gone downhills since then.

[thepunkerguy]

IS doesn't freeze the fan blade, fast shutter speed does that. IS helps with slow shutter speed as mentioned above.

Changing ISO is very quick and painless. Once you get used to it you won't even notice. It's an easy way to make your current camera to more, and any future camera be better. Low light isn't easy for any camera.

The Canons are no better/worse then the Casios. Sony may be slightly better, especially the newest models. Not sure yet about Panasonic. Fuji's F30 certainly was the apex, things have gone downhills since then.

What do you think about the F40, think it should show a decent improvement over my casio?
- Mike

[tim11]

If you aren't happy with F40 you won't be happy with any PnS cameras; in lowlight that is.
Check out sample images in DCRP Fuji F40 review (http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/fuji/finepix_f40fd-review/).

[thepunkerguy]

Well, I went ahead and ordered the F40 for $129 after mail in rebate, so I will try it and compare it to my casio EX-Z77 and sell the one I like the least.. We will see what happens!
- Mike

[David Metsky]

What do you think about the F40, think it should show a decent improvement over my casio?
I haven't owned either camera. You're best bet is to read the reviews and look at the sample shots.