This Mommy needs a great camera:)

[ascrowell]

I am soooo overwhelmed with the amount of great options & choices for digital cameras. Any help would be greatly appreciated:) Thx in advance:)

Budget

* What budget have you allocated for buying this camera? Please be as specific as possible.
Prefer $250, but willing to go up to $300 if the perfect camera is found.
Size

* What size camera are you looking for? Or does size not matter at all to you?
Ultracompact would be great.

Features

How many megapixels will suffice for you?
8 to 10, willing to go down to 7

* What optical zoom will you need? (None, Standard = 3x-4x, Ultrazoom = 10x-12x, Other - Specify)
I would really like at least 5x. I have two boys that are constantly running in opposite directions. My current 3x isn't quite cutting it.

* How important is “image quality” to you? (Rate using a scale of 1-10)
8
Do you care for manual controls?
I am not overly picky with the controls.
General Usage

* What will you generally use the camera for?
Family, my boys in sports, last minute shots, both indoors & out. A priority is the shot to shot speed. I currently feel like I'm missing some really great smiles from my kids.
* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not?
Probably not bigger than 5x7, but you never know when that great shot happens & the picture should be bigger than 5x7.
Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos?
Yes
Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?
Yes
Miscellaneous

Are there particular brands you like or hate?
I currently have Nikon. It's been great. I also like Sony, Canon, Olympus, Casio.
Are there particular models you already have in mind?
My list is huge because I just can't seem to narrow it down. Here are my current fav's. I open to other options.
Canon 890
Sony W150
Casio Z200
Olympus 840
Nikon Coolpix s550
Olympus 1010
Canon 840

Special features: Would like Image stabilization, great video since I tend to use this feature a lot & include them in my DVD's from my camcorder.

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hotshoe, Rotating LCD)

[AndyfromVA]

I notice you have the Canon 840 as one of your possible choices. However, Canon does not make a camera with that name. Perhaps you mean the SD870IS?

Of the cameras you mentioned, the Olympus Stylus 1010 has the longest zoom. It's a very good all-around ultracompact camera. The Canon SD890IS has probably the best picture quality but it doesn't have a long zoom and it's very expensive.

[KCook]

5X optical zoom is hard to find in ultracompacts. From your list my own preference would be the Sony W150. But I don't need super speed and you did say that "A priority is the shot to shot speed." For that the Olympus Stylus has an advantage. When I played with a Stylus 1010 in the store I experienced very lazy focusing while zooming. Triggering the camera for a shot no doubt it would tighten up the focus, but looking at a poor focus while framing was annoying. The Stylus 840 does not have this problem, so I would be happier with that. Or the particular 1010 that I picked up may have been defective. But that is something I think you should check before selecting the 1010. I see Olympus is already coming out with a 1020, don't know if it fixes this problem.

Kelly Cook

[ascrowell]

The Olympus was appealing because it was 7x. But, is max shutter speed something that should be looked at more than shot to shot.
Olympus 840 2000 1/x sec
Canon 890 1500
Sony 150 1600
Sony T300 1000 (I have recently added this camera to my list)
Casio Fz200 1000
The Casio only has 4x optical zoom but it seems to have some cool video at higher resolution than the other.

[jekostas]

The Olympus was appealing because it was 7x. But, is max shutter speed something that should be looked at more than shot to shot.
Olympus 840 2000 1/x sec
Canon 890 1500
Sony 150 1600
Sony T300 1000 (I have recently added this camera to my list)
Casio Fz200 1000
The Casio only has 4x optical zoom but it seems to have some cool video at higher resolution than the other.

I'd not worry that much about max shutter speed - it's very rarely a problem of not having it fast enough.

[ascrowell]

Thanks for the reply.....That's one less thing to weed through. Any personal thoughts on the Sony T300 or FZ200?

[KCook]

I agree with jekostas. Even 1/200 sec will stop most of us in our tracks.

The specs for the Casio Z200 really are impressive. But figure on this as a snapshot camera. The one review I could find really panned the lens quality. To see this Google on "Casio EX-Z200 Review" "Conclusion". In any event, Casio is about to come out with a Z150. Which may or may not give better images.

The Sony T300 is very slick. But pricey at $300+. For a 5X compact the Canon A720 IS, Olympus FE-340, Panasonic LZ10, and Sony W150 really are better values.

Kelly

[ascrowell]

I have narrowed it down to 2, leaning towards the Olympus........Any thoughts? Seems like both of these cameras have great reviews, have basically the same features, with the Olympus being less expensive. Any reason to spend the extra $. Thank you:)

Olympus 840
Canon 890

I keep going back & forth on the Sony W150. Some reviews are great, some are questionable. Think this camera shoudl stay in the running?

[KCook]

At one time or another I've owned cameras by all of those brands. In my view they are all respectable. Just going by the reviews online the Canon does have an edge in image quality. But for everyday snapshots that edge becomes invisible, so the high price is a real issue for this choice.

The Olympus vs Sony makes a more interesting comparison. Sample shots for the Olympus using flash are outstanding. But the controls on the Sony are slightly more advanced, should you ever want to get more serious about the technical side of photography. I'm a gear head, so I'd go for the Sony. But I will certainly agree that the Olympus is a valid choice. Especially if flash is important to you.

Kelly

[ascrowell]

Thanks Kelly for your expert input. I am now waivering between the Olympus & the Sony. If I can find the Sony on a great sale to match closer to the Olympus ($187), I think I would now lean towards the Sony. At least it's now down to 2:)

[ascrowell]

I went with the Olympus. I just received it Saturday & it seems to have a lot of clicking sounds when it focuses. Click...click...click...click...It seems to be very noisy. Is this normal? My previous digital camera (Nikon) only clicked when I initally pressed the shutter button. Is this due to the IS or maybe the 5x optical?
Thanks! Amy

[KCook]

"very noisy" certainly doesn't sound right. I would check into returning the camera. Better to do that soon than put it off. These things happen, I did return a new Sony this year.

Kelly

PS - I tried a couple of Olympus Stylus 840s in the store this evening. Didn't hear any clicking. If anything quieter that your typical point-and-shoot.