A camera with manual controls advice

[westy79]

Im taking a beginners photography course in a few weeks with my girlfriend, she is using my ixus 970 but im after a camera where i can use some manual controls. Im not too confident buying an SLR so can anyone offer advice on a camera where i have a bit more control. I have already posted a few topics about the best DSLR cameras but i just want to keep my option open

Have looked at the canon a570/590 but seem to be getting average reports.

Are there any panasonic cameras that fit the bill

[JLV]

The FZ line is worth looking at.

[Paulinho_BR]

Hello!

I have a FZ-18 for 6 months now and I love it...Its a great all around camera with full manual control and awesome AUTO mode too.

Sometimes is nice to have a good AUTO mode, you will not have time to set up the camera, so you just turn tha wheel to IA and shoot.

Now you can get an FZ-18 for a budget price or get an FZ-28 that have a bigger sensor, HD movie, 2.7 LCD, etc...


Panasonic, Sony, Samsung, etc...are not the BEST cameras, they do good cameras that sometimes are better than Nikons (P80 is near to waste), Cannon, Pentax...so give it a try.

[DougM]

Panasonic offers the excellent FX500 (discontinued but still available at closeout prices) and the replacement FX580 (not available yet), the superb LX3, as well as the FZ28 and awesome but pricey G1. Other cameras offering manual controls (or at least Aperture and Shutter priority, which indirectly allow you to control both aperture and shutter speed) are the Canon G10, A590, Sx200, Nikon's S710 and P6000, Fuj's F60FD, Ricoh's GX200, as well as most bridge cameras from Canon, Fuji, Nikon, Olympus, Sony, and others.

[Kurt Hoss]

Im taking a beginners photography course in a few weeks with my girlfriend, she is using my ixus 970 but im after a camera where i can use some manual controls. Im not too confident buying an SLR so can anyone offer advice on a camera where i have a bit more control. I have already posted a few topics about the best DSLR cameras but i just want to keep my option open

Have looked at the canon a570/590 but seem to be getting average reports.

Are there any panasonic cameras that fit the bill
For a beginners photography course we usually require manual control to teach exposure, effect and develop a knowledge of light. The problem with any of the digicams with manual controls is that there is usually only 2 f-stops and even then it's rare that you can tell the difference. I would strongly recommend a DSLR for your purposes, even a cheap one with only a 35-50mm lens.

[David Metsky]

For the price, the A590 can't be beat. If you are willing to spend a bit more a used DSLR with a basic prime lens would be perfect.