Looking for compact ultrazoom with relatively good low light potential...

[Jim L]

Bottom line
As a replacement for my long-ailing Minolta Z1, I'm looking for the best all-around camera that can take great shots of my kids (incl. indoor, sports, outdoor, fishing, portrait, and even snow-play) and outdoors. At the same, I need something that I will be willing to take with me all the time, which precludes those small-SLR-like cameras (the size of the Z1 and bigger). And on a budget... :o I know that I'm asking for a lot, and cannot get the best of all worlds, but I want to get the best possible features for what I can spend.

Budget
Ideally, under $300, but I may, possibly be able to stretch it to $350.

SizeAs small as reasonable, given the other requirements. I want to be able to carry it in a small jacket (not shirt) pocket. My Minolta Z-1 doesn't fit well anymore (and oh, yeah, it doesn't work, either...). Weight is not an issue, just dimensions.

Features
9+ megapixels. But with these small sensors, is more really better, esp with natural light shots indoors and evening shots?

Ultrazoom, with a minimum of 280mm equivalent zoom and as wide as at least 36mm.

How important is “image quality”?
9 out of 10. Image quality is very important to me but within my other requirements (ultrazoom, lower-light).

Manual exposure modes?
Being a former user of a Minolta Z1, I loved to be able to shift the exposure and change the shutter and aperature. However, I would be willing to give up some of that control (grudgingly) for a great image at the right price.

General Usage
This will be an everyday use camera. Lots of kids' sports, some indoor shots, lots of outdoor shots. Also, I live in Seattle, so there are a lot of rainy and/or cloudy days.
The maximum print size will probably be 8x10, but more 5x7 prints and web postings.

Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos?
Quite a number of both. I want a camera that will give me good pictures with natural light, including indoor photos, evening outdoor pix, and streetlamp-lit shots.

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?
Yes, kids-sports (baseball, basketball, and soccer). It would be nice to be able to shoot multiple frames per second to capture and compare action shots.

Other features:
Image stabalization is an absolute necessity. Are there some types of IS that are better than others?
Good movie mode is a plus. I would like to be able to make a video using the zoom (but not necessarily using the zoom during filming), i.e. zoom in to 10x optical zoom and then start the filming. HD sounds awesome, but is not the most important feature.
Ease of use, esp. with adjusting some settings (ISO, exposure, scene mode/shutter) on the fly.

Cameras that I'm looking at right now include the following, but I am very open to and looking for other recommendations, as well:
Canon SX110
Pluses: Price ($250), manual control, longest (360mm) zoom, F2.8 ap, AA batts
Minuses: a bit (but not too) large, slow?
Canon SX200
Pluses: Manual control, longer (336mm) zoom, form factor
Minuses: Price high, flash up/on all the time?, aperatures not great for low-light?
Panasonic DMC-TZ5
Pluses: great reviews, HD vid, use of zoom in vid, 5pic/2sec burst, price
Minuses: no manual/shutter/ap-priority modes, zoom (280mm) not as long, cannot find one in area for hands-on look.
Panasonic DMC-ZS1
Pluses: wide lens (25mm) with adequate (300mm) long zoom, 5pic/2sec burst
Minuses: not out yet?, cannot find one in area for look, price a little steep for me.

How do the above compare, in your opinions, esp the TZ5 vs. the SX110 (i.e. the two with the best price)? And with other cameras that I haven't considered yet?

Thank you all for your help! :)

Jim

[David Metsky]

None of those will be really good in low light. You may have to give up some zoom for better high ISO performance. Consider the Fuji F200 which currently has a review on the front page. Of the ones you have listed, either of the Panasonics would be my choice, depending your your price.

[jekostas]

A compact ultrazoom with good low light performance? It doesn't exist. You'll have to give up something.

[Jim L]

Thanks for the suggestion and recommendation, David. The ultrazoom is, unfortunately, not optional. Just looking for something better than my Minolta Z1 and better than the competition. It's all relative.

Jim

[jekostas]

Thanks for the suggestion and recommendation, David. The ultrazoom is, unfortunately, not optional. Just looking for something better than my Minolta Z1 and better than the competition. It's all relative.

Jim

Well, you're not going to get good low-light performance. Ultrazoom cameras tend to be poor low-light performers, and compact ultrazooms, with smaller sensors and weaker flashes tend to be even worse.

The class of the field seems to be the Panasonic ZS3 right now, it is getting almost universally good reviews.

[Dark Cobra]

I gotta agree with everyone else. The camera you are looking for hasn't been designed yet. We'd all like to have that camera when it is offered. I do have an alternate thought here that you might want to give serious consideration. Instead of trying to do all of this in a single camera, how about splitting the mission up into two cameras.

Yes, I realize money is an issue but in today's world there just is no single camera that does it all. Many of us have more than one camera for multiple missions. Trying to find what you are asking for will result in a compromise camera that does NONE of what you want particularly well. However, if you could see your way to two cameras you'd be a lot closer to getting the images you want and not just the camera you want. Give it some thought.