PDA

View Full Version : camera for a historia


luisa
05-10-2005, 03:43 PM
hi everyone,
i'm a historian with very little photo experience and i need to buy a digital camera to photograph documents in the archives and to take on-site shots (indoor and outdoor). and, since i'm buying one, i'd like something that is good for casual pictures of friends and family.

many people have recommended either a cannon or a nikon and i suppose i'm looking for one of those...unless there is a different perfect match that comes well-recommended. i've been researching online but i'm only getting more confused and stressed-out! could i ask you guys for some recomendations? here are the details:

max 500 us$

flash that can turn off (***this is crucial but i haven't had much luck looking on-line for sites that explicitly discuss this. i can only look on-line at the moment)

4000-5000 megapix

high optical zoom (i really understand what the number mean, but i'm told this is very important for close-ups, so the higher the better)

good image quality, good colour

i'm not picky about manual controls

pocket-size would be preferable but not a must


i've looked at the cannon s60, g6, s1 is and the nikon 5600, 7900, among others but can't figure out which way to go.
any suggestions would be greatly appreciated,
luisa

AlkaPhunk
05-10-2005, 03:59 PM
Hi !
I own a Nikon coolpix 5900, and i just recommend you this one instead of a 5600 or 7900 you've looked at.
On my point of view, 5600 and 7900 got too small ccd size for the amount of Mpx they got.
I also know that the 5900 has a scene mode dedicated to document picture.
I've never used it, but i could give it a try if you're interesting it and post the pics here later.

The S60 is a very good DC too. If my budget was a lil' more consequent i may have chosen it. One best opint over this DC is its wide angle. You may be interesting in for building or monument photos...

luisa
05-10-2005, 04:53 PM
hi alkaphunk,
would you mind posting a picture taken on the document mode for me?
thanks, luisa

AlkaPhunk
05-10-2005, 05:02 PM
OK luisa, i'll try to do it asap.
What kind of documents would you like me to try ?

luisa
05-10-2005, 05:09 PM
if you can, any of the following: handwriting on a white paper, type on a white paper and/or a shot of a picture. thanks!