first BS Digital Camera advice thread!

freelunch · Post by **freelunch** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 8:41 am

I know nothing about digital photography.
I care not about digital photography...
but my wife has her heart set on a digital camera so I need to research them.
and as such I would appreciate recommendations from anyone.
cheap is good, though not cheap & nasty.
thanks.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 7:15 pm

A little help here... can you clarify that price range in American dollars? What will the camera be used for? Does size matter? Do you care what memory format it uses?

Without any of that info I can give a similarly generic answer. Kodak makes good wife cameras. 8)

freelunch · Post by **freelunch** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 7:48 pm

price range isn't really relevant - I want to spend as little as possible on what I consider a non-essential gadget that will hardly ever get used. at the same time I want something decent.

it'll be used mainly for family snapshots and should ideally fit in a ladies handbag. I don't know anything about memory formats.

koanicriddle · Post by **koanicriddle** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 8:36 pm

From your comments, I'd recommend one of the Canon PowerShot cameras.

Seeing as you're looking to spend as little as possible on a decent camera, my nod would go to the PowerShot A60; it's an excellent camera considering the price range it falls under (about $150, though it can be had cheaper if you shop around a bit). It's a 2 megapixel camera with 3x optical zoom, and is definitely small enough to fit into a handbag. It uses a CompactFlash card for memory; a 64 MB card should be more than big enough if it's going to be used as little as you say.

For a bit more money you could opt for the PowerShot A75, which sports 3.2 megapixels.

Hope this helps a bit.

freelunch · Post by **freelunch** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 8:58 pm

thanks for the suggestionss.

do megapixels = resolution? (I really know nothing about digital photography)

roughly how many images can be stored on a 64MB CompactFlash card, and is CompactFlash the optimal memory type?

dmd · Post by **dmd** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:24 pm

I've been lusting after this.It's running around 550 - 600 usd though.

Raven · Post by **Raven** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:44 pm

look for these features

optical zoom (better than digital zoom)
optical viewfinder (lcd viewfinder washes out in daylight)
uses aa batteries, which are common and cheap
use standard flash memory, instead of brand specific memory

and

always carry with a strap, plastic cameras are extremely slippery

Both Canon and Nikon havwe 200 dollar cameras that have 3+3, that's 3 megapixels and 3x optical zoom - either one is very good

go to www.dcresource.com for reviews

Unless you plan to make images large than 8x10, a 3 megapixel camera is more than enough.

Oh, and if the extended service contract doesn't cover dropping, why bother, since by the time it breaks, you'll want a new camera anyway.

Imagine a pan and a cup of water. Now imagine that each cup represents one megapixel. Now pour the cup into the pan. Now the deeper the water in the pan, the better quality the picture. Now only one cup of water, means a vey small pan, if you want the water to be deep. Say 4x6 size.

You can enlarge the pan, but the water would become shallow, and the picture quality would suffer. Now use three cups (megapixels) instead.

Now, the water almost overflows then pan, which means a super quality picture, and since the water is so deep, you can stretch the pan from 4x6 to 8x10, and still have enough water depth to give you excellent picture quality.

The Canon A75 is a nice 200 dollar camera that you might consider. Read a review over at dcresource.

Good luck.

koanicriddle · Post by **koanicriddle** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:51 pm

A 2 megapixel camera, like the A60, can take photos up to a resolution of 1600x1200; the A75, at 3.2 megapixels, has a max resolution of 2048x1536.

I have 128 MB CompactFlash card for my camera, and that card holds about 120 or so photos taken at 1600x1200 (compression set to Superfine, which is the highest quality detail setting); so a 64 MB card would hold around 56 or so photos with those same settings enabled.

CompactFlash is a pretty common memory format; Type I CompactFlash cards (which the A60 and A75 both use) can be purchased just about anywhere.

Enough · Post by **Enough** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:59 pm

dmd wrote:I've been lusting after this.It's running around 550 - 600 usd though.

And can't fit in her purse. I suggest instead he buys one of those for each of us to test out just in case!

I would love to play with that camera. Nikon also just came out with one that has their vibration reduction tech on a nice lens with 8mp (8800).

But back to the question I think either of the Nikon or Canons in the $200 range w/at least 3mp is the way to go as has been suggested. The Kodaks are really nice but are not as portable for a purse, their advantage is their nice lcds. But digital cameras have gotten cheap enough that you may as well get at least a 3mp and at least with a 3x optical lens. A good online retailer I have had good experiences with is www.bhphoto.com.

But if you go for 3mp you likely will want to get a 256mb card, then she can shoot like 100+ pictures between downloads and if the camera has a movie mode even have room for a few of those.

jpinard · Post by **jpinard** » Thu Oct 14, 2004 11:19 pm

Kodak Easyshare 6440. I love it, and it's dummy-proof too. it takes brilliant photos, and I like to do National Geographic type imaging of my pond.