Best digital camera???

[J Silver]

I am looking to buy a digital camera to take some pictures and I wanted to know what you recommend. I want a camera that will give me a good quality but a lot of features for a good value. Currently I have to take all my pictures through a standard 35mm camera, develop them, scan them, and then upload them. It's quite a process that takes a long time. So tell me what you think.

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[hyperextreme]

The best brands tend to be Olympus and Nikon. What's your budget? I'd shoot for 2.0 megapixels or greater if possible.

I had the Olymus D-460 ($350?) and it was a great camera.

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[J Silver]

Well somewhere under $3,000 I was hoping I could get a decent camera for. I really dont want to spend anything over at.

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[Duo]

Originally posted by J Silver:
Well somewhere under $3,000 I was hoping I could get a decent camera for. I really dont want to spend anything over at.

Its hard to find a digital camera that cost $3,000 now. But if you have a large budget, get a 3.34megapixel camera. BTW I was in compusa today (only compurer store within 50miles of me ) and they had a Toshiba 4.4megapixel camera for $800, now that I think is a deal. Ok heres what the megapixels equal. 2.1 = 5x7, 3.34 = 8x10, 4.4 = no idea. Now these sizes are the largest pictures you can make before the qulity starts to degrade.

Duo


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[J Silver]

Ok thanks. That spec was very helpful to me.

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[Milz]

The best digital camera is without a doubt the Nikon D1X, but it's a little pricey. $5-6K on eBay, god knows what the retail is. If you're willing to spend $2K try to buy the Olympus E10 or the Canon EOS D30. You probably won't be able to find them for that price retail, but eBay has good prices, just check the seller's history first. The advantage of theese cameras is that they are compatible with all their respective Olympus or Canon EOS lenses and accessories, meaning that almost anywhere in the civilized world you will be able to buy new lenses, flashes, etc. at almost any camera store you walk in to. The Olympus is 4MP and the canon 3.25? Either way they take excellent proffesional quality pics. Also, MPs aren't all that matters, theese cameras lenses have a larger diameter than most digital cameras (most are ridiculously small), have optical zoom (doesn't create inflated pixel look that digital does) and their designs have been tested and proven for years. What this means is no distortions. I wish I had your budget, I've been searching in vain for a digital SLR that is under $1000. The cheaper alternative which I'm considering is the Olympus C-2500L which has a slightly lower MP count of 2.5 (which is still very good). It is also an SLR, but the lens is fixed, although it has a good optical zoom of 3x (36-110 35mm equivalent). The best part about this camera is that it's only $500-$600 on eBay. If you're just taking snapshots, ignore everything I've said and get a point-and-shoot, it'll save you money, but if you want quality pictures make sure you get an SLR. Hope this helps!

[J Silver]

Yikes...that camera you first mentioned costs more than most digital video cameras. All I want to do is take a picture of my computer to put on a webpage. How hard can it be????? Well I am gonna go see how much the wife will allow me to spend on my new toy.

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[hyperextreme]

A $3,000 digital camera is the equivalent of a $200,000 automobile. Yrs, you can do it, but who the heck needs so many features/horsepower??!!

IMO, if all you want is to take indoor pictures to post online, you don't need that much. Get the cheapest "decent brand" you can find. A good choice might be the Olympus Camedia Brio D-100 Digital Camera (about $250). It's 1.3 megapixels and has an 8 MB memory card. If you spend less than this the resolution can get bad and/or the memory is internal only.

Let me know if you have more questions

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Dell Dimension XPSR
Penitum II 400 MHz
192MB RAM
Plexwriter 12/10/32
IBM 8 GB/Quantum 26 GB
Diamond FireGL Pro 1000 8 MB
Turtle Beach Montego
Altec Lansing ACS 35
...but to improve this fall!

Error: Windows could not find iexplore.exe. End world (Y/N)?

The Extreme was here...

[LethalWolfe]

Originally posted by J Silver:
Yikes...that camera you first mentioned costs more than most digital video cameras. All I want to do is take a picture of my computer to put on a webpage. How hard can it be????? Well I am gonna go see how much the wife will allow me to spend on my new toy.

It all depends on what quality of video camera you are talking about. Consumer level stuff(like you find at Best Buy or some such) yeah, it's more expensive. Prosumver level cameras, like Canon's XL-1 or Sony's VX-3000, start at $4500 and $3500 respectively. Pro level cameras will cost 10k and up. And that doesn't include the lens. I had a freelance job last summer and I shot w/a Betacam (not digital, analog) that cost $20k, then another $60k for the zoom lens! I'm like, "Oh, God. This camera is worth more than I am!"


Wow, this is like my 3rd or 4th "related, but not really on topic" reply of the day. I'm on a roll.

Lethal

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[Milz]

Originally posted by J Silver:
Yikes...that camera you first mentioned costs more than most digital video cameras. All I want to do is take a picture of my computer to put on a webpage. How hard can it be????? Well I am gonna go see how much the wife will allow me to spend on my new toy.

Well when you said you were willing to spend $3k and wanted lots of features and good quality I assumed that you were into photography as a hobby and were looking for professional level equipment. If you're just posting to webpages then there's no reason for you to spend even $600 on a camera. You probably won't want to buy other lenses for it, and to get the best quality pic that can be viewed on a webpage all you need is a point-and-shoot with about 1-2 MP like the one Hyperextreme suggested. I would still reccommend a major brand that is established in the camera industry though, such as nikon minolta canon or olympus. You're more likly to get good product support from them should you need it. I recommend deciding on a few features that you want, then buying whatever you think looks the coolest

[J Silver]

Originally posted by LethalWolfe:
It all depends on what quality of video camera you are talking about. Consumer level stuff(like you find at Best Buy or some such) yeah, it's more expensive. Prosumver level cameras, like Canon's XL-1 or Sony's VX-3000, start at $4500 and $3500 respectively. Pro level cameras will cost 10k and up. And that doesn't include the lens. I had a freelance job last summer and I shot w/a Betacam (not digital, analog) that cost $20k, then another $60k for the zoom lens! I'm like, "Oh, God. This camera is worth more than I am!"

Actually I do own a Canon XL-1 that I paid about $4200 for. It replaced my Sony S-VHS Professional camera that cost me $11,000 at the time. Last week when I was shooting a movie, they were using all Betacams to record. Yes I know how expensive it can be. I've been doing this for 15 years.

[Cold Pizza]

If "All I want to do is take a picture of my computer to put on a webpage" like you said, it's not necessary to spend over $250.

I'm a student, and I got my Samsung SDC-80 for $100 after rebate, and that can shoot 1024x768 pixel images, which do just fine for webdesign, seeing that webpages only need 72dpi photos, usually no larger than 700x525. I figure that my camera is the bare minimum to cover your needs.

Anything more than that is just luxury. If you just want a standard point and shoot, go with something like my Samsung. I also like Canon Power Shot stuff. Small is cool.

[briareus]

Originally posted by Cold Pizza:
Anything more than that is just luxury. If you just want a standard point and shoot, go with something like my Samsung. I also like Canon Power Shot stuff. Small is cool.

Not exactly, you don't have any control of depth-of-field with most of the cheaper cameras (for one thing). Of course, for most people taking snapshots that doesn't matter much.

[nkeezer]

J Silver: what's your budget (both maximum and preferred) and intended use? There's such a huge range that without knowing that information, it's hard to make recommendations. In general, here's some rules you can follow:

If your budget is in the low hundreds, you can expect to get a 1.3 megapixel camera, probably without an optical zoom, and little (probably no) control over the cameras optics (white balance, focusing, exposure compensations, etc.) mostly suited to simple web images, maybe a half-way decent 3x4 print.

For another hundred or so, you can get a nice 1.3mp (maybe 2) camera. It may or may not have an optical zoom. These cameras give you some limited control over your images -- usually limited to things like white balance and exposure compensation. Image quality will be pretty nice, and it'll do a good 3x4 print and a decent 5x7. An example would be something like the Olympus D360 or the D450/90 (I'll be referring mostly to Olympus cameras here since I'm pretty familiar with their product line, but almost all manufacturers will offer similar cameras).

If you're looking to spend around 400-500 dollars, you'll probably be able to pick up something in the 2mp range, usually will have a 3x optical zoom. Very nice image quality. Will do a pretty nice 8x10. You'll be able to control most of the settings on the camera (the Oly 2020, for instance, allows you to change: ISO, metering, exposure compensations, white balance, focusing, shutter speed, aperture, and probably more, but those are the ones that come to mind). These are the cameras that were top of the consumer lines about a year and a half ago. Examples would be things like the Oly 2020 or the Nikon Coolpix series. Personally, I own the Oly 2020, and it takes some very nice pictures (see http://members4.clubphoto.com/nicholas206015). For most semi-serious users, I'd recommend this level as a good starting point.

Moving up to the $800-1000 level, you go up into the current high-end for consumers. For the most part, these are the same cameras as the previous level, only refreshed from a year ago with 3mp sensors and some new features. Examples here would be the Oly 3030/40 or the Nikon Coolpix 990/5. Nice cameras, to be sure, but unless you're planning on doing things like a lot 8x10 prints, you may find that the extra million pixels do not make a huge difference. NOTE: the 4mp cameras are just starting to be released now (e.g. Oly 4040), so buying a 3mp camera is really not such a great idea -- as is always the case when new products are released, prices for the old models will drop. Keep that in mind when doing your research.

Anything higher than this, and you basically move up into the professional cameras. Here we're talking $1,500-$6,000+ -- and that's just for the camera. Several of the cameras do not come with lenses (the Nikon D1 and Canon E30, for instance. The Oly E-10, a lesser camera, is an exception). Image quality is pretty phenomenal. But unless you're a professional photographer that really needs that kind of image quality, you're best off just staying out of this market.

To sum it all up: if you're moderately serious about digital photography, look at the 2 or 3mp cameras.

Congrats to anyone who read the whole thing.

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[J Silver]

Yeah I read the whole thing lol. Thanks for the info.

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