Archive through May 07, 2002
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TV ClubHouse: Archives: 2003 March: Anyone have a digital camera?: Archive through May 07, 2002

Willsfan

Wednesday, March 06, 2002 - 08:40 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I. Am. Hopeless.

If anyone has one or can suggest a good one I would very much appreciate it.

After reading reviews of different brands of digital cameras, prices and features I am more confused than ever.
And after going to Best Buy and Staples the clerks could not tell me anything. Either they didn't know or just didn't want to take the time to explain batteries, memory sticks,etc., all vital information for me to consider before buying.

Frustrating.

I want an easy to use, mid-price range camera that takes good quality (but not great) photos. I would only use it to send photos by email. It's doubtful that I would ever print out a copy of the picture itself.

It would not take the place of a regular camera.

Pcakes2

Wednesday, March 06, 2002 - 09:30 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I have a Canon Power Shot A20 with 2.1 mega pixels..it retails for about $300-$400. It's as easy to use as a point and shoot camera.

Twiggyish

Wednesday, March 06, 2002 - 09:30 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
You can go to several sites and read about digital cameras. It depends on the features you need. If your pictures are going online, you don't need a high resolution. But, if you are planning on printing, then go for the higher resolution camera (megapixel).
I find the Kodak site has an excellent learning center with a lot of technical information. You do not need to buy a Kodak camera, as there are mnay excellent brands, but the site is a great resource for information.

http://www.kodak.com/US/en/digital/dlc/

I have an Olympus and I love it.

By the way, we went through the www.ritzcamera.com site for our camera.

Willsfan

Wednesday, March 06, 2002 - 11:37 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks for the info.

I went to the Kodak site and it just made me want a digital that much more for the simple reason that if I don't like a picture I can delete it and take another.

I looked for a Canon the last time and didn't see one but did see an Olympus. The second store I went to had only three brands, Kodak, Sony and Fuji. I want to look at all the brands - guess I'll be camera shopping this week-end.

Julieboo

Thursday, March 07, 2002 - 07:52 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I don't know the price, but my sister has a Fuji Fine Pix and I think the quality is incredible. I am an amatuer photographer and I work as a designer and am familiar with quality photography. I will be getting that camera soon.

Max

Thursday, March 07, 2002 - 08:43 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Yes, it IS confusing. :)

I have two digital cameras. The older one is a Kodak (model that's been discontinued). It takes great pictures and is capable of using different lenses, like wide angle, starburst, super close-up, etc. I have some lenses for it, so I keep it for those kinds of shots.

The camera I use ALL the time is a Canon Digital Elph. It's the 2.1 megapixel model and takes great pictures. I wanted something that used the same kind of memory card as the older Kodak and that was small enough to keep with me most of the time. This one is perfect as it fits nicely in my pocketbook or briefcase. It has a 3x zoom feature that lets me get good close-ups of folks. Battery life isn't great, but as long as I use the viewfinder instead of relying on the screen for taking pictures, it's adequate for my needs. Cost was $499, but it's cheaper now since they came out with a 3.1megapixel version.

You can see pictures I've taken with it at my Club Photo site. (NOTE: The albums of Symantec events are not pictures taken with the Elph.)

If you know about cameras and want to talk about various features of different digital ones, go to a camera shop. Other stores, as you've discovered, won't be of much help. They'll just try to sell you whatever they are getting SPIFFed on this week (that's sales talk for bonuses they can earn by selling a particular product).

The Camera World website has good information about digital cameras in general. They also have a compare feature that lets you pick several different cameras and compare features side-by-side.

Max

Thursday, March 07, 2002 - 08:50 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Oh, and when you decide which camera you want, there are a couple of places online you can go to check pricing.

shopper.cnet.com
Dealcatcher.com

Both these sites let you search for electronic products and then give you a list of merchants who have them and associated pricing/availability. Even if you don't buy from one of the merchants, taking a printout of the pricing to your local store often helps in negotiating a good price. :)

Juju2bigdog

Thursday, March 07, 2002 - 10:26 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Friend of ours just bought one at Costco this week for $150 (USD), 1.3 megapixels with zoom, Olympus. I don't see it on their website, but if you have a Costco, it might be worth a trip to check it out. You sure can't beat the price, and 1.3 megapixels probably would be good enough for an amateur. BUT, I don't know a lot about such things, just that this friend has a reputation for getting the best deal on anything anywhere.

B&H Photo in New York is an excellent place to buy cameras and such, good prices on binoculars too. B&H

Meme9

Thursday, March 07, 2002 - 07:19 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Willsfan, I have a Sony DSC-S70, 3.3Mega pixels. Great camera, with lots of bell and whistles, takes some learning to use though. It is very pricey too! And it can weigh a ton (at least feels that way if your gonna carry it all day). Wish I had a smaller one but I can't have two.

Twiggyish

Friday, March 08, 2002 - 05:44 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I know someone with the elph and they love it. It's small and easy to stick in a purse.

Willsfan

Friday, March 08, 2002 - 06:37 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Thanks again for all your comments. I love this message board.

Now that I am better informed it shouldn't be so difficult to find the right camera for my needs. I'm starting to get excited about buying one, although I know I'll probably have to read the manual a couple of times before I start snapping photos.

Admin

Thursday, April 18, 2002 - 10:33 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I'm looking at one of these too. I need to have macro ability, as I sell a lot of stuff on ebay and need to take close-up shots of things a lot.

I appreciate all the links and suggestions above, I will be reading it all very carefully. Oh ya, I need to take good baby shots too real soon....scary!

Admin

Friday, April 19, 2002 - 09:47 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Comparison Chart of Digital Cameras

Meme9

Friday, April 19, 2002 - 02:57 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
So your hunting... there is so much tech stuff out there, and so much reading material...that sometimes it just seems to bog ya down!

I have a Sony DSC-S70, it has macro ability, and lots of bells and whisles. This one is very pricey and you may or may not want to invest that much.

Oh, it also take mini movies about 60sec. ones.

Happy Hunting

Admin

Tuesday, April 23, 2002 - 08:07 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Sounds good Meme9! I've been reading, I'm getting nowhere fast! There's too much choice, I hate that. I wish it was like buying toaster...wide slice or small? Chrome or white? $10 or $20? and then you go and make toast..simple!

Grooch

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - 06:38 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I bought the one at Costco that Juju mentioned. (Thanks, Juju! If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have known about it.)

My regular camera got stolen and we decided to go digital. Unfortunetly, when it comes to something electronic, and it does not involve a tv or stereo, he doesn't have the patience to research or wait. He wanted it now!

So we were going through the Sunday paper's ads and he found some really cheap ones that I figured at those prices were probably crap. Then I remembered this thread and saw Juju's post.

Costco usually has pretty good quality items, so I sent him there. I'm happy with it. :)

Twiggyish

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - 06:48 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Grooch, you'll love the Olympus! Our camera was stolen, too. (a while ago) We're looking at another Olympus (520). I can't wait to get it, as I sure miss my old one!!

Grooch

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - 06:51 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I remember when you posted that it was stolen. I can't believe you've gone that long without a new one.

The camera getting stolen was a blessing in disguise. I always hated the camera I had. I had picked out the camera I wanted (an Oylmpus Sure Shot) for a Christmas present and my husband bought me a Pentax that took crappy pictures, cut off people's heads, and took forever to snap the picture.

So I'm happy already. :)

Fruitbat

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - 06:59 am EditMoveDeleteIP
We have one too, Grooch. Love it.

Admin

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - 06:59 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I own a Pentax 35mm zoom camera that does everything automatically. It was close to $400 and takes crappy pictures! I've always hated it. I can't wait to get rid of it, and I will never buy another Pentax.

Grooch

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - 07:02 am EditMoveDeleteIP
My first 35mm camera was a Pentax K1000. Nothing automatic on it at all. That one took great pictures and I still have it. But their automatic ones really suck (my word of the day) and I will never buy another one either.

Juju2bigdog

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - 09:23 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Wow! Glad you are happy, Grooch. I forgot all about suggesting that camera.

Admin

Thursday, May 02, 2002 - 09:10 am EditMoveDeleteIP
There are so many choices!

Seems like Camera World above had removed their reviews area.

This place is pretty good:

http://shopper.cnet.com/shopping/0-11264-301-0-0.html?tag=st.sh.8407-301-0.lst.list_11264

Admin

Sunday, May 05, 2002 - 10:23 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I've heard that there is a 4-second delay in the picture on all digital cameras, except the multi thousand dollar ones. Is this true?

Admin

Tuesday, May 07, 2002 - 09:58 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Okay, here's another good site http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/stats.asp

So I found a guy locally with a Sony Mavica FD-90 for sale. It's an older camera, now discontinued but cheap. I think I can get it for $350 cdn. That's about $225 usd. Pretty good really. It's got 1.3 million pixels (not very good compared to newer cameras) and takes the floppy disks. I understand they are slow, but very convenient. I've read that this camera low resolution quality is not good for making prints from the photos, but for internet stuff it should be good. That's my main focus anyways. I think later, when I have more money, I'd want a really high quality digital camera so I can make prints, but for now I'm thinking I'll go with something like this...cheap is the most important part for me right now! :)