Digital Camera

[OMGSTUFF 2]

OK, so I didn't exactly know where to put the thread, but I figured it wasn't technically Tech Talk, as it's a camera and not hardware, so I thought I'd place it in General.

 

I have a confession to the internet.

Be prepared.

I, Matthew B Thompson, still alive in this, the year 2008, have never owned a digital camera.

 

Shocking, right? "How could you go this long not buying a digital camera?" you may ask. Well, my friends, I once decided that if I were to buy a digital camera, I wanted it to be awesome. Not like, $2000-I'm-the-greatest-photographer-in-the-world-awesome, but... decently awesome. I'm looking to spend like $150-$250.

 

These are the two cameras in my mind-

 

 

#1

SONY DSC-H9

#2

SONY DSC-H3

 

I again found them on the BestBuy auction site, each selling for about $200... a decent deal.

Anybody have any experience with either or any suggestions?

[tomi 0]

Pheeeh nice ones!

 

Well if you ask me...and would be strange though...asking a 14 yrs old boy...ok so nvm

 

Ok Carefully. Bla-bla-bla is coming! Read for own responsibility:

 

My opinion is is that the SONY DSC-H9 (#1) is better if you want a really modern one. Hay it's almost talking! And almost $100+

 

the other one is a bit worse...as I saw...and cheaper.

 

I think I can't say what you really need. The choice is yours.

Edited May 29, 2008 by tomi

[Ankhanu 0]

My suggestion is to avoid cameras made by electronics companies rather than photo industry companies... Panasonic is an exception and Sony's SLR range is also exempt (they're actually Minolta, since they purchased the company)... The main reason for this is the difference in the company's focus (no photo pun intended); electronics companies make gadgets, photo companies make cameras to take a good picture.

 

My suggestion would be to pick up a Nikon, as they'll give you a better warranty than the others... but in terms of glass/image quality, Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Panasonic, etc are all pretty much on par with one another. Decent digital cameras are very cheap these days, you can nab something fairly capable with good image quality for about your price range.

 

Of the two you're looking at, I'd agree, at a glance, that the H9 is the better choice.

[Genenut 8]

Fuji also makes nice camera that are easy to use. Some cameras are not as user friendly on the back side as others.

 

I would also chose a camera that uses either sd or xd cards as they are easy to find, cheap and seem to becoming the industry standard. Sony uses thier own propriety memory cards which arent as cheap as there arent as many makers of them.

 

I have a fuji and it is easy to use and works very well.

[tomi 0]

I agree with anyone saying anything else, but we have this one and it also works well!

 

canon powershot a70

 

Canon powershot a70

 

I love it.

[Ankhanu 0]

Fuji also makes nice camera that are easy to use. Some cameras are not as user friendly on the back side as others.

 

I would also chose a camera that uses either sd or xd cards as they are easy to find, cheap and seem to becoming the industry standard. Sony uses thier own propriety memory cards which arent as cheap as there arent as many makers of them.

 

I have a fuji and it is easy to use and works very well.

 

XD is actually a proprietary card format as well to Olympus, though Fuji also use it. I'm not sure exactly what the deal is with Fuji... they are allowed to use Olympus' XD memory and their SLRs are allowed to use Nikon mounts

 

But yeah, Fuji cameras are decent quality too... but again, their a photo industry brand, rather than electronics. I just forget about Fuji because there isn't a Fuji representative in my region, so they're only available through a couple vendors here.

[Genenut 8]

xd is a miniaturized version of SD (which they also developed) and you can actually buy adapters to make an xd card work like an SD card.

 

Now they even make micro SD cards. usually come with an adapter to make them look/act like and SD card again.

 

SD cards are also the mem card that the WII and I think one other game system uses for extra memory and saved games.

[Timotheus 416]

I agree with Ankhanu. If you are going for quality, go for a brand in the photo industry.

I just learned one thing the hard way: try to find a cam with image stabilizer. lol my pics usually suck with the cheap Nikon Coolpix I bought, it only performs right when at night, with the flash on, because the picture is made a lot faster...

Edited May 29, 2008 by Timotheus

[Ankhanu 0]

xd is a miniaturized version of SD (which they also developed) and you can actually buy adapters to make an xd card work like an SD card.

 

Now they even make micro SD cards. usually come with an adapter to make them look/act like and SD card again.

 

SD cards are also the mem card that the WII and I think one other game system uses for extra memory and saved games.

 

XD formatting is somewhat different actually. The XD format is much better at compressing data without loss; you'll hold a fair percentage more on an XD card than you will on an equivalent SD of CF card (ie. 1Gb XD vs 1Gb SD or CF). The problem with XD is that they're also more prone to failure/corruption than SD or CF... probably as a consequence of the much greater compression.

[Scleameth 19]

I had to make up my mind between Sony and Panasonic...

 

I chose the panasonice FZ8, I'm very happy with it ! A great feature is that it can capture RAW images, which is great for editing your photo "just right" and it has it's own rechargeable battery and it takes about 250 fotos @ 7Mp when fully charged. I got sick and tired of constantly charging penlights that last for 30 or so photos with my old digital.

 

Compare

Edited May 30, 2008 by Scleameth