Topic: best digi under $350

[Nick's Picks]

hey all...

my daughter tossed my digital camera..and its hosed.  time for a new one.
now, at least I have some hindsight and know that optical zoom is IMPO'TANT !

so, any recommendations for this or cheaper?

[stirinthesauce]

hey all...

my daughter tossed my digital camera..and its hosed.  time for a new one.
now, at least I have some hindsight and know that optical zoom is IMPO'TANT !

so, any recommendations for this or cheaper?

for 350, buy a used digital rebel xt.  Prices have gone way down on them.  DSLR action.


Or, are you looking for a point and shoot pocket cam?

[bobbygeeWOW]

FWIW, I really like where this guys sits.
Its compact, 28mm lens with 10x optical zoom and image stabilization, $240 on the web.

http://panasonic.co.jp/pavc/global/lumix/tz3_2/index.html

[Brian Skalinder]

For a compact p&s, I like my Canon PowerShot SD800IS.  Wish the TZ3 referenced by bgW was available when I bought...looks pretty sweet.

[coloartist]

I like the Sony I just bought. $399

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8440234&st=sony+cybershot&type=product&id=1183160354020

Samples from last weekend:





Video:

http://www.vimeo.com/340677

[Nick's Picks]

that panasonic looks like the one for me.  and I am finding it barely around $200.
10x optical.  7mp.  all good!

[asilver8]

I like the Sony I just bought. $399

Video:

http://www.vimeo.com/340677

Just wanted to say the sound quality from the T-200 is absolutely amazing!!! That Panic sounds really great! 

[it-goes-to-eleven]

I have the panasonic tz3.  I've had great luck with the canon brand (6+ years on my s100 elph) but I really wanted that 10x opti zoom in a small form factor...  The zoom has allowed pics I could have never gotten with a 4x or 5x zoom.

Video is good.. unfortunately no zoom while shooting (like so many).  Again, the 10x while shooting video makes it worthwhile in situations where I wouldn't otherwise bother.

Two biggest gripes... Low light performance is fairly weak.  I knew that going in..  It is okay while shooting video but it is lacking for stills.  The IS works great but that doesn't keep performers from moving.  Grain jumps up quite a bit on higher ISOs.

My other gripe is the lack of a panorama function.  I can align the shots pretty well myself but the lack of a function to lock down the exposure is lame.  I also really miss having pure manual and the limitation of only +-2 stops of exposure override.

If you buy at costco you can return it within 90 days if you don't like it..

[carlbeck]

I have a TZ-1 that I bring to shows, love 10X optical zoom. We also have a FZ-5 that is broken & needs to get sent out for repair under warranty but is a little too large to sneak into most shows.

[bobbygeeWOW]

Gee that's a pretty amazing sample of mega-zooming.
Obviously you do get what you pay for, so it ain't going to look like a large film hasselblatt.
But what's with grainy higher-ISO performance and low light performance, epecially when half the pic is in shadow and the rest in light.
All little cameras seems to have this issue; do you really need to move to SLR style?

[stirinthesauce]

your always gonna have noise at high iso, even with dslr's.  Purchase appropriate software and adjust in post.  Noiseware works magic.  I promise.  When I shoot at iso 3200 on my 20d, noise is a big issue.  After a run through noiseware, it isn't.  Magic I tell ya    Hell, I use it on most everything over iso200

[bobbygeeWOW]

Hm, hadn't considered that.
I'll haveta try that sometime.
+T

[ilduclo]

FWIW, I really like where this guys sits.
Its compact, 28mm lens with 10x optical zoom and image stabilization, $240 on the web.

http://panasonic.co.jp/pavc/global/lumix/tz3_2/index.html

the one I got, pretty nice! I've taken some photos in near darkness, no blur, almost no noise. it's fast shutter time, great zoom and autofocus. I've used the Nikons, Fuji's and Canons, this is way superior, IMO.

Also, stay away from used DSLR's due to the dust problems

[Frank in JC]

But what's with grainy higher-ISO performance and low light performance, epecially when half the pic is in shadow and the rest in light.
All little cameras seems to have this issue; do you really need to move to SLR style?

It's due to the fact that compact digital cameras have very small sensors, and therefore have much smaller light receptor sites compared to the APS-sized sensors found in most digital SLRs.  I don't know enough about sensor technology to explain this scientifically, but I do know the effect is to lower the signal-to-noise ratio for each pixel (since each pixel is smaller and receives less light I presume). 

Even at its lowest ISO, my Canon G7 exhibited visible noise.  Drove me nuts.  The last time I used it was the day before I bought a Nikon D200, and this weekend I actually traded it for my grandfather's 1984 Nikon F3HP.  The F3 will still be great camera 10 years from now, but the G7 won't be much more than a Wikipedia entry. 

I get objectionable noise at ISO 1600 on the D200, but I don't do much concert photography, and nearly all of the other low-light stuff I do is on a tripod at ISO 100.  Still, film was never that good at ISO 1600.

[Frank in JC]

Also, stay away from used DSLR's due to the dust problems

I've had dust in my D200 and cleaned it with no problem and no touching of the sensor.  It's not like the thing gets dusty and then you have to throw it away.  The only problem I see would be if the previous owner tried cleaning the sensor and damaged it in the process.  If I was going to buy a used DSLR, I would have the seller take an out-of-focus, properly exposed picture of a white wall.  The dust would be obvious.