Camcorder vs Camera, Canon vs Others?

[Shadowjump]

Hi, I currently have a Canon Legria HF200 (Vixia) and a Canon PowerShot SX200 IS.

Since I am not using the camcorder a lot (perhaps once, or twice a year?) I was thinking to sell it (and the SX200 IS) and get a good camera. I am not saying the SX200 IS is not good, it still serves me well, but I could use a newer model.

Thing is, whats the point of having a camcorder when a camera (SX280 IS) has FullHD recording (and 60FPS i think? or is it 50FPS for the PAL version?)?. Is there something really big that I will miss from my camcorder when recording videos?

I was thinking about the SX280 IS (I want the GPS feature). Has a good zoom and the "simple advanced" features I want like EV and exposure time. And of course HDR which I use a lot on my phone. Also, I saw the SX50 which has the features I want:

• HDR
• Full HD recording
• 50x zoom (oh yeah!)
• EV and exposure

What extra features does the SX50 have? Is it worth it the extra $$$ (apart from the zoom)

I am no serious photographer. I dont play a lot around with ISO settings and stuff. I just like to take good pictures when I am going on trips (usually 3-4 times a year)

And last question is, since I am a Canon "fanboy" and have no idea about other companies, are there any "better" cameras out there? Perhaps the Panasonic TZ40?

Thank you.

 

[AnitaPeterson]

The SX50 will be the best bridge camera - but it has no GPS. Otherwise, it's apretty capable camera, with great zoom and 1080p video + stereo sound. I know Panasonic also has some great superzooms, but I like the convenience of the adjustable/rotating LCD screen.

 

[Imp]

Just got the SX50 yesterday... very very impressive. I'm also not big into photography. The main selling point was the stupid zoom: 50x and up to 200x with digital.

Other selling points may be the ability to take RAW images, a rotatable LCD screen, and a ton of other features I know nothing about. It has a digital view finder if it matters, a got shoe for adding a flash.

Only bad thing is that this is a big camera with no automatic lens cap. Pretty big issue for someone with no experience using DSLRs.

The SX280 is probably more than fine for what you want. I almost got the SX260 last year, but decided that I didn't want or need the GPS feature. There's only a $70 price difference between the SX50 and SX280 right now at a national chain store.