Help recommend a camera for my girlfriend

[flyboy84]

Hey all,

I was hoping you could help recommend a digital point and shoot for my girlfriend. She is very knowledgeable about film photography (she uses a Rebel and has her own dark room), but hasn't dabbled much into digital. She wants something that she can take around with her to social events but still has a measureable amount of control. Here's her wishlist:

-Speed: fast, almost no delay between pressing the shutter and the picture being taken
-Portability: small and light (can fit into a purse not necessarily a pocket)
-At least 8 mega pixels (max print size she'd want to do is 8x10)
-More than just auto mode. Since she knows how to use shutter speed and f stops it would be nice but not necessary to have control over them. Ideally, she'd want the level of control presented in the Canon G9, but she realizes that's asking a bit too much for a compact P+S.
-Optical viewfinder (a must-have)
-Zoom not that important

Basically, she would love to have the featureset of the Canon G9 but in a smaller form factor. Does such a beast exist?

Thanks in advance!

EDIT: She ended up getting the G9.

 

[ElFenix]

not since canon killed the Sx0 series.

about the nearest thing to that is the sigma SD14 with it's limited lens and the panasonic lx2 or it's leica twin with the noisy sensors and intrusive noise reduction (the leica is better, though)

 

[randomlinh]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
not since canon killed the Sx0 series.

about the nearest thing to that is the sigma SD14 with it's limited lens and the panasonic lx2 or it's leica twin with the noisy sensors and intrusive noise reduction (the leica is better, though)

I do believe you mean the DP1 Which is a shame on it's downfalls... more than I can justify for the cost.

 

[Madwand1]

I suggest a budget DSLR. Great value for the money these days, and the feature set, quality, and speed will not be matched by a P&S, nor will the convenience really make up for the other lacks to someone who knows what she's doing and esp. one who was willing for example to go as far as a personal darkroom.

 

[punchkin]

I suggest the Canon G9. It fits very well into a purse. It is not exactly tiny but is small enough for your girlfriend's needs.

 

[Aharami]

dont think the G9 has any competitors. so just go for the G9

 

[flyboy84]

Thanks for your input. She's going to think it over some more. The way I see it, the G9 is probably the best option, but she's going to reevaluate her priorities and see if she'd be OK with just a P+S for social functions.

 

[punchkin]

Another point in the G9's favor is the hot shoe. And honestly, it's not much bigger than my wife's f50fd.

 

[randomlinh]

She can take a look at the canon A590IS or similar too. It's pursable, cheap (won't worry about handing it over to other people in social situations) and has manual controls. the only drawback is the optical viewfinder on these things are virtually pointless.

 

[twistedlogic]

Originally posted by: Madwand1
I suggest a budget DSLR. Great value for the money these days, and the feature set, quality, and speed will not be matched by a P&S, nor will the convenience really make up for the other lacks to someone who knows what she's doing and esp. one who was willing for example to go as far as a personal darkroom.

Aggree 100%

For the price of the G9, why not go with a D-SLR. With 1.5 second power-on time and a 2.12 sec shot to shot, she probably won't get the speed she wants.

I can see going with a G9 for a backup to a D-SLR(since its slightly smaller), but for her first digital camera that would give her more control and better images, a DSLR is the way to go.

The G9 eats through the battery and has a much, much smaller sensor (1/1.7"), so don't expect this camera to produce low noise images with lower light. This camera is pretty useless at anything over ISO 400.

I was also going to go with the G9, until I did some research. Don't buy into the megapixel myth, this 12.1mp sensor is just more Pixels pushed onto a smaller sensor.

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: flyboy84
Thanks for your input. She's going to think it over some more. The way I see it, the G9 is probably the best option, but she's going to reevaluate her priorities and see if she'd be OK with just a P+S for social functions.

Why spend so much money on just social functions when photography is/was itself important to her?

Social functions typically have poor lighting for photography, and the P&S class of devices is particularly bad in this area because of their smaller sensor size -> poorer low-light performance, higher noise levels and more aggressive noise reduction -> lower resolution, and weak flash not far from the lens -> red-eye.

The G9 is remarkable in that it has a hot shoe, but how often does an owner (1) go to the trouble of acquiring a compatible add-on flash (2) actually bring that flash and use it at social functions? (1) and (2) are reasons for dropping the hot shoe from the vast majority of devices in this category, not cost for example. If you say that the inconvenience of an add-on flash is no big deal for the photographic benefits, then you should again consider a compact DSLR, as its size is comparable to an add-on flash; the location of the built-in pop-up flash will reduce red-eye, and usable high ISO will let you photograph without a flash in many cases.

Granted, there may be occasions where the resultant bulkiness of a DSLR will be more trouble than it's worth, and that's where one starts to wish for and consider the P&S digicams. My perspective is simply that in such cases, where the photographer is capable and motivated, IMO it's better to first get a good, usable device, and then consider portability compromises down the road instead of starting with photographic compromises for portability.

That said, good luck whatever you decide -- either choice should be enjoyable.

 

[ElFenix]

i don't know what kinda social functions you guys go to, but but i wouldn't bring an SLR to one. they usually get in the way of socializing. not to mention they can be a pain to carry around. sometimes convenience is the most important thing. i'd think that someone with their own darkroom knows enough about photography to decide when a big system camera is appropriate for them and when it isn't. and this lady here seems to have decided that in this situation it isn't.


the canon A650 is basically the same camera as the G9

and for as much as 1/1.7" 10 MP sensors are maligned, they're better than film was.

 

[twistedlogic]

True a DSLR can be too bulky for a social event, but so is a Canon G9. This camera is huge compared to some of the nice credit card size compact P&S.

But upon looking at her wishlist, portability is #2, . Speed is number one. One of the biggest problems with a P&S is its shutter lag.

i'd think that someone with their own darkroom knows enough about photography to decide when a big system camera is appropriate for them and when it isn't. and this lady here seems to have decided that in this situation it isn't.

As the OP mentions, she knows a lot about film photography, but little about digital. I think if she knew more about the shortcomings of using a P&S, she might reconsider.

If the OP's girlfriend is interested, here is a nice read from Anand about digital cameras and there sensors.

 

[punchkin]

Originally posted by: twistedlogic
True a DSLR can be too bulky for a social event, but so is a Canon G9. This camera is huge compared to some of the nice credit card size compact P&S.

But upon looking at her wishlist, portability is #2, . Speed is number one. One of the biggest problems with a P&S is its shutter lag.

i'd think that someone with their own darkroom knows enough about photography to decide when a big system camera is appropriate for them and when it isn't. and this lady here seems to have decided that in this situation it isn't.

As the OP mentions, she knows a lot about film photography, but little about digital. I think if she knew more about the shortcomings of using a P&S, she might reconsider.

If the OP's girlfriend is interested, here is a nice read from Anand about digital cameras and there sensors.

Nope... it's definitely not "huge". You've obviously never seen one or held one in person. The tiniest compacts are utter crap for indoor shooting. Keep in mind it just has to fit in a purse.

 

[punchkin]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
i don't know what kinda social functions you guys go to, but but i wouldn't bring an SLR to one. they usually get in the way of socializing. not to mention they can be a pain to carry around. sometimes convenience is the most important thing. i'd think that someone with their own darkroom knows enough about photography to decide when a big system camera is appropriate for them and when it isn't. and this lady here seems to have decided that in this situation it isn't.


the canon A650 is basically the same camera as the G9

and for as much as 1/1.7" 10 MP sensors are maligned, they're better than film was.

Yup, the A650 is a solid choice. The only thing is, it's around $300, and for the extra $100 you get some nice extras, including: no need to mess with CHDK to shoot RAW (when that's even available for Digic III); better external controls; better build; and a flash hot shoe (which makes it possible to get very nice indoor pics with a small bounce-capable flash).

 

[Wekiva]

Another option is the Nikon P5100. It's not quite as well rated but it's smaller, costs less and has the same manual controls as the G9. It won't shoot RAW which the G9 will.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikonp5100/

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
i don't know what kinda social functions you guys go to, but but i wouldn't bring an SLR to one.

My wife often brings a DSLR to social functions, and she generally gets positive reactions and sometimes pics which are worth handing out to the subjects afterwards and even displaying in some cases. I'm also seeing them used increasingly by others. Yes, it's bulky especially if you drag gadgets around, but some of these things you can control and some of it is in your own head. It's the user's choice in the end.

I happen to think that a photographer should have a decent camera to start, which these days that implies a DSLR, and not start off by compromising with a digicam, which is intended for another class of user / usage. The DSLR is not the idea device for cheap "social function" shots, but can do that job well photographically, and also has tons of other uses. I presume that some of these will justify the cost/size/etc. It's the user's choice in the end.

FWIW, I'd bought a Fuji F31fd for my wife some time ago, and we were both disappointed by the performance and results so ended up returning it.

 

[flyboy84]

She ended up getting the G9. Thanks for all of your help guys!

 

[punchkin]

Originally posted by: flyboy84
She ended up getting the G9. Thanks for all of your help guys!

I think she will like the camera. She will get the best results in good light and exposing to the right, but she will be able to get some fine shots even at ISO 400, and I've already gotten some decent black and whites at IS0 800, although of course maximum output size is reduced. She might enjoy the Franiec add-on-grip (although I think other accessories on that page are a mite silly), and may want to invest in a small bounce-capable flash.