Wife wants a new digital camera

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Y

Yzzim

Lifer
Feb 13, 2000
11,990
1
76
The wife wants a new digicam 4 pics, but I can't decide which one to buy.

We currently have a Kodak V570 and while we like the 23mm lens, we don't use it much. Plus I think the indoor, low light pictures could be a little better. The flash doesn't go far, so only portrait shots really work. Everything else is just dark.

She primarily uses the camera for indoor pictures of friends and family. I was thinking of the Canon IS S3 but that seems like overkill. The zoom would be nice, but I don't know that we'd use it much. The pop up flash seems like it would throw a lot of light and take nice indoor shots.

I found the Canon SD600 for $100 less, and it seems suitable for what we'll use it for. The flash is small, and I haven't read any reviews yet, but I don't want it to be like the v570 and take mediocre indoor pics.

Woudl like to spend around $200, which I why I'm not pulling the trigger on the S3 IS right away.

Any advice or experience with these or other cameras would be greatly appreciated!
 
TangoJuliet

TangoJuliet

Diamond Member
Jul 2, 2006
5,595
1
76
all of the canon power shot elf's are great. i have the sd450 and a friend of mine has the 700IS. The IS feature is GREAT....I shook his camera as fast as I could and took a pic and not one shot was ever blurry. They are also very compact and easy to take with you. The SD700 and SD630 perform well in low light but neither have great flash since it is a compact....dont get me wrong its not terrible but its not great either.

I also own a S1...the S3 is probably overkill for what you would be doing. Its basically a step below a SLR. My S1 goes through batteries like crazy so if you do plan on getting it - get rechargeables.

I'd recommend the following:

SD700IS
SD630
SD450

Also check out www.dpreview.com for additional feedback.
 
Y

Yzzim

Lifer
Feb 13, 2000
11,990
1
76
Originally posted by: alkohoLiK
all of the canon power shot elf's are great. i have the sd450 and a friend of mine has the 700IS. The IS feature is GREAT....I shook his camera as fast as I could and took a pic and not one shot was ever blurry. They are also very compact and easy to take with you. The SD700 and SD630 perform well in low light but neither have great flash since it is a compact....dont get me wrong its not terrible but its not great either.

I also own a S1...the S3 is probably overkill for what you would be doing. Its basically a step below a SLR. My S1 goes through batteries like crazy so if you do plan on getting it - get rechargeables.

I'd recommend the following:

SD700IS
SD630
SD450

Also check out www.dpreview.com for additional feedback.
Click to expand...

The SD700IS is about the same price as the IS S3.....so I'd probably be better going with hte IS S3

I'll look into the 450, thanks.
 
JulesMaximus

JulesMaximus

No Lifer
Jul 3, 2003
74,586
986
126
Originally posted by: blurredvision
Originally posted by: mpitts
:camera:'s
Click to expand...
The OP actually has a slick plan. We have to help him, otherwise we get no pics of the wife. Clever................
Click to expand...

You're assuming we'd actually want pics of his wife.

I'd go for the S3 IS, it's a great camera. Highly recommended! :thumbsup:
 
TangoJuliet

TangoJuliet

Diamond Member
Jul 2, 2006
5,595
1
76
Originally posted by: Yzzim
Originally posted by: alkohoLiK
all of the canon power shot elf's are great. i have the sd450 and a friend of mine has the 700IS. The IS feature is GREAT....I shook his camera as fast as I could and took a pic and not one shot was ever blurry. They are also very compact and easy to take with you. The SD700 and SD630 perform well in low light but neither have great flash since it is a compact....dont get me wrong its not terrible but its not great either.

I also own a S1...the S3 is probably overkill for what you would be doing. Its basically a step below a SLR. My S1 goes through batteries like crazy so if you do plan on getting it - get rechargeables.

I'd recommend the following:

SD700IS
SD630
SD450

Also check out www.dpreview.com for additional feedback.
Click to expand...

The SD700IS is about the same price as the IS S3.....so I'd probably be better going with hte IS S3

I'll look into the 450, thanks.
Click to expand...

wow, didnt think they came down in price that much. I'm actually looking into upgrading to the 800IS. Would you be interested in buying a used SD450? Its in perfect condition and I have a leather case for it. I have the retail box, manuals, cds and everything still.
 
Scarpozzi

Scarpozzi

Lifer
Jun 13, 2000
26,392
1,780
126
I bought a canon s200 3 years ago.....last year I bought an sd110 to replace it. My next camera will also be a canon elph as long as they continue to make them. The camera is awesome, the replacement/spare battery packs are cheap. Canon support is AMAZING. I ordered a replacement color screen for mine because I cracked it....they shipped me one for $27+5 shipping. On my current camera, the lens mechanism started acting up. I called them up and they were quick to give me the address of their repair center. I mailed them the camera and had it back in a week and a half, repaired...no cost.

They did the same thing to fix my parents' camcorder after they dropped it. Canon is a great company and their lenses are some of the best in the industry. If you can get an Elph for ~$200, go for it....you're not just getting a good camera, you're getting a good warranty.
 
Y

Yzzim

Lifer
Feb 13, 2000
11,990
1
76
Originally posted by: Scarpozzi
I bought a canon s200 3 years ago.....last year I bought an sd110 to replace it. My next camera will also be a canon elph as long as they continue to make them. The camera is awesome, the replacement/spare battery packs are cheap. Canon support is AMAZING. I ordered a replacement color screen for mine because I cracked it....they shipped me one for $27+5 shipping. On my current camera, the lens mechanism started acting up. I called them up and they were quick to give me the address of their repair center. I mailed them the camera and had it back in a week and a half, repaired...no cost.

They did the same thing to fix my parents' camcorder after they dropped it. Canon is a great company and their lenses are some of the best in the industry. If you can get an Elph for ~$200, go for it....you're not just getting a good camera, you're getting a good warranty.
Click to expand...

Nice to hear of a company standing behind their products. I just had a Sony camera go belly up on me. Camera seems to work fine until I take a pic and the light just blinks orange :( Promised myself never to buy a sony camera again.

alkohoLiK, let me do some research quick.
 
H

HomeAppraiser

Platinum Member
Aug 17, 2005
2,562
1
0
Yzzim, I was in the same boat two weeks ago. FuzzyBunnyBaby did a great job helping me sort throught the features. The Canon IS S3 was the default favourite and also the most spendy. HomeAppraisersWife used to work at Kits/Ritz Camera in the pre-digital era and really liked the quality of Panasonics. We decidied on a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ7 in black for $270. After five days using it, so far so good. The 2.5" LCD is a joy and there is virtually NO shutter lag!

What is your wife going to be using the camera for? Indoor/outdoor, day/night, action/stills?
 
Y

Yzzim

Lifer
Feb 13, 2000
11,990
1
76
Originally posted by: HomeAppraiser
Yzzim, I was in the same boat two weeks ago. FuzzyBunnyBaby did a great job helping me sort throught the features. The Canon IS S3 was the default favourite and also the most spendy. HomeAppraisersWife used to work at Kits/Ritz Camera in the pre-digital era and really liked the quality of Panasonics. We decidied on a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ7 in black for $270. After five days using it, so far so good. The 2.5" LCD is a joy and there is virtually NO shutter lag!

What is your wife going to be using the camera for? Indoor/outdoor, day/night, action/stills?
Click to expand...

Mainly indoor pics of friends/family. Probably stills most of the time. We're both inept at taking pictures, and basically only know how to hold down the button to take a pic :p
 
H

HomeAppraiser

Platinum Member
Aug 17, 2005
2,562
1
0
Originally posted by: Yzzim
Originally posted by: HomeAppraiser
Yzzim, I was in the same boat two weeks ago...

What is your wife going to be using the camera for? Indoor/outdoor, day/night, action/stills?
Click to expand...

Mainly indoor pics of friends/family. Probably stills most of the time. We're both inept at taking pictures, and basically only know how to hold down the button to take a pic :p
Click to expand...

Ok then the Canon IS S3 and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ7 with their 12x zoom and manual controls are overkill for you two. There are so many Point and Shoots out there it is really hard to choose. Insist on a camera with Image stabilization. If you are shooting groups of people indoors consider a model with a Wide Angle lens (less than 30mm) like the Canon PowerShot SD800 IS or the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX01, FX07, FX50 series.

Also http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/elec...ameras/reports/how-to-choose/index.htm
 
A

Aztech

Golden Member
Jan 19, 2002
1,922
0
0
I recently bought the Canon Elph SD450 and I really like it so far. I love the "color accent" mode where everything is black and white except for one color that you choose. I've been using the heck out of that and have some really cool pics.

Having said that, I recently played with a Nikon S5 and was quite impressed with some things on it. First of all, the LCD is glass coated and that makes a big difference! It's like the new "brightview" LCDs on laptops. Everything is much crisper and clearer on it. Also, the menu system and navigation were really nice and included a help button for any function. Anyway, I haven't seen any output from it, but I liked those things. It's about the same size as the Canon Elphs.
 
RelaxTheMind

RelaxTheMind

Platinum Member
Oct 15, 2002
2,245
0
76
I just bought the sd600 like 6 months ago... i would personally get the sd630. simple point and shoot camera with all the features you would ever need. great for traveling.


I bought 2 high capacity batterys for $12 on ebay... I can take about 300 pictures with flash before I have to change the battery.
 
0roo0roo

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
64,795
84
91
S3 IS
image stabilization pwns all. makes for better pictures in lower light, longer shutter times possible. consumer cams suck at low light with their dinky sensors. and well anyone with a consumer digicam knows how easy it is to take a blurry picture in less than optimal conditions. megapixels wasted:p
 
Y

Yzzim

Lifer
Feb 13, 2000
11,990
1
76
Accckckkk, this sucks. I'm really close to pulling the trigger on the S3 IS, but it's more than I'd like to spend.
 
D

d3n

Golden Member
Mar 13, 2004
1,597
0
0
Originally posted by: Yzzim
Accckckkk, this sucks. I'm really close to pulling the trigger on the S3 IS, but it's more than I'd like to spend.
Click to expand...

The S3 is a solid camera. I don't see how you could go wrong with it. If you are not a photography buff and simply use the camera for snapshots I would still lean towards a point and shoot with IS like the 700IS. The 800IS is more expensive but it has the wide 28mm lens, which adds a sense of expansiveness to indoor macro and outdoor shots you can't get with any other P&S.

The reason I tout the point and shoot cameras is that the camera doesn't mean a thing if you never have it with you. Much more likely with a small camera.
 
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