We lost our digital camera. Last time we saw it was while snow tubing in nearby Massachussetts ( tons of fun, BTW). Anyway, I NEED to replace it, and would welcome recommendations.
I don’t need tons of megapixels ( 2-3 would be OK), but I do need closeup capabilities for whistle/wood pictures as well as nature shots. Small and rugged are also pretty important. Thanks all!
Olympus gets my vote!
I bought an Olympus D-500L about 10 years ago that was a real workhorse. When it died (my fault) I replaced it with an Olympus D-510 that I bought on closeout. A co-worker bought an Olympus D-550 that he loves it features.
My boyfriend got me a sony cybershot DSC-P71 for christmas and its awesome- its small enough to take everywhere but not absurdly small- and it takes good crisp pictures… defiently worth checking out
-Angela
We bought an Olympus digital camera for Christmas. I can’t locate the model number but I can tell you it retailed for about $180. We’re very pleased with it.
Dale
P.S. It’s this one: Model D-380
http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/cpg_product_lobbypage.asp?l=1&p=16&bc=1&product=856
[ This Message was edited by: DaleWisely on 2003-01-11 09:02 ]
I have the cybershot DSC-P71 and its great. It does have one problem when taking pictures with the flash. Subjects need to hold still and the refresh time on the battery is about 15 seconds. My friend has the p75 which and nicad batteries and the refresh is down to just a couple of seconds.
both are 3.2 mega pixels.
I’ve had the OLympus 550 for about three months and I’m very happy with it. It’s a 3 megapixel camera. The price has come down to between $250 to $299.
jim
Hi,
IMO, if you need the capability of taking high quality close-up’s avoid a compact digital. I have an Olympus c220zoom which is a nice little camera, easy to use, small and is automatically recognised by Win98ME and XP which means you don’t need to use the supplied softwarwe and can use whichever photo editing software you like. The only problem is straight objects like whistles, flutes etc look curved if they are at the top or side of the shot, probably caused by the small lens, the focus is’nt 100% sharp either. That said digital is much more convienient than film and I don’t regret buying but for best quality photos a 35mm SLR will be very hard to beat at a fraction of the cost. If you want to see examples from C220zoom check the instrument photo thread (post structural whistle board) and Pipe pictures (Uillean Pipe Forum).
Cheers, Mac
My brother got a Canon D60. It’s wicked.
Chris
On 2003-01-11 11:00, ChrisLaughlin wrote:
My brother got a Canon D60. It’s wicked.
Chris
My Dad’s got a Canon G2. It too is wicked!
You can get rid of your film camera if you get the D60 or even the G2. I’m hoping he’ll upgrade to the D60 soon and I’ll inherit the G2. 
-brett
I have a Fuji Finepix 2650 and it take fine pictures up close in Macro mode.
I’ve have several of these cameras but the one I find myself reaching for, more often than not, is my cheaper Canon PowerShot A series. 2.11 maga pixels, 7+ zoom (3dig & 4opt), close-up attachments, fits in any shirt pocket, user-friendly, forms nicely in the hand, inexpensive (less than $200 on sale), everything you need for computer use.
Don’t buy it online at all those cut rate stores, you can actually get it in stock, for less (even cheaper on sale) at your local Bi-Mart, and return it if you don’t like it.
Most importantly, for computer use (enlarging, cropping, etc.), get one that has high optical zoom and low digital zoom. New and better ones come out every day it seems, and for less.
Hi,
try this website for reviews’
http://www.steves-digicams.com
Cheers, Mac
I have a Toshiba PDR M70, which has been a totally awesome camera. I took it to Alaska with me year before last, and the photo quality is awesome! It’s also been an incredibly reliable camera…I’ve had it for three years now, and never had a bit of trouble with it. If I ever had to replace it, I would look very closely at getting another Toshiba.
Redwolf
I’ve got a Canon Powershot G1 that I’m quite happy with, and it came with very good archiving and editing software, including Photoshop LE.
I actually wrote up a very long message here with lots of pluses and minuses to different cameras etc., but the message board software glitched on me and I lost it all, and unfortunately I don’t have the time or energy to do it all again…
Loren
Before you buy a camera, make sure to check out the hotdeals forum at fatwallet.com to see if there are any good deals going on. Also, when buying from Staples always use on of the printable coupons from fatwallet (do a search of their forums to find them) and try to pricematch whenever possible. You can save a bundle this way.
Best,
Chris
Canon’s wear like iron and still take pictures, mine is held tovgether with Scotch tape and still working 4 years after the guarantee is up!
We’ve had a Sony Mavica CD-400 for a couple of months now and it is awesome. It burns the photos straight to mini CD. You can get 66 photos at max resolution on a single CD costing about $1.50 each. Macro shots are great.
Set with everything on ‘auto’ and the pictures look great, however, you can maually set just about everything if you like.
My 2 cents worth…
Just my two-bits, but weighing in as commercial photographer (using digital for bread&butter, too…).
I f you can afford the abovementioned G2, get it. Beside all the “photographic” qualities, and finish, Canon packs its cameras witth surprisingly efficient software. It’s a valid justification to buy this brand instead of the two competitors selling exactly the same camera (all being from the same OEM…) with minor cosmetic differences.
If you want to limit yourself to smaller resolutions, and it’s a quite reasonable choice, then I’d advise better buy a used “was top-end 2 years ago” than a new 2-3 megapixels. For instance, a used G1. Or even better an Olympus E-10* (only if compacity is not an issue to you).
Both will be cheaper (used) and better, warranty issues aside. Why ? Because the obsolete “top-end” 3-4 Mpix were replaced by new “equivalents” (only in image “weight”) which are just cheaper made : in the low-to-midrange market, only price issues, hence productivity, rule.
- In the used market, this would be my personal favorite. It’s as bulky as a 35 mm SLR camera, but with all the precision and convenience of a true optical SLR. It sold new for a hefty price, but got obsoleted by subsequent E-20… and fads.
[ This Message was edited by: Zubivka on 2003-01-11 15:28 ]
Hey Paul… We’re also in the market. I have found this site very helpful with very in depth reviews. Kinda like the C&F for digital cameras!
Nikon Coolpix 5700 hands down. Purely an awesome camera. I am selling my 35mm gear over on eBay starting this week. It is not cheap. I’m an ex-pro, freelance and advertising shots, mostly, about 200 weddings (YUCK!!!) under my belt… In fact, “awesome” is an understatement. Unfortunately, compared to the others I’ve seen here, the price is also pretty awesome, but that’s the only down-side. And the camera is worth every cent.
Bill Whedon