Digital cameras

[Ack]

Hey guys, recently I've discovered that it would probably behoove me to pick up a digital camera. But I don't know where to start, and they're all really expensive. What do you guys have, how much do you like it, how expensive is it, and what does it take to put stuff on my computer for sharing with the internet?

I really appreciate the help.

[fox099]

i dont know how much you have worked with cameras. im personally an enthusiast and use a SLR. you can pick up a new canon or nikon for about 400 bucks with a lense. if you are new, i know alot of my friends enjoy their panasonic DMC-FZ28K cameras. this too is about 300 bucks, but a great camera for a newcomer!

[Metalcrack]

Well, what are you planning to do? Just shoot and share, or have upgrade/update opportunities? Basically it boils down to SLR or not. I have a Sony a200 DSLR I got on sale for $499. The point and shoot function is really good, but it most definately will not fit in a shirt pocket. I can use all current Sony lenses, but it is compatable with many older Minolta lenses. Manu Nikons are compatable with their own older line of lenses.

On the other hand, if you just want to point shoot, then get on your way, a SLR is really not for you. My old Cannon Elph was about the size of my wallet, and took fair pictures, but the 2x optical zoom was limiting to me, so I had to upgrade.

[racketboy]

I comes down to the mix of portability vs quality.
I am a Canon Powershot fan and have experience with a number of their models.
Lemme know how you plan on using it most of the time and what is important to you and I can give you some affordable options.

For transferring, you can use an included USB cable, or you can take the memory card out and use a card reader to transfer -- very easy.

[Ack]

Honestly, most of what I'll be photographing is to send to friends and family, kinda a nice way to keep in touch I figure. Mom'll appreciate it. But I also plan on using it to photograph my game collection to put up here, say for articles or the like. So portability isn't necessarily a must, and I prefer USB to everything else.

[racketboy]

Honestly, most of what I'll be photographing is to send to friends and family, kinda a nice way to keep in touch I figure. Mom'll appreciate it. But I also plan on using it to photograph my game collection to put up here, say for articles or the like. So portability isn't necessarily a must, and I prefer USB to everything else.

Well, it sounds like indoor photography is important and I would say having manual focus and a macro feature is a must for getting close-ups of relatively small objects.
So I would recommend the camera I use for most of my stuff, the Poweshot S3 IS. However, now that one is on the way out and it looks like the newer replacement is the S5 IS:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/ ... amingwi-20

It has much of the quality that an SLR (what professionals use) would provide, but at a price point and usability level that is more in line with people that aren't doing photography for a living or serious hobby.

Having the bigger lens lets in more light, making indoor pictures turn out much better.
On a side note, these cameras also have excellent video recording capabilities. The resulting AVI file is DVD quality and you can zoom in and out while recording, unlike some cheaper cameras. You can totally get away without having a camcorder with this around. The microphone is also pretty good on it.

[otaku]

I love cameras, and love photography. I've owned tons. I owned a canon (p&S) but it had no image stablization so blurred alot. It was kinda heavy to and no viewfinder and worst of all the finish on it was easily scratched as was the LCD damn thing ended up getting stolen. I paid 250 for it a year after it came out (it was a nicer model) I also have owned an olympus stylus (4mp 2002 first digicam I owned) it was great, nice and light, and weatherproofed, took nice photos. Currently I use a fuji 5mp camera which is great its fast and small/light however the feel of it (quality/feel in your hands, buttons) could definetly be better.

My favorite cameras I've used are leica's I love them but have only managed to own one (it was a 35mm minilux thats shutter died)

anyway no need to spend alot of money. Visit second hand stores, camera stores and look online. My fuji with memory etc was 50 bucks (i got screwed on the memory card 1 gig was 30 bucks) unlike film cameras digital ones depreciate massively for instance the leica M8 I want so badly is 5000+ new (without lens!) but goes for 3500 used!

[Daniel Primed]

Honestly, most of what I'll be photographing is to send to friends and family, kinda a nice way to keep in touch I figure. Mom'll appreciate it. But I also plan on using it to photograph my game collection to put up here, say for articles or the like. So portability isn't necessarily a must, and I prefer USB to everything else.

I use to sell cameras and all that I really need to say is that if this is the case then you should buy based on price range. Higher price means better camera and usually it'll be easier to take better shots. You might also want to pay more if you like owning high end tech but based on what you have said anything mid-range should do the job and do it to a good degree. There really aren't any major differences with all of the cameras and what differences there are often too insignificant for the average point-and-shoot consumer to notice.

I haven't sold cameras for a few months though and lately my interest has been in my Sony Alpha 100 and the SLR market. With that though, the cheapest models in the Panasonic Lumix range would get my recommendation. Sturdy, great lens and some of the best functionaility out there. Otherwise buy a Sony or Olympus camera and steer clear from Kodak.

[fastbilly1]

Vivitar...

[otaku]

vivitar!? I wouldn't even use them when I was a kid (always passed them on to my brother and took my family's olympus cams instead) You could find a vivitar dirt cheap though if not for free.