Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Discussion Area => Topic started by: richardirv on 20 January 2011, 10:19:08
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I'm off to Turkey at the end of may so new camera time. I have had a Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-W80 for a number of years now and its been a great little camera, but I feel like I would like something new and with a better zoom as the W80 only has x3 optical zoom I think.
I'm no pro photographer but do enjoy taking pics and enjoy experimenting with settings so I feel I need something decent but without going into DSLR territory. It has to be compact as its main purpose is point and shoot and pocket sized but need zoom and pro features, & would like it to Zoom in video... Some dont!
Been looking over a few days and narrowed it down to a few contenders;
Pannasonic Lumix TZ10
Samsung WB650
Sony HX5V (No Apature or Shutter Priority Modes) :'(
None of these are perfect and have there own little issues but to be expected in this price range!
Really like the look of the Sony H55 & HX7V - But HX7V is lookin a little to expensive and neither are out till march so no reviews.
Help! :y
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I have the TZ10 - it's a really nice camera, takes very good pictures in all but 'low light' conditions with the sky behind your subject where it struggles a little to meter light as there's no (that I could find) spot metering options.
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I have the TZ10 - it's a really nice camera, takes very good pictures in all but 'low light' conditions with the sky behind your subject where it struggles a little to meter light as there's no (that I could find) spot metering options.
Yeah I read its not great in low light, the sony's on the other hand are, but not sure if the lack or Apature & Shutter priority would bug me! :-/
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I have the TZ10 - it's a really nice camera, takes very good pictures in all but 'low light' conditions with the sky behind your subject where it struggles a little to meter light as there's no (that I could find) spot metering options.
Yeah I read its not great in low light, the sony's on the other hand are, but not sure if the lack or Apature & Shutter priority would bug me! :-/
If you are conversant enough with photography to pick up that they are missing it probably would, IMHO. ;)
Then again, is it a camera for holiday snaps or art.. or a bit of both?
At this sort of price you might find an SLR that does the job.. maybe 2nd hand and certainly bulkier but "upgradeitis" is feeding the 2nd hand market strongly at the moment and any DSLR will give you more control and better image quality.
Kevin
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I know what you mean, but I really need to keep the size down, I hate carrying things around on holiday etc. hence not really looking at any DSLR's.
I'm on the sony web site now and the more I look at the HX7V the more I want it, even though it might be missing some A & S settings on the plus side it has a CMOS sensor which is DSLR territory. All the others just have CCD sensors.
Downside is £350, hhhhmmmm it is my 30th this year. I'm thinking early birthday present ::)
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The lack of spot metering really showed up here - being able to take a good shot of the foreground (yes I know, the background is completely blown-out ;)) was basically down to random chance..
This one worked: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs130.ash2/39840_452205591203_672941203_6122889_7675726_n.jpg
This one did not: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs177.snc4/38213_452205606203_672941203_6122890_4008676_n.jpg
On the other hand, sometimes it works really nicely: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs180.snc4/38327_452206341203_672941203_6122946_1802004_n.jpg
With a steady hand it works well at night, though: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs483.ash1/26452_366540421203_672941203_4789730_5139963_n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs235.snc3/22234_313447306203_672941203_4574742_2761858_n.jpg
And day: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs295.ash1/22234_313444826203_672941203_4574725_7326600_n.jpg
It took some really nice shots in London too, but I don't seem to have those (they went with the ex who took them!)
Oh - after playing with this and the Ricoh GR-D that I had before it, I ended up going out and getting a Canon EOS 5D MkII .... which I've hardly used purely because it's so damned big (especially with the 24-105mm lens)
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The lack of spot metering really showed up here - being able to take a good shot of the foreground (yes I know, the background is completely blown-out ;)) was basically down to random chance..
This one worked: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs130.ash2/39840_452205591203_672941203_6122889_7675726_n.jpg
This one did not: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs177.snc4/38213_452205606203_672941203_6122890_4008676_n.jpg
On the other hand, sometimes it works really nicely: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs180.snc4/38327_452206341203_672941203_6122946_1802004_n.jpg
With a steady hand it works well at night, though: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs483.ash1/26452_366540421203_672941203_4789730_5139963_n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs235.snc3/22234_313447306203_672941203_4574742_2761858_n.jpg
And day: http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs295.ash1/22234_313444826203_672941203_4574725_7326600_n.jpg
It took some really nice shots in London too, but I don't seem to have those (they went with the ex who took them!)
Oh - after playing with this and the Ricoh GR-D that I had before it, I ended up going out and getting a Canon EOS 5D MkII .... which I've hardly used purely because it's so damned big (especially with the 24-105mm lens)
Some nice shots there, it does look like a mixed bag though depending on light conditions. Shame
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Some nice shots there, it does look like a mixed bag though depending on light conditions. Shame
Any camera will only make a best guess as to what parts of a composition absolutely need spot-on exposure, though. The beauty of digital photography is that you can pop the image up on the display and check if it's made a Horlicks of it. As long as you have basic exposure compensation so you can turn it up or down a stop or two and try again you can get good results.
I often find this more valuable than umpteen metering modes, in some respects, because you can end up leaving it on the wrong mode, buried in a menu somewhere and trash a load of photos... Of course, you can leave the exposure compensation set to some silly value as well, though... ::)
Kevin
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I love the auto-bracketing feature on the 5D for that - automatically take three shots at -xEV, 0EV, +xEV (where x can be set) .. very handy when you're a bit hamfisted like me :D
Spot metering would have saved the statue shots though (the background would have been blown out, of course, not a lot you can do about that other than HDR or compose the shot better and use a filter - but I was standing on a bridge in Prague at the time in a crowd of people ;D)
And to Richard:
I have better examples somewhere - honestly the TZ10 is a really nice camera, though it can't fix my lack of eye for composition ;D
I presume you've checked out http://dpreview.com for reviews of the three you're considering?
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I love the auto-bracketing feature on the 5D for that - automatically take three shots at -xEV, 0EV, +xEV (where x can be set) .. very handy when you're a bit hamfisted like me :D
Spot metering would have saved the statue shots though (the background would have been blown out, of course, not a lot you can do about that other than HDR or compose the shot better and use a filter - but I was standing on a bridge in Prague at the time in a crowd of people ;D)
And to Richard:
I have better examples somewhere - honestly the TZ10 is a really nice camera, though it can't fix my lack of eye for composition ;D
I presume you've checked out http://dpreview.com for reviews of the three you're considering?
I don't deny the TZ10 is a good camera, I'm sure it is. Yes I have checked out many review sites over the last few days but they all seem to have different views about each camera, none say they are rubbish but no matter where I look I find a comment that puts me off both the TZ10 & the WB650. Mainly image quality issues.
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I love the auto-bracketing feature on the 5D for that - automatically take three shots at -xEV, 0EV, +xEV (where x can be set) .. very handy when you're a bit hamfisted like me :D
Agreed. I find it hard to remember that you've got to hold it still for a little longer though. ;D
honestly the TZ10 is a really nice camera, though it can't fix my lack of eye for composition ;D
Yeah, that's my problem. I can engineer a fantastic photo. ;D
Kevin
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Ditto, Kevin - to both points! ;D
I don't deny the TZ10 is a good camera, I'm sure it is. Yes I have checked out many review sites over the last few days but they all seem to have different views about each camera, none say they are rubbish but no matter where I look I find a comment that puts me off both the TZ10 & the WB650. Mainly image quality issues.
Yeah - that's the problem with online reviews.. I've found the same thing when looking at reviews for TVs and soforth, if you read them all, you end up buying nothing..
Personally I trust dpreview.com over the others so I tend to only read that one and save myself the confusion ;D
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Yeah its a mine field, think i'm gonna have to wait till march and see what the reviews of the HX7V are like and hope I can afford one if its good! :y
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If you were closer I'd say you could come and play with mine.
Er.. the camera! ;D
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If you were closer I'd say you could come and play with mine.
Er.. the camera! ;D
LOL! :y
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Also have a look at the Canon powershot G series cameras :y
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Also have a look at the Canon powershot G series cameras :y
Ahh! Spoken like a pro. <waits expectantly> ;)
Kevin
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Fuji finepix HS10 .Has 30 x optical zoom. Really pleased with results from mine.
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I love the auto-bracketing feature on the 5D for that - automatically take three shots at -xEV, 0EV, +xEV (where x can be set) .. very handy when you're a bit hamfisted like me :D
Spot metering would have saved the statue shots though (the background would have been blown out, of course, not a lot you can do about that other than HDR or compose the shot better and use a filter - but I was standing on a bridge in Prague at the time in a crowd of people ;D)
And to Richard:
I have better examples somewhere - honestly the TZ10 is a really nice camera, though it can't fix my lack of eye for composition ;D
I presume you've checked out http://dpreview.com for reviews of the three you're considering?
I found that feature on my Pentax K10D the other day. You can choose 1, 3 or 5 shots. They need to provide a quicker way to delete IMHO! ;D ;D
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I found that feature on my Pentax K10D the other day. You can choose 1, 3 or 5 shots. They need to provide a quicker way to delete IMHO! ;D ;D
Ahh! a fellow Pentax user. :y
Kevin
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I've got one of these....
http://shop.kodak.co.uk/store/ekconseu/en_GB/pd/productID.170163700
Probably a bit bulky for your requirement...but seems a good camera to me....
If your into editing your photos....it can capture in RAW mode.....tho i dont tend to use that mode...
i choose the 'fine' mode then tell the camera to apply its 'magic' and end up with two photos on the SD card....then pick the one i think is better. Instead of leaving it in 'full' auto which takes the pics in 'normal' mode and applies it 'magic' automatically....leaving you with no choice.
There was a guy on ebay selling these brand new for £150......which is where mine came from.....tho i suspect they are imported....
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I bought a myself a TZ10. Very pleased with it so far.
My previous compact Konica KD410z was just so slooooooow.
I was tempted by a DSLR but the best camera in the world is useless if you don't have it in your pocket when the moment arises. :y
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The Sony DSLR's have the advantage of having anti-shake built into the camera. This is useful to stop bluring on fast shots. They got it when they "inherited" Minolta's technology.
Ken
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The Sony DSLR's have the advantage of having anti-shake built into the camera. This is useful to stop bluring on fast shots. They got it when they "inherited" Minolta's technology.
Ken
Pentax bodies have this too, so every lens past, present and future has IS. :y
Kevin
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I agree the ones like the Fuji Finepix HS10 & the Kodak etc in the posts above are nice but they are just to large for me, really needs to fit in my pocket. ;)
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I agree the ones like the Fuji Finepix HS10 & the Kodak etc in the posts above are nice but they are just to large for me, really needs to fit in my pocket. ;)
I fully understand the desire for a pocket camera. Having a DSLR myself, I would possibly look to my next mobile phone for those spur-of-the-moment pictures.
I did buy a Casio Exilim for my wife which has been excellent (apart from the drop onto a stone floor). Sadly they don't seem to make it any more but it has 7x optical zoom entirely contained within the body; i.e. no moving external parts except lens cover. It is very compact and she has taken some pictures that I don't think I could match with the DSLR.
Having attempted a repair on a 200+GBP pocket camera with telescoping lens to get sand out, that design is not my favourite!
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Having attempted a repair on a 200+GBP pocket camera with telescoping lens to get sand out, that design is not my favourite!
This is the main drawback with pocket cameras, IMHO. Mechanically they are so fragile that they are a disposable item in my view.
Bearing in mind that 90% of my pictures are taken with a DSLR, and the pocket camera only comes out when I'd look a berk carrying an SLR I think I've gone through about 5 or 6 pocket cameras. The only SLR I've ever bought that doesn't still work got very wet. :'(
Kevin
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I generally don't worry too much about the zoom lens being to fragile, I am generally extremely carefull with my gadgets and very rarely drop or damage anything! And if I do, thats what insurance is for! :y