• If you are having problems logging in please use the Contact Us in the lower right hand corner of the forum page for assistance.

Camera advice needed

Nicky

Well-known member
I'm hoping to get a new digital for my birthday (or before my birthday :wink: ) from dad and Mike. I want to get one with a good zoom lens...but it needs to be something I can still use off horseback as that's when most of my pics are taken. So I know there is a line between useful and too much. We've looked at ones up to 18 power (spendy!) But its hard to tell when you're tethered to the store counter how steady it is.

So what do you guys have and do you like it, what would you change? Also what make of cameras. My current camera has a 3 power zoom. Thanks in advance
 

kolanuraven

Well-known member
Go to the nearest 'camera store' and play with them all!!!

Some are lighter than others.....some have larger LCD screens......there are a zillion things to choose from.

Go see what " speaks to you" first before you make a decision.
 

Mrs.Greg

Well-known member
We bought a Kodak easyshare...I'm not sure what happened but now Kodak freezes on the computer and I can't download off of it,I've heard this same complaint from others,so be careful about that. I love the pictures it takes though,now we process them at staples and scan them onto the computer.I guess you can also download the chip if your computer is new enough.Good luck on a new camera Nicky,you do know how to take great pics thats for sure :!:
 

DJL

Well-known member
I'm very pleased with my Canon Power Shot S2 1S. It has 12 power optical zoom (optical is all that matters), image stabilization (cause I'm a shaky picture taker) and while it is not a shirt pocket camera, is still small enough to pack in a little camera bag on the near side of the horn. or if you aren't afraid of getting beat to death with it in a wreck, around your neck on it's strap. It has enough features to make it fun, but is simple to operate, and get action shots with the continuous shoot feature. It does good macro and super macro shots as well as black and white, sepia, etc. I haven't begun to use all it's features, but it's fun to play with when I get time. It's not a battery eater; I have a set of NiMH rechargable batteries, and they last a long time. I looked at both Sony and Canon, and the gal at the counter asked me if I want a camera that a camera company makes, or one an electronics company makes...... I don't think you can go too far wrong with a Canon. I don't know what the newer versions of my camera are, but I'm sure there are new and improved models by now. I've packed this camera on the horses and quad, and dropped it off the pack horse one day and it's still working fine.
 

passin thru

Well-known member
Here is apretty good camera
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=5297441
I would try and buy it off the internet though, but this gives an idea.
DJL summed it up pretty good with some good advice.
 

Jassy

Well-known member
Although the more expensive camera's have a powerful zoom, they aren't always the handiest things to handle. I love my camera, a sony, but it is to big and heavy to carry horseback and get the good shots. I've seen some smaller sized camera's that are easier to handle and still take great shots...consider something that you can hold with one hand, and stick in your pocket.
 

katrina

Well-known member
I have a kodak easyshare and love it....... It's easy to use and have no complaints what's so ever. The dock prints out beautiful pictures right in front of your eyes!!! And down loading on the computer is just two clicks and it's done........
 

DiamondSCattleCo

Well-known member
Have a peek through some of the camera reviews on this website:

http://www.dcresource.com/

There are some other camera review sites that post test pictures and give you an idea of how a particular camera will perform under a given set of circumstances. A couple of them have 'best of' categories featuring certain cameras that are the 'best' for price or best in class. Don't ignore what these guys say as they use hundreds of cameras.

Panasonic cameras have good image stabilization (for your horseback shots), however they do suffer a bit when indoors. Don't ignore Fuji cameras either. I've got an _old_ Fuji digital here that I've never bothered to replace, simply because its plenty good enough for what I use a digital for. My 4x6 shots look like shots from a much more expensive film camera.

Rod
 

JF Ranch

Well-known member
I am not a great photographer, which should set the stage here!

I selected a Casio EX S500 which is one of the really slim cameras that fit in a shirt pocket like a deck of cards. I like it and have been satisfied, although I had to send it in once due to a focusing problem. Last winter, I dropped it from the top bleacher at a basketball game once which sprung the case. It has worked fine since then, except some of my pictures are not sharp. I plan to send it in again sometime before my extended warranty runs out.

Here are a few of my thoughts (keep in mind the first sentence I wrote!):

1. The LCD screens are nice, but... in direct sunlight they are hard to see. Both in composing a picture and then viewing it.

2. I think it might be better to have the option of looking through a view finder for camera stability. When bracing it against your cheek you can hold the camera more still. I wonder if some of my blurry pictures are due to camera movement when clicking the shutter. At arm's length it is easy to move the camera slightly when squeezing the trigger.

3. The optical zoom is limited in these thin models. Mine has 3x optical and something like 12x digital zoom. I don't use the digital very much as the picture quality is not as good, partly due to camera stability. Of course the more zoom the better, but 3x seems to be adequate. Just get closer if necessary. Wildlife pictures are the exception here.

4. I would not buy one without the extended warranty. I got mine through Ritz Camera and my salesman convinced me that his extended warranty was better than the rest because no matter what happens to it they will either repair or replace it at no charge. He said even if it should slip out of my pocket and fall in a tank of water, or if it got smashed by a horse or cow it would be covered at no charge. You be the judge on that, but with this delicate equipment, I feel much better having the coverage.

5. Ladies that carry purses may not require the ulta-slim models and more options are available to them. Us men need something that can be carried in a shirt pocket (preferably with a flap for security and to keep out dirt, etc. This is the only way some of us are able to carry a camera and take pictures as we go about our daily work. This trade-off is what needs to be considered.
 

Northern Rancher

Well-known member
I'd like at least 10X optical zoom and image stabilized-my old Olympus has 10X optical zoom but not image stabilization which I think would be a pretty good feature.It's hard to get good wildlife or livestock pics if you have to be right on top of them.
 

Les

Well-known member
I have a canon power shot sd600...3x zoom....6.0 mega pixels.Takes great pics but wish it had more zoom but then i would lose the compact size. I carry it in my shirt pocket and hardly ever leave the house with out it.If it was bigger i would not take it with me and miss alot of good pics i think...also have a 2.0 gb card so i can get about 1200 pics before it is full..never had it anywheres near full yet.i am sure the rechargable battery will last for 1200 pics too... my only problem is i dont know how to get my pics to here.. i use picasa2 to store them on my puter.
 

DiamondSCattleCo

Well-known member
Les said:
my only problem is i dont know how to get my pics to here.. i use picasa2 to store them on my puter.

As a general rule of thumb, if your camera plugs into a USB port, you can just access it like another hard drive. Copy the pics (often JPGs) using Windows Explorer. Then you can avoid using any proprietary software to copy files down to your hard disk. The software that came with my Fuji really sucked, so I killed it off and just copy files. If I need to manipulate them, I use Adobe.

Rod
 

IL Rancher

Well-known member
DJL said:
I'm very pleased with my Canon Power Shot S2 1S. I..... I don't think you can go too far wrong with a Canon. I don't know what the newer versions of my camera are, but I'm sure there are new and improved models by now. I've packed this camera on the horses and quad, and dropped it off the pack horse one day and it's still working fine.

Deleted the middle part because well, didn't want that long of a quote :lol: :lol: Well, I jus got stupid and bought a new camera as because I went out last night to take pictures before the rain came so I could do a before and after shot of how bad the corn looked to what rain did for it and my camera was broken.. Seeing that it was older than both my kids I decided it was time to get a new one and after a bit of research I bought the Canon S5 1S .. Just started playing with it a bit but haven't figured it out yet.. Sure is a ncie camera compared to my old one. Might be as nice as my old SLR from Minolta that I got 15 years ago with a big Telephoto lense.. Love that camera but will only go back to film if I build a dark room as I loved processing the film myself but seem to find it hard to take the film to a lab to get processed... Some pretty nifty features on this camera.. Looking forward ot running it through some paces today...
 

Jinglebob

Well-known member
katrina said:
I have a kodak easyshare and love it....... It's easy to use and have no complaints what's so ever. The dock prints out beautiful pictures right in front of your eyes!!! And down loading on the computer is just two clicks and it's done........

I've got the same as Katrina and feel the same way, tho' I haven't used the dock. I just use a plugin to the computer that came with the camera. I wish it was a little smaller, but it will fit into my shirt pocket.

I like that it has both the eye hole to look thru, plus the LCD screen, or what ever it is. I took my DIL when we got it and she helped pick it out, cuz she knows my limitations on anything mechanical! :lol:

So far I am real happy with it.

Next time, a little more zoom power and all that other stuff you guys talked about. :wink: :D
 

IL Rancher

Well-known member
DJL said:
Don't tell me too much or I'll have camera-envy! :D I hope you enjoy your camera as much as I enjoy mine.

Lol.. There are some pretty nifty features on it.. I won't use the optical+ digital zoom combined to often but 48X is pretty crazy, felt like I was using a scope on a rifle until I realized my scope wasn't taht powerfull :lol: :lol: I really like the one where you can have it remove all the colors out of a picture but one or how you could swap one color with anoer, like making the grass purple (Why you would want to do that is beyond me but hey, why not?)

I almost got one of the smaller ones but most I saw were a bit limited in Optical zoom and some didn't have a view finder anymore.. This one reminded me of the cameras I used back in photo class and how much I liked taking pictures.. AFter spending a weekend at af amily reunion and not taking a single picture and than thinking of how many photos I have't taken over the past few years I figured I best be remeding that situation..
 
Top