Which digital Camera should I purchase

[Rahul Mahindrakar]

Hi,
I am planning to buy a digital camera. I have looked at NIkon 775 and Canon A40.
Any ideas what I should be looking out for

[Ashok Mash]

Hello,
You might have already done enough research into this I hope. And most probably you might have come across
Steves Review.
I have been using a Fuji FinePix MX 1200 last year. It was a pretty basic camera with a max resolution of about 1200 x 900 pix resolution. It was good enough if you planning to publish ur photos online, or even to cut a slideshow into a Video CD.
Recently I had a chance to get my hands on a Fuji FinePix 6900. Great features but expensive.
At the end of the day, if you are looking for real quality photos, with room for creativity, where you can experiment with light and shade, there are not many affordable digital cameras in the market.
IMO, if you are fancy creative photography etc a middle range SLR is still way too better than any affordable digital cameras.
Check out this wonderful site www.photo.net.
Cheers,
Ashok.
PS: Edited to fix wrong URL.
[ May 27, 2002: Message edited by: Ashok M ]

[Randall Twede]

im sure it depends on what you need it for. i asked the same question a year or two ago. i need one for making pictures for websites. the camedia (i forget who makes it) was recommended as a good deal at that time.

[Marcus Green]

In some ways digital and chemical photography are not directly comparable. I can go away for the weekend and take 200 exposures on my digital camera and pare it down to 10 -15. On the infinate monkey principle I am bound to get a few good ones. With a chemical camera the cost of developing severely limits the number of exposures I wiould take.
One piece of advice is get the biggest memory card you can. I bought a 64 when I first got mine but a few months later got a 128 MB at least wherever poss.
Marcus

[ersin eser]

http://www.dpreview.com/ is a very good web site.
NikonD100 and Canon EOS D60 are my favorites.

[Jason Menard]

I recently purchased the Canon A40 and am very happy with it.

[Rahul Mahindrakar]

Jason
I want to buy a digital camera basically so that I can send photographs to my parents and others. Also I would like to save on the development costs and develop photos that are really good.
I did some research in Canon A40. I would like to know your feeling about the the avi file it generates. Is it adequate. Is it worth the investment. Can you send one of your avi files so that i can have a look. Also I read in some documentation that i can record only 10 seconds of motion with this camera. Is this true.
Basically I have looked at 2 mega pixels cameras and found that the A40 and the Nikon 775 fall in my range. I am looking at similar cameras that fall in this range.
Also I have to make a decision as to whether I should go in for "only a digital camera" or a digital camera with the motion defined.
Thanks for all your views I will have to sit down and analyze.

[Cindy Glass]

We got the kind of camera that can take a floppy and we love it. That way you are not limited in the number of pics that you can take before downloading to something else. We just keep the pics on the floppy's. Much easier. It is easy to hand off to someone else also - especially when there is no computer near.
You also pay alot extra for the zoom power - but I think that it is worth it. We have a 14X zoom and when you are trying to single out YOUR kid on stage from the back of the auditorium - it is a blessing.

[Chip Van Alstyne]

I have the Canon S110 and love it. It is in the 2.3MP range and can take 15-20 seconds of motion. I agree with the person who said you will need to buy a bigger memory card for it. I went out and bought a 128MB card and can take ~150 pictures at max resoltuion.
Some of the features I like about the camera:
-It's tiny. Slightly bigger than a credit card and about 1 inch thick
-it's pretty quick
-the pictures are good
-you have some control over the effects you are using (although as an amateur, I don't use this)
-it comes with a re-chargeable battery
Some things I don't like
-the battery is proprietary
-even though it's quick, there is a noticeable lag when taking pictures. it takes some getting used to
-the optical zoom only goes up to 2x
The nice thing about the size is this means you can more easily take it with you without having to worry about it being obvious or bulky. You could probably sneak it into places that don't ordinarily allow cameras because of it's small size.
My theroy was that if I had a small camera I would carry it more and use it more, therby really making my investment pay off. But, you may not like that. I would definitely check the 2 links above to see their reviews. I used them both extensively to check out the different cameras out there and thought they gave great advice.
Good luck.

[Brian Nice]

We bought a Sony camera and really like it, except for one thing. It does not have a regular viewfinder like a regular camera. When taking pictures outside or in low light, sometimes you can not even make out the image on the digitial screen to know what you are shooting. The next Sony model with a viewfinder was another $200 up. Sigh.

[Jason Menard]

Originally posted by Rahul Mahindrakar:
Can you send one of your avi files so that i can have a look. Also I read in some documentation that i can record only 10 seconds of motion with this camera. Is this true.

I'll see if I can get something together to send you this weekend. I don't remember what the max length of the avi is... it's either 30 seconds or 10 seconds. I was thinking it was 30 seconds but could be mistaken. I will look it up.
While the avi capability is a nice little added bonus, I didn't get it because of that. It's not really a video camera and I do not expect it to excel at being a video camera. One thing it does do, possibly as a side effect of having the video capability, is that you can take a series of still shots at one time. Like if you want to take a series of stills of some action sequence... maybe a car driving by or some sports action. It's also supposed to be pretty good at taking pictures in low light, including night time.
I picked it up based on the outstanding reviews of its much heralded predecessor, the A20. I'm not a photography genius so I really can't comment on it compared to other cameras except to say that i am happy with it. It uses compact flash, which is widely available and not all that expensive, as well as being able to use standard NiMH rechargeable batteries.
Extras I picked up at time of purchase: two four packs of NiMH batteries and a recharger (so I would have two sets of rechargeable batteries), 128MB compact flash (camera comes with an 8MB flash), and a compact flash reader (they're cheap and it's better than wasting the charge on your camera batteries).

[Gail Schlentz]

Now it's my turn to shop for a camera....
Cindy - What you bought sounds like what I'm looking for - What brand/model, and if you don't mind including, the approx. price? Does it have an LCD Display, as well as a regular view finder for taking pictures?
Thanks,
*Gail

[Nanhesru Ningyake]

Now why buy just a digital camera when you can buy a digital camcorder with a still camera included?
I purchased the 1.5 MegaPixel Sony DCR-PC120BT last month, and I'm loving it. Ok, it's a high-end model, bought this at $1522 - but it's loaded with great features. It fits in my palm, the video quality is excellent, and takes sharp still pics upto 1360x1020, and MPEGs too.
And btw, the BT in the model number stands for Bluetooth. You have a wireless web browser in this camcorder, and can send and receive emails directly from it, with your still pics as attachments, if you like!
I've researched camcorders for nearly 3 years now, and I think this is the best camcorder in it's class (1-CCD camcorders).
I know you're looking for just a camera, but if you don't already have a digital camcorder, I suggest you go for something like this

[Rahul Mahindrakar]

gail,
I finally made my decision and purchased Canon A40 which fits my budget. I also bought 128 MB card for it. I bought 2 packs of NIMH batteries and the recharger.
The total cost came to around 700 Euros. Its worth it.
I compared the Canon A40 to the Nikon 775 and in the end decided to go in for Canon

[Rahul Mahindrakar]

Nanhesru,
Thanks I wish I could go in for a camcoder and a digital camera , but the price is a bit to high. Though in the near future I may buy a camcoder too.
Thanks.

[Gail Schlentz]

Same here - $1500's a bit high for my budget right now.
Is a Euro pretty close to one U.S. dollar?
Plus I can't be trusted with something so expensive... I received a digital camera as a gift a few years back. Went camping & liked how the camera fit into my jacket pocket so nicely. Got home & promptly washed the jacket.
*Gail

[Anonymous]

I bought a Canon A40 a month back and am very satisfied with it. It is a 2-megapixel camera and shoots extremely well in the sunlight. The auto-mode does not work very well indoors - especially when it is dark. However, after some repeated attempts with the manual mode, I was able to shoot some pretty good pictures.
I spent $310 for it at Best Buy and got a 128MB flash card at Sams Club for $65. I had a recharger already, but I do think this is a must because the flash drains the battery at an astounding pace.
Overall, I am really satisfied with the picture quality and camera handling.

[Randall Twede]

im not absolutely certain, but last i heard, a euro was about $.80

[Johnson Chong]

Hey, why not buy one only when you can make one yourself? It's not really that hard. Just get a CCD device, DSP, Java loader, and hey presto! You have a digital camera. Java is the word, is the word, that you heard, Grease is the word, is the word, that you heard.......

[Ashok Mash]

Originally posted by Randall Twede:
im not absolutely certain, but last i heard, a euro was about $.80

That is 'sooo last-weekish'. This week Dollar and Euro stands almost same. (1 Euro = $.99)

[Rahul Mahindrakar]

The auto-mode does not work very well indoors - especially when it is dark

Yes I notice this too. Can you suggest something about this.

[Anonymous]

Originally posted by Rahul Mahindrakar:

Yes I notice this too. Can you suggest something about this.

Hey! This place called Pune. Is there a Maharajis where his teachings are taught?

[Rahul Mahindrakar]

Johnson,
I think you are referring to the Osho Community Center which is indeed located in Pune.