Compact Camera with full manual control

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Johno

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Hi there, I currently own a Fuji F40FD, which is a camera I rate highly, however I am now at a stage where I am wanting to experiment with the manual settings, and I don't have any interest in purchasing a Digital SLR - my preference is a compact camera, designed for the enthusiast.

In my research I have picked up on the reviews for the Fuji S5700, and it appears to have full manual control, but I am put off by the shutter speed only allowing 4 seconds, and have been told when using aperture priority, it results in high iso, noisy images, is this correct?

Ideally, I would like a compact, which allows shutter priority up too 10 seconds, & a camera which doesn't produce noisy images when using aperture priority.

Does a camera like this exist in the market, a compact one? for under £200?

Any tips or advice would be appreciated, thanks
 
Or you could go for a G7 for a bit cheaper. Or the Canon Powershot SX100 is around £150.
 
I have been looking at the G9 for a while now, and would quite happily pay an extra 80 odd pound, if it means getting the camera I am after.

Toothie, when using shutter priority, what is the limit? as I am quite keen on having a decent compact camera, that I can use with my mini tripod for some night shots on holiday, and all the fuji cameras (apart from dslr) seem to limit you to 4 seconds.
 
its 15 seconds to 1/2500. you control the ISO etc all independently, it shoots raw and it has a hot shoe :D
 
I'm going to get a G9 for my other half for her birthday :)

She likes taking pictures but isn't interested in the technical side of things. She could stick the G9 on auto-everything mode, and I could nab it* on the odd occasion when I needed to travel light :thumbs:

A.

*Don't tell her I said this
 
Anyone have any views on the Canon Powershot A720IS http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canona720is/

"Apertures can be selected between the maximum of f/2.8-4.8 and the minimum of f/8 in 1/3EV intervals, and shutter speeds from 15 seconds to 1/1500th of a second are also available in 1/3EV steps."

I can pick this up for £126.99
 
Going back to your original post for a minute, I had an S5700 but I got rid of it as it was an ergonomic nightmare and awkward to use. The A720IS is probably an ok camera, but it depends what you want from a camera. Certainly it's a whole £180 cheaper than a G9, but the trade off is that it's plastic, has no RAW function, 8mp v 12 for the G9, etc, etc.

If you really are after a "a compact camera, designed for the enthusiast" then the only camera that fits the bill is the G9. If on the other hand, your purchase decision is price-driven then the A720IS is probably a decent enough buy.
 
I appreciate the G9 is the "top dog" in this category, and when comparing with the A720, I could handle the plastic, as I am not after a fashion accessory, also 12mp v 8mp, there will never be a situation when I need the extra mp, and no need for RAW at the moment.

Which brings me to image quality & creative control, as I am looking to learn and experiment with shutter/aperture priority, and will the G9 offer me any improvement in this area over the A720?

And from reading reviews, and opinions, doesn't seem to be a vastly superior lens on the G9, or is that wrong?

Just boils down to saving £180, on an uglier, plastic camera, which will allow me to achieve the same results and understanding of manual controls, as the G9??.......what do you say????
 
Those cameras are quite interesting, especially the Leica - have decided to go ahead with the G9, can't seem to go wrong and its worth the extra cash.
 
The Ricoh GX200 looks pretty sweet.
 
I spent ages looking for a compact, eventually went with the G7, it's a brilliant camera, best compact i've ever had. :clap: Just a shame canon announced the G9 2 months after i bought! :'(:bonk:
 
I think that the best camera of all the G's, is the G6. A great second hand buy too. It has more Mp's that are necessary for a compact sensor, and I have yet to see any evidence that there is a better compact available.

It is in my opinion, far superior in terms of facilities and handling to the later models, allowing you many more options. It is a real enthusiasts camera - set it to manual, and have a blast. (much the same could be said about the G5!).
 
dougdarter said:
I think that the best camera of all the G's, is the G6. A great second hand buy too. It has more Mp's that are necessary for a compact sensor, and I have yet to see any evidence that there is a better compact available.

It is in my opinion, far superior in terms of facilities and handling to the later models, allowing you many more options. It is a real enthusiasts camera - set it to manual, and have a blast. (much the same could be said about the G5!).
Click to expand...

I'm in a real quandry choosing between the Panasonic LX3, Canon G10 and Ricoh GX200. My concern over the LX3 is the lack of zoom. These are the sort of photos I take which I know aren't very accomplished but will maybe assist more experienced people working out if I need lots of zoom:
http://www.jameshughesphotos.co.uk/Font2008/ taken with an old fuji s5000

I do want to get better at taking photos but don't want the expense of an DSLR.
 
Get the G10 - it will do everything you want of it and more. It is also very ruggedly put together (metal case, not plastic) good lens range from 28mm - 140mm as a 35mm equivalent so we can all understand it. The metering is also VERY accurate, and if you shoot RAW you can tweak the exposure without loss of quality. It will even catch action - so if you wanted to get abseiling back down for instance - no problem.

Go and have a trawl fo rthe bit I put about the G10 when I first got mine. It is in the equipment section somewhere...got some kayaking pics taken on my very first time out with it when I didn't know what things did, for you to have a decko at too.
 
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