Recommend me a compact

R

Roadkill_6mm

Suspended / Banned
Messages
398
Name
Neil
Edit My Images
Yes
The Mrs is after a compact to replace the bridge camera she's been using.

Budget is circa £150 +/- £25 at a push.

It needs to be simple to use, she used my Fuji bridge on full auto. Needs a decent zoom (don't want to miss an opportunity!)

No interchangeable lenses!

Basically the bridge was just too big for her - and she never took advantage of it.
Picture quality is a must - she's already commented on how an old samsung compact produces rather poor images in comparison to the Fuji. I know the sensor in the S100fs is one of, if not the biggest, of bridge cameras at the time of release so I know there's going to be a compromise.

I've browsed a couple of offerings from Canon, but am after advice from people based on their experience.

About 95% of the time it'll be used for shots of our son when she's out and about. Not overly bothered about shooting raw etc.

So, what do you reckon? Or do I need to up the budget?

Regards

Neil
 
An Ixus may be just in budget.

In my family pretty much everyone has one and in our case it's mostly 82IS which is a Jessops special in a lovely shade of blue :love: Personally I've never been happy with the image quality from this sort of compact and think that something like an LX5 is the absolute minimum for anyone who cares so maybe it's best to suspend pretty much all hope of ultimate IQ, not look too closely, and instead be glad of the convenience, ease of use and portability of these cameras.
 
Dave in Wales said:
My wife and I each have a with us all the time a Canon Ixus 100 IS.
Fabulous little things, they fit in the pocket or handbag, we swear by them.

They have I think been replaced by the Ixus 115 HS..........

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004M8S2...de=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B004M8S21U

D in W
Click to expand...

Have to agree with the Canon :$ (although I'm a Nikon user) as my OH has a Canon IXUS 95IS and its taken some cracking shots - hate to say this but almost as good as my Nikon's :S
 
woof woof said:
An Ixus may be just in budget.

In my family pretty much everyone has one and in our case it's mostly 82IS which is a Jessops special in a lovely shade of blue :love: Personally I've never been happy with the image quality from this sort of compact and think that something like an LX5 is the absolute minimum for anyone who cares so maybe it's best to suspend pretty much all hope of ultimate IQ, not look too closely, and instead be glad of the convenience, ease of use and portability of these cameras.
Click to expand...

A lot of DSLR's would have trouble matching this IQ from my Canon Ixus 100IS.

D in W


IMG_0081-RS by Dave in Wales, on Flickr

100% Crop

IMG_0081-100% by Dave in Wales, on Flickr
 
What you're happy with is a very personaly thing.

All I can say is that in good light the sub LXx compacts I've used are capable of giving initially pleasing whole image shots but even then IMVHO they can't really stand up to closer inspection. I'm not really that happy with the LX5, IMVHO MFT is the smallest thng that I can't really complain too much about.
 
panasonic tz7 easy to use good zoom and video with a proven history,
 
davvy said:
panasonic tz7 easy to use good zoom and video with a proven history,
Click to expand...

I have the TZ9. It's good, but nothing special and rather larger than I wanted for a pocket camera, but my wife preferred the wide zoom range. Still wish we'd gone for the Canon S95.
 
Roadkill_6mm said:
Cheers for the input guys, I'm liking the look of the Panasonic TZ9 - has quite a hefty zoom range. Canon S95 looks fantastic - however its double my price range!

Choosing a compact is nearly as hard as choosing an DSLR!!

Regards

Neil
Click to expand...

It's not all that difficult, but there are compromises. There are lots of decent, inexpensive, compacts that can take good snaps but a camera offering you more control and - possibly - better low light performance is going to cost quite a bit more more. It was just the same, relatively speaking, in the film days. You have to decide on a budget, what's important to you, and whether you can live with the limitations.

The TZ9 is a good camera, but it's slightly bigger/chunkier than I really want for a pocket camera, and low light performance leaves quite a lot to be desired. OTOH, it has a good lens and the wide angle - equivalent to 24mm on a film camera - is very useful. The telephoto can be tricky at the long end because there's the risk of camera shake - despite the IS - so you have to be careful.
 
Slightly higher than your budget but you might want to have a look at the Canon SX230
Only £206 at currys
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top