I'm buying my first digital camera and I plan to eventually be spending a good amount of time with digital photography (ie. photoshop, aperture, etc.). Anyway, i'm looking for either a Canon or Nikon, and I was wondering what everyone thought would be the best camera for what I want to do. My spending limit is around $350 US Dollars, and I need to it to have good digital video capabilities as well as a good overall camera. I'm also looking for it to have a good macro mode as well, if possible. Any help is appreciated.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
First Time Camera Buyer
- Thread starter Phtosynthesis
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Lovesong
macrumors 65816
In the world of P&S cameras (I'm assuming that you're not getting an SLR given your needs for video and your budget), don't restrict yourself to just canon and nikon. Yes- those 2 make some of the better pro glass, and if you were looking to spend $1000+ on a body and a little more for a lens, then I'd say those two are the way to go.
In the compact world companies such as Fuji, Panasonic, Kodak, and Olympus make some truly remarkable cameras. Check out the Fuji F30 (and the new 31). Those 2 cameras have image qualities that rival some of the Nikon SLRs. Lumix (panasonic) makes some pretty good stuff, though high noise is an issue with their CCDs. The main reason to go for them is the fact that they use Leica glass, which is head and shoulders above anything else anyone makes. Sony uses Zeiss lenses (not too shabby either), and some of their H models (H5 and H9 seem to be good as well). The sony cameras are likely to get you some of the better video quality for a still camera. Olympus has been making excellent optics for decades, and their new UZ 550 has a rediculous 18X zoom, which will allow you to use the camera for a number of different situations. Look around a bit on DPReview, and see what the experts say.
In the compact world companies such as Fuji, Panasonic, Kodak, and Olympus make some truly remarkable cameras. Check out the Fuji F30 (and the new 31). Those 2 cameras have image qualities that rival some of the Nikon SLRs. Lumix (panasonic) makes some pretty good stuff, though high noise is an issue with their CCDs. The main reason to go for them is the fact that they use Leica glass, which is head and shoulders above anything else anyone makes. Sony uses Zeiss lenses (not too shabby either), and some of their H models (H5 and H9 seem to be good as well). The sony cameras are likely to get you some of the better video quality for a still camera. Olympus has been making excellent optics for decades, and their new UZ 550 has a rediculous 18X zoom, which will allow you to use the camera for a number of different situations. Look around a bit on DPReview, and see what the experts say.
Do you know anything about the Canon Powershot S3?
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...CategoryId=pcmcat99100050026&id=1138085156631
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...CategoryId=pcmcat99100050026&id=1138085156631
devilot
Moderator emeritus
Damn, you beat me to it! 😀
Here's a rather in-depth review on it.
Note, a lot of users on the 'net say that if the video recording capabilities got any better, Canon would lose sales in their video cameras. 😱
:edit: Freaking Lovesong beat me to the dpreview. 🙁 Stupid multiple tabs.
I think i'm going to go with that one. I read the reviews and it seems to be a very nice camera.
Its $314 at bestbuy, do you think that is a good price? And it comes with a free $30 gift card, so i'll be able to pick up a PNY High Speed 1GB card too.
Its $314 at bestbuy, do you think that is a good price? And it comes with a free $30 gift card, so i'll be able to pick up a PNY High Speed 1GB card too.
netdog
macrumors 603
In your price range, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2. Agree with earlier post that it has the best glass for the money, and that you should be aware that it isn't great in very low light as you want to keep the speed to ISO 100 or 200 if you plan on making large prints. At those speeds, however. there isn't a noise problem.