Need compact camera

[bruleke]

Hi everybody!

Well, my 25th birthday is coming and I need a camera. A compact one, to carry with me.

I am not an expert and have zero knowledge about cameras

Can somebody help me, please?

I made some research and "fell in love" with these two cameras:

√ Canon SD300 HS

√ Canon SD4500

Not sure if they are good concercing the images but its my first purchase and I dont want a high end camera or a super-amateur-kid crap camera.

Hope you can help me with my options, and, of course, with new suggestions if these Canons are not good!

Thanks a lot!

 

[Bernard SG]

If you'll take some piece of advice from a legend-photographer, Annie Leibovitz, then the answer to your question is the iPhone.

 

[bruleke]

iPhone? Out of question! I want a camera, not something that acts like one.

 

[cr2]

Depending upon lifestyle

No one?
I hope I get some advices before next week - my birthday!

Ever thought of waterproof camera? Pentax Optio WG-1 Kit Digital Camera would be my choice. I use DSLR, a good Panasonic compact as well as iPhone but if I want another one then I would get this.

Check dpreview.com, it has a lot of info and Happy Birthday!

 

[robbieduncan]

The Canon S95 has recently been replaced by the not-really-all-that-much-better S100. You should be able to pick up a S95 reasonably cheap. It's an awesome camera.

 

[Lagmonster]

We have had like 5 Canon Elph's over the years, have always been super happy. The trend to not have a viewfinder worries me, I don't know what our next camera will be.

 

[bruleke]

The Canon S95 has recently been replaced by the not-really-all-that-much-better S100. You should be able to pick up a S95 reasonably cheap. It's an awesome camera.

S95? I like it! But its too expensive to me.
I will wait until Black Friday, so I can purchase it for a lower price!

----------

We have had like 5 Canon Elph's over the years, have always been super happy. The trend to not have a viewfinder worries me, I don't know what our next camera will be.

Viewfinder is not important to me.
So, you really recommend ELPH series?
Thats good!
If Black Friday doesnt help me with Canon S95, then the 300 HS will be my choice

 

[emorydunn]

Wow, you guys are all thinking way too big. What you need is one of these:




Now then, all joking aside, the S95 is a nice little camera, or a camera from the ELPH series. They're all pretty much going to be the same and will all get the job done.

 

[bruleke]

Wow, you guys are all thinking way too big. What you need is one of these:

[url=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/MinoxA.jpg]Image[/URL]


Now then, all joking aside, the S95 is a nice little camera, or a camera from the ELPH series. They're all pretty much going to be the same and will all get the job done.

Well, I was thinking...

Why should I spend a lot on the S95 if I can buy the Elph series?
I mean, of course S95 is better, more resources etc...
but isnt the S95 for professionals who want a compact camera?
I am not a pro... just want to take some night pictures at parties and day pictures in my trips!

 

[robbieduncan]

Well, I was thinking...

Why should I spend a lot on the S95 if I can buy the Elph series?
I mean, of course S95 is better, more resources etc...
but isnt the S95 for professionals who want a compact camera?
I am not a pro... just want to take some night pictures at parties and day pictures in my trips!

The S95 will take better pictures, especially under challenging conditions such as at parties and night times. I'd say it's targeted at all users, certainly not just a pros, many of whom would want a viewfinder or interchangable lenses and would be more likely to spend more and get a micro 4/3 system...

 

[bruleke]

The S95 will take better pictures, especially under challenging conditions such as at parties and night times. I'd say it's targeted at all users, certainly not just a pros, many of whom would want a viewfinder or interchangable lenses and would be more likely to spend more and get a micro 4/3 system...

How about the sensor?
S95 = CCD
Elph 300HS = CMOS

I've heard that CMOS is better. And, again, I dont have any knowledge about cameras, so no trolling here eheheh

 

[robbieduncan]

These days it's difficult to say one is better than the other. One thing that is still true is that a bigger sensor is better than a smaller sensor. The Elph sensor is 6.17 x 4.55 mm. The S95 is 7.49 x 5.52 mm. This may not sound like a big difference but of you look at the surface area it's 28.0735mm vs 41.3448. So the S95 has fully twice the light gathering area! This makes a huge difference in low light. The tiny sensor size is why so many compact cameras take nasty, noisy, low detail images in low light situations.

 

[bruleke]

These days it's difficult to say one is better than the other. One thing that is still true is that a bigger sensor is better than a smaller sensor. The Elph sensor is 6.17 x 4.55 mm. The S95 is 7.49 x 5.52 mm. This may not sound like a big difference but of you look at the surface area it's 28.0735mm vs 41.3448. So the S95 has fully twice the light gathering area! This makes a huge difference in low light. The tiny sensor size is why so many compact cameras take nasty, noisy, low detail images in low light situations.

Thats interesting.
Do you think that ELPH wont take good night pictures?
I have a Canon A570 - really old. My friend gave me as a gift in 2006-2007, I guess. Its IMPOSSIBLE to take any night pics! I tried all apertures, ISOs and everything. Just a blur or a grainy picture.

I am asking a lot because the difference between the prices are huge. At least for me, cause I am not in USA.

 

[mstrze]

iPhone? Out of question! I want a camera, not something that acts like one.

Suit yourself. My iPhone has replaced my $150 Canon 'compact camera' for day-to-day (and night) picture taking. I always have it with me and it takes spectacular pictures and video.

For someone who wants an iPhone so badly (your sig), why the negativity?

 

[bruleke]

Suit yourself. My iPhone has replaced my $150 Canon 'compact camera' for day-to-day (and night) picture taking. I always have it with me and it takes spectacular pictures and video.

For someone who wants an iPhone so badly (your sig), why the negativity?

My signature? Its just a joke I can afford an iPhone, but chose not to.

Because I want to be able to take hundreds of pictures during my trips and, ALSO, be able to call my friends and send SMS.
I believe if I take hundreds of pictures, I wont have enough battery to call my friends eheheh.
My Nokia 6303i makes calls and sends SMS. Its battery lasts 5-7 days. Pretty good, uh?

 

[mstrze]

My signature? Its just a joke I can afford an iPhone, but chose not to.

Because I want to be able to take hundreds of pictures during my trips and, ALSO, be able to call my friends and send SMS.
I believe if I take hundreds of pictures, I wont have enough battery to call my friends eheheh.
My Nokia 6303i makes calls and sends SMS. Its battery lasts 5-7 days. Pretty good, uh?

I took 60-70 pictures one day on a recent trip to Las Vegas plus used the phone to make calls, send texts and to upload 10-15 of those photos to Facebook. My phone did not explode.

Taking photos is not a major battery drain.

 

[bruleke]

I took 60-70 pictures one day on a recent trip to Las Vegas plus used the phone to make calls, send texts and to upload 10-15 of those photos to Facebook. My phone did not explode.

Taking photos is not a major battery drain.

Naah... Can we even compare Elph 300 HS to iphone 4?
Its not fair, I believe.
Forget it, I need a real camera

 

[robbieduncan]

Thats interesting.
Do you think that ELPH wont take good night pictures?
I have a Canon A570 - really old. My friend gave me as a gift in 2006-2007, I guess. Its IMPOSSIBLE to take any night pics! I tried all apertures, ISOs and everything. Just a blur or a grainy picture.

I am asking a lot because the difference between the prices are huge. At least for me, cause I am not in USA.

It's difficult: I don't own the Elph or know anyone who does. I've not really seen a lot of output from it either. I have a friend with an S95 and it takes really very good images, even in low light. I would suggest going on Flickr and searching for the camera and see what people have got out of it. I understand the cost thing, but if you spend 50% on the Elph and don't like it you'll be kicking yourself!

ELPH on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/cameras/canon/powershot_elph_300_hs/
S95 on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/cameras/canon/powershot_s95/

You can choose Night for both and compare

 

[mstrze]

Be sure to ignore the crappy pictures the 4s can take:

http://www.flickr.com/cameras/apple/iphone_4s/

 

[h1r0ll3r]

Thats interesting.
Do you think that ELPH wont take good night pictures?
I have a Canon A570 - really old. My friend gave me as a gift in 2006-2007, I guess. Its IMPOSSIBLE to take any night pics! I tried all apertures, ISOs and everything. Just a blur or a grainy picture.

I have an SD780 IS and it takes horrible pics at night/low light. In the daytime it's great. Takes nice pics, not too sharp, but good enough. In a dimly lit room or at night, the thing is horrible. Pics are either over exposed or under exposed. I took some pics in a pretty low lit restaurant I was in and the pics looked like it was snowing indoors. The flash didn't help at all either. It was pretty dark in that restaurant to be fair however even with the flash firing, the pic still looked like crap. The only reason I still keep mine is that it's super tiny and takes decent pics in certain situations. I generally use it only in daylight situations or when taking pics for my eBay listings

If you want a simple compact camera then look at the ELPH series of cameras. I would recommend the S95/S100 but you already mentioned it was a bit out of your price range. I figure on Black Friday, you should be able to snag a pretty good deal on just about any P&S camera.

 

[bruleke]

I have an SD780 IS and it takes horrible pics at night/low light. In the daytime it's great. Takes nice pics, not too sharp, but good enough. In a dimly lit room or at night, the thing is horrible. Pics are either over exposed or under exposed. I took some pics in a pretty low lit restaurant I was in and the pics looked like it was snowing indoors. The flash didn't help at all either. It was pretty dark in that restaurant to be fair however even with the flash firing, the pic still looked like crap. The only reason I still keep mine is that it's super tiny and takes decent pics in certain situations. I generally use it only in daylight situations or when taking pics for my eBay listings

If you want a simple compact camera then look at the ELPH series of cameras. I would recommend the S95/S100 but you already mentioned it was a bit out of your price range. I figure on Black Friday, you should be able to snag a pretty good deal on just about any P&S camera.

Really, really, really liked your opinion.

Let me ask you: you told me to get the ELPH series, since the SD series looks terrible.
So, whats the difference between SD1400IS and ELPH 300HS ?

It looks like that the ELPH 300hs has another name: SD1300IS.

Here are some images:

ELPH 300HS

SD1400IS

 

[blueroom]

The S90, S95 & S100 are all much better cameras. It's not about the megapixels.

 

[Laird Knox]

Naah... Can we even compare Elph 300 HS to iphone 4?
Its not fair, I believe.
Forget it, I need a real camera

OK

 

[bruleke]

The S90, S95 & S100 are all much better cameras. It's not about the megapixels.

I dont care about megapixels... some 16mp olympus are crapier than canon 7mp.

But I have this doubt now: will ELPH 300hs take good night shots? And whats the difference between that and SD1400IS?

 

[blueroom]

You want nightshots you need a fast lens and high ISO with low noise. Cough the S90, 95 & 100 have are fast when wide open, excellent low noise & even a night mode.
Why not post your quandary at dpreview.com ?