Any photographers in the house?

[Viney]

Originally Posted by fizzwheel

You want to be talking to Amarko you do...

Or have a read of this, very useful site.

http://www.dpreview.com/

Noooooooooo, that site is so confusing, so much so, i gave up buying a new camera.

I favour Nikon cameras. I have had a cannon, but wasnt overly impressed.

Look for good optical zoom 3x plus
Rechargaeble batteries, or Li-Lon battery - They eat Nicads etc.
A good flash - Distance. Some only rate the flash at 1m!!
Start up time
And good manual control if/when you get good.

That site was confusing, I like the Sony's personally they do some good 5,6,7 mp cameras but that's what I guess you call the bottom end of the camera market while I guess you are after a proper high res camera.

I use a DSLR with 12Mp so you probably don't want one of those... I use Nikon which I prefer although I have used almost everything on the market, and they are comparable on performance and quality as long as you stick to know names like Canon, Pentax, Olympus etc.

Have a look at some of the 'Bridge' cameras which have all the functionality and features of a DSLR but without the interchangeable lenses. They normally come with a good zoom so you get a good range with them. The Canon 'Ixus' range is very good if you want a compact (as per Northy...)

[Spiderman]

www.pixmania.co.uk

i bought a Olyumpus Mju 7mp from these guys and its a brill little camera. Light, small, loads of features and idiot proof too.

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by Viney

Noooooooooo, that site is so confusing, so much so, i gave up buying a new camera.

I favour Nikon cameras. I have had a cannon, but wasnt overly impressed.

Look for good optical zoom 3x plus
Rechargaeble batteries, or Li-Lon battery - They eat Nicads etc.
A good flash - Distance. Some only rate the flash at 1m!!
Start up time
And good manual control if/when you get good.

Oopsss... it is a little confusing but I did spend ages wading through it though...

All good points from Viney, just one thing I would add is to think about storage as well. Check what memory cards your potential purchase can use.

I've got a 4mp Nikon Coolpix compact, very pleased with it, takes great pictures. But I'm in the market for something else now as I want something with bigger zoom or bigger zoom capability that I can use to take better pictures when the subject is moving, i.e at bike racing events and my Nikon isnt up to that.

IMHO I found that the nikon images I saw had a better colour depth etc than the cannon images I have looked at did. The canon looks washed out in comparison with the nikon.

I've been looking at the Nikon D50 / D70 and the Canon EOS350D, but neither are cheap.

Fizz, I've been using a D70 for a few years. It's been used a great deal in all weathers also. A well built machine.

I have had intermittent problems with my Canon IXUS though....

I've been looking at the Nikon D50 / D70 and the Canon EOS350D, but neither are cheap.

I have a mint Nikon D50 with the 18-70 lens (better than the normal D50 kit lens) that is surplus to requirements. I am considering selling this complete with SD card and case so let me know if you decide the Nikon SLR route.

Fizz, if you are looking at DSLRs, have a look at the Nikon D80, the spec on them is really good. The main drawback on the D70 is that the batteries do not last. Other than that they are great.

Wow, what a load of info

I'll keep this thread in mind when it gets past xmas and I have some money to hand again!

Thanks guys

[fizzwheel]

I did look at the D80, but TBH it was a bit out of my price range. I'm due a bonus from work in february 2007 hopefully so some of my bonus will get spent on upgrading my camera.