Point-and-shoot recommendation needed
Posted: Sat May 10, 2014 7:53 pm
My Canon Elph SD450 has died.
What point-and-shoot camera to replace it with?
Here are its MUST HAVES:
1) Must be available refurbished (or lightly used) on eBay FOR UNDER $200. (Yes, I'm happy to buy a model from, say, 2010, to take advantage of drastic price drops.)
2) Must have a WIDE-ANGLE LENS (28 or better). I don't know the technical aspects here. I just prefer images that include a wider swathe of landscape. Should I insist on 24 or better?
3) IMAGE QUALITY. I am probably going to make my final decision based on image quality, regardless of anything else I write on this page. Most of the images I take are landscape photos, from a distance. So I want the best landscape-image quality a P&S can get me. This includes low-light pictures. (My Elph was GREAT at that. Sierra sunsets and all.)
If there are two or more, <$200 wide-angle cameras with very similarly superb image quality, I'll probably further narrow my decision based on...
* long battery life (and/or ease of carrying & changing out spares)
* compactness/lightness (the smaller, the better)
* toughness ("shockproof")
* waterproof would give it an edge, but far from necessary
I don't really care about...
* Video
* Indoor photography
* GPS
* Wifi
Here are some models I'm aware of that might pass my test. I welcome your thoughts about which one will meet my criteria the best, especially on image quality...
* Panasonic Lumix LX5
* Canon Powershot S95 or S100 (is the S100 really worth the extra ~$50-$75 over the S95?)
* Canon Powershot Elph 510 HS
* Canon SX 260
* Nikon Coolpix AW100: Wary of this one, because of reportedly poor low-light performance
* Olympus Tough TG-1
* Olympus PEN E-PL1. (Apparently this is a much nicer, tho larger camera than the others. Mirrorless micro four-thirds - whatever that means. Some good used prices on eBay.)
Have I missed any? Alternately, which of these should I immediately cross off my list?
Are there websites that do in-depth reviews comparing (outdoor) image quality among P&S cameras?
Note: I've been asked how I like to use the ultimate images. The answer is that I mostly view them on screen, Facebook, etc. Occasionally I'll print an 8x10 if I really like it. But I don't blow up photos bigger than that, or significantly crop down the size of my photos. Hope that adds some context about required image/pixel quality.
Thank you, photography geeks!
- Elizabeth
What point-and-shoot camera to replace it with?
Here are its MUST HAVES:
1) Must be available refurbished (or lightly used) on eBay FOR UNDER $200. (Yes, I'm happy to buy a model from, say, 2010, to take advantage of drastic price drops.)
2) Must have a WIDE-ANGLE LENS (28 or better). I don't know the technical aspects here. I just prefer images that include a wider swathe of landscape. Should I insist on 24 or better?
3) IMAGE QUALITY. I am probably going to make my final decision based on image quality, regardless of anything else I write on this page. Most of the images I take are landscape photos, from a distance. So I want the best landscape-image quality a P&S can get me. This includes low-light pictures. (My Elph was GREAT at that. Sierra sunsets and all.)
If there are two or more, <$200 wide-angle cameras with very similarly superb image quality, I'll probably further narrow my decision based on...
* long battery life (and/or ease of carrying & changing out spares)
* compactness/lightness (the smaller, the better)
* toughness ("shockproof")
* waterproof would give it an edge, but far from necessary
I don't really care about...
* Video
* Indoor photography
* GPS
* Wifi
Here are some models I'm aware of that might pass my test. I welcome your thoughts about which one will meet my criteria the best, especially on image quality...
* Panasonic Lumix LX5
* Canon Powershot S95 or S100 (is the S100 really worth the extra ~$50-$75 over the S95?)
* Canon Powershot Elph 510 HS
* Canon SX 260
* Nikon Coolpix AW100: Wary of this one, because of reportedly poor low-light performance
* Olympus Tough TG-1
* Olympus PEN E-PL1. (Apparently this is a much nicer, tho larger camera than the others. Mirrorless micro four-thirds - whatever that means. Some good used prices on eBay.)
Have I missed any? Alternately, which of these should I immediately cross off my list?
Are there websites that do in-depth reviews comparing (outdoor) image quality among P&S cameras?
Note: I've been asked how I like to use the ultimate images. The answer is that I mostly view them on screen, Facebook, etc. Occasionally I'll print an 8x10 if I really like it. But I don't blow up photos bigger than that, or significantly crop down the size of my photos. Hope that adds some context about required image/pixel quality.
Thank you, photography geeks!
- Elizabeth