Compact Digital Point/Shoot for $<400.00?

[RobB]

As in my Shishkov Guitars post, my Canon PowerShot G6 is about ready to retire. I’ve been looking at CNET reviews and PC mag sites and it seems the Panasonic Lumix is the one to get. I’m trying to get better as a point/shoot photographer, but I don’t have any grand plans of buying an SLR and lenses, etc.

Any suggestions? TIA!

[mrjamiam]

Ken Rockwell's site has had pretty good reviews. I like his approach. http://kenrockwell.com

[hamerhead]

Nikon Coolpix P310.

http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product-Archive/Compact-Digital-Cameras/COOLPIX-P310.html

Had it for a couple years. Takes great pictures (even in very low light) and fits in your shirt pocket.

[specialk]

Lots of good reviews here on all camera types:

http://www.dpreview.com

Best of luck in whatever you choose!

[tomteriffic]

Nikon Coolpix P310.

http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product-Archive/Compact-Digital-Cameras/COOLPIX-P310.html

Had it for a couple years. Takes great pictures (even in very low light) and fits in your shirt pocket.

^^This. I do photography in all sorts of light conditions for my job and it has been my workhorse for a couple of years now. Very good in low light situations.

[Armitage]

I bought my wife a Panasonic Lumix and it's a killer point and shoot camera. Some days I feel silly carrying around my D750 DSLR...

[JimiH]

iPHONE, duck

[belgian]

I was a professional photographer in an earlier life and I am very impressed by my Panasonic Lumix FZ200.

Lots of possibilities but a bit of a learning curve to get everything out of it.

Here are some pics from my latest trip to South Africa - they were better than some made by a fellow traveller with a SLR with expensive lenses.

The FZ70 might me a good option too - but has less possibilities. Here are both compared.

http://snapsort.com/compare/Panasonic-Lumix-DMC-FZ200-vs-Panasonic-Lumix-DMC-FZ70

[RobB]

I was a professional photographer in an earlier life and I am very impressed by my Panasonic Lumix FZ200.

Lots of possibilities but a bit of a learning curve to get everything out of it.

Here are some pics from my latest trip to South Africa - they were better than some made by a fellow traveller with a SLR with expensive lenses.

The FZ70 might me a good option too - but has less possibilities. Here are both compared.

http://snapsort.com/compare/Panasonic-Lumix-DMC-FZ200-vs-Panasonic-Lumix-DMC-FZ70

Those are beautiful shots, Conrad. I’m looking for a more compact P&S, something I can carry in a pocket.

[RobB]

Nikon Coolpix P310.

http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product-Archive/Compact-Digital-Cameras/COOLPIX-P310.html

Had it for a couple years. Takes great pictures (even in very low light) and fits in your shirt pocket.

^^This. I do photography in all sorts of light conditions for my job and it has been my workhorse for a couple of years now. Very good in low light situations.

This one is out of production. Would one of the newer ones work?

[kenjones]

I wanted a point-and-shoot camera that would fit in my pocket to take on vacation. I bought the new Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50S. For some reason I was really drawn to its 30X optical zoom. Then I shot some photos. The zoom lens will go from 24-720mm (35mm equivalent) but unfortunately the f-stop goes from f/3.1 at the widest to f/8 at the tightest. Zoomed all the way in creates very slow shutter speeds in all but the brightest light. The photo quality was the worst part. The photos were all grainy (pixilated?) once I looked at them at 100% on my computer.

So I went back to the store and also bought a Canon S120 (see Ken Rockwell's review). The Canon only has a 5x optical zoom lens (24-120mm) but it has a much faster lens: the f stop goes from f/1.8 at 24mm to f/5.7 at 120mm. I really do not like using flash and most of my photos are of family and are usually shot at the widest setting, so the f/1.8 is great.

I shot a comparison test with the two cameras: same shutter speed, ISO, f-stop, framing, white balance, etc. I also put both cameras on a tripod. The Canon photos were so much sharper (less "grainy") and the colors so much better. I returned the Panasonic and kept the Canon. The Canon was $50 cheaper and is quite a bit smaller too!

My main work cameras are a pair of Nikon D800 and I mostly shoot video with them, but I just don't want to lug one of those things around on vacation!

[fractal]

Nikon Coolpix P310.

http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product-Archive/Compact-Digital-Cameras/COOLPIX-P310.html

Had it for a couple years. Takes great pictures (even in very low light) and fits in your shirt pocket.

^^This. I do photography in all sorts of light conditions for my job and it has been my workhorse for a couple of years now. Very good in low light situations.

This one is out of production. Would one of the newer ones work?

I still have the P300, which is a predecessor, and it works great still. I imagine whatever replaced the P310 would be as good or better.

[stedge]

The fremiranda.com website is a useful resource.

My travel camera is a fuji x100. Used they may be more than 400, but i love it.

I have bought many cameras used and had good luck. Ymmv of course, but you can save some bones.

Good luck!

[RobB]

Thanks, everyone, for your helpful advice. I went with the Canon S120 PowerShot. I am familiar with the Canon menu structure and like the fact that it has a metal housing.

Going to Reno for the Reno Rockabilly Riot. 4 days of carshows, drag races, bands, food, pinup contests, the works. Gonna deffo put my new camera to work.

[hamerhead]

JEEZUS! That scared the crap out of me! That's EXACTLY the look I get when UPS shows up.