We are taking our second trip to Europe, and I really want a better camera than the one we took previously. We had a small Canon, and night pictures were disappointing.
I have heard a lot about the Canon G10, does anyone recommend it? I'm just worried about size...
Any other recommendations would be great...we're thinking about a $500 limit. Thanks!
I have a Nikon SLR that I have taken on trips with an extra lens, etc. It takes great pic's but I wanted to travel lighter. I bought a Canon PowerShot SD780IS and love it. It is the size of a credit card (thicker obviously) and takes beautiful pic's.
An added bonus is that it takes amazing HD video. It's not a full featured video camera as it lacks a good zoom and some other features. For $200 it is a great travel camera.
There are many detailed reviews on Amazon and you can also see some video examples if you do a search on Youtube.
dpreview.com has lots of info on every camera on the market and excellent detailed reviews of many.
you're never going to get agreement among "best" because people have different criteria. For example I like a small camera that slips into a pocket so I always have it with me. But as you noted, its a daylight camera and takes lousy pics at nite or indoors. Which is fine for me, but others might want higher quality pics in these settings plus the additional controls a better camera offers such as depth of field, the larger/better lens, etc.
I have the canon g10 and love it.. Would not trade it for anything in the world. It's not as thin as a small point and shoot but it does fit in my pocket.
The G11 is out now as well which I have read has better low light pictures than the g10. It's a smaller Megapixel though.
Here's some pictures I've taken with it:
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e259/marie_morgan/Fireworks2010/IMG_6639.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e259/marie_morgan/IMG_5519.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e259/marie_morgan/uw4.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e259/marie_morgan/IMG_0184.jpg
I bought a Nikon Coolpix S8000 2 months ago for my most recent trip and was very happy with it. It cost about $300, a little more than what I wanted to spend, but I'm glad I picked it. It has a variety of settings, include a few for night, and you can play with the ISO for night shots if you want a manual touch.
I just received my Canon G11 a few days ago and I am in love. I used to use a Sony Cybershot and was always disappointed in my pictures once I downloaded them to my computer. I did not want anything big but knew I would have to compromise with some weight by upgrading. So I can't put it in my coat pocket like I used to but I will be proud of all the photos I take when I go to Italy early winter. You can find them as low as $450 online.
I've got both a Nikon Coolpix and a Canon DSLR. I just got the Nikon and I've really liked it. It has a night portrait setting that worked really well. I didn't get to try the other night settings, but there are several. Mine has a great optical zoom.
Pam
I also just purchased the G11 for our trip in September. Very highly recommended by 3 different semi-professional photographers. Easy to use on Auto setting. small size to fit in a pocket or day bag.
The G10 is the OLDER version...get the G11.
I bought on Amazon with an extra battery and a DVD on learning how to use it. All total $503. The camera has even gone done in price the last few days. Shipping was free.
I can recommend the Canon G11. I used a Sony Cyber-shot camera H5 for many years, loved the zoom, but the photos just weren't waht I wanted, and the low light shots were terrible. the flash never worked when I needed it, and it overexposed as well. So far the test shots with the G11 are fantastic.
I'd say - go for it!
Olympus's new line of interchangeable lens micro four-thirds cameras are pretty great. I don't think it'd fit in your budget, the entry-level model is $599, but it's the quality of an SLR in a much smaller size.
for night pictures, I have had good luck even on very inexpensive point and shoots using the "night scenery" mode with a little tripod. Use the lowest ISO possible to minimize graininess.
Thank you everybody, I appreciate your input!
I also bought a Nikon S8000 (Costco $280). It worked great on our trip, the 10x digital zoom, hd quality video and scene selection came in handy. Bring a lot of memory, at 14mb per photo it can use a lot. I brought 10gb of memory and used all of it plus a little extra on a flash card.
I have the camera in Louisiana now. I'm not sure if the lens cover got bent by something heavy or if it's the dust/humidity here but the lens cover isn't opening/closing properly so I'll probably take it back and get another just like it.
I work with professional photographers who love the Canon G10 (now G11) as a backup for their SLR. It has a couple of features I'm sure I won't use (such as a hot shoe for a flash) that pros really like and is in the $500 range.
Photography and the various trade-offs in choosing a camera is a pretty complex subject, but I'll say this:
Most modern digital cameras (compacts, bridges and SLRs) from the "big name" brands are capable of taking very nice photos - it's often the skill of the person wielding it that makes the difference. If you have a modern big-name camera, depending on your current level of ability, it may be worth investing in learning more about composition and how to use the camera rather than buying a new one. A fancy SLR will only make a big difference if you're already pretty good.
Having said that, there are a couple of things that differentiate cameras: low-light capability for night shots, zoom capability (specifically, being able to zoom out to wide angle is handy in cities to help with walking-backwards syndrome), the ability to take a polarising filter for bright conditions. If you had particular problems with these issues last time, you might want to check specs and reviews of cameras for these specific capabilities.
I had to choose between the Cannon G11 and Panasonic LX3. I went with the LX3 becausd the G11 did not have HD video. If that is not an issue I would go for the G11. The LX3 is discontinued but still available. It as a pretty good wide-angle lense and takes good pics in low light (little short in the zoom area however).
My two cents: I like Canon's Digital ELPH cameras.
I considered both the Canon G11 and the Canon S90, mostly because I have an older Canon superzoom and Consumer Reports likes them. But the G11 is too big, IMHO, (which is why I didn't want to take my current Canon with me on my trip to Europe in September) and neither it nor the S90 have much of a zoom capacity. The latter is only 3.5, the G11 is 5. And having a long zoom is important to me. After a great deal of exploration, I decided on the Sony Cyber-Shot HX5V. It has a 10x zoom, takes great pictures at night and in low-light, and has a really great panorama feature. It also takes HD video. It doesn't have the RAW feature the 2 Canons have, which could be important if you want to do a lot of editing. But it's light-weight, quite small and has all the features I've wanted.
I just got the new Olympus PEN and LOVE IT!! It is probably around the $500-$600 range for the camera and the basic lens, and then you can buy additional lenses if necessary. I took some amazing pictures in Hawaii of sunsets, fireworks, night shots, etc and can't wait to try it in Italy next month! There is a full auto mode, or some more detailed scene choices. I guess you could say it is a "bridge" between a point-and-shoot and a D-SLR.
