Going to Africa and need new camera to take pics of tractors (and wildlife)

[RoMad]

My wife and I are going to Africa July 10 and I would like to get a better camera. I don't want to carry around a big lense and big camera but I do want to be able to have a pretty good zoom factor. After reading some reviews I believe a Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ200 12.1 Megapixel Digital Camera would be just right for me. It is not to big, not to small, and gets good reviews for a safari camera.
My problem now is I am not sure the best site to buy one from. Prices are all over the place and also what they come with. Some of the lower priced ones have manual and on camera text in Japanese. Some come with batteries and chargers and some you have to buy them seperately.
Any suggestions, recommendations??
Oh, and I really will take pics of any interesting tractors I see.

 

[Cat_Driver]

Look here

Panasonic DMC-ZS19K - NEW! LUMIX DMC-ZS19 14.1 Megapixel Digital Camera

 

[LiveRoll]

Perhaps one tip as well prior to your departure; check with your travel agent to see what the local electrical voltage is over there, as you may need to pick up a voltage converter in order to charge things like cameras, razors, laptops cell phones etc.
Have a GREAT trip!! What part of Africa?

Cheers

Roger

 

[RoMad]

We will take an adapter for the electrical. I think the one we took to Australia will work, but will check. we are going on a 14 day guided tour of South Africa and Victoria Falls.

 

[3930dave]

I've bought and liked a lot of Panasonic products over the years, but no cameras yet. What I've heard of their cameras has been good.

I'm a Canon guy, when it comes to cameras. I have an SX40HS Powershot.

Canon U.S.A. : Support & Drivers : PowerShot SX40 HS

At that price point today, it looks like they now have the SX50HS, which gives you a 50x optical zoom.

Canon U.S.A. : Consumer & Home Office : PowerShot SX50 HS

Go to a good camera store, if you have time before the trip, to try and handle cameras that you are considering..... like shoes or hand tools, some just "feel" more natural to my hands - I don't like to throw away money at all, but finding a comfortable fit for my hands on something that I plan to have for quite a while means more to me than saving $20 or so.

As an old tyme SLR guy, I like the layout, size, and balance of the SX40HS. I've been quite happy with the camera, had compliments on the casual shooting I've done with it, and am quite impressed by the image stabilization it has at full zoom - very impressive for handheld shooting, as full zoom is useable even w/o a tripod.

I asked a lady I know who shoots professionally about the SX40 I was considering. While she has a higher end Canon pro body for the jobs that need it, and a collection of discrete lenses, she said that she found herself shooting a lot of the time with the Powershot model she owned - optical performance was decent, and the convenience of having that extreme zoom range built-in, w/o having to stop and change lenses was perfect for what most people want.

About the only criticism I recall of the SX40HS was related to hi-speed photography - ex. motorsports. For something that fast, you might as well jump into the deep-end of the pool, and buy the full-on Pro bodies and lenses. That said, I had some fun with my SX40HS doing a video of my buddy's son racing motocross - did a frame grab out of that video of him getting huge air (looks tree-top level from the angle I shot it) off a jump. Turned out well enough that they used the still shot as a promo post card at a motorcycle show. For the price point of my SX40HS, I've been really pleased with what I've been able to do with it. It comes with a battery, charger, and USB cable.

Have fun on the trip, let us know what you pick up for a camera, and don't forget TBN'ers like to see pics !

Rgds, D.

 

[Daver1963]

Try B&H Photo. Reputable store that you can order online from. A lot of the online places with low low prices will result in a phone call from them to confirm your order at which time they will try to sell you some overpriced accessories and if you don't they get kinda huffy and you'll never get a ship date on your camera. At B&H if they have it they ship it.
According to their website they have the camera you want in stock.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ200 Digital Camera

 

[Rock knocker]

Make sure there isn't any lag from when you press the trigger to when the photo is taken. I had a point and shoot when I went to Africa, and the lag time was great enough that I got a lot of butt shots. A DSLR has essentially no lag time.

 

[TomSeller]

Make sure there isn't any lag from when you press the trigger to when the photo is taken. I had a point and shoot when I went to Africa, and the lag time was great enough that I got a lot of butt shots. A DSLR has essentially no lag time.

Agree

 

[RoMad]

Thank you all for the advice. I have been reading about a couple of others and today I met a lady building inspector that had a very nice Nikon Coolpix P520. She let me look at it and even let me take a couple of pictures with it. I will also check out the Canons that 3930 Dave mentioned.

 

[Oldgreybear]

I went through your dilemma prior to a recent trip to Germany. I just did not want to carry a bag full of bodies and lenses. After much looking I settled on a DSC-HX50/HX50V from Sony. Small enough to fit in my cargo pocket, 30x zoom, digital video and still images at the same time, and a very high image quality, and 20.4 mega pixels. I was very pleased, (read blown away) by the photos in Germany, both from a stationary position and in a moving car. Could not be more pleased. The Panasonic you are looking at is about twice as bulky as the Sony, and yea I would have bought the Panasonic if I had not seen the reviews on this. Be sure you take provisions to charge your camera, cell phone and laptop/tablet in Africa. The camera will charge from usb cable to laptop etc.
Good luck and have a blast

Bo