Digital camera - high end P&S or SLR???

[hazmat]

We now have 7# (and growing - see attached) worth of reason to upgrade our picture taking - I'm thinking good/great digital camera and order prints as needed. I believe in the long run this will be cheaper?.

Anyway - wondering if I should be looking at the ~$800 + lense digital SLRs Canon rebel XT etc. or The ~$500 Canon S2 etc. I'm partial to the Canon for an SLR as my Mom & Brother both have film versions = compatible lenses.

I'm not a photo buff - just want to capture my baby at her best. gripes with my current sony digicam - too slow to power up and too slow to take the picture. Also does very poorly in backlight situations (could be operator error).

 

[JerryG]

First
Congratulations on the fine baby!!!!!!!!
Second
I have had a Canon Digital Rebel for about 2 years and really love it. It can do a lot more that I can because I still haven't learned all that I can do with it. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif It does make great pictures.

 

[jeffinsgf]

The high end point and shoot digital camera are amazing pieces of technology. I won an underwater photo competition a few years ago with an Olympus C-4040 when all the hot shots were shooting Nikon D-1x's. You can, without a doubt, take just as fine a picture with a high end all-in-one as you can with an SLR. In fact, I might go so far as to say that some people (myself included) might take better pictures with one. Why?Because they're easier to maneuver, you're more likely to use it more often, since it is so easy to keep handy, and the "idiot modes" can get you taking snapshots while you learn how to be creative with the manual features.

I have always been partial to Olympus, but you can rest assured that if you buy at or near the top of the line in Canon, Olympus, Minolta or Nikon you'll get a camera that you can use now and not likely outgrow anytime in the near future.

This thread gives me a perfect chance to show off something I shot this week. Here's one of the dozen or so butterflies that have made their home on our butterfly bush this summer. Shot with my Olympus C-5050

 

[jeffinsgf]

The crepe myrtle is just starting to bloom, and this guy jumped up on one of the flower heads while I was shooting the butterflies. I guess he didn't want all the attention going to mere insects.

 

[AMP762]

Just my 2 cents. A digital p&s is a snap shot camera,great for point and shoot,but with those kids you will want to do much more.With the differant lenses you can do so much more.My goes with me almost everywhere,but for serous shots I use the slr.
We now have 7#
As a side note,have you figured out what is causing that /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[SonnieP]

Congrats on the 7#'s.

I recently purchased the S2 from Dell for $354 shipped... they have been running that special (with the appropriate coupons) off and on for a few months. I believe it's the best P&S available... a mighty fine camera.

You can check out a nice review at DP Review

According to the professionals over at DP Review, in order to get the best quality pics from an SLR you really need to know how to work with photo editing software and work from RAW images, otherwise they don't really take any better useful quality pics than a good P&S. Not saying that they don't take excellent pics... just repeating what soooooo many of the pros say. I wanted a Rebel XT really bad... but after investigating extensively I decided I didn't want to have to learn that much photo editing... especially how they described it. I can fiddle with PSP a little but not like they do. It takes time and effort to get the real benefit.

 

[MikePA]

<font color="blue">wondering if I should be looking at the ~$800 + lense digital SLRs Canon rebel XT etc. or The ~$500 Canon S2 </font>
I have the Canon Powershot S2 IS (12x optical. I've also owned SLRs. There's no way I'd go back to an SLR. Why? No need to carry, or buy, additional lenses with the S2, from macro (36 mm) to 12x (432 mm) it's all there in one camera. Plus, I imagine that the lenses your Mom and Brother have are not IS (Image Stabilized) like the S2 is, so if you want to take telephoto shots (like when the little one starts playing soccer /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif), you will need something to steady the camera. Plus something I don't see mentioned often, the S2 uses AA batteries (I use rechargables) whereas the XT uses a proprietary one.

The Rebel is a very nice camera, but dealing with lenses is not something I'd want to start doing again.

 

[Bob_Skurka]

I'm a firm believer that the camera that is BEST is the one that you use often. The problem is that big bulky cameras often are too big and bulky to carry around. I've got a big Nikon F series SLR, can't remember the last time I used it. I've got a couple Canon P&S cameras (models S230 and S500) that are the size of a pack of cigarettes, lightweight, easy to operate & high quality.

No question that for taking future pictures of a soccer game that an SLR would be better. But the HIGH QUALITY P&S cameras are capable of producing very good photos easily.

But for impromptu picture taking, both at home and anywhere you take that new baby, do you want to lug a diaper bag AND a camera bag, or are you more likely to have a camera with you if you can slip the camera in your shirt pocket? or in the diaper bag? or in the cup holder in your car? or in your wife's purse?

It is difficult to slip a full featured SLR into any of those places.

 

[MikePA]

More good comments by Bob. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

The best, most feature rich camera wont do you any good if it's sitting at home. This is why I have 2 cameras, the Canon PowerShot S2 IS (fits in a small shoulder bag) and a Minolta Dimage XT (fits in your pants pocket - It also has a nice holster that slips on your belt like a cell phone case)

If Marissa is your first, you will soon find out that to take baby 'on the road' requires lots of accessories and it takes a while to get things ready to leave the house. You will be assisting your wife with all this diaper bag packing or you will hear, "Watch the baby while I pack.", etc. You don't want to have to be packing your camera bag ("Is the battery charged? Where's the wide angle lens? Where's the telephoto lens?")

A small P & S to have with you for those trips to Grandma and Grandpa's house. A more feature and larger P & S for those planned vacations. If I could only have one camera, I'd opt for one of the Casio Exilim cameras. Credit card size with a 3x optical zoom and 7.1 megapixel.

 

[Dargo]

Okay, my name is Dargo and I'm a gadget-o-holic... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif Yes, I realize that a man doesn't really need a half a dozen digital cameras, but I just can't help it! You see, I started with a relatively inexpensive digital camera and thought that it would be great except I wanted better quality. That moved me up the scale until I bought a Canon EOS 20D with a EF 75-300 mm f/4-5.6 IS USM lens. Awesome camera, but it is so expensive (for me) that I find that I won't take it anywhere. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

My favorite digital camera I own now seems to be either my Nikon Coolpix 8800 VR (the steady shot is a huge help on still and motion pics) or my Minolta Z5. The Nikon is a 8 megapixel and the Minolta is only a 5, but the Minolta is smaller. I can get amazing pictures with either. I suppose one good thing about having "older" digital cameras is that you will be more likely to take them anywere. See attachment. Not that it is a great picture, but I wouldn't have gotten that shot with my Canon!

I suppose because of the increase in quality of the P&S digital cameras over the years, I think that would have to be my choice. Your mileage may vary. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif