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spikeddem
Apr 3, 2008, 6:26 PM
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Registered: Aug 27, 2007
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This summer I'd like to buy a camera for taking pictures while climbing with friends. Since I'll be much more on the climber side than the photographer side, I don't want any $5000 dSLR. Rather, I want something that I can point and shoot (for just hanging out), but I also want something that I can learn more about photography with: Shutter speeds, etc. I know very little about cameras and photography, but I've got a friend that I'm introducing to climbing that will teach me about photography.
So, to be more specific:
I want a camera that will do nicely in taking pictures of climbers and nature, but also one that isn't too silly for just carrying around when I'm not climbing (this last point may not be clear, so just ask if you're confused about it). As I stated before, I also want to be able to learn about photography, too, so I'd rather not just get a very simple point and shoot.
My price range is pretty much $200-$300, but I could go a bit higher if there's good enough reason.
I realize that the price range is rather restrictive for my criteria. I'd rather sacrifice camera features than more money on this though (so keep that in mind if the criteria is too strict for the price range).
Thanks for your help!!
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tigerlilly
Apr 3, 2008, 7:03 PM
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Registered: Nov 2, 2006
Posts: 564
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I recently bought a Sony W80 and have been very happy with it. It has a Zeiss lens, 7 mpixels, very little shutter lag, image stabilization, user friendly controls and is the size of a small deck of cards. My two gripes are that it has very little internal memory, so you have to buy a card separately, and the mode dial is easy to bump with your thumb and change the setting. Even with the extra memory card, it still would fit your budget. Go here for some shots I took with it: http://neice.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=3585.
Kathy
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Hennessey
Apr 4, 2008, 3:33 AM
Post #3 of 19
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Registered: Dec 3, 2007
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Personally I like the Nikon D200 but since you arn't looking for a slr camera and are going for something affordable I'd go with a Canon Power Shot. Any model in your price range should work. The Power Shot is very easy to use and the color of the pictures it takes are extremely brilliant.
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summerprophet
Apr 4, 2008, 4:13 AM
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Registered: Jan 17, 2004
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Canon Powershots are good bang for the buck. The A series take regular batteries, which is convienient if you do extended trips or find yourself away from battery chargers.
If you do multi-pitch or alpine routes, you want something with wide angle field of view, try to get something equavalent to 28mm.
have fun shopping
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pico23
Apr 7, 2008, 7:53 AM
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Registered: Mar 14, 2003
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Hennessey wrote: Personally I like the Nikon D200 but since you arn't looking for a slr camera and are going for something affordable I'd go with a Canon Power Shot. Any model in your price range should work. The Power Shot is very easy to use and the color of the pictures it takes are extremely brilliant.
Nice recovery...you could have continued with...personally, I like the Nikon D200 with the 80-200 2.8 AF-S VR, and a 14-24 2.8, plus an assortment of primes, and for good measure a 300mm 2.8.
I actually really like the fuji compacts (the RAW shooting models). The reason I never got one was the stupid xD card. I have CF and SD and while memory isn't super expensive, it's just stupid to carrry around 3 different types of media for no reason.
I also like the Canon G series (which I do/did own). A little more camera than the Powershots, better built, and offer RAW mode.
Oh, they are full manual and actually offer more features and control than most SLRs.
Beyond that the Kodak P series is pretty neat. However, my smallest SLR is nearly as small and still better IQ.
While you said SLR wasn't an option, I'm pretty intriqued by the new Olympus. With the 25mm pancake it is about as small as my old G3. Probably lighter too.
In reply to: The E-420 is small enough to fit into a purse or a jacket pocket and light enough to shoot with comfortably all day. Measuring 5.1 inches by 3.6 inches by 2.1 inches (excluding protrusions), it is the world’s smallest digital SLR. And at a featherweight 13.4 ounces, only its predecessor (E-410) weighs less. 
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uniball
Apr 7, 2008, 12:55 PM
Post #6 of 19
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Registered: Apr 1, 2008
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I have a Canon SD1000. This camera is great and small.
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rgbscan
Apr 13, 2008, 11:20 PM
Post #7 of 19
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Registered: Dec 8, 2003
Posts: 106
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I went and found an older Canon Powershot S400 off ebay for my climbing camera. Took it home for 75 bucks. Only 4 megapixels, but plenty for sharing photos through email, posting on flickr, and getting 8x10 printouts to stick on my cubicle wall (keeps me inspired). Plus I can swap up to 2gig CF memory cards with my EOS 30D and use my existing memory. It's nice to use just one software package between the 2 cameras as well. I wouldn't feel bad at all if the s400 broke and carry it just about everywhere. The 30D goes just about nowhere unless I'm planning on taking some serious photos. I'm quite happy with the manual controls when I want to do something a little more creative.
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silentwarior125
Sep 16, 2010, 1:54 AM
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Registered: May 29, 2007
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I got a canon S3 is it would come really cheap and it has great zoom. it would give enough to be easy to be point and shoot but also give you enough to work with to learn as you go.
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oldsalt
Sep 16, 2010, 2:18 AM
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Registered: Jan 19, 2004
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rgbscan wrote: I went and found an older Canon Powershot S400 ... Only 4 megapixels, but plenty for sharing photos through email, posting on flickr, and getting 8x10 printouts to stick on my cubicle wall
With prices getting down to the $150 range for a 12.1 mp Canon A series point and shoot, don't fail to look at what these can produce for the money.
It is much more than being able to print an 8X10. You will be shocked to the comparison.
I am strongly considering one of the flip flash, 15X zoom 12 or 14 mp models on the market now. They are through the lens, compact, and will go fairly easily on a harness. My ONLY regret about my A series is the 4X zoom. The resolution can manage more zoom than my camera can offer.
I want to see beads of sweat on the cheeks of the guy or girl in my viewfinder. Imagine your subject pulling the runout move and you can catch the seat of their pants being drawn right up... you get the picture.
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Arrogant_Bastard
Sep 16, 2010, 4:07 PM
Post #10 of 19
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Registered: Oct 31, 2007
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oldsalt wrote: With prices getting down to the $150 range for a 12.1 mp Canon A series point and shoot, don't fail to look at what these can produce for the money. It is much more than being able to print an 8X10. You will be shocked to the comparison. I am strongly considering one of the flip flash, 15X zoom 12 or 14 mp models on the market now.
I'm gonna have to disagree. The pixel count is all but marketing hype now. The count is plenty big enough for those tiny little sensors and cheap glass. The difference you're seeing, if any, is because the newer camera has a better lens setup. You can make a decent 8x10 out of a 5mp. 10mp is plenty for a point and shoot. I'm sure 99.999% of all pics are only ever displayed on a monitor anyway.
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Rudmin
Sep 16, 2010, 5:05 PM
Post #11 of 19
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Registered: Mar 29, 2009
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A used or sale priced Canon G10 or G11 is your best bet I think. The new micro 4/3 cameras might do well but are probably out of your price range.
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altelis
Sep 18, 2010, 1:31 AM
Post #13 of 19
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Registered: Nov 10, 2004
Posts: 2168
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Cannon Powershot D10...
http://www.usa.canon.com/...ameras/powershot_d10
I freaking am loving this camera. It takes really nice pictures (really nice), has pretty easy and useful manual controls (though it does lack some that would be nice), and its waterproof.
I'm not a snorkler, diver, or even a boater. But being able to never have to give a fuck about the weather is SWEET. Come rain, snow, whatever, the camera is always out. I'm not a "water person" but there were SO many times in the last summer (we bought the camera in June) that we ended up swimming with it, using it in the rain, snow, etc. You never miss a shot. Plus, its reasonably wide angled too. Just throw a iphone/ipod/etc clear screen protector over the LCD screen...I would do this with whatever camera you buy, actually....
Its just SLIGHTLY bigger than the small point and shoots, and a lot of reviewers dock it significantly because they don't count it as a "pocket camera". They all admit it takes WAY better photos than all the pocket cameras, but I've never noticed a problem with bulk.
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evan11
Dec 2, 2010, 5:07 AM
Post #14 of 19
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Registered: Dec 2, 2010
Posts: 17
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I really like my Olympus 850 SW. They call them the tough series now, but the concept is the same.
Shock and water proof. Freeze proof too, works great for climbing.
They still sell the 850s and they are in the 200ish range. Well worth it.
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jbroom
Dec 2, 2010, 9:21 AM
Post #16 of 19
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Registered: Jan 31, 2008
Posts: 55
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Rudmin wrote: A used or sale priced Canon G10 or G11 is your best bet I think. The new micro 4/3 cameras might do well but are probably out of your price range.
+1
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JasonsDrivingForce
Dec 3, 2010, 5:55 AM
Post #17 of 19
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Registered: Apr 3, 2009
Posts: 687
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Rudmin wrote: A used or sale priced Canon G10 or G11 is your best bet I think. The new micro 4/3 cameras might do well but are probably out of your price range.
The Olympus EPL-1 m4/3s camera is less than the new S95 and G12 cameras. That is an amazing deal.
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Sirus
Dec 3, 2010, 7:34 AM
Post #18 of 19
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Registered: Nov 30, 2010
Posts: 12
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Personally I LOVED my Canon Powershot S2IS camera. True, it was bigger than your typical hand-held, but it's a great camera for learning how to use the features if you're interested in progressing to higher-end photography eventually. I took it on all climbing trips, and it never caused any problem. I sometimes took it on top of a route and such, and as long as you have it secured, it's fine. It has a rotatable viewfinder which can come in very handy. It's 5 megapixel, but its lens is far better than many.
The lens is not interchangeable, but there are lenses you can buy to add-on to it. I've never actually used the ones I've bought, though, since the original lens is plenty sufficient. It has great rapid-fire shooting to catch that perfect moment in a dyno, and has 0 cm Macro capabilities, so you can get some awesome foregrounds.
Camera:http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canons2is/
Mine was recently taken unfortunately, but they're selling USED for a very good price (as low as $150), and new for maybe $500 I think. It also has some okay video capabilities, but definitely not HD video haha. It served me a good 5 years.
Here's a link to show some photos I've taken with it. There are a few climbing photos, but I haven't updated my gallery in a while, so I'd recommend looking at the horse jumping photos for a view of the high-speed capabilities, but you'll be able to get a bit of an idea of it's different abilities:
http://takuto-koga-kyo.deviantart.com/gallery/
**MP ISN'T EVERYTHING** I've been borrowing a 10MP to take the place of my 5MP and the MP have made no improvement. The camera's a smaller one, so don't be sucked into buying a lower-quality lens with more MP. Of course, when you have a great lens, the MP start to count, but until then, I'd go with lens before MP.
(This post was edited by Sirus on Dec 3, 2010, 7:47 AM)
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Arrogant_Bastard
Dec 3, 2010, 4:20 PM
Post #19 of 19
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Registered: Oct 31, 2007
Posts: 19994
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Yes, what this world needs is a dramatic increase in the amount of shaky, wandering, unfocused, and seemingly subjectless videos documenting the lengthy struggle of n00bs thrutching up 5.7 nature hikes, posted up to YouTube.
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