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It depends on what you want to use it for- I own two professional grade SLR's and I have to say- they're sort of a pain in the butt when I want to take personal photos. A. They're big and B. I have to carry the camera around with me because I'm afraid of someone stealing it. We recently went to the beach and I wanted to take photos- the whole time I was stressed if I left the camera someone would walk by and swipe it.
For personal use, I highly recommend and awesome point and shoot that is small and can easily be hidden. If you're planning on blogging, taking on photography as a hobby, etc.. the SLR is nice.
@maureen9004: I'm a naturally paranoid person. Thats a really good point about the SLR, its more expensive and we really don't need one. To be quite honest I just thought it would be cool to have. LOL. We'd mainly use it for personal photos. Any recommendations on the point and shoot?
I know Nikon and Canon you can't really go wrong with, but I have always loved the quality of photos with my Fuji Finepix....which broke because I dropped it. :(
I currently have an Olympus Stylus Tough, which is waterproof and drop-proof (obviously I needed that feature), but it SUCKS. I hate the picture quality and you can't just point and shoot, you have to wait forever for it to take the photo.
If you consider yourself a "pro-sumer", go for the upgrade. If you never see yourself being interested in settings and the control that comes with the DSLR, save the money and use it on other things.
FWIW, I love my Nikon DSLR. :)
I personally prefer Nikon - I feel like they hold up to my abuse more. I know my folks broke their Canon LCD in no time. My Nikon has been through a lot. I was a fan of Casio, but I don't see as many out. My old Casio was dropped, smacked around, and taken rock climbing a few times. It still works - just replaced it this year as I wanted something newer.
Are you planning to have kids in the next year or two? My sister was all for the point and shoots originally, but after she had kids, she wanted an SLR. If you are planning to and want to capture everything, you could look into a DSLR. I've got a Nikon, which is several years old now, but still takes wonderful pictures. I use it for all my photography, and take my point and shoot on quick trips or where I don't want to break my DSLR.
I have no issues with my DSLR. I don't mind carrying it around - I just bring it out when I want it, and put it back when I'm done. I keep mine in a Pelican Case, for safety measures. If you get the more consumer grade DSLRs, they are easy to use. I just HATE how slow p&s cameras are when it comes to taking pictures.
DSLRS with kit lenses are pretty useless. Unless you are willing to shell out for at least one high quality lens, get a point and shoot.
SLR makes GIANT difference in the type of picture quality. If you are interested in photography get the SLR and then you can always buy additional lenses. The lens that comes in the kit is usually a standard 18-55, I have one of these and its not that bad at all
I'm not trying to make a materpiece or anything but I would like something we can grow with. Is there something in between a point and shoot and SLR? LOL.
My favorite point and shoot is the canon S95, it shoots raw, has control wheels like DSLR's, a larger than normal sensor size, and takes nice pictures. All point and shoot cameras suffer from the same disadvantages:
poor low light performance
slow focusing and aquiring images = missed moments
slow and wimpy flash performance
no depth of field control
If you are not going to learn photography get into manual shooting or take advantage of raw format, to be honest, any point and shoot will do, I wouldn't spend more than $150. You probably don't need more than 8-10 Megapixels (more megapixels don't make the camera better), and skip useless features like face and smile detection,etc. Features to look for are video, a useful zoom,etc, and each model has something different to offer.
I am in love with the new fuji x100
It has the same sensor as a consumer dslr, a sexy footprint, great performance, but it has a fixed prime lens = no zoom. This would be an ideal point and shoot backup for me when doing personal work, but it has a hefty pricetag......worth every penny IMO.
A dslr requires education to get the most out of it and additional investments down the road. I will turn into a very expensive hobby as you learn more and more.
@USER876: thanks for the advice! Gives me lots more to think about!
Actually, the Canon PowerShot is kind of in between a SLR and a point-and-shoot. You can't add lenses, but it takes far superior pictures to your average $100 camera. I used it during an internship at a newspaper, and the images were always good enough to print and use on the web. It's bigger than your average camera, but it's a ton smaller than an SLR. I like it because I needed something that would take professional-ish quality pictures, but I couldn't afford an SLR. [please note, we're talking professional for a journalist, not for a pro photographer. If your photographer exclusively uses one of these, run!]
Anyway, you should check it out. It sounds like it's right up your alley.
http://www.target.com/Canon-PowerShot-SX130IS-Digital-Optical/dp/B003ZSHNG8/ref=sc_qi_detaillink
I love my Nikon DSLR. I do have a point an shoot one to and absolutely hate that thing. I rather hadn my DSLR. To me it is worth it the pictures I take with it are absoulutely awesome. Yes it is expensive but to me worth it. Little by little I am getting lens for it.
I don't think there is anything wrong with the kit lens for someone just starting out. It's definitely not useless and will take better pictures than a point and shoot.
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crayfish (message) September 11, 2010 Boston, MA
DSLRS with kit lenses are pretty useless. Unless you are willing to shell out for at least one high quality lens, get a point and shoot.
I agree with @jo.lee and second her recommendation - I love my Canon Power Shot. I got it as an upgrade from my small point and shot Canon. I take it to concerts and am able to get amazing shots where my old one had some issues with concert lighting. I am just a casual photographer but get a lot of comments on the quality of my pics. My brother use to be a Canon guy but recently went to Nikon and loves his SLR (though admitted its a pain at times).
@june42011: I was just going to suggest the Canon S95 and saw User did too! I own 3 pro DSLRs but when I'm on vacation and just want to take photos for fun and not work I take the Canon S95. A lot of really great features for a point and shoot. It's so nice to have a camera that fits in my pocket once in awhile! =)
@june42011: I'm paranoid too. A few months ago someone broke into a condo in our area- every time I leave the house I'm a little paranoid. I hide my equipment throughout our unit.
I used to take stock photos for dealerships- several destroyed camera later, I decided canon was the mot durable. My picks: canon powershoot SD1300IS (dropped this camera quite a bit- never broke!). I love canon, but I'm thinking about the waterproof Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-TX10
If you will only use your dslr in auto mode, I would save my money and get a point and shoot. Photos taken on my dslr in auto look like point and shoot photos...photos taken in manual are a lot better! If you want to learn manual, dslr. If not, point and shoot.
You can get a hybrid of the DSLR and P+S, some sites call them Compact System Cameras. They're good because they aren't very big and bulky like SLR cameras but you can interchange the lens for more options.
The only issue is that they are costly, almost as much as an SLR and not a lot of the "big players" (Nikon, Canon) are in that market. Sony dominates that market and has the best product out there.
Best Buy has the full range of Sony Compact System Cameras if you want to research it.
Personally - I have a Nikon SLR and a Canon P+S and I love the Canon way better and am considering an upgrade to a Canon SLR. I don't take pro pics but I like the quality of the SLR.
I've always had Sony point and shoots and never had a problem with them. As of yesterday, I am the owner of a Nikon D3100 and already I think it's awesome! I don't think I'd want to take it to the beach or somewhere that I'd stress about it disappearing but it is great!
I just got a panasonic lumix zs8 and I loooove it! It's a little bigger than the tiny little canon SD or nikon point and shoots but it has some manual features so you have more control over settings and the baby is a super wide angle 24mm with 16x optical zoom. Its not quite pocketable, but still small and can slip into any purse.
So much to think about! Thank you ladies for all the suggestions. I think we decided to go with a simple point and shoot, just still not sure which one :). I've had my Cannon Power shot forever and its been great and it has seen its share of abuse so I know its durable I'm just wanting to upgrade a little so I will be looking into all these suggestions. Thanks again!
Awesome post because I too am looking to upgrade my camera. I've had it for 6 years and it's showing its age :( I am looking for a point and shoot though. This is my old camera. Ouch, it's been out for a while. I think I would stay with Canons. I am a pretty average user. I don't know any programs, I don't want to mess with settings and I would love to take pictures like the one's Mrs. Hamster took on her honeymoon. I wonder if I can do those with a point and shoot? I really love those pictures :)
We have a Nicon D3100 and it's really great. It makes amazing pics, does hd video. Well, everything we ever need from the camera is there
@kate169: This makes absolutely no sense
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kate169 (message) May 21, 2011 Hampton Roads, Va
If you will only use your dslr in auto mode, I would save my money and get a point and shoot. Photos taken on my dslr in auto look like point and shoot photos...photos taken in manual are a lot better! If you want to learn manual, dslr. If not, point and shoot.
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FH and I got about $400 in target gift cards from our 2 showers. We decided we want to buy a new digital camera considering the only one we own is from my college years and has seen better days.
Any suggestions? We were thinking of the Nixon Coolpix S8100 or D3100. One's a SLR and ones not. I don't really know the difference and I have no desire to become a professional photog, I just want one that will take really good pix :)