Worthy first buy?

WoodyAllen

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I'm new to this sport & getting ready to buy my first digital camera. Thinking about one of the following:
1. Minolta Dimage - Z1
2. ditto - Z2
3. Canon powershot - S50
4. Sony - DSC-P10

Feedback from experienced users welcome along with all other recommendations

thanks
:hiya:
 
The decision on which to buy is really down to what you want from a digicam.

The Z1 is a SLR style digicam that has most of the features of a full DSLR except it is smaller and has a fixed lens. It can be used as a fully auto, point & shoot or has manual settings for creativity.
The Z2 is the new replacement for the Z1 and will IMHO be a better buy than the old model unless the budget is tight and the Z1 is at a very good price. These camera, although not exactly large, will be fairly heavy and bulky to carry around compared to any compact digicam.
The Canon S50 is a compact point and shoot camera with a lot of the manual features of the Z1/2. The lens is smaller, so PQ is likely to be slightly lower but being small will easily fit in a pocket or strap to a belt.
The DSC-P10 is not known to me so can offer no real help with that.

I actually own the older S30 and love the camera for its convinience and PQ. It has dsome great features for a small camera. I use this camera for general holiday pics as it is so easy to carry around.
I also own a larger Minolta Dimage 7 which although bigger than the Z1/2 is very similar in design. This is a better quality camera that I use at weddings etc when PQ is the most important thing. It also has a better zoom and is faster at repeat shots.

I hope the above gives you some more ideas of what you should be looking at. As I say, I use both my digicams for different things. Work out what you will use the camera for and then decide on the style to go for. Once you know the style (or perhaps before) head down to a local camera shop and holds a few different cams. Sometimes a great cam just doesn't feel right in your hands.
If you live close to a Jessops then they will pricematch the best UK internet price you can find. Take the details of the site along with you and you should be able to save a good few ££££'s

Good luck with your choice,
Mark.

ps, I think the Minolta's and Canon both use Compact Flash cards that are cheaper than the Sony Memory Stick.
 
Mark,

Many thanks for this very helpful reply: I genuinely value the opinions of experienced practitioners. I mostly want the digicam for everyday shots of the kids etc & I'd like to transfer to DVD & project using my panny ae500 LCD projector. I'm coming to the view that a 'point & shoot' would best meet my needs (Canon / Sony) and in view of the memory cost differential I'm steering towards the Canon. That said I'm not wedded to any particular brand & would welcome any recommendations you may care to share.

best regards
 
Well IMO you wont go far wrong with the S50. Its a great little camera for just about all uses and will have plenty of features to keep you going once you get used to it. At 5mp it should give great PQ from DVD & PJ.
Take a look at some of the other Canon's and see which ones you lie when holding as some just might be too fiddly etc.

Mark.
 
Cheers Mark...the research begins to source the cheapest S50; thanks for the Jessops price match info - there's a branch close to where I work so that should come in handy..

best
 
I think MarkE19 is confized between KM A series and Z series.

The A1 and A2 are 'prosumer[ almost dSLR style cameras, big, bulky (comparativly) but full featured cameras (I know I have an A2!).

The Z1 and Z2 are far smaller consumer cameras , less features, smaller lense (with bigger zoom).

I looked at a Z1 (3mp) and found it a bit lightweight, flimsy, wasnt convinced about build quality, aparently the Z2 is better, they take decent photo's tho. 10x zoom is difficult to use unless your using some sort of tripod or something to hold the camera steady.

The Z1 and Z2 both use SD/MMC I believe, not CF cards.
 
If your after a point an shoot with a good amount of megapixellage Canon are a very good choice. I would reccomend the IXUS 500 before you decide on the S50 as may people prefer the design, including myself. Just to confuse you a little more, the Olymous MJU410, has 4mp and 3x optical zoom and is IMO the best Olympus compact digi.
I am a huge Canon fan when it comes to no messing about digital photography (we own both an A70 and an A80) as they are simple to use and produce some fantastic prints.
 
I think MarkE19 is confized between KM A series and Z series.

The A1 and A2 are 'prosumer[ almost dSLR style cameras, big, bulky (comparativly) but full featured cameras (I know I have an A2!).

The Z1 and Z2 are far smaller consumer cameras , less features, smaller lense (with bigger zoom).
No I was refering to the Z1/2. What I meant by DSLR style is the body shape and the way the lens is external to the body, unlike the standard compacts where the lens sits internally when not in use. I know they are a lot smaller than even my Dimage7 but they do also have a lot of the manual features like the DSLR's.

Mark.
 
Originally posted by MarkE19
No I was refering to the Z1/2. What I meant by DSLR style is the body shape and the way the lens is external to the body, unlike the standard compacts where the lens sits internally when not in use. I know they are a lot smaller than even my Dimage7 but they do also have a lot of the manual features like the DSLR's.

Mark.

o, kk I getcha. I like the style, didnt like the build quality, least of the z1. The olympus c-xxx (c765?) seemed way better screwed together.
 
it's hard to see beyond a Canon S50/IXUS500 at the minute, although having read other threads vis battery life, I think an AA powered unit would be preferable... thanks for all the guidance folks..
 
AA batteries do make life easy, but I've never had a problem with the S30 running out of power during the day. I've got a spare battery, but never needed it in a single days shooting. I may not take 100's of pictures a day, but I do take a fair few when the view warrents it.
The down side of AA batteries though is that due to their physical size they will make the camera bigger, just to be able to house them.
Proprietary batteries may cost a fair bit to buy, but they do in my experience last a lot longer than even my 2300mah AA's (but saying that the Dimage 7 is renowned for eating its way through the batteries).

Mark.
 
Originally posted by WoodyAllen
it's hard to see beyond a Canon S50/IXUS500 at the minute, although having read other threads vis battery life, I think an AA powered unit would be preferable... thanks for all the guidance folks..

Might be worth giving the Canon A80 some consideration, it sacrifice a mp over the IXUS 500, and is chunkier but it takes AAs and is still a smashing little camera.
 
I'm keen to go 5mp in a (futile) attempt to keep (semi) up to date and the price differential isn't great between 4&5mp. I must say I like the spec for the IXUS 500 & have seen it at a great price (£280) however I also found a Sony DSC-P10 for £227 which looks like great value. Anyone any experience of Sony digicams? I note that memory is more expensive than other types...
 

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