Small digital camera w/good quality?

[WonderlandsMostWanted]

I hope this is the right forum to post this...

We're plannining this December's trip, and I'm looking for a good but small camera. We have a pretty compact SLR that takes nice pics, but it uses a lot of battery, and it's still large enough that it needs to be carried in a pack or purse, and we're trying to cut down on that.

I'm looking for something that is small enough to fit in a pocket of cargo pants/shorts, or in a small camera case that maybe has belt loops to be worn that way? I still want my pictures to have decent quality (while I know I'll be sacrificing some zoom capacity) without having to lug around a heavy, bulky or cumbersome camera pack. I haven't owned a camera that WASN'T an SLR in about 15 years, so I'm a little hesitant and in unfamiliar territory! :blush:

Any suggestions you have would be much appreciated!

[TinkerbellT421]

I absolutely HAVE to recommend the kodak easy share digitals. I bought my DBF one for christmas two years ago, even after 800 pictures and six months of use after our disney trip we didnt have to replace the batteries (I also bought the energizer recharge pack they worked for 6 months after I used it for our week vaca at disney and I took over 800 pics in disney alone). It takes unbelievable pictures, we have some many pictures and ppl can believe we took it with that camera. I think it should be going for about 150.00 at target. Maybe cheaper if you get it during a sale. I bought it for 60.00 during the day after thanksgiving sale. Best purchase I ever made for us. :number1: CHeap small and perfect. All u need without having to spend a boat load of money...trust me lol

[TinkerbellT421]

Oh and by the way, its very easy to use. And it comes with the cord to plug right into your computer to upload the pictures easy. :mickey:

[KineGirl]

I absolutely HAVE to recommend the kodak easy share digitals. I bought my DBF one for christmas two years ago, even after 800 pictures and six months of use after our disney trip we didnt have to replace the batteries (I also bought the energizer recharge pack they worked for 6 months after I used it for our week vaca at disney and I took over 800 pics in disney alone). It takes unbelievable pictures, we have some many pictures and ppl can believe we took it with that camera. I think it should be going for about 150.00 at target. Maybe cheaper if you get it during a sale. I bought it for 60.00 during the day after thanksgiving sale. Best purchase I ever made for us. :number1: CHeap small and perfect. All u need without having to spend a boat load of money...trust me lol

:ditto: I have one and its awesome!! I got it with the printer and they are so easy use! I still cannot believe how good the pics come out sometimes.

[JPL]

Your best bet is to take a look at some consumer reviews of the cameras and use those to make your selection. Amazon has useful reviews from real people who have purchased the camera and they often include information on what types of pictures they have use it for. Also if you follow the link from Intercot to go to Amazon and make a purchase it helps support the sight.

That being said I have not found a small digital camera that I have liked at all. I just upgrade to an SLR for the sake of getting better pictures. The poster before me recommends a Kodak and I had a smaller kodak camera and hate it for pictures at Disney it does a night job outdoors or with good lighting but perfoms very poorly at night and in dimly lit areas. One of the most important feature to look at is the optical zoom which is usally not very good on the smaller models due to the lens size.

[WonderlandsMostWanted]

That being said I have not found a small digital camera that I have liked at all. I just upgrade to an SLR for the sake of getting better pictures. The poster before me recommends a Kodak and I had a smaller kodak camera and hate it for pictures at Disney it does a night job outdoors or with good lighting but perfoms very poorly at night and in dimly lit areas. One of the most important feature to look at is the optical zoom which is usally not very good on the smaller models due to the lens size.

Right. The optical zoom/quality is what's made me a bit of an SLR loyalist the last 15 years. But, more often than not on our past trip, we were trying do a lot at Disney, and i wasn't taking the amount of time setting up and taking pictures that I might otherwise, in other conditions. For my high detail shots, or when I'm really looking for a good photography fix, I'll stick to my SLR.

What I'm mostly looking for here, is something that will be on hand and readily available for quick shots. Character meet and greets, us in front of an attraction, someone making a silly face, etc. Something that will serve its basic purpose, not take up much room, and not cost SO much, that I'll be heartbroken if something pesky like gravity sneaks up and causes a scuff in the casing or something.

[CleveSJM]

I absolutely HAVE to recommend the kodak easy share digitals. I bought my DBF one for christmas two years ago, even after 800 pictures and six months of use after our disney trip we didnt have to replace the batteries (I also bought the energizer recharge pack they worked for 6 months after I used it for our week vaca at disney and I took over 800 pics in disney alone). It takes unbelievable pictures, we have some many pictures and ppl can believe we took it with that camera. I think it should be going for about 150.00 at target. Maybe cheaper if you get it during a sale. I bought it for 60.00 during the day after thanksgiving sale. Best purchase I ever made for us. :number1: CHeap small and perfect. All u need without having to spend a boat load of money...trust me lol

I have to agree with the Kodak recommendation. We bought our girls each a Kodak EasyShare V1003 10MP Digital for xmas last year. Great pocket type camera, great quality and I know Amazon has it for less than $160. It was a wierd battery but charges fast and holds a good charge.:thumbsup:

Ps - comes in different colors so having multiples was ok with a different color for each.

[elmjimmlm]

We checked online at several stores and found that Circuit City had very good pricing and lots to choose from...

[TinkerbellT421]

All I know is I bought a 7 megapixel kodak easy share (I dont know how old the poster before me is) by I took picture with it that If I knew how to post pics on here I would show you. But the pictures are post card like. I have had nothing but compliments with my pictures. I was told to selll them to disney for post cards. So thats just my recommendation. I have had no problems at all. :)

[joonyer]

I also have a Kodak Easy-Share (don't remember the model #) that is small enough to carry in my pocket without bulging or stretching, that I use for "snapshots". the lens retracts into the camera body when it is turned off so it fits very easily in to a packet when not is use. It takes great pictures for those kind of "snapshots" and even does pretty well at night when you learn to use the right settings. It is loaded with different features & settings and you can set aperture, shutter speed, etc. manually if you want (although for use at the parks in daylight it takes great shots on the auto setting). It has a good strong wrist strap so I actually take pictures on moving attractions (usually of may family members' faces) without fear of dropping it, even on BTMRR or EE. It is ideal for carrying around with you at a place like a theme park or hiking, where you want to carry a minimal load. I take a spare battery on vacation with us so I always have all the power I need even for a long day at the park taking many photos. It also will make movies which is a lot of fun on attractions. We used to carry a video camera and a still camera, but the little Kodak does both jobs for us now and is so much easier to carry. All the Kodak easy share models use the same software, which is very easy to use. In addition to using our home desktop for editing and printing photos, we bought a small portable Kodak printer that we use to print 4X6 prints right in our hotel room, no computer needed. Very handy, and fun to look at after a day at the parks. You can get some of the Kodak easy-share models with bigger and higher quality optical zoom lenses than the compact models, but they don't retract and thus won't fit in a pocket any better than an SLR, so you still have to use a case or camera bag, unless you want to risk the camera getting damaged.

[PirateLover]

I have an issue of Consumer Reports from November and Cannon pretty much dominates the field. Check out their PowerShot series. I am also looking into cameras and that's what I'm pretty much sold on. We are looking to replace a 4 or 5 year old Kodak EasyShare (that we actually lost :blush:) for my mom's upcoming birthday. The Kodak did take quality pictures and we never had any issues with it, except that it too was a battery eater. We found that even when turned off, it continued to drain the batteries, so we took them out after we were done using, and didn't use the screen as much. However from doing massive amounts of research it does seem that Kodak comes up a bit short compared to the other brands. Consumer Reports listed the Canon PowerShots A550 and A460 as two of the best "budget" cameras. I'm almost certain there are newer models now since this was issued a season ago, but I doubt the rankings will have changed much.

All this being said, I think they might be a bit large for what you're looking for.

Nikon Coolpix are popular, but I have a friend that was extremely disappointed with his and is planning on returning it.

Olympus was another winner with Consumer Reports, and they have some rather smaller models that seem to have good quality as well.

Just do some research, and you should be able to find one that suits your taste.

[brownie]

Everyone is my family is using one of the Canon Powershots. The models include the SD450, SD600, and SD1000, and one other. No one's had any problems, and the pictures are good. I really like that I can carry mine in a cargo pocket.

[conorsmom2000]

Everyone is my family is using one of the Canon Powershots. The models include the SD450, SD600, and SD1000, and one other. No one's had any problems, and the pictures are good. I really like that I can carry mine in a cargo pocket.

My family are also huge fans of the Canon Powershot Series!! :thumbsup: Both my brother and i had the 450 and now I've got the SD600. I love, love, love this camera. It's small, fits in a pocket, yet has a large screen (2.5 inches, which I need when not wearing my glasses! :blush: ). It takes excellent pictures, and I love the video feature (unlimited time, whatever your memory card can hold). And it's got a "fireworks" mode which is helpful at Disney! :mickey: I definitely recommend this camera!

[BelleLovesTheBeast]

Nikon Coolpix are popular, but I have a friend that was extremely disappointed with his and is planning on returning it.

True. This is a popular camera but I don't know anyone who hasn't found it to be a waste of money.

I'd recommend Sony Cybershot. They are excellent cameras. My husband first bought me one when he worked for a electronics store. Since then I've had two more. I've never had a problem with any of them.

The one I have now is

compact so that I can fit it into a pocket or small purse (about 2'h x 31/2' w x 3/4'd)
takes great photos
it runs on Sony G type battery so you can take pics all day long and never worry about the battery running low or having to put in a new set
you take video on it too and it's great quality


I have a friend who is a professional photographer and she even has one of these for her personal use.

[PirateLover]

Sony is another brand that did do well in the Consumer Reports rankings :thumbsup:

[TinkerbellT421]

See, I had both the Sony Cybershot (WHICH I HATED w/ A PASSION) lol. I threw it out. lol. And I have three friends that took their Nikon cameras back, they hated them. lol. But I would agree w/ the cannon too. Cannon's have always been nice cameras.

[Janmac]

My second digital is a Kodak Easyshare which is much more user friendly than the first digital - some off brand included with my (then) new computer.

However, I must have a lemon Kodak Easyshare as the photos are not very acceptable in low light at all, either indoors or out. And woe to the battery if I neglect to turn the camera off after taking the photo.

For most photography at WDW I have gone back to my 35mm Olympus Superzoom 115 which is about twice the size of my Kodak Easyshare but still will fit in most of my pockets, as I prefer loose fitting slacks.

It's not bad on batteries, will turn itself off if I forget, and with fresh batteries (as opposed to say last year's) has a quick enough recovery time for character breakfast photos. Nowadays it's easy enough to get a CD with one's developed photos.

Jan

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

I have a Canon, optical zoom is 10 and the flash has to be manually lifted up. That's the part I'm going to like for Disney and the rides that you aren't supposed to use a flash on. The pictures come out great too. You can used it manually or just put it on auto. It was about $250 on sale.
I have a distant cousin who owns a camera shop and he recommended Canon or Olympus for Digital cameras.

[Here we go again...]

True. This is a popular camera but I don't know anyone who hasn't found it to be a waste of money.

I'd recommend Sony Cybershot. They are excellent cameras. My husband first bought me one when he worked for a electronics store. Since then I've had two more. I've never had a problem with any of them.

The one I have now is

compact so that I can fit it into a pocket or small purse (about 2'h x 31/2' w x 3/4'd)
takes great photos
it runs on Sony G type battery so you can take pics all day long and never worry about the battery running low or having to put in a new set
you take video on it too and it's great quality


I have a friend who is a professional photographer and she even has one of these for her personal use.

I just bought a Sony Cybershot 1080 and it is amazing!
It has a 14 m flash and an ISO up to 3200! I get better shots using no flash than with a flash in most situations. It also has a 10x optical zoom... I just can not get by with a smailler zoom lens. And the best part, it fits in a small bag or purse. I did not like the old Sony cameras, but this one was recommended to me by a professional who also uses it as her back up camera too.
One more thing, you can set manual settings on this camera... so it is more of a bridge camera than a point and shoot.