[rkg]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

thats quite a sweeping statement.
If one camera was better than another, then we would not need the other one right.
It depends on what one wants and what suits a person better.

AS per many digital camera review sites including dpreview,steve digicams pentax has provided the same auto focus in K10D and K100D.(both high and low end models) unlike Nikon and canon who provided inferior autofocus in low end models. the reviewers also say the auto focus is much better than nikon and canon.
Secondly it provides sensor based shake reduction unlike canon and nikon. compatible with all pentax lenses ( even the oldest pentax lenses)
thirdly it is much cheaper than canon and nikon

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by rkg

AS per many digital camera review sites including dpreview,steve digicams pentax has provided the same auto focus in K10D and K100D.(both high and low end models) unlike Nikon and canon who provided inferior autofocus in low end models. the reviewers also say the auto focus is much better than nikon and canon.
Secondly it provides sensor based shake reduction unlike canon and nikon. compatible with all pentax lenses ( even the oldest pentax lenses)
thirdly it is much cheaper than canon and nikon

The same review sites list the pro's and cons for all the cameras they tested, and till date I have seen none of the cameras which have "no cons".
As for the K10D, if you look through the review you will see how bad the in camera JPEG algo is, and the reviewrs urge you to shoot RAW if you are particular about IQ.
So no camera is without cons, one takes what suits one better.
A DSLR is a system, not a camera, and a lot of factors get important.
That said I would have been the owner of a Pentax *ist DS instead of 350D if buydig hadn't bungled my order, but then if's and buts...
I bought the canon not because its the best, but becasuse I was buying from india, and at that time Canon was best option for me.

[navin]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Olympus C8080, look no further!
1. It has RAW
2. 28-140mm (More range than the kit lens on most DSLRs)
3. Custom white balance too.

You know what I did think of the 8080 but the camera was released in Apr 2004. That is over 3 years ago. In digicam terms that might be a generation or more. that is why i limitd my search to cams that are less than 1 year old (the exception being the G6).

What about the Ricoh GX100. It is not available in India but my nephew is travelling to the US and can get it from there. it has a 24-72 lens which is plenty for me. In most cases I run out of the wide end before I do the telephoto. it has a hot shoe but there is no mention of which flashes it is compatible with. At worst I can stick my 420EX or SB800 (which is presently with my sister in Singpaore) on the shoe and use the on camera flash as a trigger.

It does not have a flip LCD (neither it seems do many modern compacts like the G7), hand grip is minimal (a la G7, F31fd, A640, etc), and no white balance (but then other than the 3 year old 8080 who does) but is has a shoe (of some kind). Only question is lens/picture quality. Which cant be that bad which if it as good as the GR (prime lens) is acceptable.

I guess for white balance and all that fancy stuff I'll need to use a SLR.

This digicam will be one that will reside normally in my laptop bag but will also serve as a back up when I am using my SLR/DSLR so it should fit in the lens/flash corner of a shoulder bag so that if for example I got a 70-300 lens on my SLR I still have a P&S witha 24-72 lens ready for a wide. Since we are on the topic of SLRs what would you suggest to replace a Nikon 18-70/3.5-4.5 DX lens with.

The 17-55/2.8 is too expensive and I am not familiar with Sigma/Tamron/Tokina. If only Nikon had DSLR equivalent of their 24-85/2.8-4 IF to fit between the 18-70 and 17-55.

[tsk1979]

the flash sync can go upto 1/2000 sec!
Thats impressive
About IQ, I suppose it should be good. The camera is too new for any offical reviews out yet.
And since it has RAW, why worry about WB?
I guess if you want something pocketable, the Fuji 31fd is best as far has high ISO image quality is concerned. About this baby, no idea

[kiku007]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

What is the ISO setting you are using?
Use ISO 100. ISO 400 will give noise. Even at ISO 200 there will be some noise.

Thanks tsk. The ISO was set to Auto mode. As per ur suggestion I changed it to ISO100 but stilll I have the same problem. There are lot of reddish spots when i zoom to 100% and see the picture.

My Dial Up net connection is very slow :( I'll upload the photo later for ur reference.

I'm a novice as far as photography is concerned so mostly I'll use Auto mode only. These noisy images are occuring only recently.

[tsk1979]

Zoom to 100%, cut a part of your picture where red spots are there. Make sure ISO is 100. Post that small cut area

[whatcanthisbe]

please help


Budget

* What budget have you allocated for buying this camera? Please be as specific as possible.


Upper limit US $1000
Size

* What size camera are you looking for? Or does size not matter at all to you?

Does not matter but not toooo bulky

Features

How many megapixels will suffice for you?

7 or above

* What optical zoom will you need? (None, Standard = 3x-4x, Ultrazoom = 10x-12x)

Standard or better

* How important is “image quality” to you? (Rate using a scale of 1-10)

9-10

Do you care for manual exposure modes (shutter priority, aperture priority, manual)?

Yes

General Usage

* What will you generally use the camera for?

Family pics nature and sporting events as an amatuer

* Will you be making big prints of your photos or not?

Yes

Will you be shooting a lot of indoor photos or low light photos?

Yes

Will you be shooting sports and/or action photos?

Yes

Miscellaneous

Are there particular brands you like or hate?

None but would prefer - Sony, Pentax, Nikon, Olympus, Cannon- something with an international warranty

Are there particular models you already have in mind?

None

(If applicable) Do you need any of the following special features? (Wide Angle, Image Stabilization, Weatherproof, Hotshoe, Rotating LCD)

Image stabilization and wide angle definately the more the better

[navin]

what can, look at the panasonic FZ8 or Canon S5.

[tsk1979]

Canon Powershot S5 IS if you want a compact camera with all bells and whistles.
Since you said 1000$ you can go DSLR for around 600$ and buy a nice lens, But this will throw "not too bulky" out of the window.
FZ8 etc., are good, and the lens is mint but the noise is bad.
Another out of the box option if you want really really really good image quality is the Sony R1
That 24-110mm lens is to die for.
You get such lenses for 1000$+ if you go shopping for DSLR lenses!

EDIT: It does a flash X-sync at 1/2000 sec so you can use fill flash in bright daylight without stopping down.
It will cost 900$ online I think.
India price is 40,000rs(After discounts)

[navin]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

the flash sync can go upto 1/2000 sec!
And since it has RAW, why worry about WB?
I guess if you want something pocketable, the Fuji 31fd is best as far has high ISO image quality is concerned. About this baby, no idea

1. you have no idea on the GX100? which baby?
2. I dont thnk I will neeed 1/2000 sec sync but in case I do it is there
3. True, No need for WB with RAW
4. Have you used the F31fd? The F31fd and A640/710IS are cameras I hear a lot about but no one seems to have used the F3fd it is mostly here say (or stuff from the dpreivew forums).

[whatcanthisbe]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Canon Powershot S5 IS if you want a compact camera with all bells and whistles.
Since you said 1000$ you can go DSLR for around 600$ and buy a nice lens, But this will throw "not too bulky" out of the window.
FZ8 etc., are good, and the lens is mint but the noise is bad.
Another out of the box option if you want really really really good image quality is the Sony R1
That 24-110mm lens is to die for.
You get such lenses for 1000$+ if you go shopping for DSLR lenses!

EDIT: It does a flash X-sync at 1/2000 sec so you can use fill flash in bright daylight without stopping down.
It will cost 900$ online I think.
India price is 40,000rs(After discounts)

Thanks
but i am looking at something out of the box the whole kit in 1, the lower than 1000 the better i can use that money later on (when i get better ) to buy a better lens. image quality and detail is very important

[tsk1979]

whatcanthisbe, if you want a all in one you have 2 options
1. go for S5 IS or Fz8(beware about low high ISO quality though) have long zoom available.
2. Splurge on R1. It is a great camera, but long end is just 120mm. Not useful for bird photography. But it has very very good low light response as it comes with usable ISO 800 and since it has a APS-C size sensor you can take nice potrait photos with background blurred, like you take with a DSLR.
3. But A DSLR for 550$ body only, without lens and spend 350$ on a 18-200 lens, and buy a 50mm cheapo prime(70$) when you have more money later go for a better lens.

You can check out Olympus DSLRs too, they give nice features and Oly has opened up a large exclusive store in palika bazaar if you want to go and drool.

Navin ji, while recommending R1, I realized that it fits your requirement perfectly(if you are okay with 900$ cost!)

Originally Posted by navin

4. Have you used the F31fd? The F31fd and A640/710IS are cameras I hear a lot about but no one seems to have used the F3fd it is mostly here say (or stuff from the dpreivew forums).

I have used it as in handled it for a short time. I was impressed with FD technology, since my 350D does not have it . I took a ISO 800 piccie in store and it turned out great, atleast on the LCD screen. Much better than the powershots could do.

As for the powershots a friend got it from US while we were there and I played around with it a little (A640 or something). Nice nifty thing. But except for the Fuji's all these compacts are useless at high ISO. By useless I mean very very useless.

[whatcanthisbe]

hmm
how would you rate the d80 & the 350D s51s against each other with a 50 mm lens

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by whatcanthisbe

hmm
how would you rate the d80 & the 350D s51s against each other with a 50 mm lens

I can't do that. I havent used a D80. I own just a 350D.
But 350D is much cheaper than D80.
As for 50mm lens
I own the 70$ 50mm 1.8 prime lens which has given me wonderful photos. Esp useful for potraits and low light photography.
When we went to singapore, we went to bird park and night safari where flash was not allowed. The 50mm 1.8 saved me. At ISO 1600 I could take such pics with ease
Handeld

1/5s with handrail as support

Handheld

Handheld

Handheld(Shows DOF control)

Another ISO 1600 handheld shot


This lens performs best at F-4-F5.6 where photos come out razor sharp, just like L lenses. But its 70$ only.
Another long exposure at F2.5


So now you have enough samples from me,
flickr.com camera finder will give you much more samples!

[whatcanthisbe]

wow great pics man can you e-mail me the full versions at my e-mail addy achadha7 at hotmail REMOVE THIS dot com
also the name of the lense .. how long have you been shooting for ? the hand held shots look awesome ...