Digtial Camera - Suggestions?

I just recently got a Nikon Coolpix 775.  It's VERY small, 2.1 megapixels, 3X optical / 2X digital zoom, and came w/ a rechargeable battery.  If you're looking for better quality, you can pay more for a 3.1 or more megapixel camera from them.  It's very easy to use, and has a lot of features.

Just don't get a Sony because all their accessories are specific to Sony's and are sold separately.  You'll end uppaying a lot more for it. 

I also recommend a 128 mb flash card.  They are on sale at Costco this week for $50.  The camera is $369 @ costco too, but I price matched at Staples w/ some web site and got it for $303.  The normal retail at Best Buy, Circuit Cuity, etc is $399.

---

srosatsfne said:
I wouldn't recommend going w/ 3 MP if your publishing on the web. I would buy 2 maybe even 1 MP.

---

If you're planning on ONLY web work, and never trying to get prints, this is certainly good advice to save you money.  If, however, you want to get even the occasional print from the camera, then you should always aim for the highest resolution you can afford to buy (within some contraints -- I'd take a 2 megapixel Olympus or Nikon over any-megapixel Sony, for instance, due to Sony's insistance on proprietary memory or even (*shudder*) floppy or CDR)
-----------------
--Greg
"The questions ticket agents ask at airports are useless, but give an illusion of security to the GP. Much like seatbelts on roller coasters...
My page

Get an olympus. I have one and absolutely love it. Realistically 2 megapixel is fine, Though if you want to go nuts you're welcome to buy 12 or whatever the flavour of the month is. There are also people who are very happy to have 5000 pound cars with 300 horsepower...

Honestly I rarely even shoot in 1.3 megapixel mode on mine, simply because I know i'll be keeing them computer and it is really annoying to crop/resize/whatever. 1.3 megapixel is perfect for printing to a little bigger than a 3x5, a 4x6 looks pretty passable too. 2 megapixel is perfect for 4x6es and passable for 5x7s. 3 megapixel is perfect for 5x7s and passable for 8x10s. What do you print? Above 3 megapixel is a waste of money in a point and shoot.

I never buy anything sony, because they are either grossly overpriced or totally proprietary, and the word "Sony" doesn't make me automatically not mind paying 50% more for the same product.

The ccd sensors are pretty similar in most digicams, and the processing cores are also pretty standard. Movie modes are nice but i personally wouldn't pay more for them. What really differentiates digicams in the same class (read resolution and price range) are the lenses. For this reason I'd advocate getting something from someone who has been making lenses forever (Olympus, Cannon, Nikon etc) over someone whose main business is computer stuff, like HP.

Just get an Olympus. You'll be happy you did.

honestly though? what does this have to do with coasters? and or rides?
-----------------
Rob

"The doctor said I wouldn't have as many nose bleeds if I could just keep my finger out of there!" -Ralph

Many coaster enthusiasts like to take pictures of coasters.  Just look at how many web sites have coaster photos.  Notice that several of the responses above are tailored to coaster photos.  There is even a photo contest at the ACE convention every year.

---

Comatose said:
Above 3 megapixel is a waste of money in a point and shoot.

---

Mostly true, but I don't fully agree with this statement.  The more information your original image file contains, the more leeway you have in post-processing.  If you're resizing your images to (say) 800 x 600 for web content, but decide that all you REALLY want is the center part of the image, then crop instead of resize and poof, you look like a genius for your "perfect composition and framing" abilities. ;)  (Effectively this is a "digital zoom" after the fact, with very fine control over positioning)

Of course, that's already getting more advanced than simple "point and shoot" photography.

For the record, my current digital camera is an Olympus 3040Z; previous cameras have included the Kodak 4800 (which was stolen), and Olympus 340L.

--Greg, who just publicly admitted one of his big cheats in coaster photography...

-----------------
--Greg
"The questions ticket agents ask at airports are useless, but give an illusion of security to the GP. Much like seatbelts on roller coasters...
My page

*** This post was edited by GregLeg on 1/21/2002. ***

My dad has an Olympus and it's very nice.  I have a Hewlett-Packard 318 which comes with a great software package.  It's compact and has great resolution.  It was a gift for my birthday though so I don't know how much it cost.  I know one of my sets of SFNE pics were taken with the same model and they came out great.
-----------------
Erik Johnson
Theme Park New England
SFNE 2002: Bigger is not always better.

---

honestly though? what does this have to do with coasters? and or rides?

---

On-ride pictures maybe? Or how about pictures of theme parks in general? You can't tell me that you've never seen somebody take a picture in a theme park, ja?

I personally prefer Canon and Nikon digital cams.  The Canon Powershot A20, S30, S40, and G2 all offer excellent image quality at a reasonable price.

The Nikon 775, 885, and 995 are nice, but the competition is catching up to them.  Unless you can afford the 995, I would go with a Canon.

-Jeff

http://americacoasters.com

What about the Fuji FinePix 2800 Digital Camera? Is it any good?

-----------------
Beer, my soon to be wife, coasters, and the FREEDOM OF SPEECH. Is this a great country or what!!
------------------------
stoogemanmoe

Get a canon EOS D60. 3 megapixels. SLR. The body is about $2,000 though...

Ok, after I get my Taylor guitar!

-----------------
---------
"Getting on Iron Wolf is kind of like going in a blender and pressing PUREE"

DONT GO DIGITAL!

-----------------
I like maryland because i live there aND ITS AWsome!

http://www.geocities.com/poojaxland/delmarva

Um, do you have any valid reasoning for your statement, or are you just making noise? There are plenty of good things about digital cameras that make them as good as film for many people. You may have valid reasons for not liking diigtal cameras, but if so you should explain them.

-----------------
--Greg
"Are you justified in taking life to save life?" -- The Great Debate, Dream Theater
My page

Actually, the D60 is 6mp, and they're hopelessly backordered. I've got one (actually three) with my name on it. Looks like I've got another two weeks before I can get it, and I ordered two weeks ago. They're very hard to come by.

And yes, it's a film killer.

-----------------
Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com, Sillynonsense.com
"As far as I can tell it doesn't matter who you are. If you can believe, there's something worth fighting for..." - Garbage, "Parade"

I have a Olympus 160Z I believe. It is 1 Megapixil camera. It is great on batteries. I used normal AA batteries, and they last for ever with. Get as much memory as you can that way you do not worry about running out of room for pictures. The olympus cameras are great. The can take a beatting and keep on ticking. I went to FL two years ago. Both of my mom's cameras died from the humidity, but the olympus kept going.

---

Jeff said:

Actually, the D60 is 6mp,

---

Even better...

-----------------
---------
"Getting on Iron Wolf is kind of like going in a blender and pressing PUREE"

--Ever lying in wait for someone to say something stupid.

I have an Olympus D-460 and I love it. I had a Sony before, and I was dissapointed in the quality of the images, most likely attributable to the lens. The Olympus has a really good backlight mode that gives proper expsoure to images of coasters against a dark sky. Olympus gets my vote as a great mid-range digital camera.

-Seth

Has anyone used the Vivitar Vivicam 5385?

I found a good deal on it yesterday, and since I've never used a digital cam, but would love one for park trips, I thought I'd see if anyone has opinions on it.

I bought the Canon PowerShot A510 a few months ago. 3.2 Megapixels with 4x optical zoom. For the non-professional, it's a really great camera. I took pictures all winter, both outside and inside, and have taken in all kinds of weather, and had no problems whatsoever. The video mode is good, and most importantly, it is incredibly easy to use. The software suite is alright (good, but nothing to write home about) and the battery life is good so long as you invest in the rechargeable batteries. It comes with a 16MB card, but if you buy a larger card and the rechargeable NiMH batteries, the investment is somewhere between $300 and $400. I haven't had a problem with it yet.

EDIT: Tried posting a link, but it got lost in the shuffle somewhere.

*** Edited 4/23/2005 7:46:15 PM UTC by Nitro Dave***

I have a Canon Powershot SD300 and I couldn't be happier with it.

It's very tiny, it's got a big LCD, and its controls are extremely intuitive.