BootsnAll Travel Community

If anyone could pass along some good advice on what type of camera is the best to have on the road that would be great.

Could you be more specific?

Are you trying to take professional quality photos, or do you just want something that can take snapshots? What's your camera budget like? If your a snapshot person, what quality would be deemed acceptable?

I used a Canon Powershot A40 on my past couple of trips, but found it quite heavy and bulky for my purposes, and the image quality (it's only a 2.0 MP digital) was a bit lacking, so I've just bought a new Pentax Optio S60 which is a lot smaller, lighter weight, and has 6.0 MP.

If you're bringing an snapshot type of camera, the one thing that's absolutely crucial is that it has a mode for taking nightime outdoor and indoor with no flash photos, so you can catch those night scenes and take pictures in museums.

I guess it's key that i be able to e-mail photos to people while i'm gone, which means i need to go digital. I would like something fairly small but I would also like to be able to zoom. I honestly don't know crap about camera's so i'm self education myself on this.

I'm not really a camera expert either, but sounds like we're in a similar market segment.

The best site for comparing cameras that I know of is http://www.dpreview.com, which seems to have the specification and some user comments for almost every digital model imaginable.

The one issue that's important for travellers and not others is how it's powered. You need to make sure the charger is rated for 110V~240V so you can use it anywhere, or get a model that can be powered by AAs (this is what both of mine have used), and then you can always replace the batteries if your in a pinch and can't recharge them.

I ended up going with the Pentax because I got a good deal on it, and it certainly met my size requirements. The other one I considered was the Canon Powershot SD400, which is similar in size, but has a viewfinder. They both have 3x zoom lenses (I don't use digital zoom, so didn't even look at what they had for that), are of comparable size, though the Pentax had higher megapixels, and the Canon was more expensive. The guy at the store tried to tell me that the Canon had a better lens, but I looked at pictures taken by both models, and I can't see the difference.

If you're going digital, probably most of what's available will meet the your needs, higher Megapixels usually means better image quality, but not always, check the reviews to make sure.

Great advice by 2wanderers -- here's what i have to add:

almost every camera today has a charger rated for both 110/240, i can't imagine a new camera without a dual voltage charger - but still, something to check. what you will have to bring along is a plug converter. Another great idea is a camera that uses AAs - such as the Canon "A" series, like 2wanders said.

the only reason you would need more than two or three megapixels is if you plan to make large prints of your photos. two to three megapixels is more than enough for emailing and viewing on computers screens, and they will print nicely at 4" x 6" -- higher megapixel cameras would be a waste.

plus, this being your first digital camera, a lower megapixel camera will be cheaper, thus a good 'starter' camera to learn on.

My favorites have always been the Canon's -- they have excellent image quality, are durable, and have a quick reaction to the shutter release -- all important qualities.

dpreview.com is an excellent site to learn about and compare cameras -- that's where i went to learn about them a few years ago. can be a bit overwhelming at first. feel free to post any more questions you have here as you go about researching cameras - good luck with the search!

quote:

two to three megapixels is more than enough for emailing and viewing on computers screens, and they will print nicely at 4" x 6"

I'm not sure with a 3MP, but I noticed that when I tried to keep photos from my A40 as 1600x1200 jpegs, they looked a bit fuzzy. 1024x768 looked fine digitally, and the prints I made were fine as well. But when I went looking for an upgrade, I found the price difference was not anywhere close to what it once was, and there's always a couple of shots I'd like to have large prints of.

Thanks for the great info guys. I'm thinking that e-mailing photos and posting them to a website while i'm on the road is the main purpose for me buying a camera. I'm starting to learn about photography and i don't just want to take pictures to have pictures. I would like to take nice quality pictures as well. I'll check out that website you guys recommended. I would like to buy one fairly soon so i can start practicing with it.

Ever wonder why salespeople ask how much you want to spend...? It's not to take you for all your money - it's so they can show you the specific products in that price range and make the best recommendations based on what you need the product to do and what you can afford.

You can't go wrong with any of the Canon Powershot models and they run between $200 to $900 - depending on the model and features. Figure out how much you can afford and you're three quarters of the way to your decision.


Personally, I like the Canon S80 and use it when I don't want to lug around my heavy DSLRs.

-Eric

*****

http://www.ericlian.com

The Canon Powershot A-series cameras are great because they use AA batteries...dont even need a charger!

3mp or 4mp will do you just great.

Good luck!

i just want to tell the world that the

canon powershot a 430

with the help of my

1 gig memory card

have made my life better. i got them through a cra-zy place in nyc that i dont want to give free advertising to but i will pm you their name if you really want it, for a pretty good deal except that they annoyed me when they tried to upsell relentlessly other crap i didnt want and when they totally talked me out of getting a cheaper camera from their used shop. nonetheless it is afine camera and i love it very much.

zopa