Looking for camera advice

I am looking to get a new camera before our cruise in February. Beginning of the year, I bought a Nikon S31 for underwater pics and I love it, so I'm good there.

What I am interested in is a camera with a good zoom for taking high resolution pictures of things like approaching ports, sailaways, and stuff while on shore (beaches, Mayan ruins, people zip lining, landscapes, etc).

I'm looking to spend anywhere up to around $350. I have looked around the web and found things from different families like Canon Powershot, Fiji FinePix, Nikon CoolPix, etc.

They all look like a muddled mass - I would rather get some real world opinions from you guys who have experience using these... :D

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I just got the Nikon Coolpix AW100 for an underwater and all around digital camera. The pictures so far seem fantastic. It's got a 5x optical zoom 4x digital. That seems like the down fall perhaps in your case. But for me. I'm very pleased with it.

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I just saw this on woot.com for $199 (refurbished). What do you guys think:

Nikon COOLPIX P510

16.1MP

Compact Digital Camera

42x Optical Zoom

GPS

I just got the Nikon Coolpix AW100 for an underwater and all around digital camera. The pictures so far seem fantastic. It's got a 5x optical zoom 4x digital. That seems like the down fall perhaps in your case. But for me. I'm very pleased with it.

 

 

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Digital zoom is meaningless. All cameras have digital zoom. You do it by cropping your photo in your computer after you take the picture.

DON

Exactly Don!

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I bought a canon SX40 HS this year . It's a good all round camera.

Why I bought is that I can use the view finder without wearing glasses.

I have found from my own experience , camera's that only have the LCD screen on the back use batteries up quickly. The SX40 has been replaced by the SX50 HS.

I like to do stills and videos with one camera not two separate ones. Mine does true HD videos and good high pixel stills .

Super Zoom 24-1200 check out the Canon SX50, great for all-in-one camera and great range.

Super Zoom 24-1200 check out the Canon SX50, great for all-in-one camera and great range.

i have the older SX40. When you get to maximum zoom most people shake to much to use it .

I just saw this on woot.com for $199 (refurbished). What do you guys think:

 

Nikon COOLPIX P510

16.1MP

Compact Digital Camera

42x Optical Zoom

GPS

I have this camera and like it. Takes good scenery and I got some great pictures on our cruise around Hawaii. Be sure to practice with the different settings before you go. Test the "night" and "dusk" settings so you can see the differences plus test with and without flash.

DPReview recently posted an excellent review of travel cameras:

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/7118583476/dpreview-recommends-best-compact-cameras-for-travel?utm_campaign=internal-link&utm_source=mainmenu&utm_medium=text&ref=mainmenu

All sizes and prices. For what you sound like you're looking for, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ200 (lots of real world photos and input here on Cruise Critic), and Nikon Coolpix P520 were recommended. The P520 is a newer version of the P510, so you'd have to look side-by-side to see what you're losing with the older camera. The Panasonic is over your price range; the Nikon is right at the upper end.

The Panasonic has a fixed f/2.8 aperture, which should make it better for lower light photography, and in fact you'll find some great low light zooms in the FZ200 threads in this forum. Nikon generally has very good low light performance, but the P520 has a variable and slower aperture.

A number of folks here have had very good luck with Sony recently, and hopefully one of them will chime in. There were Sony's recommended in the article I linked, but they were well over your price range.

The Canon SX50 was also recommended in the article.

Have both of these, great cameras and they each have their advantage, for all-in-one camera.

Canon SX50 24-1200 zoom covers a great range.

Panasonic FZ200 24-600mm constant 2.8

go to dpreview.com and see their reviews, also their forums, have a lot of good info from photographers. Also Amazon.com. Good thing about Amazon, you can buy and try it out, and can return it within 30 days no problem.

Tom :cool:

I just saw this on woot.com for $199 (refurbished). What do you guys think:

 

Nikon COOLPIX P510

16.1MP

Compact Digital Camera

42x Optical Zoom

GPS

Thanks for all of the advice and suggestions so far. I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the P510 from woot. For $199, it was too great a deal to pass on. It was one of those things where I just happened to check them today and there it was.

Now that I have this one on the way, I'm open to any tips or tricks from anyone that has either this 510 or any Nikon similar to it. :-)

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Woot is great for the times you are in the market for a product if you can wait. Few days they will usually have it. We have lucked out on many items in just that fashion.

Digital zoom is meaningless. All cameras have digital zoom. You do it by cropping your photo in your computer after you take the picture.

 

DON

I agree with the point about digital zoom. As soon as you engage a digital zoom, the quality of the picture begins to be degraded. Anyone who wants to see what happens just crop a cropped photo a few times in a row, and see how rapidly it gets grainy. It is optical zoom that counts.

Digital zoom just takes a portion of the pixels out of the center of the photo at maximum optical zoom and expands them to take up more room. You are not actually getting a zoom but a crop and expand.

A good long-throw optical zoom is worth way more than any digital zoom.

I am looking to get a new camera before our cruise in February. Beginning of the year, I bought a Nikon S31 for underwater pics and I love it, so I'm good there.

 

What I am interested in is a camera with a good zoom for taking high resolution pictures of things like approaching ports, sailaways, and stuff while on shore (beaches, Mayan ruins, people zip lining, landscapes, etc).

 

I'm looking to spend anywhere up to around $350. I have looked around the web and found things from different families like Canon Powershot, Fiji FinePix, Nikon CoolPix, etc.

 

They all look like a muddled mass - I would rather get some real world opinions from you guys who have experience using these... :D.

First, beware of digital zoom, it is optical that counts, as digital degrades rapidly at the higher end of reach. Just crop a photo several times in succession to see how the quality degrades, that it simplistically what a digital zoom is doing.

For the price range you are looking at, all the major players have a couple of nice cameras, but there are subtle differences that may be important to you, depending on what you expect. Search for the professional reviews and you can get some good info, although sometimes the technical stuff just gets confusing. The Nikon Coolpix, Panasonic Luminix(sp?), and Canon Powershot all have their fans. I just bought the Canon SX50, but have not taken enough photos in various conditions to have a basis for any real opinion, other than the incredible zoom. Having owned the Powershot S1 and S3, A4000, a couple of SLR's, and a current ELPH330, I obviously like Canon.

The Panasonic does have an edge when shooting high zoom in lower light conditions, but for me, the extra focal length of the Canon out weighed that. Also, the Canon view finder has not been upgraded in a while, so it is a bit dim by today's standards, but sufficient.

Just a bit that many don't think of........even though they have great image stabilization in the cameras, these super zooms really need some sort of support besides hand held to get sharp shots at extended lengths.

I am looking to get a new camera before our cruise in February. Beginning of the year, I bought a Nikon S31 for underwater pics and I love it, so I'm good there.

 

What I am interested in is a camera with a good zoom for taking high resolution pictures of things like approaching ports, sailaways, and stuff while on shore (beaches, Mayan ruins, people zip lining, landscapes, etc).

 

I'm looking to spend anywhere up to around $350. I have looked around the web and found things from different families like Canon Powershot, Fiji FinePix, Nikon CoolPix, etc.

 

They all look like a muddled mass - I would rather get some real world opinions from you guys who have experience using these... :D.

First, beware of digital zoom, it is optical that counts, as digital degrades rapidly at the higher end of reach.

For the price range you are looking at, all the major players have a couple of nice cameras, but there are subtle differences that may be important to you, depending on what you expect. Search for the professional reviews and you can get some good info, although sometimes the technical stuff just gets confusing. The Nikon Coolpix, Panasonic Luminix(sp?), and Canon Powershot all have their fans. I just bought the Canon SX50, but have not taken enough photos in various conditions to have a basis for any real opinion, other than the incredible zoom. Having owned the Powershot S1 and S3, A4000, a couple of SLR's, and a current ELPH330, I obviously like Canon.

The Panasonic does have an edge when shooting high zoom in lower light conditions, but for me, the extra focal length of the Canon out weighed that. Also, the Canon view finder has not been upgraded recently, so it is a bit dim by today's standards, but perfectly functional IMO.

Just a bit that many don't think of........even though they have great image stabilization in the cameras, these super zooms really need some sort of support besides hand held to get sharp shots at extended lengths.

Sorry, could not get the double post to delete. If an administrator wants to delete the first one, I would appreciate it. Thanks.

If you are thinking about canon's sx50 you might wait a bit longer, rumor has it that an sx60 is coming out in January, if it does and you don't like it then the price on the sx50 should drop.

I also read where canon applied for a patent for a 100x super zoom lense:eek:

We talking point n shoot or DSLR?

I just upgraded my 2006 8MP Canon Rebel XT DSLR to the world's lightest/compact DSLR - Canon SL1. I haven't used it yet, but already love how light and small it is for a DSLR!

For point and shoots, I usually stick with Canon too.

for mirrorless, my photographer friend loves his Canon EOS-M.

Now that my Coolpix P510 is on the way, my next logical question is what do ya'll suggest for a good camera bag for it? :)

Now that my Coolpix P510 is on the way, my next logical question is what do ya'll suggest for a good camera bag for it? :)

That is TOTALLY a "you've got to pick it yourself" kind of question, or at least tell us what bags you've had and how well you liked them. I told my wife to go to the camera store because I was tired of her complaining about her current bag (a backpack big enough to carry most or all of "her" DSLR gear) for those times when she was taking a lot less gear.

That is TOTALLY a "you've got to pick it yourself" kind of question, or at least tell us what bags you've had and how well you liked them. I told my wife to go to the camera store because I was tired of her complaining about her current bag (a backpack big enough to carry most or all of "her" DSLR gear) for those times when she was taking a lot less gear.

You're right. I know I want one as small as possible that will fit the P510 comfortably with 1-2 other pockets for spare sd card, batteries, etc.

I guess what I am curious about is if there are specific brands that I should avoid because they are crappy / poor quality.

I saw some Case Logic bags on Amazon. Wandering through Best Buy, they seem to carry only Lowepro in store, etc...

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I am searching for a "camera" bag that will hold my SL1 Canon rebel, plus water bottle, cardigan and other excursion necessities.

I am eyeing epiphanie bags currently, the Lyric for my med cruise in June with grandpa. I like crossbody bags when possible and will need my hands free to help gramps walk around.

Also like betterlifebags <--but they aren't very padded http://betterlifebags.com/

seems like a big sock would work to protect your camera in a bag - that is what I do with my smaller point n shoot (my dad's tip!)

You could make your own or buy padded inserts to go into a bag you already own and like:

http://www.amazon.com/BBP-DSLR-Camera-Insert-Make/dp/B0047P0QLC

http://www.lilblueboo.com/2010/10/camera-bag-insert-tutorial.html

http://petapixel.com/2011/09/22/make-a-padded-insert-to-turn-any-bag-into-a-camera-bag/

http://www.vanillaandlace.blogspot.com/search?q=camera+insert