Digital Camera Recommendations

[ADK_Dreamer]

Christmas is coming... and so is our annual shopping trip to Buffalo (in conjunction with a Sabres game.... GO SABRES )

I would like to ask Santa for a nice digital camera that has the ability to take 'calendar worthy' ADK photos, but also don't want it to way down heavily in my pack.

We have some fab photographers here on ADK Forum, so please recommend!

[CatskillHiker]

I have a very nice but slightly older Cannon Rebel EOS that I almost never use since it is large and hard to carry on most hikes. I can take good pictures with it and suspect they would be GREAT if I would learn how to use the camera. I now have a Kodak Z980 which is the last in a series of three cameras I have had in their Z series. The camera is bigger than the last one I had but fits easily in a day pack. It has many options for shutter and aperature priority plus a load of presets. I take very good pcitures with it and am very satisfied with teh long zoom and wide angle lense. The link below is to some pictures I took yesterday. Chose Dry Brook on the menu on the right and then DryBrookOct2009 on the submenu.

http://www.catskillhiker.com/album/index.html

What do you think of the pictures?

RHB

[Dunbar]

For hiking/backpacking, I would recommend avoiding an SLR camera - they are too big and clunky and heavy. It is difficult to carry them "at the ready" so you can take pictures on the go. And having to stop and get your camera out of your pack to take a picture means you will take far fewer pictures.

If you are looking for a high quality compact point-and-shoot camera, it is hard to go wrong with the Canon G10 or Panasonic LX3. I have seen the G10 in action - it is a little on the large side for a compact, but is very manageable and takes fantastic pictures. I have had the LX3 for a month or two now and love it. Small size makes it easy to whip out on a hike and snap quick pictures with excellent quality. Camera and case with a spare battery only weighs 12.5 oz.

The downside of these two cameras is that it will cost $450-500 to get the camera and necessary extras (case, memory card, batteries). The LX3 is also out of stock pretty much everywhere which makes it tougher to get a hold of.

[ADK_Dreamer]

Thanks this is very helpful.

I was hoping to spend around $300. I understand 10-12 pixels is adequate and anything larger will create headaches for putting photos on here and facebook, etc.

The zoom just needs to be 3x or greater.

Can anyone tell me a great place to buy a camera in BUFFALO???

I don't shop at Walmart (not one here in Toronto) but is Walmart a place that one can buy a good camera?

[rockysummit]

B&H Photo NYC on line. Check them out. They are usually cheaper than Walmart and super reliable. You can get a lot of info on different cameras right there on the website.

[daLunartik]

If your primary intent is hiking photo's, then I think your best bet is a small form factor Point and Shoot, similar to the Canon model indicated. Any features or benefits from a DSLR will be trumped by the difficulty of accessing it. If you can't easily reach your camera, you will not take pictures, and thus, the type of camera becomes irrelevant. I've been on numerous hikes were some one stated "oh, I should get a picture of that" and promptly dropped their pack and started rooting.

I carry two camera's, a standard P&S (a Canon G5 I think) that lives in a waist-pack (technically, it's a fanny pack, but I always wear it in the front when hiking) . I also carry a psued-DSLR, a Fuji FinePix 6000 - it's the size of a DSLR, but has a fixed 25mm-300mm lens. I carry that, also slung on the waist band of the waist-pack, such that it hangs just off my left hip. Both are easy to access, though the bigger Fuji FinePix is my primary camera - I use the Canon mainly to record bird songs while in the field and as a back up to the Fuji.

The larger camera does occasionally get in the way while hiking - particularly bushwhacks and cliff ascents.