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Author Topic: New leisure camera upto £500  (Read 4635 times)

andybuk99

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New leisure camera upto £500
« on: April 28, 2013, 07:10:13 am »

I am looking for a new camera for holidays etc as the other half is hassling me to take decent shots of the family etc when we are out and about. I have looked at lots of different cameras like the Samsung NX20, Fuji x20 and the likes of Canon s100, that all look decent but I am finding it hard to make a decision. My only criteria is that I dont want a dSLR and I dont want to carry lots of lenses around. Any recommendations?
« Last Edit: April 28, 2013, 07:17:41 am by andybuk99 »
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petermfiore

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Re: New leisure camera upto £500
« Reply #1 on: April 28, 2013, 08:08:16 am »

The Sony RX-100 comes to mind. Seems by your needs, the Sony would be a perfect fit.

Peter

sdwilsonsct

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Re: New leisure camera upto £500
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2013, 10:32:01 am »

The S100 and its ilk are small and light enough to fit into small pockets and thus always be handy. The camera you carry and use the most will get the best pictures. IMO.

OldRoy

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Re: New leisure camera upto £500
« Reply #3 on: May 06, 2013, 04:10:25 am »

Check out the Fuji X20. Now I have more than enough cameras but handling one of these almost had me pulling out a CC. Can't say too much about the output, which depends very much on one's expectations and intended use, but it sure is a beautiful design.
Roy
« Last Edit: May 06, 2013, 04:16:56 am by OldRoy »
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Jeremy Roussak

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Re: New leisure camera upto £500
« Reply #4 on: May 07, 2013, 03:57:23 am »

The Sony RX-100 comes to mind. Seems by your needs, the Sony would be a perfect fit.

My thoughts exactly. It's a nice little camera.

Jeremy
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Paulo Bizarro

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Re: New leisure camera upto £500
« Reply #5 on: May 07, 2013, 04:36:13 am »

The Canon EOS M with kit zoom is now at a very nice price.

BJL

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New leisure camera ... Wth eye-level EVF?
« Reply #6 on: May 07, 2013, 10:12:11 am »

I notice that none of the suggestions offers an eye-level viewfinder that gives an accurate Through The Lens preview, suitable for manula focusing and such. Meaning it has to be an EVF, not an optical tunnel-finder as on the Fujifilm X20, but that is the only camera mentioned with any kinf of eye-level VF. This is an interestign development, becuase it used to be that one distinction of higher quality compacts like the Canon G series was offering an eye-level VF as an alternative to composing on the rear-screen.

Maybe this is fine for the OP, but can I ask for recommendations of a good "jacket pocket sized" camera with an EVF? (A Nikon V2 with kit zoom is not compact enough to rate as "jacket pocketable" for me.)
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OldRoy

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Re: New leisure camera ... Wth eye-level EVF?
« Reply #7 on: May 08, 2013, 03:50:05 am »

.. an optical tunnel-finder as on the Fujifilm X20, but that is the only camera mentioned with any kinf of eye-level VF....
This "tunnel" has coverage of 85%. I wonder how much of a problem this is going to be for the sort of use the camera is likely to be put to? You can always crop a bit. I doubt that anyone using the X20 - and I include myself, should I buy one - is likely to be making A3 prints from it.

In any case if you wish you can also frame using the screen - just like the cameras mentioned here that lack a VF of any kind. Add to this the fact that the OVF also includes shooting parameters and I'd say it's a big plus compared to cameras that can only be held at arm's length.

Alternatively you can probably still pick up a Nikon V1 plus a couple of lenses for less than the suggested budget. Slightly bigger pocket required.

Roy
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BJL

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Panasonic LF1, if you want EVF, zoom, and a not so tiny 1/1.7" sensor
« Reply #8 on: May 09, 2013, 10:46:23 am »

I just noticed that the Panasonic LF1 combines some features of possible interest:
  • an eye-level EVF in addition to the rear screen
  • a 1/1.7" sensor, bigger than in any other EVF compact with zoom lens. (Other EVF compacts I know of either have a fixed focal length lens or a sensor of about 1/2.33" in order to offer huge zoom ranges.)
  • highly pocketable
  • in the OP's price range: $500 in the USA.

To OldRoy's comment: for my style of camera usage, the big disadvantage of optical finders like that of the X20 is that they do not give any focus information, so cannot be used either for manual focusing, or for verification that auto-focus has focused at the place where I want it. Even when I am using AF, I like to get that feedback in situations where I am focusing on a distant object, but there is a nearby object close to it in the field of view (or vice versa), because often the AF makes the wrong choice in that situation. And sometimes, manual focusing is the only solution.

Of course these problems are solved by using live view on the rear screen, and maybe the OP is satisfied with that solution, but many photographic enthusiasts do not like having to always depend on the rear screen for composing, so it surprises me that so few "pocketable enthusiast cameras" offer an EVF, except with the trade-off of either a very small sensor or being limited to a single focal length.

Actually, one or two other pocketable enthusiast zoom compacts do offer an EVF, but as an accessory: the Olympus XZ-2 and Panasonic LX-7, which have 1/1.7" sensors and can use the same accessory EVFs as their maker's Micro Four Thirds cameras.


P. S. A Nikon V1 or V2 with even one zoom lens is bulkier than something like the Panasonic GX1 with 14-42 pancake and accessory EVF, and that kit gets even more compact at times when one can leave the EVF at home, like evening outings when sun on the screen is not a worry. Here is without the EVF: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/PanasonicDMCGX1/images/comparedtog3withxlens.jpg
I wish Nikon would do more to give its 1" format system the compactness that its small sensor deserves.
« Last Edit: May 09, 2013, 11:05:01 am by BJL »
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andybuk99

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Re: New leisure camera upto £500
« Reply #9 on: June 11, 2013, 03:32:24 am »

Have just taken delivery of the Fuji X20. Initial impressions are that it was just what I was looking for, Reminds me of my old 35mm film days. Haven't taken anything off the camera yet but the previews on the back look very good. With reference to the above post and the evf, I have only had a little play and there are focus lock indicators etc just on the basic settings, I will see what other options there are when I have a bit more of a play.

I use MF digital backs and plate camera's for work and I wanted something that could be taken away with me and still retain a certain amount of professional control when I am out and about in leisure time. Will report back when I have had a bit more time with it.
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