Best "breast-pocket" point and shoot?

[Dinarius]

For those occasions when I just want to have something that I can carry in a suit jacket pocket or a shirt breast pocket, what should I consider?

I recently bought a G9 for traveling (incredible camera!   ), but even it's too big for social occasions.

Any suggestions?

TIA.

D.

[Tim Gray]

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/...coh-gx100.shtml

[Lisa Nikodym]

For much lower noise, though fewer controls (no RAW, for instance), you should investigate the Fujifilm F series (F31,F50,F100, etc.).

The dpreview web site is a great place to go for comparison-shopping digicams.

Lisa

[Plekto]

For much lower noise, though fewer controls (no RAW, for instance), you should investigate the Fujifilm F series (F31,F50,F100, etc.).

The dpreview web site is a great place to go for comparison-shopping digicams.

Lisa
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The Fuji models that have the double sensors look to be the most interesting in this type of camera.  They take essentially two pictures at different exposure values and merge them together to get in-camera high definition results.  Less fringing, virtually film clean with tons less noise, and good shots in high contrast.  It's not nearly as good as what you could do manually with software to raw data, but the results are very good for a typical consumer device where you don't want to have to mess with each photo to get good results.

[a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_CCD]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_CCD[/url]

http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_c...ance/index.html
Their current models.  Look for the Super CCD models that are rated at ISO3200+.  These allow you to shoot normally at high resolution or at half resolution with high dynamic range.

The FinePix F100fd appears to be the top model for the pocket-sized ones.  Dropping to 3MP but getting ISO12800 is a fair tradeoff, IMO.  ISO3200 is standard and at 12MP, is also great - just the option is there if you need it.  The  F50fd is essentially the same camera with a different lens and ISO6400 max. I don't think it's worth the extra $75 for the F100fd, but YMMV.

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/forum/lo...php/t19630.html
A nice example of what the sensor does in a discussion on this forum.  

Usually this sort of thing requires a tripod and two identical shots at different exposures, then combining them with software.  For a pocket camera to do this, it's great.

[martin.storz]

My recommodation: Ricoh GR Digital II
See a lot of pictures and a review (german) on: >http://thepubliceyeblog.blogspot.com/search?q=ricoh<

[dalethorn]

I purchased the new Panasonic TZ5, which surprisingly is much improved over the TZ3 from last year, image-quality wise. 28-280 mm equivalent zoom, 9 mp, tiny 1/2.33 sensor. I snapped about 300 pics in Charleston SC in all sorts of lighting, good and bad. It may not compare to the Canon G9, but the extra zoom and smaller size worked well for me, and most of the images had acceptable noise levels.

[espressogeek]

I picked up a GR-D for a pocket camera and it is small enough for me. However my SO finds the fixed 28mm focal length a bit limiting. The corners of the lens are a bit soft too IMHO.

[Digiteyesed]

I know it's probably tacky, but... I'm really lusting over that little mini-digital Rollei. The red one. And, yes, I have a G9, except that it's not nearly as sexy.

[tjhanlon]

You could also consider the Sigma DP1. It doesn't have a lot of modes, but the images are pristinely clean and sharp, even in the corners. It has a prime 16.6mm f4 lens that works out to be a 28mm equivalent with the 1.7 crop factor. It has an APS-C sized sensor.

Now, it isn't the camera for everyone, but it takes really nice pictures. You just have to think about the shot. Buffer is slow, so don't expect a spray and pray.

So, depending on what you intend to use it for, it will either fit the bill perfectly, or not even come close.

If you would like, I can answer most questions about it. I'll be headed down to Florida next week, and will post some pix when I can.

tjh

[Misirlou]

You could also consider the Sigma DP1. It doesn't have a lot of modes, but the images are pristinely clean and sharp, even in the corners. It has a prime 16.6mm f4 lens that works out to be a 28mm equivalent with the 1.7 crop factor. It has an APS-C sized sensor.

Now, it isn't the camera for everyone, but it takes really nice pictures. You just have to think about the shot. Buffer is slow, so don't expect a spray and pray.

So, depending on what you intend to use it for, it will either fit the bill perfectly, or not even come close.

If you would like, I can answer most questions about it. I'll be headed down to Florida next week, and will post some pix when I can.

tjh
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tjh,

Do you actually one of those things? I've been waiting for them to trickle down to real users. I've been interested in that camera since it was first announced.

I'm so used to the working with raw files that I'd really rather not go down the jpg-only path. That limits my options severely. I wouldn't mind something like the G9, but I've also been intrigued by the Foveon sensor for a long time. I'm also a huge believer in the 28mm equiv focal length. I really look forward to seeing what one can do.

[michael]

I'm testing the Sigma DP1 at the moment. I expect to have a review online here some time next week.

Michael

[Misirlou]

I'm testing the Sigma DP1 at the moment. I expect to have a review online here some time next week.

Michael
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Sweet. I suppose there's no Lightroom support for its raw files yet...?

[gunnar1]

I'm much looking forward to the Sigma review. Of course every manufacturer makes their newest model sound like the greatest thing since sliced bread but the DP-1 does _sound_ interesting. Any digicam sporting raw capture is worth a serious look in my book.

Looks nice too...

On a related note, I much prefer the style of review found on LL. To me, the base specs just don't tell the whole story. A piece of equipment can appear from the published data to be the best of the best, but in real world use all those specs don't mean squat if the stuff doesn't perform. Having someone who has the technical knowledge combined with real experience give me their opinion is worth a whole lot to me.