Camera choice

[BAC07]

Hi guys, i know this has been asked to death but i am going to ask it one more time. i shall endeavour to provide you with a little mor einformation than most people asking this question. i am essentially a beginner photographer with excellent technical skills and i pick up things such as camera use very quickly. e.g. i was 3000 ft above the perth, australia sky show and i was able to take a few fairly decent shots of the fireworks on a friends canon 300D. i need to purchase a new camera towards the end of the year. i have a sony cybershot DSC 5 and i have outgrown it so to speak.

i am planning on travelling to eurpoe next year and will be taking photos of absolutely everything form scenery to people in all different weather conditions. i will have access to a tripod.

i do not have very big hands so a more compact camera would be ideal. i know the pentax ist D was the smallest and i have read some quite ok reviews of it. is it still the smallest and how do you compare it?

i would like to possibly enlarge these photos to an A3 paper size, possibly larger if theyre good (which they will be). i will be taking a camera course towards the end of the year so extra help on usage is not a problem. my budget is $1500 Australian dollars give or take.

from what i can gather i will need a smaller lens 18-35, a larger lens 70-200 ( i think some even go to 300), and possibly a wideangle lens for some awesome shots of fjords and mountains. the lighter the better as i will be carrying it around with me.

also what are your thoughts on AA batteries verse rechargeable camera specific ones??

i know it is a hell of a lot of questions but that is why i am here. i appreciate your responses.

[Photo-John]

The Canon 300D is a very capable camera with great image quality. And the 350D is even better. I'm not sure if the Pentax *ist D cameras are actually much smaller than the 350D. So if you like the Canon, don't feel like you shouldn't get it because there's a smaller camera out there. And since it's now available, you should also take a look at the Sony Alpa A100. It's not the smallest digital SLR, but it has Sony's Super Steady Shot anti-shake system built-in at the sensor level. That will help you get sharper photos in more varied conditions. I've been using that camera and I think it's wonderfu.

I'm a little worried about your budget and expectations. You've probably done some more research by now and have discovered that it will be impossible for you to buy a digital SLR, a wide to normal zoom lens, and a 70-200 zoom. A good 70-200mm lens will take up your whole budget, on its own. So you could just get a digital SLR and kit lens. That will go a long way and you will be able to get good photos. Plus, it will be less to travel with. Another option is to buy a super zoom compact digital camera lke the Sony H5, the Canon S3 IS, or the the Panasonic Lumix FZ30. Those cameras are all very popular, small, and offer a lot of power and functionality for a relatively small amount of money.

You also asked about batteries. I think AA batteries are nice, as long as you have 2-3 sets of rechargeables. But if you're going to be packing rechargeable AAs, you might as well use proprietary camera batteries, right? All of my cameras have used proprietary rechargeables. I think they're fine. They're usually better than rechargeable AAs and you only needo one where you'd need 2-4 AAs. Just make sure to never rely on one battery. Buy a spare and keep charged and with you. Then you'll never get caught without power.

I think that lays out all the issues for you. You can use the review section here to check specs, compare cameras, etc. I'm sure you'll have more questions once you decide what kind of camera to buy. We'll be here to help.