Moving on up..or not

[barb_48]

Hi,
I am thinking about purchasing a dlsr, I have been looking at the entry levels that have been posted here. Now one of the problems that I just came across today, was a young salesgirl. Upon her asking the usual questions,I told her that my biggest thing was image quality. Now comes the funny thing, after I explained that I will most likely leave it in auto, (not a technical person), she pointed me to the point and shoot. I explained to her that I already have one, and I would like to have a camera that will give me better image results..She than told me that the image between say like the Canon 35xzoom will have the same image results as a dslr. Hmm! Now do you know why we pick your brains!
LOL
Thanks

[Franglais]

Hi,
I am thinking about purchasing a dlsr, I have been looking at the entry levels that have been posted here. Now one of the problems that I just came across today, was a young salesgirl. Upon her asking the usual questions,I told her that my biggest thing was image quality. Now comes the funny thing, after I explained that I will most likely leave it in auto, (not a technical person), she pointed me to the point and shoot. I explained to her that I already have one, and I would like to have a camera that will give me better image results..She than told me that the image between say like the Canon 35xzoom will have the same image results as a dslr. Hmm! Now do you know why we pick your brains!
LOL
Thanks

Smart salesgirl. I see what she means.

I am just getting to know the Canon S95 compact. The results are almost identical to what I can do with my DSLR's.

- Images from my DSLR's look slightly better in a way that's hard to define - richer, more relaxed, more beautiful. But the effect is slight. You have to have a good print to see it
- If there are highlights like white clouds on a sunny day then the S95 tends to burn them out disgracefully whereas the DSLR's look more natural (though still not as good as film)
- Out-of-focus effects are better on a DSLR.
- For anything requiring flash - forget it, I have a set of external flash units.
- Same with lenses. If I need something specific (sports, extreme wide-angle..) then I can just change lenses on the DSLR's. (The S95 lens is very sharp but the zoom range is deliberately limited to make sure it's sharp)

You might not see any difference between a point-and-shoot and a DSLR if you:

- shoot on full-auto all the time
- don't make any investment in learning how to use it
- don't expand your system by adding useful accessories like extra lenses and flashes
- never do prints other than postcard-sized from your local store

With a point and shoot you do just that - press the button and the rest is up to the automation in the camera. If you want to modify something either it's not possible or the control to do it is hidden in some menu somewhere.

Use a DSLR in point-and-shoot mode and the automation is exactly the same as a point-and-shoot. A DSLR (and my S95 compact - it looks like a point-and-shoot but isn't) lets me take control and use my knowledge and experience to adjust what the camera is doing if needed to get a better result.

[Loupey]

Thanks for the smile, Barb!

She probably thought it would be a quick sale to just say that rather than try to explain the benefits of a dSLR over a P&S.

...She than told me that the image between say like the Canon 35xzoom will have the same image results as a dslr....

I'll have to look out for these superP&S's during my next birding trip in spring when I'm surrounded by forest of 500mm/600mm/and the occasional 800mm.

[barb_48]

Thanks
I have been looking at the new canon 35Xzoom. From reading posts etc. I just assumed that having a dslr, I would have better image quality. I know I will never master the art of photography, way to technical, but I do miss the color accuracy of the film cameras.
I think to solve my problem, is I am going to buy a dslr, take some pics and the same with my p&s and see if there is any difference. If not, take the camera back, that's the conclusion I have come up with.

[Franglais]

I just occured to me that when you talk about a "Canon 35Xzoom" then you're talking about a point-and-shoot with a 35X zoom. This is exactly the sort of camera that I would NOT buy:

Canon S95 = 10Mpix and 3.8X zoom = $399
Canon SX30 = 14Mpix and 35X zoom = $429

Almost the same price but the SX30 seems to have a far better specification, so what's the difference? My guess is it's image quality. The S95 probably has lots of special glass plus a bigger sensor which make the camera expensive but provides the image quality to rival a DSLR. Whereas the SX30 probably makes a lot of compromises in image quality. If you only do postcard size prints the you might not notice the difference but the 14Mpix is really overkill.

At Christmas I shall have the opportunity to test something similar to the SX30 (my sister bought a Nikon P100 for bird-watching). I'll let you know.

If you buy an entry-level DSLR this is going to give you the equivalent of a 3x zoom (18-55mm = 28-85mm in film terms). To give you the same thing as the SX30 (=24-860mm in film terms) you would have to buy at least 4 lenses for your DSLR.

BTW what's wrong with your current point-and-shoot? What are the things you don't like about it?

[barb_48]

I currently have the Panasonic FZ7, it is a good camera. Love to have something with more zoom, and just something newer.