new forum member getting a new camera

hello all! i'm new to the forums. just joined :D

so here's the situation. i have a fuji S5200 right now, and i'm fairly satisfied, but i've met it's limitations: it does not have optical image stabilization, it has that dumb electronic view finder, the zoom using those electronic buttons are mush slower than a manual zoom would be, and lastly, it does not have super macro.

basically, i'm looking for a digital camera that has at least 10x optical zoom, has optical image stabilization, a manual zoom (where you turn the zoom barrel, not the buttons). and if at all possible, an optical view finder. and lastly, if it could use AA batteries, that'd be the perfect camera. i can spend around $450. there are so many cameras, and i don't know what to look for (which brand is better, etc).

help! thx!

Sorry no one has answered your post!

Two things you may have to give up are the AA batteries and an optical viewfinder. I am not aware of any super zoom digital cameras that use AA batteries. And the long zoom lenses require use of the EVF (electronic viewfinder). However, you're a camera is a couple of years old and I've found that EVF quality has improved a lot in the past couple of years. If you absolutely have to have an optical viewfinder, I think the longest zoom you'll be able to find in a compact digital camera is 6x. And the current trend is to actually completely eliminate the optical viewfinder and have a larger LCD. I've got the new Panasonic Lumix TZ3 sitting here, waiting to be reviewed. It has a 10x zoom lens and no viewfinder at all - just a 3-inch LCD.

Your camera has a 5-megapixel sensor. I think the sweet spot right now is the 7 to 8-megapixel range. I actually think that the 7-megapixel sensors may have been the best. It's not all about resolution. But Fuji makes their own sensors and I think theor image quality tends to be a little better, even with less pixels. What I'm getting at is, there are a lot of excellent super zoom digitals out there, if you can give up an optical viewfinder and AA batteries. The Canon S3 IS is probably the favorite, but Kodak, Sony, and Panasonic also make very popular cameras. We have hands-on pro reviews for super zooms from Canon, Panasonic, and Kodak, if you want to read detailed information on specific cameras. Oh yeah - they're all image stabilized now, too. Personally, I'd go with the Canon or a Kodak. Canon's image quality is excellent, and I like the color and controls on the Kodak super zooms. I like Panasonic, too. But I am just more comfortable with Kodak and Canon when it comes to super zoom digital cameras.

The S3 IS indeed uses AA batteries, albeit four of them, but it also has an EVF.