Newbie looking for simple p&s

[punkinhead13]

Hi everyone!

I'm looking to buy a new digital camera. I don't know much about them but I do have an idea of what I want/what I want it to do. I would like a p&s that is at least 12mp. I plan on taking this camera to school with me this fall and will be "documenting" my social life, i.e. football games, parties, etc. I don't care about the video aspect of the camera as much as the picture quality. I would also like something that is compact and I don't want to spend more than $150 if I can help it. I've heard brands such as Canon and Olympus are best but I'm not picky as to the brand of the camera.

Thanks in advance for your help!
Morgan

[Photo-John]

Welcome to PhotographyREVIEW.com, Morgan! The megapixel rating of a camera is overrated. It's not as important as the camera makers would have you think. Right now, for the money, I think 10 to 12 megapixels is the sweet spot. I think your best bet would be a Canon A-Series camera. They're a bit big to fit in a pocket, but they're one of the best values for the money. Take a look at this camera and let us know if you think it fits your needs:

Canon PowerShot A100 IS >>

The one user review is negative. But it's only one review and I don't really agree with it. It uses AA batteries, which are easy to get. The optical viewfinder may not be 100% accurate. But optical viewfinders are a luxury these days and they're never 100%. They do make it a lot easier to shoot in low light and shoot action, though. But the main thing with this camera is it has an image stabilized 4x zoom lens and the image quality should be very good.

For an alternative, the Canon A3000 IS gives up the optical viewfinder for a larger LCD and sleeker design. It also has a 10-megapixel sensor instead of 12, which may actually mean better image quality. Like I said, megapixels is an overrated camera spec - one where more can actually mean lower quality.

Canon PowerShot A3000 IS >>

If you want to look at other brands, my recommendation right now is Panasonic and Sony. Canon has long had the best image quality in point-and-shoot digital cameras. But I think Panasonic and Sony are also very good and for the past couple of years, Panasonic has offered the best feature set, in my opinion.

Let us know if you have more questions!

[punkinhead13]

Thanks for the help Photo-John!

I was looking at the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH20 before I received your response. Is that something you would recommend from Panasonic?

Thanks!
Morgan

[gladi]

If you prefer Panasonic I think Lumix DMC-FH20 is the best for your budget.