Anyone else going smaller and simple for a while

[Stina]

Hi everyone I haven't post here in a really long time and came back last week to get some advise on a new P&S. I was just wanting something simple to carry around with me everyday. I was just wondering if anyone else here is prefering a simple camera to their big SLR lately. I just had to laugh because everyone of my friends seem to be asking me for recommendation for SLRs and I just want to go simple.

I have loved photography since I was a kid and my mom gave me her old Instamatic. She said she had to hide the film because I kept using it all up. In junior high I always carried a pocket 110 I got from Burger King and it just progressed from there. About 6 years back a Senior in our church youth group asked me to do her Senior photos and before I knew it I was doing photos for her friends and eventually wedding too. So I made it official and started a photography business. Not enough to quit my day job but enough extra income to make it worth it.

I now have a Canon 40D with a Rebel XT as a back up and enough lenses to keep me pretty happy, for now. Lately however I just find myself missing the simple part of photography I first enjoyed so much with those cheap cameras from my past. Just finding something that caught my attention and trying to capture an image of it. Not really caring what other thought just having fun. I'm hoping have a small camera with me will help me forget about the gear (as cool as some of the new stuff is) and remember what I love about photography.

Anyway just wondering if anyone else was in the same place and figured this was the place to ask. And just to remind myself it not about what gear you use this comic is taped to my computer.

[gahspidy]

I am getting tired of lugging a big gear around when I'm just going out casually and so have been considering purchasing a point and shoot for quite a while. I bought my daughter the Panasonic Lumix LZ10 for christmas and I'm really impressed with it. Less than 150.00, Leica 30-150mm equivelant lens, 10 mp high iso capability and great IQ, movie capable and manual controls. Uses two AA and has one of the longest battery life in its class.
I'm thinking I will get one for myself to carry around when I don't need the big gear with me.

[mjs1973]

Yup. I bought a Canon G9 a few months ago and I keep that with me most of the time. If I'm taking the dogs for a walk or going on a hike, that's what I take. That's also what I have been taking to family gatherings. I never wanted to drag my DSLR around to those types of things so I didn't have any family pics. When I'm not taking my photography very seriously, the G9 is my camera of choice.

I'm not giving up my DSLR but sometimes it's just not the right tool for the job at hand.

[Frog]

Me, too. I've been paying attention to what is said in the 'what p&s should I get' threads.
I'lll never be without my dslr but sometimes I just want to snap a picture.

[mtbbrian]

I decided to do that a few years ago..
I had been using a Nikon F-100 and had four lens that were all f/2.8 and it was HEAVY!
So I sold it all and got a rangefinder and I have also been using my Holgas a lot more since too.
It doesn't get much smaller or simpler than that!
Brian

[Franglais]

I have a Fuji F40 point-and-shoot which is actually quite a good camera. And a HTC Touch Smartphone which is actually - a fairly awful 3Mpix camera but it's better than nothing.

I use these devices when I have no choice, typically because I wasn't expecting to come across anything. However I know that I won't have enough control to be satisfied with the results. If I can then I slip a DSLR with minimum lens into my bag and walk around with that.

[freygr]

What about the Olympus EP-1 or EP-2 interchangeable lens camera?

[Stina]

I just realized that in my OP I didn't mention the fact that I got a Panasonic ZS3. I've had it about two days and have been having fun playing. It doesn't have a lot of manual controls and so far I've been enjoying that. Just playing with some of the shooting modes and having fun has been refreshing.

[havana_joe]

I have 3 cameras. A Canon A580 for slipping into my pocket for spur of the moment or emergency use, a Fuji S1000 FS for general "walking around" without having to worry about dropping/losing my DSLR, and a Nikon D40 for when I have a gig or project. Different tools for different situations, and I use all 3 fairly often!

[havana_joe]

Also, like Franglais, I have a 3 MP camera in my cell phone (Samsung Rogue). I think I've used it 5 times, just to figure it out. It's not bad for a camera phone, but unless I see Bigfoot and have no other camera around, I probably will never use it again!

[SmartWombat]

What about the Olympus EP-1 or EP-2 interchangeable lens camera?

I have the E-P1. Good camera.
I don't carry/use it anywhere near as much as my G9 (I won't touch a Canon G series for a while though) and though it's good, I suffer from early adopter envy of the E-P2

[armando_m]

LOL

I came form the P&S to the DSLR

and now I'm also paying attention to the P&S threads, the kodak p&S I have is starting to have trouble to extend the lens and it eats AA batteries

[Greg McCary]

Thing only thing stopping me really is the price. A fully loaded E-P1 = Leica M6 or even a new lens for the E3. Maybe this spring? I just can't do it right now.But I want one:cryin:

[Franglais]

Also, like Franglais, I have a 3 MP camera in my cell phone (Samsung Rogue). I think I've used it 5 times, just to figure it out. It's not bad for a camera phone, but unless I see Bigfoot and have no other camera around, I probably will never use it again!

Replying to this thread reminded me that I hadn't unloaded the pictures in my Smartphone for a while - that's the problem, I attach so little worth to them that I forget I've done them. I just downloaded them onto my PC.

Lots are blurred because done at night or indoors. However a few are done in good light, the sort of thing an Instamatic would be able to manage. I made an A4/8x10 inch print from one and it's actually pretty good. No noise, quite sharp, clouds in the sky aren't burnt out. And you don't get more basic than the camera in a Smartphone.

[daq7]

I really like my power shot g11. Most of the work I am doing now is on it. But while the camera is smaller and simpler, the work flow seems bigger and more complex. I want to get back to shooting with the rebel, but it just isn't as pleasant as with the g11.

Whoever put the small lcd on the rebel should be summarily executed and then the search for collateral collaborators should commence....

[Liz]

This past year I made the final decision to invest in the M4/3 system and purchased the EP-1. It was a difficult decision to sell my wonderful Canon equipment. However, I was using the XTi and heavier lenses less and less and not enjoying my photography time as much due to back/neck pain, so I had to do something. I wanted a step up from the p&s system, so the EP-1 is perfect in that respect.

I really like this camera. The kit lens is an wonderful lens - the best of any "kit" lens I've ever used. I also purchased the Panasonic 20mm/f1.7 which is awesome. The image quality using this camera is comparable to even some of those I got from the Canon "L" lenses I owned. It also has some of the best straight out-of-camera results I've gotten from any camera which pleases me because I'm not one to do much post-processing. I don't have enough time for photography alone, so don't want to spend time on the computer afterwards. I do some post processing on most images, but not a lot.

So I'm quite happy with my set up. I also have the Panasonic LX3 which is a great p&s camera. I've hardly used it as I got it shortly before I purchased the EP-1. It's such a wonderful camera, though, that I'm having a difficult time trying to make the decision to sell it.

Liz