What's your digital point and shoot camera?

[racingpinarello]

Hello PR world...

As my daughter gets older I have more time to take pictures along our travels. Normally I have been using my 5mp camera phone which has done a fine job, but now I am looking for something a little bit better.

What is your PS camera, and why do you like it? I am interested in knowing how the camera deals with noise, and if it has manual control.

The Panasonic DMC-ZS7 / TZ10 is my leading candidate, but since I haven't picked up a digital camera for two years I am interested in your feedback.

Loren

[CaraRose]

My mom has the lumix TZ5, and it is a pretty nice little camera, takes great shots and little movies.

[daq7]

Powershot G11. Shoots raw. Live view rules on a point and shoot. Great picture quality. Three exposure bracket shots with one push of the button. Huge lcd on a swivel screen is great for a point and shoot. The vast majority of the pictures I am posting atm were done with it.

Battery life kind of sucks. Carry a spare.

[EOSThree]

I currently have a G9, but the ZS7/TZ10 will be my next camera. I used to have a TZ3 but never really grew used to not having manual controls. Now that Panny has added manual exposure to this little camera, I want to give it a try again.

The G9 is too big and heavy. The ZS7 is nearly pocketable. I wish it had RAW capture, and PJ said he'd like to see waterproof (I agree that would be nice). With RAW and a waterproof body this little camera would be the best travel camera out there. As it is now, it looks great on paper.

The Canon G series has had some of the best point and shoot type cameras. I have really enjoyed my G2 and G9. I have also owned an S2IS which was very enjoyable, but also very large.

[Axle]

Olympus E-P1

although that's not really a P&S

[livin4lax09]

olympus 850sw

I like it for snowboarding and swimming and the like, because it's waterproof and shockproof.

[mjs1973]

Good to see you around again Loren. I use the Canon G9 as my P&S and I love it. It does have manual controls but I don't use them much. I do use exposure compensation all the time though. The G11 is out now and seem to be a very nice camera from what I have read. The Canon S90 uses the same sensor as the G11 but comes in a smaller package.

[Ridgetop]

I use the S90 and love it. The G11 was a little too much like a little armored tank for what I needed. The S90 is much smaller package. But, it is slippery to hold, has no way to mount an external flash, no viewfinder, etc. But boy do I love the little control ring around the lens. It takes beautiful shots and has great low light ability.

[racingpinarello]

Olympus E-P1

although that's not really a P&S

How do you like it? I have always been a fan of the 4/5 format. Its about the same size as the G11, and the like.

Loren

[racingpinarello]

What I've noticed in my search that very few P&S cameras really fit the bill if you want manual control. perhaps I should have kept my camera phone.

I may get a crossover such as the Olympus or Panasonic 4/5 cameras with a wide open lens.

Thanks for the replys so far....very helpful.

Loren

[Skydmark1]

I just purchased a Nikon Coolpix L20 which is a great little camera especially if you are on a budget as it's around $90. It has alot of features I've yet to explore but so far it's been taking great pictures and video. It has some exposure compensation options that I'm looking forward to playing with. It also tells you on the LCD what your aperture and shutter speed is which I think is really cool.

[Axle]

How do you like it? I have always been a fan of the 4/5 format. Its about the same size as the G11, and the like.

Loren

I love my E-P1, it's much easier to carry around daily than packing my D300 with a grip and the 17-55 f/2.8 lens.

[GrauGeist]

About 9 years ago, I bought a Kodak DC3500 P&S, boasting a humble 1 megapixel and a whopping 250Mb compact flash memory card.

Over the years, I've managed to capture some amazing shots with it, that would have otherwise been an "opportunity missed" simply because I drug it everywhere with me.

I've had to retire it recently, it's losing it's display, and the photos are becoming grainy, but I seriously think I got my money's worth out of it, and have been thinking of replacing it with another P&S.

I have to say that in the digital age, where "feature packed" devices are the rule, this little DC3500 was simplicy at it's best and reminded me of the little brown bakelite "Baby Brownie" hand-me-down (late 30's vintage) I had when I was a kid, and it's going to be tough to find it's replacement!

[Franglais]

Welcome back!

I've been holding off replying because things have been moving in my point-and-shoot environment. Some while ago I starting packing a small light DSLR (Nikon D60) rather than a P&S if I knew I was going to do some photos. The rest of the time I always had my HTC Smartphone with me which had a camera of sorts.

Last weekend I realised that there are some hybrid Smartphones on the market, Smartphone on the front and point-and-shoot camera on the back.

So I bought a second-hand Sony-Ericsson Satio in the January sales. And it's a real camera:

- Lens cover and dedicated shutter release button. No fooling about running a program and not having enough memory
- Fixed focal length f2.8 lens (equivalent of a 35mm)
- 80-500 ISO
- Optical image stabiliser (it works - there is a flash too but I haven't tried it)
- 12Mpix which sounds ridiculous but the images are very sharp

OK you can't set the exposure manually.. More news soon.

(Added example images from this evening)

[Sebastian]

Hey Loren,

I shoot a lot with my Panasomic LX-3. I love that thing.

[adina]

the spouse bought me a G10 last summer, and it's been great. fits right in my purse, so i carry it with me. probably wouldn't fit in a pocket, but maybe you could get a manbag.

[Axle]

Hey Loren,

I shoot a lot with my Panasomic LX-3. I love that thing.

I actually recently got one of these also, and I'm very much loving it!