need your help to buy a digital camera

[golfpro]

someone help me out.....im lookin to buy a digital camera, my lil bro knows a lot about cameras and has told me to get a canon or nikon but basically it doesnt matter to me. im dont want it to make any ridiculous great photos, i just want it to take regular pictures of stuff, im not a professional and i dont plan on being one either. ohhh and I have no clue about anything about cameras so im pretty lost, im lookin to spend 3-500.....lemme know what ya think, i guess the only thing i really need is ya know built in flash, image stabilization, but i still want a pretty nice camera, thanks guys!

[Sedan_Clan]

The question is, what are your true photographic needs?

For simple point-n-shoot needs, you can't go wrong with a Canon, Sony, or Lumix.

For professional pictures, I'd stick to Canon or Nikon models.

I personally own a Canon Digital Rebel for my professional needs (...great price point for an SLR), and a Sony DSC (..forgot which model DSC) for my point-n-shoot needs.

[golfpro]

ya basically point and shoot, i just wnana be able to take some nice pictures with it, definitely not professional

[Ghunger]

I enjoy my Canon SD550. It's a great all around camera for a point and shoot. No image stabilization though. I would only get image stabilization if it were optical though, not just software (which is what most the companies use.)

[Sedan_Clan]

Originally Posted by golfpro

ya basically point and shoot, i just wnana be able to take some nice pictures with it, definitely not professional

Check out these websites....

www.DPReview.com
www.steves-digicams.com
www.imaging-resource.com

I spent alot of time on DPReview before making a purchase because I was purchasing an expensive camera, however, DPReview is also good for PNS cameras as well.

[golfpro]

awesome, thank you very much guys!!!!!

[whippersnapper]

Canon S2 IS

[larryn]

I have a Nikon D70 and a good assortment of lenses which I enjoy. However, it's not exactly the easiest camera to pocket and take around easily.

Yesterday, after a good bit of research, I just ordered the Nikon Coolpix P4, which is 8.1mp, 3.5x zoom, 2.5" bright display, VR (vibration reduction system), and it is starting to get decent reviews (It's pretty new). Plus, it supposedly does a decent video mode. I also ordered a fast 4gb card for it as well. That shouod get me close to an hour of video or nearly 700 full res pics.

I think it, or the newer canon point n shoots (with image stabilization) are the best way to go at the moment, for compact digicams.

[Nikki]

I have a Canon SD500 that I highly recommend. You can't get much better of a point and shoot for the price. You can get it on www.newegg.com for under $300. The SD550 is the updated version which has a larger lcd screen and is champagne instead of silver, but internally it is the same thing.

[tl_boy]

Steves Digicam is a great website, look up their top ranked cameras by price. Nikki, you use the Canon for your photos on here? Impressive pics. I didn't know a simple point and shoot could do that.

Golfpro: considering buying it from Costco. From my experience, LCD screens and other things can go bad easily if it gets bumped. These cameras are pretty sensitive. With Costco, you can return it anytime, even 10 years later. I ended up paying about 30 bucks more for a camera i bought 2 months ago from Costco, but the peace of mind was worth it to me.

[icewatersoda]

You need to find out whats important to you when choosing a camera.

i recently got a panasonic FZ7 - what i needed most is image stablization. My hands are retarded.

[Sedan_Clan]

Originally Posted by icewatersoda

i recently got a panasonic FZ7 - what i needed most is image stablization. My hands are retarded.

Ahh, the Lumix (....as I recommended earlier). You picked a great camera for the money.

[golfpro]

thank you everyone for your help!, i think im gonna go with the Canon S2, it has the image stabilization and some other good features!!! thanks for the help everyone