new camera

[naturelover]

Hi i wonder if any one can tell me what is a good digi camera ,i would like to buy myself a new one ,the one i use now must be at least six years old and only two mega pixels,i have always loved photography but want a big zoom in but i don't know what to look for,any help would be most appreciated.

[glsammy]

How much do you want to spend, apart from the obvious as little as possible.

[naturelover]

Dont know how much a camera is ,as my last one was a pressie.

[peppermint]

do you want a digital SLR?

[Hobjob]

Broadly you have to decide between

Point and shoot compact
(useless for wildlife IMHO)

"Bridge" (aka "prosumer"), which comes
with a built in zoom, often up to x12.
Gets excellent results, but for birds zoom is too little.

dSLR (single lens reflex), which means you can change
lenses and have monster zooms, brilliant close up (macro)
and wide angle etc..
There are some fantastic cameras at the lower end of this market
but do allow for at least the cost of the camera in extra lenses
and IMHO, twice the cost of the camera body.
The top end of this range is of the curse the professional
range with some silly prices.

It can get very addictive and expensive as many on this
list will attest ;-(

[naturelover]

Hi thanks for your help,i am not looking for a professionl camera,as i think this would be too hard for me to work out how to use it,as you all know not very good on things like that,i would like digital,fast shutter,good zoom in,and one i can download photoes on the computer,like the camera i have now,which is a konica digital reviro kd-22oz 2 pixles,i would just like to upgrade so that i can get better results.

[glsammy]

I think a bridge camera may be best for you. Something like the Panasonic DMC-FZ18. This has an 18X zoom lens. It costs around £220.

It can be used as a simple point and shoot if you wish. It's quite a large camera but gives excellent images and is relatively easy to use.
If you want something smaller, they do a smaller model with a 10X zoom. The DMC-TZ3. This one sells for about £150.00.
If you do a search on the web for either you should find more details and see if the size is right for you.

[hank]

Hi, have a look here -
Fujifilm FinePix S6500fd: Digital Photography Review

This is a Bridge camera - it has one lens with a decent zoom range.

The next step up is a DSLR ( Canon Nikon etc) where the £400 ish cost is just the start! a half decent lens is as much again! Or, you can remortgage your house and buy what is known as 'L' glass!

My advice is to do nothing! Read, look, ask, compare results and prices. Get some knowledge of what's around and then decide.

Keep posting your questions on this site - you'll get plenty of advice.

Ian

[RichBrew]

Graham's right (two posts up) about moving up to a bridge camera such as the ones he suggests. Either of these models will give excellent results, and will be a significant improvement on what you are currently using. You can either spend all your time comparing specifications against different cameras, or you can buy the Panasonic (or similar) and get out shooting. After all, it's the photographer, not the equipment that makes the real difference.

RichBrew

[nightshade]

A colleague went through 3 cameras all were worth keeping as they fill different niches;
1 A Sony W50 cybershot notebook,good for close ups
2 A Panasonic bridge camera
3 The current favourite a D40x with a 70-300 Sigma his "Heron" camera

With such a huge choice it may pay to really think your requirements through
a lot of people just do not appreciate that even with a good telephoto bird photos like GLSammys still require a lot of skill (he does make it look easy)