Need a P&S for my wife...suggestions?

I am a professional photographer....I use a D2X and Mamiya RZ67 Pro
II....I bought my wife a Minolta Dimage A1 a few years ago and she got
EXCELLENT results...the problem was the size...so she wanted a small
easy to use camera with great reults...she never blew up images past
8x10 so the 5 megapixel A1 was just fine, but again the size....so I
bought her a Nikon s7c. She LOVED the size and the LCD...but that was
about it...the camera had a HUGE amount of red eye on just about every
image....even with the red eye reduction it still made the eyes
glow...just not red. It was very slow and the image quality was just
ok...so I returned it...now what to get? I liked the Canon SD900...but
she doesnt need 10 megapixels and it doesnt have image stabilization.
The store was out of stock on the SD800is and SD700is...so I didnt get
anything.....What I want is a camera that is fairly fast at
focusing...gets great image quality especially with indoor flash
pics....and it should be EASY to use. Thanks.

JR

JR wrote:
I am a professional photographer....I use a D2X and Mamiya RZ67 Pro
II....I bought my wife a Minolta Dimage A1 a few years ago and she got
EXCELLENT results...the problem was the size...so she wanted a small
easy to use camera with great reults...she never blew up images past
8x10 so the 5 megapixel A1 was just fine, but again the size....so I
bought her a Nikon s7c. She LOVED the size and the LCD...but that was
about it...the camera had a HUGE amount of red eye on just about every
image....even with the red eye reduction it still made the eyes
glow...just not red. It was very slow and the image quality was just
ok...so I returned it...now what to get? I liked the Canon SD900...but
she doesnt need 10 megapixels and it doesnt have image stabilization.
The store was out of stock on the SD800is and SD700is...so I didnt get
anything.....What I want is a camera that is fairly fast at
focusing...gets great image quality especially with indoor flash
pics....and it should be EASY to use. Thanks.

JR


Take a look at the Fuji Finepix F30.
It is compact, slick looking, 6MP, 3X Optical Zoom, 1/1.7" sensor, 2.5"
LCD screen and is outstanding for indoor shots
See: http://www.steves-digicams.com/2006_.../fuji_f30.html
Bob Williams

Since you are a professional photographer you should know exactly what
kind of camera your wife needs! Right?

However, may I suggest the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II? The size of the
camera is just right. Wives love things the size of the 1Ds Mark II so
I am sure your wife will love this. Why, she can even use the body as a
substitute for mace during self-defence! I pity any would-be assailant
bludgeoned with the 1Ds.

The red eye is a real problem with digicams, and again the 1Ds Mark II
has absolutely no problems with red-eye. Tell the guy at the camera
shop to give you the 1Ds kit which includes four L-class lenses, IR
Transmitters, the 580EX flash and various slaves. The 1Ds has been
designed so that if the IR transmitter is attached to the hot-shoe and
the slaves strategically positioned, you will have absolutely NO RED
EYE! What's more, you wouldn't believe how affordable the 1Ds is! Your
wife would love it so much your daughter might want one too!

But there's more! If you buy an additional L-class lens from the shop,
you will get not one, not two, but four petal hoods! Absolutely free!
Isn't that amazing?

Believe me, your wife would love the 1Ds so much she may even go down
to the mall and get you a credit-card sized and cardboard-thin Casio
Exilim as a gift. This camera is so small you can put it in your back
pocket and forget about it! Of course, the Exilim would still give you
RED EYE but you can reduce this by not using the built-in flash too
much. Now wouldn't that be loverly?

JR wrote:
I am a professional photographer....I use a D2X and Mamiya RZ67 Pro
II....I bought my wife a Minolta Dimage A1 a few years ago and she got
EXCELLENT results...the problem was the size...so she wanted a small
easy to use camera with great reults...she never blew up images past
8x10 so the 5 megapixel A1 was just fine, but again the size....so I
bought her a Nikon s7c. She LOVED the size and the LCD...but that was
about it...the camera had a HUGE amount of red eye on just about every
image....even with the red eye reduction it still made the eyes
glow...just not red. It was very slow and the image quality was just
ok...so I returned it...now what to get? I liked the Canon SD900...but
she doesnt need 10 megapixels and it doesnt have image stabilization.
The store was out of stock on the SD800is and SD700is...so I didnt get
anything.....What I want is a camera that is fairly fast at
focusing...gets great image quality especially with indoor flash
pics....and it should be EASY to use. Thanks.

JR

My wife seems very happy with her Kodak C743.
7.1mp, with a 2.4" LCD, optical viewfinder, 2AA batteries, 3X optical
zoom, 640x480 movie mode (with sound) at 30fps. Picture review with
zoom (8x), and in camera cropping. Found it at Circuit City for $139.95!

I suggest Fuji F31fd or F30. It is 6 Mpix, the included rechargeable lithium
pack battery lasts for more than 400 shots (580 advertized), it has very
acceptable results till ISO800 and useable till ISO3200 (1600 & 3200 is
better in 3 Mpix). In most situations you don't need at all the flash. The
auto WB is very good with indoor tungsten light. Also it wakes-up fast and
the delay (lag) when take shots is small.

Otherwise don't look for a small compact that does not make red eyes. The
red eye is bigger as the distance between the lens and the flash is small.
This happens to all small compacts. With Fuji this may be a little better,
as when in auto flash, the ISO is auto set to 800, so the flash power is
small. I have F31fd for 3 days (only) and I have take many photos indoor. I
have seen red or bright eyes with flash only on those photos taken with the
zoom at the long side. But really, the best shots was without flash.

I also use Nikon dSLR. I have buy the Fuji for the same reason as you (and a
little for me) ;-)
--
Dimitris M




I am a professional photographer....I use a D2X and Mamiya RZ67 Pro
II....I bought my wife a Minolta Dimage A1 a few years ago and she got
EXCELLENT results...the problem was the size...so she wanted a small
easy to use camera with great reults...she never blew up images past
8x10 so the 5 megapixel A1 was just fine, but again the size....so I
bought her a Nikon s7c. She LOVED the size and the LCD...but that was
about it...the camera had a HUGE amount of red eye on just about every
image....even with the red eye reduction it still made the eyes
glow...just not red. It was very slow and the image quality was just
ok...so I returned it...now what to get? I liked the Canon SD900...but
she doesnt need 10 megapixels and it doesnt have image stabilization.
The store was out of stock on the SD800is and SD700is...so I didnt get
anything.....What I want is a camera that is fairly fast at
focusing...gets great image quality especially with indoor flash
pics....and it should be EASY to use. Thanks.

JR

Anthony wrote:
Since you are a professional photographer you should know exactly what
kind of camera your wife needs! Right?

However, may I suggest the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II? The size of the
camera is just right. Wives love things the size of the 1Ds Mark II so
I am sure your wife will love this. Why, she can even use the body as a
substitute for mace during self-defence! I pity any would-be assailant
bludgeoned with the 1Ds.

The red eye is a real problem with digicams, and again the 1Ds Mark II
has absolutely no problems with red-eye. Tell the guy at the camera
shop to give you the 1Ds kit which includes four L-class lenses, IR
Transmitters, the 580EX flash and various slaves. The 1Ds has been
designed so that if the IR transmitter is attached to the hot-shoe and
the slaves strategically positioned, you will have absolutely NO RED
EYE! What's more, you wouldn't believe how affordable the 1Ds is! Your
wife would love it so much your daughter might want one too!

But there's more! If you buy an additional L-class lens from the shop,
you will get not one, not two, but four petal hoods! Absolutely free!
Isn't that amazing?

Believe me, your wife would love the 1Ds so much she may even go down
to the mall and get you a credit-card sized and cardboard-thin Casio
Exilim as a gift. This camera is so small you can put it in your back
pocket and forget about it! Of course, the Exilim would still give you
RED EYE but you can reduce this by not using the built-in flash too
much. Now wouldn't that be loverly?


Actually, the fact he is a professional photographer doesn't bear on his
ability to recommend a camera to his wife, IF he understands that her
needs are probably diametrically opposed to his. I doubt she is nearly
as concerned with the technical aspects as he is.. When I bought my
wife a camera this Christmas, I considered the aspects of a large
display, and ease of use, and lack of technical knowledge on her part.
At the same time, I bought a camera I wouldn't be ashamed to be seen using.

At the same time, I bought a camera I wouldn't be ashamed to be seen
using.

Wise !!!! ;-)
--
Dimitris M

JR wrote:
I am a professional photographer....I use a D2X and Mamiya RZ67 Pro
II....I bought my wife a Minolta Dimage A1 a few years ago and she got
EXCELLENT results...the problem was the size...so she wanted a small
easy to use camera with great reults...she never blew up images past
8x10 so the 5 megapixel A1 was just fine, but again the size....so I
bought her a Nikon s7c. She LOVED the size and the LCD...but that was
about it...the camera had a HUGE amount of red eye on just about every
image....even with the red eye reduction it still made the eyes
glow...just not red. It was very slow and the image quality was just
ok...so I returned it...now what to get? I liked the Canon SD900...but
she doesnt need 10 megapixels and it doesnt have image stabilization.
The store was out of stock on the SD800is and SD700is...so I didnt get
anything.....What I want is a camera that is fairly fast at
focusing...gets great image quality especially with indoor flash
pics....and it should be EASY to use. Thanks.


You mention problems with red eye so you might want to look at Sony's
P&S line. They do a good job controlling red eye, especially their P
series cameras. I have a P200 and it works quite well but it has a 2"
screen and is a fairly old design. It also looks like they are not
going to continue this series further.

Another thing to consider is that many P&S cameras now have a lenses
with a 28mm equivalent wide end and a 100mm+ telephoto. If I were
buying one today it would be one with a 28mm lens. IMO, the lack of
wide angle has been a big disadvantage for the smaller cameras. Canon,
Ricoh, Panasonic among others now have models with 28mm wide angles lenses.

Michael Johnson wrote:
JR wrote:
I am a professional photographer....I use a D2X and Mamiya RZ67 Pro
II....I bought my wife a Minolta Dimage A1 a few years ago and she got
EXCELLENT results...the problem was the size...so she wanted a small
easy to use camera with great reults...she never blew up images past
8x10 so the 5 megapixel A1 was just fine, but again the size....so I
bought her a Nikon s7c. She LOVED the size and the LCD...but that was
about it...the camera had a HUGE amount of red eye on just about every
image....even with the red eye reduction it still made the eyes
glow...just not red. It was very slow and the image quality was just
ok...so I returned it...now what to get? I liked the Canon
SD900...but she doesnt need 10 megapixels and it doesnt have image
stabilization. The store was out of stock on the SD800is and
SD700is...so I didnt get anything.....What I want is a camera that is
fairly fast at focusing...gets great image quality especially with
indoor flash pics....and it should be EASY to use. Thanks.


You mention problems with red eye so you might want to look at Sony's
P&S line. They do a good job controlling red eye, especially their P
series cameras. I have a P200 and it works quite well but it has a 2"
screen and is a fairly old design. It also looks like they are not
going to continue this series further.

Another thing to consider is that many P&S cameras now have a lenses
with a 28mm equivalent wide end and a 100mm+ telephoto. If I were
buying one today it would be one with a 28mm lens. IMO, the lack of
wide angle has been a big disadvantage for the smaller cameras. Canon,
Ricoh, Panasonic among others now have models with 28mm wide angles lenses.

Most P&S cameras attempt to control red eye by using 'pre flash'.
Unfortunately, many people react by squinting at the pre flash, and
their eyes are still closed when the flash comes, and the image is
captured. It is MUCH easier to correct red eye than closed eyes, or
squints, so I keep it turned off.
The real solution is to get the flash unit away from the lens, at least
a few inches.

Ron Hunter wrote:
Michael Johnson wrote:
JR wrote:
I am a professional photographer....I use a D2X and Mamiya RZ67 Pro
II....I bought my wife a Minolta Dimage A1 a few years ago and she
got EXCELLENT results...the problem was the size...so she wanted a
small easy to use camera with great reults...she never blew up images
past 8x10 so the 5 megapixel A1 was just fine, but again the
size....so I bought her a Nikon s7c. She LOVED the size and the
LCD...but that was about it...the camera had a HUGE amount of red eye
on just about every image....even with the red eye reduction it still
made the eyes glow...just not red. It was very slow and the image
quality was just ok...so I returned it...now what to get? I liked
the Canon SD900...but she doesnt need 10 megapixels and it doesnt
have image stabilization. The store was out of stock on the SD800is
and SD700is...so I didnt get anything.....What I want is a camera
that is fairly fast at focusing...gets great image quality especially
with indoor flash pics....and it should be EASY to use. Thanks.


You mention problems with red eye so you might want to look at Sony's
P&S line. They do a good job controlling red eye, especially their P
series cameras. I have a P200 and it works quite well but it has a 2"
screen and is a fairly old design. It also looks like they are not
going to continue this series further.

Another thing to consider is that many P&S cameras now have a lenses
with a 28mm equivalent wide end and a 100mm+ telephoto. If I were
buying one today it would be one with a 28mm lens. IMO, the lack of
wide angle has been a big disadvantage for the smaller cameras.
Canon, Ricoh, Panasonic among others now have models with 28mm wide
angles lenses.

Most P&S cameras attempt to control red eye by using 'pre flash'.
Unfortunately, many people react by squinting at the pre flash, and
their eyes are still closed when the flash comes, and the image is
captured. It is MUCH easier to correct red eye than closed eyes, or
squints, so I keep it turned off.
The real solution is to get the flash unit away from the lens, at least
a few inches.

The location of the flash on the Sony P series cameras are why they have
little problem with red eye. The design allows it to be located further
from the lens than most P&S cameras.