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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
I am kind of torn between what camera to get next. I have an
Olympus C5050 and it has been a fantastic camera. But 3x optical zoom is a bit sparse. At the same time, I'm craving some higher megapixel counts for 8x10's and maybe 11x14 or possibly even 11x17. But 8x10's will be the most common by far. The Canon S3 IS sounds almost exactly what I would want in a simple, all-in-one camera. But, it is only 6 megapixels. I look at the Canon A630 and A640 and they are also close, except for the zoom. 4x is better than 3x as far as optical zoom, but not the image stabilized 10x or greater zoom I have been wanting. But the fact that the A640 is out, and only around $350 online and does 10 megapixel, it is pretty tempting. Still uses AA batteries, which I dig. If I could combine the A640 and the S3 IS into one camera, I'd be happy. But as it is, I'm not sure what to do. If the S3 IS is going to also get a boost in megapixels, I'd go for that first. But if not, the A640 looks good. I have been wondering if there is any info out there about an update to the S3 IS in the near future that would push it to at least 8 megapixels. Does anyone have any info on what may be ahead? Thanks |
#2
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
Paul D. Sullivan wrote:
I am kind of torn between what camera to get next. I have an Olympus C5050 and it has been a fantastic camera. But 3x optical zoom is a bit sparse. At the same time, I'm craving some higher megapixel counts for 8x10's and maybe 11x14 or possibly even 11x17. But 8x10's will be the most common by far. How do you make, and what do you do with, these large prints? If you're a pro photographer, selling images, I'd have thought you would be aiming higher than a "compact" digi-cam. BugBear |
#3
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
On Thu, 04 Jan 2007 13:47:45 GMT, Paul D. Sullivan wrote:
I am kind of torn between what camera to get next. I have an Olympus C5050 and it has been a fantastic camera. But 3x optical zoom is a bit sparse. At the same time, I'm craving some higher megapixel counts for 8x10's and maybe 11x14 or possibly even 11x17. But 8x10's will be the most common by far. The Canon S3 IS sounds almost exactly what I would want in a simple, all-in-one camera. But, it is only 6 megapixels. I've made passable 11x14s, and fairly decent 8x10s, from my 5MP FZ5 (equivalent to a Canon S2IS). They're not going to win any awards, and probably wouldn't look good from 5 inches away, but are fine for hanging on the wall. I'd go with the S3IS or one of it's competitors. If you really crave the extra megapixels, Panasonic and Fuji both make 10ish megapixel superzooms (the FZ50 and S9500 respectively). They're pricier than the S3IS and equivalents, though (and physically larger). -dms |
#4
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
Paul D. Sullivan wrote: I am kind of torn between what camera to get next. I have an Olympus C5050 and it has been a fantastic camera. But 3x optical zoom is a bit sparse. At the same time, I'm craving some higher megapixel counts for 8x10's and maybe 11x14 or possibly even 11x17. But 8x10's will be the most common by far. The Canon S3 IS sounds almost exactly what I would want in a simple, all-in-one camera. But, it is only 6 megapixels. I look at the Canon A630 and A640 and they are also close, except for the zoom. 4x is better than 3x as far as optical zoom, but not the image stabilized 10x or greater zoom I have been wanting. But the fact that the A640 is out, and only around $350 online and does 10 megapixel, it is pretty tempting. Still uses AA batteries, which I dig. If I could combine the A640 and the S3 IS into one camera, I'd be happy. But as it is, I'm not sure what to do. If the S3 IS is going to also get a boost in megapixels, I'd go for that first. But if not, the A640 looks good. I have been wondering if there is any info out there about an update to the S3 IS in the near future that would push it to at least 8 megapixels. Does anyone have any info on what may be ahead? Thanks After giving it plenty of thought I bought a Canon A710is. Nice zoom range, 7MP (which I'll never need) stabilized, plenty of things to play around with, good price. I even got the guy to throw in one of those magnetic WA lenses with a good macro for $15 more. It might not be the thing for you, but its great for me, have you checked out the Sony DMC-H5 it has more MP than the Canon S3is? Eric Eric |
#5
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
On Thu, 04 Jan 2007 13:47:45 +0000, Paul D. Sullivan wrote:
I am kind of torn between what camera to get next. I have an Olympus C5050 and it has been a fantastic camera. But 3x optical zoom is a bit sparse. At the same time, I'm craving some higher megapixel counts for 8x10's and maybe 11x14 or possibly even 11x17. But 8x10's will be the most common by far. You might be surprised. I have had occasion to print 1mp (1152x864) images at 8x10 and you can't tell it from a real photograph - IMHO 100dpi really is adequate. The Canon S3 IS sounds almost exactly what I would want in a simple, all-in-one camera. But, it is only 6 megapixels. I look at the Canon A630 and A640 and they are also close, except for the zoom. 4x is better than 3x as far as optical zoom, but not the image stabilized 10x or greater zoom I have been wanting. But the fact that the A640 is out, and only around $350 online and does 10 megapixel, it is pretty tempting. Still uses AA batteries, which I dig. If I could combine the A640 and the S3 IS into one camera, I'd be happy. But as it is, I'm not sure what to do. If the S3 IS is going to also get a boost in megapixels, I'd go for that first. But if not, the A640 looks good. I have been wondering if there is any info out there about an update to the S3 IS in the near future that would push it to at least 8 megapixels. Does anyone have any info on what may be ahead? Thanks I can appreciate your comments. I spent a couple of years looking for an EVF camera. I have looked at the S*IS cameras among others. One finding I made that has impacted my choice has been the resolution of the electronic view finder. They are NOT all the same. Most EVFs have a resolution of about 110k pixels. Trying to work with one would drive me crazy - the view is so blocky and pixellated, I can't stand it. Minolta had one model with what they billed as a 1mp EVF - I've been given to understand it was really counting R G and B pixels, so it was really only around 300k - but it certainly was MUCH better. I recently settled on a Kodak P series EVF with 237k pixel EVF (the LCD is about 110k). I suggest you at least look through one at a local retailer to see the difference. |
#6
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
I too was torn a few months back between the Sony H5 and the Canon S3.
The higher megapixel count, the Zeiss lens and the larger LCD screen on the Sony were very tempting, but the Canon got the nod for me and I'm glad I bought it. I find the S3 to be a terrific all round performer, it's light, compact and easy to pack & carry, the controls are easy to use, the menus logical, the image quality is fine and can produce an excellent 5 X 7 or an acceptable 8X10 print (you can print well beyond this size but the print quality degrades rapidly), battery life is amazing, the tilting LCD screen is suprizingly useful, there are tons of image refinement settings and the camera boasts full manual control. There are some things about this camera that make it far from perfect... but that statement applies to every camera on the market. I had an opportunity to actually use the Sony H5 at a family gathering recently and I was left flat by the lack of tweeking one could do to image quality / adjustment. The overall feel and functionality of the H5 seemed off to me (subjective comment I realize) and the camera I was using had already been sent back for a shutter repair (which took 6 weeks) inspite of the fact that it was purchased only days after I bought mine. I'm sure the Sony is just fine on Auto mode for casual use and family snapshots, but I have that in my Canon and much, much more. In reality there is only a miniscule difference between a 7.2 and a 6 MP image so there are many other factors to look at before making a purchase. The price of the S3 has fallen considerably since I bought it which indicates this model will be phased out in the near future... what Canon replace it with is anyones guess. For now the S3 is a great little camera at an excellent price. Best of luck with your decision. |
#7
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
Paul D. Sullivan wrote:
I am kind of torn between what camera to get next. I have an Olympus C5050 and it has been a fantastic camera. But 3x optical zoom is a bit sparse. At the same time, I'm craving some higher megapixel counts for 8x10's and maybe 11x14 or possibly even 11x17. But 8x10's will be the most common by far. The Canon S3 IS sounds almost exactly what I would want in a simple, all-in-one camera. But, it is only 6 megapixels. I look at the Canon A630 and A640 and they are also close, except for the zoom. 4x is better than 3x as far as optical zoom, but not the image stabilized 10x or greater zoom I have been wanting. But the fact that the A640 is out, and only around $350 online and does 10 megapixel, it is pretty tempting. Still uses AA batteries, which I dig. If I could combine the A640 and the S3 IS into one camera, I'd be happy. But as it is, I'm not sure what to do. If the S3 IS is going to also get a boost in megapixels, I'd go for that first. But if not, the A640 looks good. I have been wondering if there is any info out there about an update to the S3 IS in the near future that would push it to at least 8 megapixels. Does anyone have any info on what may be ahead? Thanks You're getting hung up on mp. I've gotten perfectly good 8x10 from a 2mp canon A40. You don't mention the A710s, that looks like a nice camera, would like to see the swivel lcd on it but it is 6x zoom. The A630/640 have larger sensors. It's tough to make a decision, that's what happens when we're offered so many choices. Life under Henry Ford was a lot simpler, choose any color for your car as long as it's black. I personally prefer an optical viewfinder but wouldn't let that be a deciding factor. Dave Cohen |
#9
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
On Thu, 04 Jan 2007 20:23:44 +0000, Bert Hyman wrote:
(ray) wrote in news One finding I made that has impacted my choice has been the resolution of the electronic view finder. They are NOT all the same. Most EVFs have a resolution of about 110k pixels. I've pretty much settled on the S3 (or maybe something very much like it) due to its eye-level LCD viewfinder. I simply can't use the large LCD on the back of cameras to compose pictures (and they're unreadable in daylight anyway), and find that the pure optical viewfinders don't give an accurate representation of the final image. On the other hand, I don't need a new camera 'til May, so I have the luxury of waiting a while to see if something better comes along. In the meantime, I'd suggest you look through one and then look through a Kodak P series at a local retailer. |
#10
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Canon - A630, A640, S3 IS and the near future
You're getting hung up on mp. I've gotten perfectly good 8x10
from a 2mp canon A40. You don't mention the A710s, that looks like a nice camera, would like to see the swivel lcd on it but it is 6x zoom. In this case, I certainly am. I have a very good 5mp camera, but get 240 dpi of data or so when I print out 8x10. Works great for many photos, but I would prefer to have a camera that gives me at least a full 300 dpi of resolveable detail for some key macro shots and such. I understand some people are happy with 8x10's even with cameras that are 4 megapixels or less, but I'm simply not one of them, at least not in all situations. I'd say my 5mp is good for about 80% of what I do, but I do want another camera that can give me the finer detail I crave. If the S3 IS had 8mp or 10mp, I'd be all over it. I was not even aware of the A710, and am glad you pointed it out to me. Thanks for that - I'll give it a look. It may be only 7.1mp, but it seems a good bargain for what you get. Thanks |
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