Camera advice

I have been very impressed with the quality of the ridding photos in this forum. I particularly enjoy the photos of the many places I have ridden and no stopped to take any pictures. So I have decided that this year, when ridding, I am going to stop and take pictures. The only problem is I don't yet own a camera. I am looking for advise on either what features to look for in a camera or specific camera recommendations. Thanks in advance for any input.

If you're not going for a big SLR kit I cannot recommend the Canon S100 highly enough. I have the couple of years previous S90 and it is a marvelous pocket camera. This is the one that's in my jacket or tank bag. It does all this in a tiny package making it easy to always have along.

Every review I have read cannot say enough good things. A multitude of great features, fast lens and good wide to telephoto focal length.

http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/canon_powershot_s100_review/conclusion/

Just about any camera made today can take a great picture. There are, of course, pixel peepers that will look at 100% crops of full resolution images taken in the dark and complain about noise, or focus, or whatever. Ignore them.

Give the tremendous choices in cameras let me suggest that you pay most attention to ergonomics. Will it fit in your hand? Is it comfortable to hold. Are there buttons and controls that can be used with gloves? Are there dials that will change when stuffed in a pocket or tank bag? If you like a viewfinder does the camera have one? If not can you see the LCD in bright sunlight?

These are the questions that you need to answer to be happy with your choice. Notice none of the questions is "will the camera take a good picture?" That is assumed. Nikon, Canon, Panasonic (Lumix), and Fuji, and others have some fine cameras at good prices.

If my P&S (it lives in my tank bag) were to die today I don't know what I'd get.

The camera I like best on the bike is a high zoom Sony. High zoom choices are also available from the other major players. These cameras are chunkie but compact enough for the tank bag.

I don't always have the packing space for the DSLR and a couple of lenses.

Go to dpreview.com to get info on a wide variety of cameras.

rcliffor said:

Go to dpreview.com to get info on a wide variety of cameras.

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Another good resource: http://www.imaging-resource.com/

Or Digital Camera Resource. Or my personal fave since he doesn't mince words in his reviews: Ken Rockwell at http://www.kenrockwell.com/index.htm

Canon Coolpix

We have the big SLR kit but more often than not, use the Canon Coolpix. It's small enough to keep in the tank bag or pocket and idiot proof. Reasonably priced too.

Baffling number of cameras in the point and shoot arena...obviously!

I looked for a pocketable, reasonably good resolution, AND something with a regular viewfinder in addition to the LCD screens typical of the small pocket cams. From experience with a few cameras I always found framing scenes a bit difficult in bright sunlight. A conventional viewfinder helps a lot. But even some of the viewfinder equipped cameras don't work well with eyeglasses.

Also the comment about ergonomics is important. My wife has owned a couple of the smaller Canons, which I've found too slick, too small, and buttons to teeny for my handling. I prefer something that feels secure in my hand, so a slightly larger camera was right for me. YMMV

Ended up with a Nikon Coolpix S60, good quality photos, acceptable zoom, and reasonably rugged. Fits in a the pocket of Tourmaster jacket just fine....

OTOH, I just upgraded my camera to a Olympus Pen E-PL2 with exchangeable lenses.

(do you know anyone who would like to acquire a nice Nikon? LOL)

dpreview as others have mentioned is a good source of reviews, but again, the choice is baffling...I'd recommend finding a box store and holding a few cameras to get a sense of the "fit".

Cheers! Bill J

Thanks for the excellent suggestions. I thought the ergonomic comments very helpful. In the past I have found the very small cameras difficult to handle due to my large hands. I was going to order off of the internet but now will not do so until I can actually hold one and get a feel for it. I will spend some time reading the reviews on the recommended sites. The cannon S 100 is at the top of the list at this time.

Thanks again, I appreciate the helpful comments.

Bill, I have actually been to Seabeck, WA. Is that where you live?

skibum said:

Thanks for the excellent suggestions. I thought the ergonomic comments very helpful. In the past I have found the very small cameras difficult to handle due to my large hands. I was going to order off of the internet but now will not do so until I can actually hold one and get a feel for it. I will spend some time reading the reviews on the recommended sites. The cannon S 100 is at the top of the list at this time.

Thanks again, I appreciate the helpful comments.

Bill, I have actually been to Seabeck, WA. Is that where you live?

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YUP! A great place to live...if ya don't mind the occasional bear or coyote in the backyard... When have you been here? Most folks have never even heard of the second oldest town in the Everwet State.

That Canon is a good choice. But, since I'm here, another positive aspect of that the Coolpix P60 is the AA batteries. No need to tote around an special extra battery, or charging cords/docks. When not using flash the batteries seem to last pretty well.

skibum said:

Thanks for the excellent suggestions. I thought the ergonomic comments very helpful. In the past I have found the very small cameras difficult to handle due to my large hands. I was going to order off of the internet but now will not do so until I can actually hold one and get a feel for it. I will spend some time reading the reviews on the recommended sites. The cannon S 100 is at the top of the list at this time.

Thanks again, I appreciate the helpful comments.

Bill, I have actually been to Seabeck, WA. Is that where you live?

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I've had an S90 for a couple of years. It's too small for me on the bike, but great in the jeans pocket and in low light. As to batteries, I used to go for the cameras with AA batteries, but proprietary lithium batteries last soooooooo much longer. I don't even carry a spare.

Good point on the batteries. I typically like to ride for 5 to 10 days per trip so the batteries need to last. Battery life is a point I will investigate.

Bill, I grew up in Seattle and we had a summer place on the Olympic Peninsula. In the summer we would occasionally drive down to Seabeck to enjoy the warm waters of Hood canal vs to always cold water of Puget Sound.

Don

skibum said:

Good point on the batteries. I typically like to ride for 5 to 10 days per trip so the batteries need to last. Battery life is a point I will investigate.

Bill, I grew up in Seattle and we had a summer place on the Olympic Peninsula. In the summer we would occasionally drive down to Seabeck to enjoy the warm waters of Hood canal vs to always cold water of Puget Sound.

Don

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Warm vs Cold being a relative term.

The Seabeck Marina is in the (slow) process of finally being rebuilt after being closed for several years. I think once that happens Seabeck might be a busier place. LOL

Cheers! BJ

skibum said:

Good point on the batteries. I typically like to ride for 5 to 10 days per trip so the batteries need to last. Battery life is a point I will investigate.
Don

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They make chargers from 12v to USB so you could (depending on what you end up with) charge the battery(s) enroute.

There are many solutions.

Until Friday, I had a Canon A560 that had all the features I loved, including AA batteries,7 megabytes, good zoom and wide angle. It was a pleasure to use and it fit in my tank bag. Unfortunately it is a discontinued model. It was in my pocket when I went to the grocery store and some jerk parked so close to me I had to practically crawl back into my SUV. Apparently, it fell out of my jacket pocket and was lost forever. No one turned it in to the service desk lost and found (I hope whoever found it and is keeping it, catches some horrible disease like leprosy)
Anyway, I bought a Nikon 14 megabyte #L24 to replace it. It seems to have many of the same features and is small enough to fit in a tank bag. Never again will I put anything in my jacket pocket!

I find the Canon SX230 HS to be compact, excellent quality and moderately priced.

http://usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/digital_cameras/powershot_sx230_hs

Do yourself a favor and look here... But... Prepare to be over whelmed.

Anything, about any camera, ever, is listed here. With specs and sample images.

Good Luck.

http://www.dpreview.com/

http://www.steves-digicams.com/

Another good source