Beginner Can you recommend a camera for a beginner?

teddansonsface

teddansonsface

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I'm going to New York in June for a holiday so looking to get a new camera. The only camera I've owned in the past has either been one on my phone so my experience is pretty limited.

Set a budget to spend about £250 max on a decent camera. Looked at the Sony Hyperzoom H400 but not sure if it's any good.

Anybody recommend a good camera to get? Don't know whether to go for a bridge camera or a compact camera and preferably I'd like to buy new as opposed to second hand.
 
A minefield of baffling features and specs at that sort of price. You need to decide if you want a compact with limited zoom or a super zoom bridge as you've linked to as this will help you narrow down your search.
 
I'm leaning towards super zoom bridge as it'll be better in the long run when I come home and can start taking more wildlife/nature photos. Any recommendations?
 
Sorry, no I don't own one. Just hit the online reviews and recommendations I guess. That Sony looks cheap at £170 though. Maybe look at the Canon and Panasonic similar offerings?
 
The thing about superzooms is that the lenses don't usually perform terribly well. By which I mean vignetting (darkening of the corners), chromatic aberration, lack of sharpness and the like. Another issue is that it can be incredibly difficult to frame a shot or hold a camera steady at that sort of range unless you have a decent tripod with a good head which allows very fine adjustments.

A left field option is to get a second hand premium compact with good glass like this. I know you said you want new rather than second hand but at £100 you could almost regard it as disposable, and when you outgrow it you'll have a much better idea of what you really need.

The Olympus XZ-1 has a great lens & reasonable sensor and does shallow depth of field fairly well. It's not great in low light - few compacts are - and it doesn't have a viewfinder or long zoom - which may be a showstopper - but I have a great fondness for my old one. It was a long time before I outgrew it and still use it occasionally 'cos it fits in a pocket.

If you're serious about wildlife photography then the chances are that you'll want an APS-C (crop) sensor DSLR or mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with some fast glass in due course.
 
I'd echo above vis super-zoom compacts / bridge cameras.
As far as New-York trip goes.... most important thing ISN'T in the camera sales blurb.. dont matter how many mega-pixies its got or X-Rated the zoom, or whether it has umpety 'shooting modes'.... it's whether YOU can actually use it..
An awful lot of my 'life-time' holidays happened before digital; (and kidz!) and my constant companion was a very 'humble' 35mm 'Compact' camera, with a fixed 35mm lens, probably less sophisticated than a camera-phone as far as 'point & shoot' snapping goes; BUT, I was very very 'familiar' with the thing. It was small, and 'unobtrusive', or probably more importantly 'un-intrusive'; It was always with me, never 'in the way', and when I saw anything I wanted a photo of; it was in my hand, at my eye, and the snap was shot, almost by instinct, often before any-one even noticed I was taking a photo... and if I needed to change any settings.. not that it had many, I was familiar enough with the thing, that often it would be focused by the time it reached my eye and any compensation' was dialled in, in a moment, if needed... it did not intrude on the activity, it did not become the activity; it was 'incidental' to my holiday.. and I have thousands of great memories it has captured.
You really do NOT want to be reading the instruction manual for the camera you hope to get all these great 'life moments' with, sat in the air-port concourse waiting for your flight to be announced; & you really don't want your holiday to be bogged down by 'interruption' for 'must have' photo-ops; that have you fumbling with menu's and cursing batteries NOT 'having a holiday'.
If you are familiar and comfy with your camera-phone... THAT might be as good as anything... it'll get you pictures, and probably not half bad ones, and yon can concentrate on enjoying the holiday.
Other wise? Well, whatever you might get... get it early, and get out and practice with the thing until using it is 'instinctive' and you don't have to 'fuss' to get a picture..
 
I know you want new, but you'll want better sooner if you buy a bridge.

An older entry level DSLR like a Canon 20D with kit lens and a 55-250mm for £250 ish.
 
Buy second hand. You'll get more for your money, and if you enjoy it, you'll want to upgrade before the end of the month anyway :D
 
UaeExile said:
Buy second hand. You'll get more for your money, and if you enjoy it, you'll want to upgrade before the end of the month anyway :D
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That is very definitely my situation. Bought an £80 Fuji bridge from ebay. Loving the creativity aspect but already decided on the upgrade path but reckon I will get all or most of my £80 back so win win situation.

Just a bit of a left field thought but whatever you buy make sure that the battery situation is well covered as trust me you will be taking plenty of pictures whilst in New York, it's amazing :)
 
Get a Panasonic TZxx compact or a fujifilm bridge if you want zoom without changing lenses. Don't get a sony bridge, the image quality has been poor compared to their rivals for a few years and they have a tendency to get oil on the sensors.

If you think you might want to get into photography later then go for the Panasonic as it will be more useful when size is an issue with taking a DSLR somewhere.
 
I have a Casio EX-FH20 I find that reall simple to use and takes great photos. The macro is brilliant .
 
If I was to take a photo of a bird taking off from its perch, What Shutter speed,ISO and apeture would I need as I have bought a DSLR and am really struggling with it Thanks
 
teddansonsface said:
I'm leaning towards super zoom bridge as it'll be better in the long run when I come home and can start taking more wildlife/nature photos. Any recommendations?
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One of my colleagues has a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ72. (It's also known as the DMC-FZ70 in some markets, for reasons which I don't understand.) You can find a good review of it here:
http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/panasonic_lumix_dmc_fz72_review/
The review notes the exceptional zoom range, the ease of use, and a very high degree of responsiveness. It currently costs £215 from most major retailers.

A friend recently wanted a big-zoom-range camera for a trip to South Africa. I suggested this Panasonic, he bought one, he got on really well with it (despite being a bit of a technophobe), and he got some great photos. Job done.
 
Keen amature said:
If I was to take a photo of a bird taking off from its perch, What Shutter speed,ISO and apeture would I need as I have bought a DSLR and am really struggling with it Thanks
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Depends on what light there is.

You need a shutter speed fast enough to freeze the action, the ISO high enough so there is enough light and the aperture open enough to balance these 2. Sorry for not giving an 'answer' but they are the things you have to balance to get the shot.

What lens have you got?
Does your body have Auto ISO?
What shooting mode do you shoot in?

You don't need to set all three, the camera can do some for you, so if you shoot in shutter priority, set the shutter speed to freeze the action the camera can set the ISO (in auto ISO) and the aperture to get the shot. (in theory)
 
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I'd either push the budget up a touch and get an RX100 (amazing compact camera imo) or just stick with a cheaper compact. No point getting a superzoom, you'll only want to upgrade it to an SLR when you get home and start doing the wildlife etc, whereas the compact will always be useful as a go-to pocket camera.
 
You should be able to get a sony rx100 second hand for your budget. Or a canon eos m either new or 2nd hand. I'd personally recommend the canon m. I got mine second hand with kit lens (18-55mm) and then also purchased a 22mm lens for total cost of £200. Has excellent image quality
 
RX100 if you can stretch to it - or if you want to save some money then something like the Fuji XF1 is amazing value for money... both cameras have threads on here when you can read more about them and also see images that people have taken to give you ideas what the camera is capable of (y)
 
I think Mike is on the ball with eos m small enough for everyday travel I started with 400d and 3 lenses then upgraded to full frame and l lenses have not looked back and just purchased the m3 but have not been able to take any pictures this year yet due to ill health my wife says I have Pringle syndrome every time I open camerapricebuster .
 
forkie said:
I think Mike is on the ball with eos m small enough for everyday travel I started with 400d and 3 lenses then upgraded to full frame and l lenses have not looked back and just purchased the m3 but have not been able to take any pictures this year yet due to ill health my wife says I have Pringle syndrome every time I open camerapricebuster .
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Only thing about the EOS M for me would be portability. By the time you've taken a few lenses you'll be carrying round a decent weight, and in New York in June you'll get sick of carrying any weight at all fast.

I took an RX1R when I went last July and to be honest I got sick of carrying that around and wished I'd just taken the RX100 out with me!!
 
hdew cameas have the nikon d3100 with 18-55 kt lens for £249 ( not a nikon user so dont know what the d3100 is like ). a little over budget but they also have the canon 1200D with 18-55 IS ll kit lens for 280.
in terms of bridge cameras the fuji hs50exr can be found under £250. beast of a camera but like any bridge there are pros and cons.
 
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True but ya can stick with stock lens and you have options for later dates shame that there is not more jessops about ya could at least go have a play it did help .
 
Another vote for the RX100 here.

It was the most used camera on my trips to Iceland and Singapore/Australia last year for my holiday pics.

...I also had D90(s) and selection of lenses but the RX100 went everywhere with me as it was small! :)
 
Keen amature said:
If I was to take a photo of a bird taking off from its perch, What Shutter speed,ISO and apeture would I need as I have bought a DSLR and am really struggling with it Thanks
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@Keen amature

You would be better starting your own thread on this as it will get seen by more people. :)
 
I had a Canon Powershot when I was just starting out and found it was a good inbetween option between a basic point and shoot and a DSLR. You can play around with the settings and learn quite a bit.
 
If you want a.good.all rounder get the fz1000 best zoom camera
 
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