Compact camera advice

squizza

squizza

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Hi guys

I regularly go to London nowadays and don't always want to carry my main SLR equipment around as its very heavy.

I haven't got a price limit at the moment as its something I'm going to save for, but I would appreciate advice on the best compact cameras, particularly those that excel in low light.

Many thanks in advance.

Sarah :)
 
Value for money.......the Fuji Finepix 550EXR is pretty impressive!!
 
Thanks guys :)

Also if you could post up some low light / pub atmosphere type lighting pictures, then I would be eternally grateful.

:)
 
Sarah! When are you off to Skomer? Or have you been? Good time? :)
 
Well, I am used to Nikon D300 and use 'pro' 2.8 glass or 50mm prime. So I am spoilt with the quality and getting a compact has been a tad disappointing as I keep thinking "not as good as my DSLR" which is unfair as D300 and a lens is £2k against a £300 compact.

I went for the Canon S95 as it really is pocket size. It is not a bad camera to be fair. Find the shutter lag very slow compared to D300 - and you dont get the sharpness of the eyes you get with a 50mm prime!! That said, it fits the bill for size, will do RAW and can be manual.

If I had the money - Fuji X100 (although 35mm fixed may be a pain). I discounted the G12 as it was too big.
 
Canon Ixus 220 HS Small, 24-120mm lens, great low light performance, filter effects, HD video.
 
If you want something with a long zoom, you could check out the Canon Powershot SX220 HS. I wrote about mine and posted some sample photos, including some low-light ones here.

The quality of the pictures is reasonable though probably not as good as the S95 and definitely not as good as the G12. It's slow to find focus, but then most compacts are; it's just something you have to get used to. I got mine because my Canon 40D DSLR is starting to put on weight - at least, that's the way it feels. And I'm happy with it because it has an equivalent range of 28mm to 392 mm (advertised as 14x) and fits in my pocket easily, as well as having M, Av, Tv, and P modes plus a good range of 'beginner' modes.

There's a good review of it here and the Amazon UK price at the moment is £216.80 - £53.20 less than I paid for mine a few months ago.
 
The best compacts for low light are probably the higher end ones like the LX5 but if you are willing to get something a teeny bit bigger you can get a MFT, possibly for less.

I have an LX5, arguably the best of the high end compacts, and a GF1 and G1 and the MFT's are much better, more so as the ISO rises.
 
Olympus XZ1 seems to be the new king of compacts, especially for low light. Review here http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/OlympusXZ1/

Or maybe a CSC with a nice pancake prime would do the trick?

PS Sarah, any relation to Colin Lefley?
 
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I've been considering a compact for a while (looking at the LX5, etc.) but cannot convince myself that I'd be able to settle for anything without a viewfinder. A wide angle lens (I think the LX5 is 24mm equiv.) is essential for me too - and that reduces the options.
 
I have an S95, a nice little camera and great for night and pub stuff. This gallery was a night out with the S95, may give you some idea of its low light capabilities.

It even has a dedicated low light mode.
 
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Another vote for the S95 here, I've got the previous version, the S90 which is very similar, and it's great for just slipping into a pocket but still has full manual control and can shoot raw files.
 
Thank you everyone for your suggestions and images so far, really is appreciated, and definitely has narrowed down the selection process :)
 
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