New camera advice

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Ju
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Being a TOG a friend has asked me for some advice on what camera to get. The camera will be used for taking photos of her children ( her current problem is that most of the photos are out of focus as camera is too slow to lock onto running around children). Not having owned a compact for a long time I have no idea on what to advise her, budget is £300 so that rules out a dslr. Can anyone recommend a good camera with quick auto focus?

Thanks
Julian
 
wouldn't rule out a DSLR at £300 if she can find a mint unused one.
 
I have a Canon 350d with a few bits and pieces that I'm going to put up on the "for sale" forum later today so I wouldn't rule a DSLR out as it'll be less than £300 that's for sure!:D
 
She want's new as it will kind of be a christmas pressie of her hubby.
 
Don't like to pour cold water on the idea, but cameras are kind of personal. Best handle them before buying to be sure they feel right.
 
Don't like to pour cold water on the idea, but cameras are kind of personal. Best handle them before buying to be sure they feel right.

i agree, though if the buyer herself is 'inexperienced', she may not know what to look for in a camera & only find out that something's missing and/or annoying only after more extensive use at home. :(

So advice from more experienced users may be of genuine value in case like this.


on the new v.s. used issue, I would seriously consider 2nd hand - obviously this is a personal choice, but at my end 'pre-used' presents are not a taboo. Perhaps I was lucky on this, but I managed to buy a lightly used Canon 400d + 18-55mm IS as a birthday present for a good friend to replace his 4 year old compact. :love: Was well under £300, functioning perfectly, and he's now bagging a lot of shots his compact would miss :thumbs:

Whether Canon (350d or 400d) or Nikon (d40, d50 and d70), the older models bought in lightly used condition offer unparallelled bang-for-buck value :bonk:
 
How about the Canon Ixus 990? Has a good 5x optical zoom, the ability to record HD video, is small and compact, 12mp, face detection to help with capturing running kids, and available for around your budget? Had a quick look - these seem to be offering a 3 year guarantee as well:

Wilkinson cameras
 
thanks for all your help, going to lend her my d50 for a day or 2 to see if the size / feel is fine a dslr might be too big. Will look up the ixus 990.
 
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