midtoad’s mess.ages
excellence in creative mediocrity

Here’s some advice I recently wrote for a friend looking for a camera. I’m looking too, since my Canon A70 crapped out again for the third time. Ever wonder why Canon came out with the nearly identical A75 soon after the release of the A70? It’s because the A70 had a defective CCD which they tried to cover up. Anyway, in the hope that these thoughts might be useful for someone else, here they are:

all cameras represent a trade-off of various features, and the best choice for you will likely not be the best choice for me. Having said that, some of the things I heard you say you want:

• waterproof, or at least water-resistant
• large zoom, possibly with image stabilization
• use of AA batteries since you’ll be away days or weeks from an AC charger
• good enough resolution to make 8×10″ prints
• large LCD so you can see what you took, and replace if necessary
• not too bulky, since you’ll be lugging it a long time

Naturally the most expensive cameras have the fewest tradeoffs, except the price!

Image stabilization is a new feature, gradually finding its way into less expensive cameras. Right now, all of the cameras sporting this feature cost $600 or more. It will help you get a sharp zoom at full zoom, particularly when there is poor lighting, such as dawn or dusk. You’ll have to decide if you really need it, since it adds about $100 to the cost of otherwise comparable cameras. The vast majority of digital cameras have only 3x zoom, so image stabilization is neither offered nor needed for them. BTW, since the average digicam has a wide-angle focal length of about 35mm (in 35-mm film-camera equivalence), a 3x zoom would be equivalent to a 105mm focal length. A 5x zoom would be like a 150mm lens, and a 10x zoom like a 350mm lens. If you want a higher zoom, like 5x, or 10x, there are relatively few choices in the lower end of the market: big zooms are usually offered on the digital SLR models, which cost $1000 or more. I assume you don’t want to spend that much, so I didn’t include any in my list!

Another question is the type of memory. Far and away the most common right now is SD, which are about the size of a small stamp. It’s used on most camera brands. The exceptions are: Fuji is using xD, which is about 2/3 the side of SD. Sony is using MemoryStick, which confusingly comes in a couple of flavours not necessary compatible with each other. Compact flash is also used by a number of manufacturers but is gradually disappearing as it’s larger, about 1″x1″.

Another consideration is the viewfinder. If there is none, you will always have to look at the LCD screen to take a shot, which means you are running the battery down on each shot (the LCD is the biggest energy consumer in the camera), and it may be hard to see in some lighting conditions. It’s good to have an optical viewfinder so you can leave the LCD turned off when taking a shot. I set up my camera that way, then have the camera flash the captured image for a couple seconds before turning back off, so I can review the shot and take another one if desired.

You want to see how fast the lens is at both wide-angle and zoom settings. Cheaper cameras may have a long zoom, but have a slow lens when zoomed in. In effect you can’t use the zoom in poor light, because you’ll get blurred pics as the exposure will be longer. Manufacturers quote the f-stop setting at each end of the range, so 2.8-3.3 is the range at wide angle and full zoom. The lower the number, the better. Best would be something like 2.8-2.8; worse would be 2.8-4.5. Good film cameras might be f2.0 or even f1.8, but digital camera lenses are a bit slower except in the expensive SLR types. Unless you are taking a lot of pictures in dim light, it shouldn’t be much of an issue.

With all of that, here are a few choices: (prices at Vistek)
Nikon Coolpix S4, $479 - 6 MP, 10x zoom, f3.5-3.5, 2.5″ LCD, SD card format, uses AA (2) or Li-Ion batteries, compact size, 2 yr warranty!
- con: no optical viewfinder, no image stabilization
- but, has a BSS (best-shot selector) mode which will take several shots in quick succession, then keep the one that is sharpest
- see it at: Vistek.ca

Panasonic DMCFZ5S (silver) or DMCFZ5K (black), $619 - 5 MP, 12x zoom, f2.8-3.3, 1.8″ LCD, SD card format, image stabilization, uses Li-Ion battery
- con: uses Li-Ion battery, not AA, smaller LCD
- see it at: Vistek.ca

Panasonic DMCLZ2 (silver) or DMCLZ2K (black), $409 - 5 MP, 6x zoom, f2.8-4.5, 2.0″ LCD, SD card format, image stabilization, uses AA batteries (2)
- con: slightly slower lens at full zoom
- see it at: Vistek.ca

Panasonic DMCFZ20S (silver) or DMCFZ20K (black), $719 - 5.4 MP, 12x zoom, f2.8-2.8, 2.0″ LCD, SD card format, image stabilization, uses Li-Ion battery
- faster, brighter lens than the DMCFZ5, slightly larger LCD
- con: uses Li-Ion battery, not AA
- see it at: Vistek.ca

Olympus SP500UZ, $479 - 6 MP, 10x zoom, f2.8-3.7, 2.5″ LCD, SD card format, uses AA batteries (4)
- con: no image stabilization
- see it at: Vistek.ca

Pentax Optio WPi, $499 - 6 MP, 3x zoom, 2.0″ LCD, SD card format, uses Li-Ion battery, waterproof to 1.3m for 30 minutes!
- con: low zoom, uses Li-Ion battery
- see it at: Vistek.ca

Canon S2-IS, $699 - 5 MP, 12x zoom, 1.8″ swivelling LCD, SD card format, image stabilization, uses AA batteries (4)
- con: smallish LCD
- see it at: Vistek.ca

Experience shows we can’t deal with more than 7 choices, so that’s enough!

The best all-around choice might be the Panasonic DMCLZ2: it’s small, uses AA batteries, has a good-size LCD, reasonable zoom, and has image stabilization, a rarity at this price range. Its 6x zoom gives you a focal-lens range (in 35mm camera equivalence) of 37 - 222 mm. I may buy this camera myself!

If the highest possible zoom is a priority, then the Nikon S4 would be a good choice. Its only weak point is no viewfinder, and no image stabilization (though its workaround is the BSS feature, which, if chosen, will take several shots in quick succession and keep the best). If you must have image stabilization, you could choose the Canon S2-IS (does use AAs) or the Panasonic DMCFZ5K (doesn’t use AAs). There’s also the Olympus SP500UZ, which does use AAs, and also has 10x zoom and a large LCD, but it doesn’t have image stabilization.

I also threw in the Pentax Optio WPi since it’s quite waterproof, but note that it doesn’t have high zoom.

whaddaya think, is this at all helpful?

Note that I used Vistek for the web page info, and I would definitely buy from them; I bought my Mac from them, and they’re good about returns. But so is London Drugs, so it may come down to who has the camera you want, and the best price. The Camera Store might be another good choice, if you want good service. I’d stay away from Future Shop and the like, since they don’t do their own service.

Nikon is the only company to offer a 2-year warranty, the others all are 1 year. Nikon’s service centre is in Toronto, so you have to send off the camera. London Drugs does this for you during the warranty period, and I imagine other vendors might as well. Canon has a service centre here in town, which might be a bonus. I’m not very happy with Canon because my A70 has crapped out several times, but other models might be better. For other models, inquire as to where the service centre is, and whether the vendor will send in the camera for you, or whether you will have to. Whatever you buy, try to buy it with a credit card that has one of those policies that doubles the manufacturer’s warranty (my VISA card does this). That way, if the camera craps out, you may be able to get it repaired or replaced by your credit card company (make sure you keep the receipts so you can prove the purchase date and the original warranty period).

Lastly, ask about the returns policy. London Drugs has been pretty good in the past, and I have in fact bought cameras, used them for a week, then returned them because I wasn’t satisfied. If you buy from Future Shop, from what I hear, they hassle you when you return something.