Best compact digital camera to take on rides?

[BumbleBeeDave]

I currently have a Nikon Coolpix L4(?) that I have been using on rides. It works OK . . . it's small, easy to get out of my pocket and get shots with. But it's only 4 megapixels and only has a 3x zoom. It also has--apparently--a preset ISO of 50, which means problems with slow shutter speeds in low light. Not the best for shooting on the move! The optical zoom also only goes to 3x. The total zoom is 5x, but because it gains the extra length by cropping down on the full image and file size, the image quality really goes to heck. I'd like to get something better to take on rides.

Here's what I'd like to have . . .

• User adjustable ISO up to at least 400--800 would be better (not the "auto adjust" like they have on the newer coolpix cameras)
• At least 7 megapixel
• At least 3x totally optical zoom . . . 5x would be better
• Small size with easy to use controls so it will fit easily in the jersey pocket and I can do what I need to with it wearing cycling gloves.
• Moisture resistant would be a nice added bonus.
• SD image chip
• Easy USB connectivity to my Mac

Does anyone have a camera that meets all these criteria without costing $400-500? Any suggestions would be appreciated!

BBD

[fhernandez1960]

Most of the point and shoot are not going to give you a fast shutter. For motion type of photography I use a Canon 1d Mark II but I would hardly call that a camera that you can put on a bike. Unless you wanted to use it as an anchor.

That being said... This website is very good at giving technical reviews. I prefer Canon gear but that's a religious war much like Campi or Shimano.


http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/

You can review the timeline as well to see what has been recently announced but not necessarily reviewed. The forum is hectic with newbies but you can fish good info in certain places.

The moisture resistance will be tricky. I am only aware on the DSLR pro bodies as being sealed. For that, a ziplock or check in www.bhphoto.com to see if there are water cases for the camera you choose.

Good luck Francis.

[davyt]

It's pushing your budget--the street price is around US$350 or so--but take a look at the Olympus Stylus 770 SW (http://www.olympusamerica.com/cpg_section/product.asp?product=1287). It meets all of your criteria with the exception of using xD-Picture Card storage.
--
Davy

P.S. I recently got this as a gift:
http://www.collegegear.com/sf/stores/product_images/288191-x.jpg
Pretty cool, huh?

[Grant McLean]

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/



+1 on that site. great info.

-g

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . and they do have the feature set, but the price of admission is indeed steep.

But I'm not as familiar with some of the other brands . . . Samsung, Casio, Fuji, etc. . . . I'm trying to see what other options I might have that are cheaper then the $350 Olympus that still get me at least close to the feature set. The large file size and the adjustiable ISO are my big desireable features.

BBD

As for the jersey, davyt . . . Hey, it's yellow and black! That means it's PERFECT! :D

[Ozz]

How about this:

Dakota Digital Single-Use Camera (http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,111841-page,1/article.html)

Probably doesn't fit all your criteria...but it is cheap and you don't need to worry about it.

I have a Sony DSC-W80 now that seems pretty rugged....I dropped a 3 D sized battery Maglite on it...dented it pretty good and it still works fine.

I had an Olympus Stylus that worked OK for about 3 years....then it didn't. Just stopped turning on. I could still view pictures on the memory card, but it just wouldn't take pictures.

My biggest problem with digital cameras is the slow shutter release. Reducing resolution to 3 megapixels helps...most my pics are for 4 x 6 photos anyway so not a big deal. Still, it is annoying to mis a shot cuz the picture doesn't snap when you press the button. :crap:

[TimB]

we recently got one of these - takes great photos - small without being too tiny, image stabilization might be nice when riding, has a manual mode for settings. Isn't moisture-proof....we got ours for about $329

[Hardlyrob]

I was going to say Canon A550 or 710, but wasn't fast enough.

Big files, adjustable ASO, SD memory, and well under your price target.

While I haven't used either of these, I've had great luck with Canon digital and film SLR cameras for the past several years.

[Too Tall]

Dave, I purchased the Olympus stylus 750 which is not the uberduber waterproof version. Picked it because that sucker is fast out of the pocket and it is weather proof. It's great and with a fast mem card even better. Me likey

[Pete Serotta]

Dave, I have the P5000 NIKON and it works well. IF I was to buy one today I would look at the CANON and the Olympus. YOU probably could teach me MANY things about photography but make sure it has a "eye viewer" and not just the screen - which is very hard to see in bright sunlight.

PETE

[stevep]

i now have a canon elph 800.
the lens is wider than normal for these things which i like.
it is a 28mm equivalent...rather than the usual 35mm that comes w/ most
it is tiny, 7 meg
i love the thing.
software easy to use.

[Bruce K]

Get Len J to chime in on this one.

The camera he had on the PMC took great pictures and was easy for him to handle while riding.

BK

[thwart]

i now have a canon elph 800.
Thumbs-up on the Canon Elph line. Easy-to-use, and great photos.

Fairly durable too. Just be careful about sand and such at the beach. Don't ask me why I know that... :crap:

[eadorno]

I'm in the same boat and have the same Coolpix you currently have. I am considering getting the Panasonic Lumic DMC - TZ3. It is 7.2 pixels with a 10x zoom. Looks great and it's going for $269.00 at www.Wisetronics.com.

[malcolm]

BBD check out steves digicams. It is best I can tell a fairly independent site and reviews virtually all digital cameras.

[djg]

I've been very happy with the Lumix FX07 I bought last winter. Overall, I think it's a terrific little camera -- very nice build quality (with metal all around), very easy to use on the fly, good optics and images. You probably already know this from shopping for your Nikon, but IMO, for cycling (skiing, this-and-that) the ergonomics is both subjective and important -- if you don't want to grab it and have it with you, you'll end up not having it with you; and if you like the features but find them awkward to access or employ, that too can be a pain. It pays to read the reviews (and I like the dp site) but it also pays to check a few out, hold them in your hands, and see how they feel and are laid out.

[DarrenCT]

i just got a Panasonic Lumix TZ3

7 megapix, rechargable battery, huge lcd display, ISO

10x Optical zoom!

i did a lot of research and wanted something with a good zoom in a compact design and this hit the spot.

fyi, that hawk picture i posted here was taken with the tz3 at 9 or 10x optical zoom

[BumbleBeeDave]

Is the rechargeable battery proprietary, or does it take standard AA rechargeables? I've looked at the Olympus and it looks super, but it takes a proprietary battery--run out of battery and you're stuck.

Also, how much does the Lumix go for?

BBD

[imm]

Love the Canon Elph SD400 I've been using for a while now. Sometimes I forget it's in my jersey when I whip it off into the hamper, so be careful or it will get washed ;)

[DarrenCT]

BBD,

It is propiertary, however, it lasts a really long time. You would have to take about 2000 shots to drain the battery...

I paid $320 @ Circuit City.

Let me know if you have any more questions...

-D

Is the rechargeable battery proprietary, or does it take standard AA rechargeables? I've looked at the Olympus and it looks super, but it takes a proprietary battery--run out of battery and you're stuck.

Also, how much does the Lumix go for?

BBD

[BumbleBeeDave]

Olympus Stylus 820 . . . 8 MP, 5x optical zoom with 5.6x digital zoom if I want to turn it on. Xd card, adjustable ISO up to 3200 so I can force a faster shutter speed while riding. It also has digital image stabilization which will also hopefully help for shots while riding. It's also water resistant, so that should help while it's in my sweaty jersey pocket. also macro down to 1.6" from the lens.

There's also a couple of neat features I wasn't expecting . . . automatic shadow lightening without fill flash. It's as if I took the finished pic in Photoshop and picked the shadows and lightened them manually--but in-camera and automatic. I can also turn on a grid on the display to keep things straight composition if I want to. I'm still exploring the other features--and I'm sure I will find some other neat stuff. Yes, it has the proprietary battery, but I just bought an extra one to carry with me.

$250 for the camera at Best Buy, $40 for the extra battery, and $40 more for the 2gb card that will hold 500 photos at the full 8MP setting.

Thanks to all for all your great advice!

BBD

[DarrenCT]

BBD,

congrats! now get the heck out there and take some cool pictures :)

its raining here in connecticut so no riding for me.

i like the water resistant feature on your camera btw.

cheers
-d

[znfdl]

Dave, I purchased the Olympus stylus 750 which is not the uberduber waterproof version. Picked it because that sucker is fast out of the pocket and it is weather proof. It's great and with a fast mem card even better. Me likey

+1 served me well on Pac Tour

[Tom]

I have got to get me one of those.

BBDave was talking about this on the ride he hosted the other weekend, and noting that the camera he was using at the time was lacking due to the absence of a lot of these features he mentioned above.

So I ask "Yeah, but for somebody like me, not a skilled and experienced photographer, would I notice the lack?"

"No" he said diplomatically after a moment's pause.


Still I think I'm going to go find one of those. Thanks for doing the research and letting us know, man.

[BumbleBeeDave]

Did I really say that?

Get the higher megapixels if you get nothing else. You can always crop in on a shot to make it better, but with digital if you crop in you're also making file size smaller, which makes things grainier and limits the size of an acceptable quality reprint if you want to make one. An 8 or 10 MP camera helps you get around that problem.

One other feature of the Stylus I forgot to mention is that it has a pretty large screen on the back. I find that the majority of viewing I do of my own photos and showing them to others is right after the ride, so that screen essentially becomes the print size I'm showing people.

That Stylus 820 is on sale at Best Buy all this week, as far as I know. It's blue. They also had a 7 mp Fuji FinePix that was only $180 that caught my eye because it goes wide to the 35mm camera equivalent of a 28mm wide-angle lens. Almost every other one of these compact digitals only goes to the equivalent of a 35-37mm lens. But the Fuji only had a 3x zoom and because you're starting your zoom at a wider angle, it really left me short on the long end of the zoom range.

BBD

[1centaur]

"It also has digital image stabilization"

dpreview says no on this, BBD

http://64.233.169.104/search?q=cache:DwtjMXl-HfwJ:www.dpreview.com/news/0708/07082306olystylus820.asp+Olympus+Stylus+820&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=us

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . because the shooting mode dial has that setting and the owner's manual describe's it's operation. I just checked the camera and it definitely has that mode and it works.

But I also noticed that you cannot manually set the ISO is the "stabilize" mode. I'd probably just use the normal mode and up the ISO to 400. On anything from a cloudy day on up, that usually is enough to force the shutter speed high enough to capture action while riding, so I wouldn't need to use the image stabilization mode anyway . . .

BBD