buying digital camera, need advice

[bdog]

I am looking to buy a didital camera. I am wanting to stay under $300. Any recommendations on cameras and places to buy them?

[Stan]

Hi,

The 1st thing to check is the CCD resolution.
The average is 2.1 megapixels.

Now, 300$ is not that much for a Digital camera.
I personally love the Kodak series.
I bought the DC265 (1.6 mpixels) last year.
I just sold it yesterday and I am waiting for the Kodak DC4800 (3.1 mpixels).

Stan

[Richard_Cranium72]

1st question is What are you going to do with it. If mainly you're gonna post to the web, then one type, or are you gonna make 8 x 10 glossy photos? DrVette

[bdog]

Thanks for your replies. I know it is not a lot for a camera. I am on a budget and am just wanting to get an entry level camera. I want good picture quality but it doesn't need to be perfect. I really never plan on having the pictures be larger than 4 X 6. I will just mainly use it for daya to day pictures, fishing trips, etc. I found a good deal on an Olympus 460 for $300. Is this a good camera? It is only 1.3 mega pixel. What does this mean? http://www.thedigitaldog.com/productdetails2.cfm?Product_ID=OMD460Z

[jl123]

Well I have a Olympus Ditital camera. I was looking at that Olympus 460 camera but it was 399 everywhere. So i got the Olympus 1.3 megapixel D-360L($299). It's a pretty good camera for fishing trips and posting pics on the web. I think the only difference between the D-360L and the D-460 might just be the zoom. Mine only has a 2x digital zoom.

Here's mine.
http://www.olympusamerica.com/product.asp?c=34&s=12&product=527

But Olympus Digital cameras are great. Hope you find what you like. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

~Joel

[Stan]

bdog,

This camera has a resolution of 1280x960 pixels, that's approx 1.3 megapixels.
That's the resolution of the camera's CCD (http://webopedia.internet.com/TERM/C/CCD.html).
The higher the resolution is, the better the pictures will be ! simple !

It looks like a good camera for $300.
Enjoy !

Stan

[jl123]

Here's a pic I took with my Olympus. I was haveing a little trouble with Tripod, so i hope this works. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

http://jl321.tripod.com/mydog.JPG

~Joel

[bdog]

Thanks for the advice. I am going to get the 460L.

[jl123]

Good choice! Overall I like the Olympus Cameras. They offered a lot of advanced features. Like my mutt? http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif Hehe

http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

~Joel

[bdog]

I like you dog http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif Also I am impressed with the picture quality. Thanks again for the advice and the trouble of posting a pic.

[jl123]

Oh no problem. Glad I could help. Hope you'll like your Olympus. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif Goodluck!

You can have my dog if you want him. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif j/k

http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

~Joel

[Richard_Cranium72]

If you are gonna stick to a max of 4x6's , how about trying a Polaroid Fun Flash? $99 at Wal-Mart, the resolution is the best I've seen from a 640x480 camera, very crisp, much better than a Nikon Coolpix 100 or a Agfa E-Smile. I was hesitant about it at first cause the LCD display is poor, but HEY, if you can save 2 C notes and get the job done, why not. I THINK the Polaroid 320 is nearly the same camera, the 320 is in the box when I choose software for the FF... The Polaroid 320 is at Super K Mart for $59.00.. and , you can try these out and take them back hassle free if ya don't like them. Yesterday, I talked with the photo mgr at wal mart about the FF camera, he said he was surprised when they first got them in a while back , he figured outta the first hundred they sold, maybe 1/3 to 1/2 or so would be returned. WRONG, only 2 he said my .02 , DrVette

[bdog]

Well I just went and bought the D-460. I am very pleased with it. Thanks again for the advice. Now if I could just stop taking pictures http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

[Warthog]

Stan,

How much did you originally by the camera for? How much did you sell it for?

Just trying to get an idea about the price drop in a year. I would really, really like to get a digital camera. Not right now, but eventually. My price range is about the same as bdogs. The only thing that has stopped me is the thought, "I'm spending $400 on a camera that is good now but will suck in a year" - in other words, I don't want to lose a bunch of money when I sell it in a year or so.

Another question: About how many pics can you store on a $50-60 flash card (don't know the sizes off hand)? I mean average number. I know the resolution, etc. can vary.

Thanks!

Warthog

[ablang]

I am looking for a digital camera that has the most BANG for the BUCK. One with the most memory and best resolution for the best price. Any recommendations?

[Stan]

Warthog

I bought the DC265 in september 1999 for £600.00 (approx $1000.00).
I sold it last Thursday for £300.00 ($500.00).
I kept one 16Mb CF-card and the PCMCIA adapter.

With the DC265, I was able to store between 30 and 34 pictures on one 16Mb CF-card (average JPEG picture size = 500Kb).
This is using the highest resolution (1536x1024) and the best quality.

There are 2 elements that define the quality of the picture:
- the resolution: the higher the better
- the quality: the compression ratio.
The more you compressed the picture, the smallest it will be in size but you will loose some details and picture definition.

I haven't received the DC4800 yet... still waiting. The max resolution is 2160x1440.
According to Kodak's web site, I should be able to store 16 to 20 pictures on on 16 CF-card.

Stan

[Warthog]

Thank you very much, Stan!! http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

Warthog

[bdog]

Warthog, I strongly suggest going with an Olympus. I am very pleased with mine. If you want a cheaper camera the 360 is basically the same without the zoom. The camera comes with an 8mb card which will store 36 high quality or 18 super high quality 1280 X 960 images. I haven't even tried the super high quality mode but the regular high quality pictures work great. I can email you a picture I took with it if you like. I think you can get a 16 mb media card for around $50 and it will hold twice as many pics.

[bhess]

This is a great deal. I did this and love the camera. This link is for a $100 off for new customers: here (http://www.mercata.com/cgi-bin/mercata/mercata/v2/pages/home.jsp?sourceid=00239352741042550173)

Then go here for the nikon coolpix800 : here (http://www.mercata.com/cgi-bin/mercata/mercata/v2/pages/details.jsp?BV_SessionID=1540212614.965629376&BV_EngineID=ealihghldefbemfcfkmcgeckh.0&OID=14933)
there is a $75 mail-in rebate too.
that's $529-100-75=$354


[This message has been edited by bhess (edited 08-06-2000).]