P&S for my wife.....and myself

I've been thinking about purchasing a P&S camera for my wife and possibly

myself. I already own a Canon 30D with a whole bunch of lenses, but need a

pocket camera for my wife that I can use sometimes. The price is not an issue.

I need the camera that has close to dSLR pic quality and adjustability, like

not having to go through menu all the time to change something like ISO or

Mode. I understand that it is almost impossible to find one with all the

reqirements but maybe with some. I've considered a Canon G7, Canon SD800 IS,

Canon A 530/540 630/640, Fuji F30, Casio z750, . Please dont flame me for this

question, I just dont have any experience with the digital P&S, any suggestion

from your own experience will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

forgot to mention, a viewfinder will be plus

Have you considered the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FPanasonic-DMC-LX2K-Digital-Optical-Stabilized%2Fdp%2FB000GHULTM%2Fsr%3D8-1%2Fqid%3D1164909166%3Fie%3DUTF8%26s%3Delectronics&tag=cyclingshots-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325">Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2</a>.

<p>

It's rather new but <a href="http://www.popphoto.com/cameras/3267/camera-test-panasonic-lumix-dmc-lx2.html">Popular Photography</a> has a review of it. From the review:

<p>

<i>

What a difference this upgrade makes! We ran the LX2 through the Pop Photo Lab, and the results show that Panasonic has made a breakthrough in image quality, thanks to its new Venus Engine III processor and smart noise-reduction technology.

<p>

Combined with the excellent resolution from the sensor (which beats most 8MP DSLRs at ISO 100 and 200) and its excellent color accuracy, the LX2 earned an Excellent rating for Image Quality at ISO 100, and Extremely High ratings from ISO 200 up to ISO 800. Its noise levels peak at ISO 200 (Moderately Low) and drop to Low at ISO 400 and ISO 800, rising back to Moderately Low at ISO 1600.</i>

<p>

It doesn't look like it's got an optical viewfinder though. But the capability to shoot RAW makes it very enticing to me. Good luck in your hunt.

<p>

Cheers!

The LX2 is awesome indeed. On paper.

But NOT that f/stop range of F2.8 - F4.9. That worries me. A lot!

If you read the reviews of people who have used the camera, most mention that it's pretty noisy above ISO 100. I'm kinda in the market myself, so have been looking around. Haven't decided on anything yet, though. There are too many, and the one that will be made next week is better. Cheers

I recently bought my wife an SD800 IS; fantastic camera for the price.

<p>

Up to ISO 400 it's very good. Beyond that, especially in available light, noise becomes a

problem.

<p>

Here's links to 100% unedited crops; the first one is ISO 400 with flash; the

second ISO 800 available light at 1/2 second shutter and poor white balance. To non-

photographers both full images are acceptable when printed as 8x10s.

<ol>

<li><a href="http://mikesisk.com/photo/tmp/iso400.jpg">

http://mikesisk.com/photo/tmp/iso400.jpg</a></li>

<li><a href="http://mikesisk.com/photo/tmp/iso800.jpg">

http://mikesisk.com/photo/tmp/iso800.jpg</a></li>

</ol>

Canon A640 or the smaller Canon A540 are excellent choices.

 

The Fuji F30 is class-leading for high-ISO images.

The Canon A6xx series offers a lot of flexibility and quality in a relatively inexpensive, P&S format.

 

I don't know if there is any commonality at all with the user interface of your 30D but, if there was, that would be a plus.

I think Fuji F30 is the best there. Excellent photo quality, and well-exposed ISO1600 photos are mind-blowing.

I like my Canon SD700IS a lot, but wish I'd waited and gotten the SD800IS for the wider-angle lens.

My only experience with digital cameras has been a (now old) Nikon Coolpix (2.1 mpx) and, nowadays, an Olympus SP320 (7.1 mpx). They both have 3X optical zoom.

 

They both have menus to get around, but once set, they stay where you put 'em.

 

I like the Olympus a lot because you can shoot either JPG or RAW. I love the RAW setting because it's so versatile. When you bring the image into CS2 with the RAW filter, you can adjust all kinds of stuff before even opening the image, and the menus for that are very intuitive.

 

Also, the viewfinder zooms with the lens, which is a big plus. It's not super-exact in the framing, but close enough when you're trying to nail down a composition.

 

On the other hand, you might want to consider one of the 6 mpx cameras that have, like, 10X optical zooms. Nikon, Canon, and Olympus (and probably others) make them, for not too much more dough.

 

In any event, I would definitely go with something that'll give you the option to shoot RAW.

 

My background is with view cameras, so I might be a bit difficult to please.

 

Hope this helps.