Decent point-and-shoot for traveling?

[jakegagne]

<p>Hi all,<br>

I will be taking a vacation in Israel with my family this summer, and I would like a compact camera to bring. I own a Nikon D50, some lenses, and various film cameras. The D50 is small, but still larger than I would like to carry around for two weeks. I would like to focus more on the trip than the pictures. I also considered bringing my Yashica Electro 35, but it is not exactly small, and I would have to pack film. Not a great option either. So, I've been looking for a digital compact. The only one I have is an archaic (by digital standards) Sony 3.2MP brick of a camera. I do NOT want to bring that! ;-)<br>

Something with a large sensor would be nice, preferably in a relatively compact body. Image quality is a priority. Zoom range really doesn't matter to me at all on the long end. I rarely use telephoto lenses on my SLR. For wide angles, I guess 28mm is wide enough, though 24mm would be nice.<br>

I have been looking seriously at the Panasonic LX3 and the Canon G10. I also thought about the Sigma DP1 or DP2, and a prime lens is generally not a problem for me, but for travel purposes, I would rather have a zoom. I peeked at the Leica D-LUX 4, but the thought of paying more for a compact than I did for a DSLR makes me mildly ill.<br>

Tl;dr: compact camera, wide angle ability, decent-sized sensor for vacation to Israel.</p>

[Larry_G1664882113]

<p>I don't have a specific camera to recommend, but I will alert you to the fact that the light in Israel is quite bright with a lot of light tan desert and limestone colors. Images are easy to wash out. This may not be as true in the north, which is greener. Light considerations may impact your camera choice. Have a great trip. </p>

[machts gut]

<p>If you can live with the limitations of a reduced range on the tele side and the lack of an optical viewfinder I would consider the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3, which is the same camera as the Leica D-Lux 4, but significantly cheaper :-)<br>

Here's a review:<br>

<a href="http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicdmclx3/">http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicdmclx3/</a></p>

[eric merrill]

<p>I just bought an LX3 so I'd have a nice little camera to take on vacation without hauling out the big guns. I may bring them along, just in case. But I've been pleasantly surprised with what the LX3 can do so far. </p>

<p>Eric</p>

[jenna_kikani]

<p>I really like the Canon G series. I have G7 and it takes great pics and is pretty small. I upgraded to the G7 after using the G3 for a few years. I use a Canon 40D now, but the G7 is my backup and it takes really sharp and vivid photos. I've blown up some of those prints to 11 x 14 and they quality is great. Even sold a few of those pics.</p>

[kaiyen]

<p>My wife and I brought along only an LX3 and a Panasonic TZ3 (since replaced by TZ5, but it's the 10x zoom unit they have) to Thailand. I decided lugging any additional gear around would be too draining considering the heat. I was and am extremely happy with the LX3, and the TZ3 does a great job with good light (it's NR is pretty aggressive) and you can't beat a 10x zoom. </p>

[unclebuddha]

<p>I have the LX2 and it is fantastic. Just make sure you keep the ISO set to 100, not Auto or above 100 as the noise can be a problem. You can even make pretty good videos with the dang thing as seen here:

(handheld in the Red River Gorge, KY). A little Giottos tripod and you are all set. I bought this camera after my mom-in-law raved about her Leica DLux 3 and I looked at dpreview and compared the specs side-by-side.<br>

Get the camera early so you can play with it!</p>

[john_demott]

<p>With the LX3 and G10, you are looking at the two cameras that most folks would recommend as high quality, non-DSLR compact travel cameras. Both have received good reviews, but both have the inherent limitations of compact, consumer cameras--so it really is a question of which one is right for you. The LX3 does a little better in low light, high ISO situations (although neither camera matches DSLR low light performance) and has a slightly wider angle lens. The G10 has a longer zoom range and has a higher resolution sensor, allowing greater freedom in cropping and printing at large sizes.</p>

<p>I have the G10 and am very pleased with it. For me, having the longer zoom range was important but it sounds like that isn't an issue for you. The choice of focal lengths may well be the deciding factor for you. IMHO, the differences between the two cameras in noise/low light performance are over-stated. The G10 will produce more noise than the LX3 at high ISO, but the solution is to apply some noise reduction software...that will of course result in some loss of detail in the images but the LX3 has lower resolution to begin with, so the net result isn't that different.</p>

[berg_na]

<p>I think that you'll be happy with either the LX3 or the G10. The LX3 is more compact than the G10 and has HD video capability. While these P&S are good, they just don't compare with the image quality of a good SLR. When I travel I always bring both my D300 and the LX3.</p>

[brooks_lester]

<p>I have an LX-3 as well, and it's a well-reviewed semi-pocketable digicam. It does have a nice wide lens. But, it's nowhere near the IQ of a DSLR, even a D50. I'm not knocking your D50 - I used to have one - my point is that the D50 technology and specifically its chip are older DSLR designs - but even an older 6MP DSLR like the the D50 has significantly better image quality than any of the current pocketable cameras. Sure, you could get an LX3, but I'd still take the D50 and at least the kit lens or a third-party mid-zoom with constant f/2.8. The little cameras simply have too many pixels on a tiny chip to deliver comparable image quality to a DSLR. <br>

I've gone from D50 to D300 to D700 - adding weight and image quality every step of the way. Still, I only take my LX3 if I'm going to be shooting snap shots that won't be "lifetime" valued pictures; I'll lug the happily lug the D700 for everything else. </p>

[russelharris]

<p>I use a G9 for backup (for assignments here in Israel) and as a general carry cam. It's a fantastic and versatile little camera that I would take on any trip.</p>

<p>BTW, Larry's comment about the light is quite valid, esp as you will be here in Summer.</p>