# Wanting new camera



## Mrcrowley (Apr 23, 2003)

I am after a new digital camera. Would help if anyone who has one can give me their views. So many to choose from, so better to get opinion from owners!

Being one handed, weight & easy to handle are important. Other than that, all views welcome.

Cheers

Paul


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

Hi Paul

The Nikon Coolpix 775 may well suit you. It's the one that Griff and myself have. It's small, compact and very light - I can easily fit the camera in the palm of one hand . Decent enough macro ability, and all functions are pretty easy to use.

Cheers

Foggy


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

I am also starting to think about a digital camera.

I see some places discounting a lot of their current digital cameras. Does this mean, as in the wonderful world of computer buying, that once they sell these off there is about to be a big leap in capability/Â£ of these things?

When I asked my local camera shop about a digital in November there, he advised me to get a cheap 35mm and wait a year or so as he felt that 10 megapixel would come into an affordable price bracket and then digital would really be up there with 35mm as regards image detail / quality.

Anyone in the know?

What is a good minimum pixel number for general use?

Which have the best software with them for cropping / manipulating the images? Will most be ok on Windoze 98?


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## DAVID (Mar 17, 2003)

Also have a Coolpix 775, and well pleased.

A mere 2 megapixels, but thats enough, small ,light, easy to use, around Â£180.Comes with a 8mb card, but Â£23 gets a 128mb card, which will last longer than the batteries.

I'm no David Bailey but takes great general snaps, decent macro, the only time I really use a camera is at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, and we'll see how it performs then.

Just about any decent image software should work o.k. with digital cameras, if you use a card reader, it shows up as an extra drive(usb connection), then treat them like any other image.

D.


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

Hi Simon

Re software - I use a product called Photoexpress. It came free with the camera. I like it because it's easy to use and has all the basic functions you need - cropping, resizing, colour balance, lighting, scratch removal etc. It also has a few built in effects which are quite fun to play with. Here's a quick pic (5 minutes from set-up to edited version on computer) - the subject is a Â£1 Citizen from last weekend's boot sale.

http://hyperphoto.photoloft.com/view/expor...498&w=550&h=412

Cheers

Foggy


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## Mrcrowley (Apr 23, 2003)

Hi Guys

Thanks for the advice

Re the Coolpix 775. What batteries does it take? Would prefer one that takes ordinary recharables. One of reasons I am dumping mine is cos replacement battery is Â£53, & camera is 5 yrs old! Also does it have memory stick or compact flash? What my card reader takes

Paul


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

Hi Paul

The battery is one 7.4V 650mAh Li-ion (whatever that means ?!!?) I have two (one on charge, whilst the other is in the camera) and the camera comes with a charger. The cards are compact Flash.

Cheers

Foggy


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## Mrcrowley (Apr 23, 2003)

Stands for lithium Ion. Sames as mine. Oh well, as long as they don't cost as much to replace. Cheers

Paul


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

Paul

The older Coolpix models (eg the 950) do take standard AA rechargable batteries x 4. However, the 950 is quite bulky and heavy so probably wouldn't be ideal. I like it but it is more difficult to use compared with the 775.

Cheers

Foggy


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

Hi Foggy thankyou for the feedback.

In your excellent Citizen shot how many megapixels was the camera you are using? And do you need to have a macro ability on the camera?

The Coolpix certainly seems to have its followers. How big is it? Could you pocket it? One important thing for me is that it should be easily carried / small - I am forever missing opportunities because I've left the camera behind because it is too much hassle to carry.

Hi David. Are you finding that 2M pixels give you good results in general photos as well as watch closeups? If so maybe I can spend less tha n I thought.

Si


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## Mrcrowley (Apr 23, 2003)

I wondered that. Mine is 2.1M pixel, & wasn't sure if paying for higher would make any difference.


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

Hi Simon

The Citizen was taken with the Coolpix 775 on normal mode. I thinks it's a 2.1 million pixel camera (can't honestly remember). The shot was taken in macro mode, which is nigh on essential for watch pics. Nikon tend to have pretty good macro capabilities.

I bought the 775 because of it's compact size - perfect for the pocket. It measures approx. 3.25 inches wide, 2.75 inches high and 11.5 inches deep.

Price is also pretty good at under Â£200 (although I'm sure it could be made for much cheaper







)

Cheers

Foggy


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

There's a pretty good review, with pics, here

http://www.steves-digicams.com/2001_review...s/nikon775.html

Cheers

Foggy


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

Hi Simon

I'm not David, but re your question about other non macro shots. I find the 775 takes reasonable shots. Here are a few random non-watch snaps.

http://hyperphoto.photoloft.com/view/expor...183&w=600&h=450

and

http://hyperphoto.photoloft.com/view/expor...849&w=375&h=500

and

http://hyperphoto.photoloft.com/view/expor...098&w=550&h=412

Cheers

Foggy


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

Thanks Foggy. The pic he has of the Coolpix beside the packet of cigs gives a good idea of size, definitely within my limits.

I will have a look at these in the flesh during the week. Wouldn't mind choosing / getting one by the end of the month if I see something good value where I can trade in my current 35mm compact.


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## Mrcrowley (Apr 23, 2003)

Hi Foggy

Seen some of your pics. So i think, unless you disagree, not being 3 megapix is no big deal? Just looked at the link you posted with the 3D view. Almost made up my mind....

Paul


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

I think from what I can see even 2M pixel would be adequate given my iffy photography skills.

The great thing about digital is, and I realised this after being persuaded to buy another 35mm camera and hold off on the digital, is that because you can delete stuff you can play around and learn - rather than doing what I do now which is to spend money on film and processing when only maybe 30% of the photos are really keepers.


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

OK 10% then


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## Griff (Feb 23, 2003)

Yep,

Nikon Coolpix 775 is definitely ideal.

I'm well pleased with it, and it does appear to have an excellent lens.

The macro zoom and focusing up close is phenomenal.

Definitely recommend it for you. You wont be disappointed with that camera


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## Sargon (Feb 24, 2003)

Being unemployed I've been researching digital cameras quite a bit lately. Thinking about going with the Olympus C-4000. I find eopinions.com pretty helpfull.


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

One problem that seems to be mentioned with digital is shutter lag. Why would this take longer than in a normal camera?

Is it much of a problem?

Also: if lets say you were going on holiday for 2 weeks how much memory would you need with you? Eg 10 shots that you want to keep x 14 days=140 exposures.


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## Sargon (Feb 24, 2003)

Unlike a 35mm camera you can't just pick it up and shoot. Power on takes a couple of seconds, and focus is done electronically. Press the shutter down halfway and it may take the camera a second or two to get everything just right before taking the picture. Inscribing the data to the storage card may take a second, so you can't shoot right away. These things are only problems if you're trying to photograph a sporting match or something. Digital cameras are getting better at this everyday though.

The amount of memory you buy would be dependant on the mega-pixles of the shots. Obviously a 5 mega pixle pic will take up more storage space than a 1 mega pixle shot. If I'm ever running low I take lesser quality photos. With the card I have now I can take like 60 photos in 2 megapixle, or maybe 240 in lesser quality. Since I only have one card I take the software with me on holiday. I can download the pics and e-mail them home and shoot fresh the next day.


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## DAVID (Mar 17, 2003)

Also have a very good Olympus Auto, the 775 takes pics at least as good in terms of general family snaps, has a range of modes like bright sunlight, indoor, portrait etc. ,none of which I've ever used.

In normal mode(as opposed to fine) and VGA (smallest pic size) and a 128mb card, you can take 1419 images, no more running out of film.

Its simple enough in auto mode for the children to use, yet I'm sure it can do a lot more. If I ever get some free time I might find out one day !

I also find the shutter delay a slight problem, especially with fast moving objects, but if you shoot in "continuous" mode, you can get at least 1 or 2 good shots, and of course,simply delete the rest.

After taking a batch, we tend to plug the camera into the TV, then pick out a few to print (cheap photo paper and a basic Epsom printer-amazed how good they come out), any to be stored, I write them to CD-R.

D.


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

Thanks for all the advice so far.

I am starting to think I might end up spending Â£200 rather than Â£500.

1. Do any of you living in London know of any camera shops where I can trade in my nearly new Pentax 35mm compact against one of these?

2. 5megapixel shot versus 1Mpixel shot - can someone describe the difference?

When I was looking at digital a few months ago I was dissuaded from getting one partly because the shop owner shoed me a photo taken with a 2Mpixel camera. It was just a shoy taken in the street outside, looking along the street at at the shop fronts/ signs. It was blown up t about 2/3 the size of an A4 page.

Looking at the shop signs in the phot they were very noticeably grainy. Not grainy but broken up into sections where there should have been a line...

Do any of you notice this in practice?


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## 036 (Feb 27, 2003)

Another thing I was wondering about:

Foggy, for instance, has his pics on some other site, you link to them from here.

Do you pay for this?


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## Foggy (Feb 25, 2003)

Hi Simon

The photo hsoting sites I use are free, but there are downsides. For example Photvillage does have a free service but only for up to 5Mb of bandwidth per day. So this means that only so many people can look at the pics per day before the limit is reached. After that the image can't be viewed - this is why my pictures seem to "vanish" after a while and then return the following day. There are options to pay a subscription for higher bandwidth, but unfortunately that dips into the watch funds









Most Internet Providers give us some free web-space as part of our package, so another option is to host pictures on your own web-space. I've never worked how to use mine (on BT) though as I'm not very computer literate. Anyone else tried this ??

Re 2 or 5 Megapixels ? - yes there will be a difference if you want to blow up pics. FWIW, I have printed pics taken with the 775 as 7 x 5 prints and they've looked alright. For sharing pictures on-line and storing them on your PC, 2 is more than adequate. If you are looking for really sharp prints though, more Megapixels may be the way to go.

Cheers

Foggy


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## Griff (Feb 23, 2003)

The 775 has a good lens, and 2M Pixels is great up to 7 X 5 as Foggy says.

Anything less than 2M is, in my opinion, a waste of time. The 775 is now down to Â£180, and it's a bargain. 5M pixels are for larger prints like 10 x 8, or even A3. The Nikon 775 is a brilliant little camera, and very easy to use.

I actually had a job getting one in Manchester as they were all sold out. I had to get the very last one, which was in the window!


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## Mrcrowley (Apr 23, 2003)

My 775 arrived today. Only clicked at random stuff so far. Can see how far they have come though. View screen is as good as a tv! Pic coming soon. I have a new watch coming tomorrow. If Roy will grant permission, I will post that. Bought it off your mate Roy, Mr Speedbird


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