Peter Clinch said:Michael Elcock said:Here are my requirements; I haven't found anything that meets all of
them yet:
Must have:
Reasonably compact (fits on a waste band) but can be used easily and
quickly with large fingers/gloves
At least 4 megapixels
At least 3x optical zoom
Negligible lag
Videoclips (I believe Fuji are the best here as they are 640x480)
Card - any, but the higher the capacity the better
Long battery life & rechargeable
Wide angle (My Fuji was rather narrow)
Good pictures in bad weather (high ISO?)
Viewfinder or good LCD in sunlight
Robust if wet or dropped
The "robust if wet or dropped" was what really sold me on the Olympus Mu
725 SW, though I wanted formally water*proof* for sea kayaking wet
exits. Olympus claim shock-proof too... I have taken underwater video
with it so I know it's waterproof, but haven't felt inclined to test the
shock-proofing! It's 7 MPix and has a 3x optical zoom.
Where it falls down for your list is long battery life, /but/ it's easy
enough to carry spares, they are rechargeable and don't take up much
space. Mine has a 1 Gb card in it which is good for 500 odd high
resolution images, or a lot more at lower res. As with the batteries,
carrying spares shouldn't be hard.
One reason battery life isn't great is there's no viewfinder. I've yet
to be defeated by sun, but there are times when a viewfinder would be
nice. OTOH, if it had a viewfinder too it would be bigger, clumsier and
heavier, so you have to decide on your priorities.
It's very compact, I seem to be managing to get things out of it and I'm
no photographer, and the extra bomb-proofing is a Big Win for me. You
will be able to get cameras that, given suitable knowledge and patience,
will take better pictures. But if they'll be smiling after you drop
them in a puddle, or they get rained on for 8 hours solid, would be
another matter.
Maybe worth a look, anyway...
Pete.
I'll add another vote for the Olympus 725SW. I bought it for a trip to
Borneo last year. You can see my review on Amazon (I bought it from
Play.com). It's not perfect, in particular the lack of optical image
stabilization is puzzling given the intended use. At wide angles there's
some colour fringing. The screen is very difficult to see in bright
light (you end up guessing, and then check the result after). That said,
it was great not having to worry about it getting damaged by anything I
was doing, and the pictures are really rather good. Take a look at
http://picasaweb.google.com/Antony.J.Jones/Borneo2006
The video quality isn't that great as the frame rate is limited to
15fps. Not an issue for me, but might be for the OP.
Make sure you get the version that includes the neoprene pouch (some
packs don't). But also get a long neck strap (so you don't drop it in a
river like me).
The battery life was good (about 200 shots between full recharges). I
didn't take a spare, but unbranded compatible batteries are pretty
cheap. If you really were going to be away from power for a long time,
you'd be better off with a camera that takes AA batteries (like a Canon
A series) so you can take a large pack of Duracells with you.
Unlike Peter, I only got about 330 photos on a 1Gb xD card (I always use
SHQ mode). Fuji and Olympus branded cards are dirt cheap now, so take
more than you think you need. This is my first digital, and I found I
was taking many more photos.
Note that the 725SW has now been superseded by the 770SW, which is water
proof to 10m (!) and works at -10C. You can also get a hard plastic case
for these cameras that's good for scuba diving to 40m.
When I used film, I'd carry 1 or 2 SLR bodies, a set of lenses and a
compact. At some point I'll probably get a DSLR or SLR-like camera to
get more creative control, a wider zoom range, a bigger sensor (for less
noise) and image stabilization. I'll still carry the 725SW everywhere
and it'll probably get much more use as it's just so convenient.
-Antony
