The hunt for the perfect point & shoot camera
I enjoy photography a lot and I have a whole range of cameras each serving a different purpose. The problem with most of my cameras is that they are just too big to carry around all the time. While in Munich although I had a lot of fun shooting with my old Nikon FE the fact remains it weighed a ton and I had to carry it around in a shoulder bag.
I currently have two small point & shoot cameras but they’re pretty outdated. I have a cheap Canon A530 camera which I keep in the car and then I have a Sony N1 which I am currently taking when I’m traveling. Problem with the two is that A530 doesn’t fit into my pocket and the Sony N1 doesn’t do well in dim lit situations. Thats why I’ve decided to search for a replacement. What I would like to have in my perfect camera is the following:
- Small size
- 6MP and up
- Bright lens
- RAW capabilities
- Great battery life
- Great image quality
- Great high iso performance
- Camera controls on top (like SLR’s)
- Character
- Metal body
- Needs to look good
- No budget (ok not Leica M8 budget)
If I was going to get a large DSLR camera I would get the Nikon D300 in a heart beat. Its a very easy decision since there aren’t that many high end DSLR’s to choose from. With a point & shoot camera its a different story, there are like a hundred different cameras to decide from and each has a different advantage. I’ve been doing a lot of research the past few days and so far the following are the cameras I am deciding between:
Canon G9
Great camera, shoots RAW, solid build but has decent high iso performance and I don’t think the camera fits into my pocket so it kinda kills the point.
Ricoh GX100
Its got a retro look, very solid build, shoots RAW, bright lens and great image quality. Problem is RAW shots take 5 seconds to save and has poor high iso performance which is a killer for me.
Sigma DP-1
This camera also has a retro look and also has a solid build. It uses the same image sensor as larger DSLR’s which means the image quality is fantastic. It has great high iso performance but the camera costs more than double the price of all the other cameras I am checking out and it only has a fixed 28mm lens which although I am a fan of isn’t really practical for my purpose.
Fuji Finepix F100fd
Not really a Fuji fan but this camera has excellent low light capabilities. Iso goes up to 3200 and the 1600 iso is pretty usable judging by the pictures online. But, I think this camera is really ugly, lacks character and many people have complained about its interface.
Sony W300
This camera and the next one below are fairly conservative choices. The W300 is a great size, looks good and has a durable black titanium body. It also has a pretty decent high iso performance and was the camera I was going to get except for the fact many users have complained about poor image quality.
Nikon S600
The cheapest camera from the bunch. Has excellent image quality, great size and looks plus a very fast start up time. Main problem with this camera is the shutter lag and no manual option.
Which camera am I going to go with? I have no clue at the moment. Its a tough choice and each camera has its advantage, I will probably do a bit more research and then decide what to get but so far I think I am leaning towards the Ricoh GX100. Once I decide I will post again here.
Update: Ok, the Ricoh GX100 which I had my mind set on will NOT fit into a jeans pocket [Picture]. I thought it was smaller than that. So now the G9, GX100 and Sigma DP1 are out of the picture. The Ricoh though looks like a great camera made for photographers. I was flipping through pictures taken by the GX100 on Flickr and all the pictures feel very film like. [Flickr Pictures]
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62 Comments, add your own...
1. Mr.CHoCoLaTe | June 22nd, 2008 at 9:55 pm
Nikon P5100
is like a Canon G9
see it
I have it
it is good
you can see some pictures taken by it here
http://www.flickr.com/groups/517175@N25/
2. Jim Sefton | June 22nd, 2008 at 9:59 pm
How’s about the smaller Canon’s (Ixus)? I used to own one and it was the best cam I ever had. I switched to Pentax and regretted it. My Mum uses an Ixus (I forget which) and the images they have blown up to A3 and printed are almost DSLR quality.
3. T-Num | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:02 pm
The G9 looks good to me but Sigma is a killer.
I don’t know about Sony.
BTW, off topic but Halo 3 Xbox 360 limited Edition costs 103 at Eureka.
4. Mark | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:03 pm
The P5100 wont fit in my pocket and it doesn’t perform well in dim lit environments
5. The Archer | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:25 pm
You won’t miss with Nikon or Canon.
Sony’s good, but every cam seems to have its own personality. Let’s just hope you’re one of the lucky ones. :p
A lot of my friends got the Sony W300; they’re loving it so far.
6. Mohammad Abdullah | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:30 pm
Mark,
Thank you for this post…
I can’t wait for the conclusion of this research.
7. Ni | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Check out the Lumix TZ5
8. Q80 BOY | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:42 pm
I say get the Sony W300, its Carl Ziess Lens are very good + it looks nice and slim.
9. ar53nal14 | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:43 pm
CANON S5! But it won’t fit in your pocket. There aren’t many point and shoots that supoprt RAW, they are very few. This Olympus is excellemnt, but again, it won’t fi into your pocket. http://www.amazon.com/Olympus-SP-570UZ-Digital-Optical-Stabilized/dp/B0011E67VA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=photo&qid=1214163650&sr=1-3
But, a point and shoot is made to capture this rare moments, you don’t need to capture them in RAW or stuff like that. Just get a normal one!
10. Mark | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:43 pm
the carl ziess lenses on the sonys are a gimick, they’re nothing close to the quality of the glass on their proper stand alone lenses
11. Mark | June 22nd, 2008 at 10:44 pm
actually i think the lenses on the sonys are plastic lol
12. vampire | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:19 pm
carl ziess is just used foe advertisement purpose
i owuld go with the Fuji f100 bcoz of the many positive reviews and the most important the great performance for night shots
13. Eddy | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:34 pm
have u considered the canon sd 790??its an excellent camera, fits in your pocket, and its gotten pretty good reviews…best thing is that camera itself looks very nice, and in the end the picture quality is excellent…but controls are a bit hard to navigate through…
14. Mark | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:38 pm
itdoesnt support high isos, max is 800
15. susheeh | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:41 pm
i have the canon IXUS 12.1 MP and its pretty awesome
16. Q80 BOY | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:42 pm
Carl Ziess = Plastic.
Thats not what the salesman at Al Ghanim told me. He said its very good cause its German and he showed me the difference between a shot from A Sony camera and a Panasonic Camera. The Sony shot was way better.
BTW i dunno anything about cameras
17. Mark | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:46 pm
1) he is a salesman
2) he is a salesman at alghanim
3) i could show you shots from a panasonic that look better than a sony, lots of factors come into play
4) carl zeiss are famous for their lenses but not the crappy p&s lenses, their lenses are used on proper cameras and costs thousands of dollars.
5) he is a salesman at alghanim you seriously taking advice from him?
18. Q80 BOY | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:47 pm
Mark
I think you forgot that he is a sales man
you didnt mention it
19. dfineline | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:47 pm
Canon G7 is one of the best camera I have ever used, the optical zoom is amazing and the clarity you get from it is great. Canon is the far best camera for color resemblance as I have ever seen, and it is also know for it.
I also have the same problem regarding travel and camera, but beeing a girl it is of course more easy since I carry handbag with me. So I cant really help, except that the zoom has been an a clear winner for me to still take the little extra weight with me, where ever I go. … And it also handels beeing dropped now and then bc of its steel case. Only minus would be the batterie life… but solvable with a extra one.
For party pocket I use Canon ixus 70, slick steel case with same picture quality as G7. But without the zoom.
One more ting, the leather cases for both cameras can be bought in Amazone since Kuwait dont have these extra original accessories.
My opinion only…=) and good luck with it.
20. A.A | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:49 pm
whats up with the new sponsor? u didnt talk about them ?
21. vampire | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:53 pm
Q80 BOY,, he’s not only a salesman,, he’s a salesman at alghanim
ppl here are making judgment base on looks!! i’m not having sex with the cam to care about how it looks,, the function and purpose is the important here
22. Yousef | June 22nd, 2008 at 11:58 pm
P5100. Just as Mr. Choco said. Great camera, although yes it is a bit bulky, but does support flash units.
23. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 12:00 am
G9 > P5100 so if i was going to go with something that doesnt fit in my pocket i would go for the G9
24. uturn | June 23rd, 2008 at 12:08 am
I’ll save you the time, only canon does the lightest Point & Shoot with all the manual specs you require ..
25. TanGo | June 23rd, 2008 at 12:13 am
Coolpix P5100 should fit a average_size pocket! No!!
26. Eddy | June 23rd, 2008 at 12:28 am
actually the canon sd790 can go up to iso 1600…try looking up canon ixus 90….same camera…and there is a separate mode for iso 3200 also…
27. Adam | June 23rd, 2008 at 12:45 am
im surprised leica d-lux 3 isnt on there… thats what i shoot with, and i think its excellent. its not that expensive either. i have pics on my flickr, but im sure you can just goto flickr and check out some of its pics. Shoots in raw and everything
28. Rayboy | June 23rd, 2008 at 1:13 am
I not much into photography ..But my wife uses the Casio Exilm as a Point shoot camera , which is extremely light , has much templates and manual mode.
29. lfc-q8 | June 23rd, 2008 at 1:16 am
i would go for a canon i have now for over 3 years and its just amazing and the build quality on it is second to none and the pics are great
30. Adam | June 23rd, 2008 at 2:12 am
casio is good for watches… thats about it
31. Armani Exchanger | June 23rd, 2008 at 2:17 am
mark: in my point of view, i think that you gonna solve your problem by buying pants with big pockets :P
vampire: luv your comments cousin ;)
32. Komsomol | June 23rd, 2008 at 3:31 am
Great post.
Am in love with the Canon PowerShot G9.
33. Abdullah | June 23rd, 2008 at 4:28 am
absolutely Canon.
34. docxray | June 23rd, 2008 at 7:11 am
Take a look at this website: http://www.kenrockwell.com. Rockwell is one of the best known digital camera reviewers and writes extensively on the use of Nikon equipment. His recent article on recommended cameras will be of interest to you.
35. GlenBoy | June 23rd, 2008 at 7:24 am
Well Mark… I’d go for the Canon IXUS series…. I’ve had a an IXUS 800 IS for almost 2 yrs now and its been the best… I recently brought another IXUS for my in laws…. Ive had a Sony in the past and i just hate it…
So my vote is for the Canon IXUS series preferably with Image Stabilizer (IS)
36. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 8:21 am
Ken Rockwell although one of the best known digital camera reviewers is very biased. I would take everything he says with a grain of salt.
I prefer:
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/shirt-pocket.shtml
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/ricoh-gx100.shtml
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/sigma-dp1.shtml
37. aglocogirl | June 23rd, 2008 at 8:56 am
Nikon s51 i am using it, it is excellent piece of device, compact and full of performance.
38. cajie | June 23rd, 2008 at 9:15 am
1. Camera fitting in pocket
2. Great image quality
These are mutually exclusive. At least as of now.
Whatever you choose will give you fine results in some conditions and horrible in others. You will never be satisfied.
Be a man and get a D300. Small form factor be damned.
39. Random | June 23rd, 2008 at 9:19 am
Canon Ixus 90 IS best all round point and shoot
40. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 9:27 am
The Ixus 90 has to be the most boring camera ever
41. Abdullah | June 23rd, 2008 at 10:07 am
http://www.amazon.com/Leica-Digital-Camera-Optical-Stabilized/dp/B000J6FTUQ/ref=pd_bbs_12?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1214204530&sr=8-12
That looks cool
42. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 10:33 am
Abdullah: I am not a fan of Panasonic which the Leica basically is. The only Leica digital camera I would consider is the M8 but at $5500 without the lens, thats not going to happen any time soon lol
43. salem | June 23rd, 2008 at 2:31 pm
hey guys,,, share ur experience with me pal,, i wana start a flickr account, so whats’ the ” best camera ” for takin images , iam not a Pro, but i want to shoot a good quality images so they’ll look perfect online !! ? what do u suggest me to take ?
44. Nobu | June 23rd, 2008 at 2:53 pm
It really depends on your definition of “pocket”. Almost all of the cameras suggested by you and your readers would fit comfortably in the side pocket of cargo pants. However, if you’re talking about a skin tight Versace shirt, then it’s an entirely different story.
Anyway, let us know your final verdict when you make the purchase.
45. romanovski | June 23rd, 2008 at 2:56 pm
I bought the canon powershort G9 2 weeks ago. I made lot of research to choose the good one.
I was like you, I didn’t matter of the price I only focalise on the specs.
I had the same has you. 6M pixel, RAW, large screen, very high quality of the images… AND firstly the size of the camera !!!
AND also if you have any problem with you camera, canon have a very good aftersale!!
Go ahead for the CANON and enjoy ;)
46. Adam | June 23rd, 2008 at 3:28 pm
lecia is basically panasonic??
and how can u not consider the lens, when lecia is said to have the best glass?
47. Adam | June 23rd, 2008 at 3:41 pm
Abdullah do you shoot with a Leica as well?
Here are some of my fav pics taken with a leica:
http://flickr.com/photos/adam-miami/2584311530/
http://flickr.com/photos/adam-miami/2329013871/
http://flickr.com/photos/adam-miami/2329093361/
http://flickr.com/photos/adam-miami/2329144161/
then theres my favorite pic, but not taken by me:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/darkroom/2094221083/
48. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 3:48 pm
ummmm again like Carl Zeiss lenses on Sony cams are just a gimick, Leica lenses on Panasonic cams are also just a gimick.
When you consider the fact that the cheapest Leica lens you can buy on Amazon costs $1,750
http://www.amazon.com/Leica-50mm-SUMMICRON-M-Black-System/dp/B00007LKHY
and that most Leica lenses cost over $3,000 then you get a better idea of the quality of the Leica lens that comes on a $400 camera.
So yeah, I AM looking at good lenses but thats why the Sigma and Ricoh are up there on the list while the Panasonic cams aren’t.
49. welsh_gal | June 23rd, 2008 at 4:04 pm
Casio exilim ex-s10? That will fit in your pocket and its 10mp
50. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Casio = cool retro digital watches and calculators
51. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 4:37 pm
but I guess that would also apply to Ricoh
Ricoh = fax
52. Mark | June 23rd, 2008 at 6:09 pm
Adam: Just in case you weren’t aware of this. Panasonic and Leica digital cameras are all exactly the same, they have the same electronics, and same lenses, the only thing that differs is the case of the cameras which are slightly different. Leica also is a few hundred dollars more. The Leica M8 I believe is the only Leica digital camera that isn’t a Panasonic and the only one regarded as a true Leica.
53. fadibou | June 23rd, 2008 at 8:44 pm
Great post mark, just update us on your final choice,
I am glad someone is doing this on behalf of many of us.
54. Ali | June 23rd, 2008 at 11:52 pm
Mark see this
dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=canon_sd890is%2Coly_stylus1020%2Cpanasonic_dmcfx500%2Csony_dsct300&show=all
55. goldenfantir | June 24th, 2008 at 1:48 am
G9 G9 G9 G9 G9 G9
56. Magnus | June 24th, 2008 at 10:16 am
The G9 is not the smallest camera but it’s got great controls and wonderful picture quality.
57. Q80-ChillGirl | June 24th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
i need ur help , im looking for something simillar to what u stated above, size is THE most important thing for me , the following are not cheap but fairly priced, i think! im thinking of getting one of them, not sure which yet, so here they are and i want to know which do u recoomend please
Canon IXUS 80 IS Digital Camera (8.0MP, 3 xOptical Zoom) 2.5″ LCD
or
Canon Digital IXUS 90 IS Compact Camera (10 MP, 3x Optical Zoom) 3.0” High Resolution PureColor LCD II
58. Mark | June 24th, 2008 at 1:01 pm
Q80-ChillGirl its hard to go wrong with whatever camera you buy today specially if its from established brands like Canon. If its size what you’re after then go check them out live at Alghanim or a place and try it out, if the size is right you got yourself a camera :)
59. Abdullah | June 24th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
is Panasonic that bad, I just like how it looks, Adam.. No currently I dont own a lecia but thinking of getting one
60. Mark | June 24th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
No Panasonic is not bad at all, it just didn’t fit what I was looking for and needed from the camera. If you have the money go for the Leica since it looks cooler and has the Leica logo on it but if you don’t care about the looks get the Panasonic version of the camera and save a few bucks.
61. hassan | June 25th, 2008 at 8:16 am
the best point and shoot in the market is powershot s5 but i would highly recommend a dslr something entry level like the nikon d40
62. Mark | June 25th, 2008 at 8:26 am
hassan the Canon S5 isn’t the best P&S. The best Canon P&S is the G9.
I also already have a Nikon D70 but as I said in my previous post I need something that fits into my pocket, the D40 doesnt.
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