'Large Zoom' SLR type.

[Rogan]

Hi all!

Im new to the forum so hello to you all!

I currently have a Canon EOS 700 Film, SLR camera, and looking to move over to digital as its become very impractical to get film developed.

I have a budget of £100 so a full digital SLR is way out of my price range. I have played around with a few cameras as my dad has a Canon, striaght forward credit-card type digital camera, aswell as a friend have the Fuji Finepix S6500. I much prefer the SLR 'style' cameras and i mainly take photos of my mates band at their gigs and just general outings throughout my time!

Was wondering if you had an opinion on any cameras to look at, i've also been lookin at the Finepix S5700, which you can get new for around £100, whereas the S6500 would be off ebay!

Thanks all! (and sorry for the essay )

Rogan

 

[TamiyaGuy]

Well, Fuji do make very good compact cameras. I've recommended them to many of my friends.

Both the S6500 and S5700 are great choices, they both look very well-specced. As for which one you shoudl buy, it all depends on what you want out of your camera.

The S5700 has more pixels BUT (and it's a big but) it's limited in other aspects. There is a narrower shutter speed range on the 5700, the max ISO is less, it doesn't have a wide-angle lens on, and the max aperture is slightly smaller. On the other hand of course, the S5700 is MUCH lighter (308g compared to 600), is easier to handle, is smaller, and, of course, is much cheaper.

Basically, if you want as close as a DSLR as you can get, the 6500 is the one to go for. However, if you want something that has the advantages of both a compact (weight, price), and a DSLR (zoom, quality), then your best bet is probably the S5700. And of course, if you get the 5700, you'll still be able to save up for a full-on DSLR!

Hope I helped,
~TamiyaGuy

 

[Rogan]

thanks Tamily the price differance isnt that great between the two just the same price really except the 6500 2nd hand (to add another thing, what do you guys think on 2nd hand cameras?) i dnt think ill be wanted to upgrade my camera any time soon so i dnt need to 'save' money as such.

Oddly i quite like the 6500 because it IS bigger!, currently much more swayed towards the 6500. Hmm!

 

[TamiyaGuy]

Second hand cameras can be good or bad, depending on where you get them from. Either way, ask if you can test it out before you buy it, and try every single thing you can to make sure everything works perfectly. Take pictures, movies, try different settings, anything you can think of.

You might also want to ask about how long the camera has been used for/how often it was used. Generally, however, you will be OK buying second hand, but better safe than sorry

 

[Rogan]

well its on ebay i'm looking. i tend to be bidding on the ones that say 'boxed as new' 'no damage' and 'used few times' although these cud just be ploys on the sellers behalff..!

i guess i will try and bid mainly for ones local to me so i can pick up in person!

 

[Socrates]

Hi all!

Im new to the forum so hello to you all!

I currently have a Canon EOS 700 Film, SLR camera, and looking to move over to digital as its become very impractical to get film developed.

I have a budget of £100 so a full digital SLR is way out of my price range. I have played around with a few cameras as my dad has a Canon, striaght forward credit-card type digital camera, aswell as a friend have the Fuji Finepix S6500. I much prefer the SLR 'style' cameras and i mainly take photos of my mates band at their gigs and just general outings throughout my time!

Was wondering if you had an opinion on any cameras to look at, i've also been lookin at the Finepix S5700, which you can get new for around £100, whereas the S6500 would be off ebay!

Thanks all! (and sorry for the essay )

Rogan

The major issue with the "SLR-like" P&S cameras is the small physical size of the sensor. This results in two problems. One is that the pixels are also small and therefore susceptible to electrical noise, especially at high ISO values. The other is the inability to use selective focus. In order to maintain a reasonable Field of View, the true focal length (as opposed to the "effective" focal length) is small, which increases the Depth of Field.

Unfortunately, I've never had reason to compare the physical sizes of the sensors of various P&S cameras so I can't give specific information.

 

[Rogan]

haha, i understand nothing of that

not that smart when it comes to whats acutally in the camera! i dnteven know what ISO is =\

 

[TamiyaGuy]

haha, i understand nothing of that

not that smart when it comes to whats acutally in the camera! i dnteven know what ISO is =\

I understand what you mean. Socrates is saying that basically you shouldn't expect to get SLR-quality shots from one of those cameras. The sensor that actually takes the photo is very small compared to real DSLR sensors, which is generally bad. But so long as you don't expect to get pro shots, you should be OK.


Also, the ISO value is the sensitivity of the image sensor (it's also variable), much like the ISO rating on a film roll. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the chip is, and the less light it needs in order to make a "proper" photograph. This means that a high ISO can be used to freeze action shots, for example sports.

However, a high ISO also means the picture can have a lot of "noise", and this is apparent on P&S cameras more than DSLRs. Here are a couple of pics to show you. The first one was taken at ISO 200 (the lowest value my camera has), and the second was taken at ISO 3200 (the highest).

As you can see, there is much more noise the higher the ISO, although it's also worth noting that on the first one, the shutter speed was 1/25 of a second, whereas on the second, it was 1/400. Basically, it's about getting the right balance between shutter speed and grain.


OK, tutorial over, on with the topic. You should be fine with Ebay. As with all Ebay purchases, check the seller's rating before buying. Even if you are swizzed, I think Ebay or PayPal covers you if someone sells you a dud. Enjoy your new camera, and if you need any more help, I'll do my best to get back to you! :mrgreen:

 

[Rogan]

thanks lots

im thinking of biddng for this tomorrow. as it comes with a memory and a bag

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....m=170205271327&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=007

but its got a rather high starting price so im only gna keep my bids around the £100-£110, only qworried theres np pictures on the ACTUAL camera just generic ones

 

[TamiyaGuy]

Yep, looks good. Just one final bit of advice: Bet as late as you can (seconds before it ends if possible). You'll get a better deal . Good luck!!!

 

[Rogan]

i always click bid when it hits 2 minutes

 

[Socrates]

I understand what you mean. Socrates is saying that basically you shouldn't expect to get SLR-quality shots from one of those cameras. The sensor that actually takes the photo is very small compared to real DSLR sensors, which is generally bad. But so long as you don't expect to get pro shots, you should be OK.


Also, the ISO value is the sensitivity of the image sensor (it's also variable), much like the ISO rating on a film roll. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the chip is, and the less light it needs in order to make a "proper" photograph. This means that a high ISO can be used to freeze action shots, for example sports.

However, a high ISO also means the picture can have a lot of "noise", and this is apparent on P&S cameras more than DSLRs. Here are a couple of pics to show you. The first one was taken at ISO 200 (the lowest value my camera has), and the second was taken at ISO 3200 (the highest).

As you can see, there is much more noise the higher the ISO, although it's also worth noting that on the first one, the shutter speed was 1/25 of a second, whereas on the second, it was 1/400. Basically, it's about getting the right balance between shutter speed and grain.


OK, tutorial over, on with the topic. You should be fine with Ebay. As with all Ebay purchases, check the seller's rating before buying. Even if you are swizzed, I think Ebay or PayPal covers you if someone sells you a dud. Enjoy your new camera, and if you need any more help, I'll do my best to get back to you! :mrgreen:

Thanks for explaining.

 

[mrodgers]

I have the Fuji S5700 (also known as S700 in the US).

I paid $200 for mine new in December. It is my first camera not used in point and shoot mode. Do I like it? Yes, I like it very well.

Now that I have some more knowledge under my belt, I would probably go with the S6500 over my S5700.

S6500..........................................S5700
6.3 mp.........................................7.2 mp
28-300 mm (35 mm equivalent).........38-380 mm (35 mm equivalent)
f2.8 / f4.9.....................................f3.5 / f5.6?
30s - 4000 ms...............................4s - 2000 ms
ISO 100-3200................................ISO 64-1600

I would show some shots taken with my S5700, but most of my uploaded shots are "beginner" shots and don't really show the capabilities of my camera. They show more the limitations of my photography skills. I will say that, with the S5700, ISO at 800 or 1600 is really no use because it is extremely noisy. I could probably live with the noise of 800, but definitely not at 1600.

Like I said, I really like my S5700, but had I had the knowledge of cameras and photography back then, my choice may have ended up much different.

Edit: Oh what the heck, here's My Flickr. Keep in mind a couple of the shots are not with the S5700/S700 but majority are. Also, most were done well before understanding half of the concept of exposure.

 

[Rogan]

thanks for that looks like ill definately by going for the S6500 then

 

[Rogan]

after watching a few 6500's go on ebay they seem to be going for alot more than i expected!

so im now stuck with the choice of saving for a few months.. or looking at something around the £100-£110 mark. which seems to get me a new 5700 or 5800, not sure if there are any other cameras i shud look at though!

advice wud be great!