Cheap Camera for quality pics

Have you bought it yet?

Anyway, in 2004 I bought the then new Panasonic FZ20. 5mp.
In 2006 I won the Photographer of the year in my Camera club.
The plaudits above re. Panasonic are true. The Image Stabilisation is superb, even on the gimmicky 48 x Zoom (Digital Zoom is always a gimmick) I could literally grab-snap at an aircraft at 35,000 feet and it would be sharp enough to count the windows. (I used the 48 zoom as a telescope only). And don’t forget, it has movie mode.
And now, Panasonic have introduced a DSLR, I bet it’s a stunner.

I now own a Canon 450D, obviously with 12mp and the ability to shoot RAW I am getting superb results but the IS does not match that of Panasonic.

If your budget can only stretch to one camera with no extra money for lenses, I would go Panasonic DSLR “Lookalike”. It can satisfy the holiday snapshot right through to the competition pictures. Obviously, if you enlarge a square inch out of the 35 inch wide picture, your going to find faults but I doubt you need a full prof. camera.

Cheap camera …..

Agree with Black Kettle . I use the later Panasonic FZ 30 . this still has the Leica lens but with better OIS ( image stabilization ) , 8 + mp , after practice it’s very easy to use. If you look around you may be able to get one closer to £200 as the price has dropped following the intro of the FZ50 which has 10+mp . See review in Which .co.uk . Do not be tempted to get a compact ,they’re just not up to the job. Good Luck. AG39

In an attempt to be more helpful and less of an equipment “snob” than many of my fellow enthusiasts may I recommend the panasonic FZ28……Leica lens speaks for itself and 27 – 486 zoom (35mm equivalent) takes some beating and then there’s the 4x digital zoom on top of that.In terms of range it will better an SLR unless with expensive long zoom and if you’ve got very steady hands or can steady against a fencepost or suchlike it will get pics at a range an SLR can’t match.
You will have to contend with a fiddly zoom lever,however.
Here’s an example about a mile from camera at Milan MXP lat September……OK it’s not perfection but what so called “proper” camera can do this? It’s at least 1500mm equivalent in SLR terms
Approx £230 and by the way I have full SLR kit as well so I’m not speaking from prejudice.

Barry

If that remark was aimed at me I don’t appreciate being called an ‘equipment snob’ also how you can class that pic as a ‘quality pic’ like the OP asked is beyond me.

I agree no such thing as Cheap and quality.I spent around 350(not sure exactly because i bought it in Poland) on a Panasonic Lumix FZ50 it has a 35-420mm (35mm equiv) Leica lens & I was very impressed with the results.It was easy to use,not too heavy & bulky and i enjoyed using it.However I upgraded to a Sony Alpha 350 & added a Sigma EX 50-500mm APO DG,and the difference is unbelievable.However as PMN stated above I am still learning how to get the best out of it & I am regularly disapointed with the pictures this is not down to equipment its simply trial and error until I learn it inside out.This gear cost around 1300(again bought in Poland) & I have since added Tripod(v.important) Remote shutter cable and a few old lenses from my old Minolta 35mm SLR.In total probably 1800 worth of equipment and this is what I think you have to consider.The D40 is probably the best choice but of course it depends on your budget,get the best you can afford and be sure to spend time in the shop asking questions and having a good trial its no good spending a lot of money then discovering you dont like the feel of the thing….just my opinion hope this helps.

Don’t think cheap and quality go together.:( You get what you pay for.:)

I hate to be critical here, but if the camera that took this example can’t produce better results then I’d really rather head to the pub! The only way to get real quality is to have equipment capable of giving you that, but it doesn’t have to be horrendously expensive and you don’t need to be a ‘gear snob’, either. For around £300 you could get a Nikon D40 DSLR and a basic Sigma 70-300 lens which would give you quality far beyond the example here, which is very soft and has a lot of colour noise in the sky. It’s also nowhere near an equivalent of 1500mm. It’s nearer 500 according to the EXIF data. If you were taking shots equivalent to 1500mm at a shutter speed of 1/200th without being completely blurred then I’d be impressed!

Apologies if that sounds harsh, but I’m only saying what I think. One thing you will have to be prepared for with a DSLR is a steep learning curve, though. Be sure to read the manual from cover to cover more than once so you’re familiar with the basics of how the camera works.

As for taking it on the plane, there’s no problem whatsoever in doing this. Just put it in your cabin baggage and it will be fine. 🙂

Paul

In an attempt to be more helpful and less of an equipment “snob” than many of my fellow enthusiasts may I recommend the panasonic FZ28……Leica lens speaks for itself and 27 – 486 zoom (35mm equivalent) takes some beating and then there’s the 4x digital zoom on top of that.In terms of range it will better an SLR unless with expensive long zoom and if you’ve got very steady hands or can steady against a fencepost or suchlike it will get pics at a range an SLR can’t match.
You will have to contend with a fiddly zoom lever,however.
Here’s an example about a mile from camera at Milan MXP lat September……OK it’s not perfection but what so called “proper” camera can do this? It’s at least 1500mm equivalent in SLR terms
Approx £230 and by the way I have full SLR kit as well so I’m not speaking from prejudice.

Barry

Hi all
Whats the cheapest camera I could get away with for quality pics?
All i have at present is a Kodak 7.1 megpix with 10x optical zoom digital camera.
Heading out to Tenerife end of march via Glasgow. Whats the score on taking Cameras on the plane.

Unfortunately those two things don’t really go together.

Hi all
Whats the cheapest camera I could get away with for quality pics?
All i have at present is a Kodak 7.1 megpix with 10x optical zoom digital camera.
Heading out to Tenerife end of march via Glasgow. Whats the score on taking Cameras on the plane.

Quality pics of what?

Always take mine on as hand luggage. I wouldn’t trust to luck in the baggage compartment. Having said that, if you have something more valuable, take that inside instead.

If I have my laptop with me, I’ll take that in it’s wheelie case, and my camera, and there’s just room for a change of clothes, just in case.