Prosumer Megazooms – seeking advice

OK, switched from HP software to MS Picture Editor, trying again 🙂

Have you tried to reduce the file sizes?

If so, it would have been better if you shrunk the image size first.

Unfortunately, they look very nasty indeed if you click on them. I think you should probably turn off digital zoom completely. It works by simply cropping and enlarging – so less pixels are actually engaged in creating the image.

Conington 4th, First try with FZ5

Was left unsupervised today so took my 3 year old son to Conington flying club for lunch and the first aviation trial with my new FZ5.
First 2 were taken by my 3 year Old!
the next 2 on Optical zoom, third on Digital zoom (lots of noise). The last one I really like, the 3 layers of aircraft in it seem quite pleasing!
All in all, it seemed to cope quite well, and I was able to use the screen for the static shots in the very bright sunlight.
Any feedback on composition/Technique welcomed!

Recieved it!
Smaller than my friends Fuji S5500 and lighter, but a little plasticky in feel.
shutter response is almost instantaneous outside, and not to bad in low light.
I will have a play and let you know how I get on, but on first impressions, a cracking camera for the money 😀

Got myself a Panasonic Lumic FZ5 on eBay for £137 late last night (12 x Optical 5M) 😀 , I’ll let you know what it’s like once I get it and have a play

DarrenBe,
Thanks I am looking at the FZ20/30 and the FZ5 & 7, the main attraction is the Leica lens, the 5&7 have less shutter lag, but the 20 & 30 have hotshoe fitting for a bounce flash, which is attractive….The Canon S2 is still in the frame as well.
I am just waiting for funds to build up in Paypal, so should be buying one this weekend.
I would have got one last weekend, but a lethal combination of putting a new motor in my Rega record deck, watching the ‘best albums ever’ and a large quantity of wine, means that I have around 6 pieces of 12″ vinyl heading for my house and a corresponding hole in my Paypal account….

Although I’m now at DSLR convert I started out with a FZ10. For a beginner it was a great camera, especially the zoom and stabilization, however it has its limitations – shutter lag for one.

I don’t know if Panasonic have improved the sensor, but the pics tend to be noisy even at low ISO settings.

But for a ‘one-size, fits all’ camera, the prosumers are hard to ignore. Small, light, easy to handle and no ‘dust’ issues.

Thanks for the suggestions Rob, I will troll ebay and see what’s what

I have been looking at the Samsung Pro 815 as a option to replace my defunct Fuji602, The 815 has a 15x zoom which they say is roughly the same as a 400mm lense, Its ment to be fast and will also suit the day to day family needs as well, I am hoping just after Christmas to buy one im leaving it a while to see if there is any deals around this time, They retail at around £500 in shops but less on the net.

I used my friend’s Fuji S5500 at the weekend, it was very good, but I did find that the shutter lag was worse than my Casio, and that the Viewfinder was not particularly high resolution.
In contrast I showed my friend my EOS300, and like you say Gary, it is in a different league of seeing what you’re shooting.

My choice of Prosumer has now come down to:
Canon S2, S3 or Pro 1
Nikon 8700
Fuji S7000 or S9000
Olympus SP500

Forget those two Fuji’s – old technology, relatively slow by today’s standards, and aren’t as well suited to photographing aircraft in flight.

Look at, instead, the S5600Zoom, S6500fd, S9600Zoom and if you want a dSLR, the Fuji S3 Pro.

Edit:— Ooops the S3 Pro has just been supersceded with the S5 Pro!

Amazingly, improvements will include: –

1) LAN Adapter to enable sending of image data at high speed over wireless LAN or Ethernet.

the Viewfinder was not particularly high resolution.

I have to agree with this – the LCD viewfinder can only be described as adequate – but I wonder if any other prosumer has a higher resolution viewfinder? It is, after all, what defines a prosumer from an dSLR. A much higher resolution would be worth paying more for.

I used my friend’s Fuji S5500 at the weekend, it was very good, but I did find that the shutter lag was worse than my Casio, and that the Viewfinder was not particularly high resolution.
In contrast I showed my friend my EOS300, and like you say Gary, it is in a different league of seeing what you’re shooting.

My choice of Prosumer has now come down to:
Canon S2, S3 or Pro 1
Nikon 8700
Fuji S7000 or S9000
Olympus SP500

I have a fuji S5600 & a nikon
d50,i got that in august this year.I have to say that the fuji is a very good camera for what it is,i’ve taken many photos of aircraft at speed witth no problems,the shutter lag is quite small.However the D50 is in another world compared to the fuji,it’s like going from black & white to colour TV!.Ihad lenses from & nikon F55,so it didn’t actually cost that much,(and i am a student with a part time job 😮 )

Scouse – the modern Fujis are much better than than that these days – the S7000 is of an older basic design than the S5600/S5200 and the S9500 – which have a much improved shutter lag performance – it’s practically instantaneous now.

Scouse,
Interesting, I think the Canon D350 SLR is down to a similar amount due to the expected arrival of the D400, which is tempting, a friend has the Nikon, it has a very impressive 1.2 second startup time (quicker than my EOS300 35MM!!!) and the shutter response is almost instantaneous.

It is the lack of size that is driving me down the Prosumer route, if I can get near 35mm SLR results, but in a much smaller package, then I will be pleased..

FWIW my local Comet has the Nikon D50 plus standard zoom lens for £397. ‘Buy it now’ prices on ebay are more like £500, with one or two honourable UK exceptions. Must admit I’m rather tempted, as I’ve already got some Nikon AF film kit.
Get thee behind me, Satan!

William

PS Digitally speaking I use a Fuji S7000. Great camera, tho’ for air displays and motorsport the shutter lag can be annoying.

I am watching a number of Prosumers on eBay at the moment.
A friend has the Fuji S5500 and gets great results, and changes hands for under £100 on eBay, the Canon S2 (the S3 was a minor upgrade) and the Nikon S5700 go for around £150 .
The Olympus S500 was the original Prosumer and is apparently very good, but now lags slightly behind the Canon/Nikon, according to the reviews

Anybody have any views on the Minolta Dimage range?

Since my lenses for my film SLR are old, and all manual focus, and don’t do fully automatic exposure work, I’m not sure how well they would work with a dSLR. If they work, and I am satisfied with the results, then that might be an option. If they don’t, then I would have to start from scratch. By the time I get an dSLR body, and a zoom telephoto to replace what I have now, and then add on memory cards, gadget bag spare batteries and all the rest, I would probably be looking at at least $1500 Canadian. If I shot airshows all the time, I would go for it.

But if I can get a Prosumer model that satisfies all my other photography needs (landscape, portrait, family shots, etc), and gives decent results at airshows, then I am happy. I am not looking to put things up on A.net on a regular basis, and I am not looking for warbird photos so amazing that I can see the colour of the pilots eyes. I just want some decent pictures that I can be proud of, unlike the lousy stuff I am getting now with film.

You are right in suggesting eBay or some other source for a used body. I might find something going that route. But the more I think about it, the more I think that the right Prosumer model can satisfy my needs at less cost in a more compact, portable package. The question is which one to get, knowing that whatever I get, a better one will come out the day after!!

Charles

I have a Fuji 6900 from the same era so am in the same boat and now being “between jobs” need to be careful with my savings. What’s your budget out of interest?

Nikon and Canon have just bought out new upgrades to their “low-end” (he termed loosley) dSLR in the form of the Nikon D80 and Canon 400D. The Nikon D70 and Canon 350D therefore have been replaced, so prices should start to fall as remaining stock is pushed. If you can do without 10 megapixels, this may be the way to go.

I’m tempted to scan e-bay and see if there are any appetising deals to be had. I wouldn’t be surpised to see prices between £200-400 for either makes and depending on the model. Having had a play with the Canon 300D and 350D, there seem to be substantially less if not any shutter lag.