The ever-important road shot
Seeking advice on compact digital cameras
Somewhere in rural Oklahoma, July 2008
Christmas is coming and I want to make sure I am fully prepared to make my request. Competing for the top spot on my list are a new compact camera to replace one that died and a set of lightweight wheels to replace the stock behemoths on the Felt. Until I start racing regularly, I will hold off on requesting the wheels (and my birthday conveniently falls on the same day as the first criterium of the local race season).
I’ve done quite a bit of research, but in retrospect my research often comes up a bit short, so I would appreciate advice on jersey-pocket-friendly cameras. In an effort to make my search simpler, I narrowed my criteria down to one thing: photo quality. I don’t care what kind of controls the camera has; if it doesn’t take great pictures, I don’t want it.
Unfortunately, $300 seems to be the magic price point where cameras move beyond just “good for their class” into a realm where the photos can actually be considered great. But that’s quite the chunk of change and it’s hard to justify getting a really nice compact digital when I have a Nikon D40 digital SLR that I use on any occasion when it’s reasonable to carry it with me. But the D-SLR has spoiled me. I love to take photos on my rides and am being a bit fussy about this.
The pocket camera I use currently is a Panasonic Lumix FX10 that I bought for $150 when my cherished HP died post-Europe study abroad. It was all I could afford, but I have hated it since the earliest shots. The photos are grainy above ISO 100, white balance is weak, the low-light performance is non-existent and – despite what reviewers say – the image stabilization feature is worthless. I don’t like replacing things that are still mostly functional, but I also flat-out don’t like it. Despite good reviews of higher-end Lumix models, I don’t think I can stomach getting another. I’m hoping to pass the camera on to a younger cousin.
The model I have my eye on is the Canon PowerShot SX120 at about $250. I am of the school that believes Canons have some of the best photo quality (even though my DSLR is a Nikon) and the reviews are consistently positive when it comes to the quality of this camera’s shots. It also boasts a 10x, wide-angle zoom lens that takes macro photos at 1 cm away. Unfortunately, the SX120 rather bulky and would barely fit in one of the small rear pockets of a women’s cycling jersey. I’m debating about how important that is, since it would otherwise tag along in a purse/bag. If you ride with a camera in your back pocket regularly, what is it and how comfortable is it?
Any and all advice welcome. Thanks!
I have two small cameras I drag around.
One is water and shock proof but takes ok picture. It is by far the smallest. It is an Olympus. I would not refer you to the model to avoid your own disappointment.
My other small camera is a Nikon P5100. Takes beautiful photos and is on the larger side of the two. Once you get over the size, you begin to love what it can produce. it does fut easily in your jersey pocket.
The camera I use the most seems to be my cell phone. Funny, I know.
I used to be a pretty good amateur photog (back in the day of my Pentax K1000, full manual, SLR) and was up on all the latest. But not really anymore. My “good” shots these days are ones not taken with a camera phone, and I use a Canon ELPH to take them. It’s compact and appears good enough for me – at least good enough for online sharing, blogging, viewing on the computer. I haven’t yet tried printing any shots larger than 5×7 and wouldn’t expect the quality to be anywhere near SLR quality. But I make the compromise for portability. You can’t take the shot if you don’t have a camera with you.
There are so many great camera’s on the market. For a good “jersey pocket” sized camera I have been using the Canon Elph series for a good while now. The newest ones were actually over kill for what I needed so I went on amazon and found new one but a year old for under $200. It has 10 megapixels, takes decent videos and I was able to buy multiple SD cards for the price I saved.
For my large SLR camera I use a canon again, the 400D. I love it and have been using it for several years as well.
Best buy has a good return policy, go to your local best buy.. buy a camera, try it.. return it.. try another.. return it. Do your research first but I bought a Lumnix to try something new and wasn’t impressed. Returned it within a week for full credit towards the elph I knew I should of bought originall