Digital or SLR?

[ultrajim49]

My old camera has entered foto-heaven (Petri 7IIS, 27 years old).

Replacement is in order.



`Till a few days ago I was pretty sure I was going to replace it with a digi-cam , something max price around 500Euro`s.

pro digicam:

-you can take as many pics as you want, you only need to develop (or print) only those you need.

-you can view instantly the pic you took

-small , light-weight



con:

pricy if you ask me



pro SLR:

-better picture quality

-much better zoom

-prices are dropping drasticly



con:

-developping pics takes a few days

-heavier equipment



As for SLR I could get :

Nikon F601 35-70mm @350Euro

Nikon F65 28-80mm@275 Euro

Nikon F801 28-80mm@355Euro



Don`t know

I would greatly appreciate any opinions

Thanks in advance

Christiaan

[paco]

SLR are still the best way to go if you plan on developing photos bigger than 8 x 10 as the 4MP and higher camera`s are still pricey.



Long term though, a digitial is a much better option. You`ll save hundreds in photo developing.



Much more convineant having a chip that holds a hundred(s) of photos over 5-10 rolls of film.



For sporting events or any live action photography, go with SLR. The latency of digital camera`s to write the image to the chip means you can`t take rapid fire photo`s and you may end up missing that perfect shot.



Macro mode - I still think SLR are best.



Personally, I`m looking at getting a 3MP digital, which should do me for at least 2-4 years. Canon, Fugi or Kodak 4330.



It really is dependant on what type of photo`s you`ll be taking, if you have enough hard drive on your computer (or else that will be another ~100 upgrade), what size of photo`s you are looking for, true and accurate colouration. optical ZOOM capabilities. Some digitals now fit larger lenses similar and in some identical to the SLR lense so you`d probably want to look into the canon`s that offer that feature.



Digital Advantage: Size, savings on developing, convienance

SLR: Lens and filter options, cost, accurate photos, enlargement not an issue



It 6 and 1/2 dozen of the other.



Paco

[ashsarna]

Paco, I have actually learned something !!

[Nagchampa]

Digital and SLR are two totally different animals you should look at your needs before selecting which one you need.



Point and Shoot - Digital

Fine Detail Photos (no pun intended) - SLR

Photos from a Carshow - Digital

Photos of YOUR car - SLR

Photos for Computer - Digital

Photos for Your House - SLR



There are advantages to either one for every circumstance. You could always buy a Digital SLR!

[teuhl]

Well, how about digital SLR???







This seems more like a discussion btw point&shoot vs SLR.







Digital P&S is definitely replacing film P&S fast, and there is no real reason besides price for most people to get film P&S.







SLR gives you control & flexibility (interchangable lenses, flash system) and higher speed film for shooting under low light condition (you will need fast (expensive) lens though). The shorter shutter lag and sometimes faster frame rate (none of the Nikon body you listed have high frame rate, however) makes capturing certain shots easier (not really sports photography, you`ll need a high end SLR plus a few huge lenses ).







If you don`t make prints larger than 8x10 (for 3MP) or 11x14 (for 4MP), you won`t see much improvement in picture quality using film. In fact, within that range, digital prints can look better b/c film grain tend to make pictures look of lesser quality.







As for zoom range, digital P&S lenses usually don`t cover the wide angle well enough (b/c of the small sensor size, it`s harder to make good lens with very short focal length), but there are wide angle attachments for many models.







A dedicated macro lens will take much better pictures than a typical lens, however, there is the imperpect solution of using diopters.







Hope that helps.

[ultrajim49]

Thanks for the real good advices



I`m gonna have a serious talk to myself, think about my fotoshooting goals and make up my mind (some day )



Thanks again.

Christiaan

[Michael H]

If you want to look at digital cameras and the pros and cons see www.dpreview.com

[Roadsplat]

Originally posted by Michael H

If you want to look at digital cameras and the pros and cons see www.dpreviews.com

Are you sure about the url ? I`m not seeing anything about cameras on the site you listed. Maybe I`m overlooking something.



RC

[Mindflux]

It`s www.dpreview.com not plural.



This is a good place, lots of information. I read on there for a month before I bought my camera.

[Roadsplat]

Ok . Thanks. I see that Michael edited his post and fixed the url.



RC

[ultrajim49]

http://groups.msn.com/funtocollectcameras/petri7s.msnw



out of curiossity(Sp?????) I started surfing The Net and whattayaknow, my camera is an old-timer:xyxthumbs

Reason for me to look further and via via I found someone who advised me to open the camera:scared and "clean" it with purified compressed air (that`s the advantage of a non-rocket-science-camera).

The camera is fixed again.

While open I cleaned the lenses with Glareguard optics cleaner.

Now I got to test-drive the camera and see if it`s realy fixed.



I will still buy a digi-cam though, then I will have both(the Petri isn`t SLR but gives real good pic`s)



thought I`d let you know



Christiaan

[ultrajim49]

Originally posted by ejant

Christian

When looking for the digital look at the Fuji S602Z. It seems to be a great camera. Full featured.

thanks:xyxthumbs

I`ll keep that one in mind

[chris72]

I`ve tried out heaps of Digitals, from low end to top of the range, still can`t get the quality that you can with SLR, although the amount you save on developing is enticing.



JMHO..



Chris..

[ultrajim49]

I bit the bullet:

The Februari the 7th I`m gonna pick up my new digicam:

Ejant gave me a hint for the Fuji Finepix S602Z , but in Belgium that`s a 1000Euro`s worth camera:sosad

Wich was way over my budget.

Surfing the Fuji site & several review-sites I came up with the Fuji Finepix S304.

Not as advanced as the S602 , but affordable.



I sent a mail to 8 stores for a price-quote

6 returned a price, the lowest being 590Euro and the highest being 655Euro.

Two Fotoshops offered the camera for the same price(590Euro) .

A few days after my request for prices one store asked if I had decided what camera to take , I returned a mail saying:

"Yes, I only have to make up my mind between two stores as I had two equal prices"

they replied:

"We`ll make the decission easier: we throw in a NiMh rechargable batteryset worth a 25Euro`s".







Shopping around can help save you a little money



This is the one:http://www.cameras.co.uk/specs/fuji-finepix-s304.cfm



It`s not top of the line and certainly no professional, but the reviews are good.



Christiaan

[jimmybuffit]

I have the Finepix 3800, which appears to be the same model. I am very happy with it.



The zoom, macro and resolution are superb. The use of four batteries allows hours of use.



You`ll be very happy!



Jim