what digital camera do you use and why that model?

[kotatsuneko]

sold my trusty ixy 400 - the loose connection on the photo/still switch was getting annoying.. any idea if they have fixed this?

as its either an ixy 500 or a powershot g5 (currently selling here for around £365) tho one retailer said the g5 had just been discontinued..

any idea on a good replacement in the 3-500 quid bracket? would like to avoid nikon as have heard they are well awkward...

[Steve Bildermann]

I just got the ixy 500 @ 37,500 yen. Didn't really think it was that much different. Same design, same controls - ho hum.

*Then* I took a series of full resolution outdoor photos. Very impressive..super sharp with vivid colors and excellent detail. It's worth the upgrade.

YMMV.

[Blah Pete]

I bought a Knoica Minolts Dimage A2 in April and it is a good camera. I actually wanted to buy something high end with changeable lenses but had to scale back my plans.

The A2 is well designed, menus are decent, has 8 megapixels, 2/3 inch CCD. Can also do video at 30fps at 544 x 408. It also has a built in stabilization circuit that reduces effects of hand shake so you can get decent shots in some situations where you would normally need a tripod.
Lense is good too, f/2.8 - f/3.5, 35mm equivalent 28-200mm.

The price in Japan may still be high. I paid about 140,000 w/tax and a few accessories at Yodobashi Camera. In the US last month I saw it at Fry's for about $800.

[kotatsuneko]

hey Mr B, what freebies did they give you this time round? surely they can`t have topped the last deal?!

[Steve Bildermann]

I didn't go to the store. Chisato called up the sales guy who I usually deal with and he delivered it. I think the price itself was a good enough deal but she got a 256MB flash card thrown in.

Just checked on Yahoo Auction

35,100

http://page3.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/c65469954

[kotatsuneko]

heh not bad at all, healthy discount, free memory card and free delivery ^^

Nagoya may be full of weirdos but you sure get good service

seems theres not too much to worry about what happens to memory cards anyhow:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3939333.stm

btw mr b, can microdrives be used in the ixy 500?

i may just go for the 500 to sling in my bag and an eos 300d for days dedicated to shooting..

any chance of a candid shot from the new cam btw?

[kotatsuneko]

most definatley have to agree with Mr B here, the ixy 500 is most definately worth the upgrade! On top of the higher rez, it seems Canon have tinkered with the focusing also, as I find that with general and more importantly with close up focusing it is way quicker than the ixy 400 which would drive me bonkers to-ing and fro-ing trying to decide whether the subject was in focus or not..

seems like there are more options regarding picture size also

I managed to get it for £270 (and sold my ixy 400 for £180 - originally bought for £250) so got a decent deal in the end..

this time tho you only get the uk lead, they used to give you a euro lead also but no more..

[kotatsuneko]

ixy 5mp is v nice. pic taken 15 cm from subject bin my back garden:



spidervsflybykots.jpg

[Oradea]

i use canon powershot, it doesnt have as many functions as the sony, and its not as sleek and slim as some others, but for printing out from your pc, it does a great job
]

[yakinoumiso]

Personally, I think that once you get past a certain point, the higher density CCD's don't actually improve the image. For that reason, I'd choose a 3 MP camera with a good lens over one with a 6 MP CCD and a poorer lens. Nikon generally makes good lenses, and I still think I'm getting better images with my old (and now mostly retired) Cool-Pix 2500 compared to other friends' expensive super-slims.

Anyway, show me your spider, I'll show you mine... Not a particularly good picture, but it is one fearsome looking spider.

[kotatsuneko]

just noticed the ixy 700 is out

http://www.canon.co.uk/for_home/product_finder/cameras/digital/digital_ixus_700/index.asp

think i`m gonna sell my ixy 500 this week and get one.

anyone else upgrade to it from the previous ixy, any thoughts on it?

[FG Lurker]

I'd read a few reviews and see what the noise etc is like first. As the individual sensor sites get smaller the noise tends to climb and the colours/contrast can get worse too.

I wish the makers would stop focusing so much on pixel count and improve dynamic range, contrast, colour accuracy, reduce noise, and increase the standard ISO from 50 to 100... Sadly like megahertz in computers the number of pixels is easy to measure and compare.

[kotatsuneko]

well i can't comment on noise etc, as i`m not exactly a technical photographer.

i just popped into Jacobs @ tcr today and took a good look at the ixy 7.

the case design is a lot different, they seem to be going for the female market with its curvy design, personally i would have liked it to be in the same case as the 4 and 5 BUT it wouldnt have been possible as there is now a DECENT screen on an ixy, its visibility is Xcellent, very bright both in sunlight and indoors, the controls have changed quite a bit, but the menus etc seem to have remained the same, but now you can edit on the fly.

downpoints [besides the slim case] for potential upgraders are:

the new ixy uses sd rather than compact flash

the battery is different so you'll have to buy a new spare or 2

personally, i reckon this is what the ixy 5 should have been, and the DIGIC 2 speeds things up a LOT [why they couldnt include it in the g6 i don't know...]

after 20 minutes toying with it, i`m definately selling my ixy 5 asap to get hold of one of these.. and despite the cosmetic changes, it still feels as tough as nails, albeit not as chunky as many ixy lovers would like.

[spyder]

My girlfriend and I use a Fuji F450.

Awesome images, and a very easy to use interface. Lets you switch between about 6 different resolutions, and has alot of cool effects. Also connects very easliy to a computer if the user is computer illiterate. No drivers needed with Windows XP, just Plug'n'Play.

-Scott

[IkemenTommy]

Digging this out of the grave...
I recently upgraded my Canon Powershot A40 (2.0 MP) to the Canon Ixy 900iS (7.1 MP). Face recognition AF feature is great and I am not complaining about the excellent colors and image quality.

[oyajikun]

I know I mentioned this in another post but, I recently purchased the Ricoh GR Digital.

I like it for it's discrete form factor, 8mp sensor, manual controls and film like noise.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/88545034@N00/