We are going to look for a new camera tomorrow, but are pretty clueless about what to look for, and what brands are good.
I know I've asked this before, but does anyone have any advice?
We are after something a bit nice, but not over the top, maybe $700 or $800, digital, probably not SLR, but with a decent lens and stuff.
Any ideas?
Huldra Forsvant (Theodor Kittelsen)
Huldra Forsvant (Theodor Kittelsen)
24 comments:
My advice would be after you've figured out what you want check out this website and buy it through them -
http://www.d-d-photographics.com.au/
A few of us at church have bought through them and had no problems (well I'm pretty sure the others haven't too). Plus with way Aussie dollar is at moment should be really good prices...
Thanks mate-- will check that out. You know a fair bit about cameras, don't you? Would you recommend any particular brands?
ps- congrats on being a free man!
Hey Ben,
I totally agree with Lairdy, dd has the best prices.
Something to consider in your camera choosing - really quick on time. You don't want to have to wait 10 seconds to take a photo!
We have a Canon Powershot A700, it's been pretty good for us (up until last weekend where someone dropped it onto a concrete floor :S). It still works, but the shutter occasionally gets stuck now.
That name sounds familiar, Rodeo.. it might be the one we've got, that just broke.. It's been okayish, but the lens that pops out often gets stuck and takes blurry pictures.
thanks Christine
I'm not much of a photographer but I'll tell you my logic when i bought my camera
1. Go for a company known for cameras e.g. Olympus rather than Sony
2. Find the exact camera you want.
3. Compare prices on shopbot.com.au (it needs to be a newish model)
4. Using the best price go into Harvey Norman whose policy is to match prices
5. Haggle.
So with this logic I went for an Olympus E-4something which is a digital SLR with a twin lens pack. Pretty sure I paid around your price range. Went into the huge Harvey Norman store in Lidcombe and they matched it with some grumbling. If they can match the price, I think its better with electronics to buy locally so if anything goes wrong you have a physical store to take it to. Decided against extended warranty as generally it's just a way of squeezing an extra few hundred dollars out of you.
The twin lens pack is also a great deal as it saves you forking out again in a couple of months when you want to try something new.
Hope this helps.
thanks Izaac, you're a practical man. I am not very practical, so I'll take on your advice.
Except for the haggling. Nothing could be further beyond my personality capabilities as haggling. If a restaurant overcharged me ten bucks I would probably tip them 20. I'm a pushover.
E has to play bad cop in such situations.
Mate there's a lot better people to ask than me! Christine for example. Try chatting to Nathan and Ev too.
I've got a Nikon DSLR and didn't pay much more than you - and they've come down a fair bit since I got mine. I love it though (enough that my entire family went out and bought one too).
Haggling is well worth it, and agree that it is good to be able to return it to a store instead of hassle with the internet. Harvey Norman are pretty good at stupidly reducing stuff (especially if you go in early in the morning and pick a young, hungover guy :) ).
I have to admit though I am too ashamed to haggle, I let Tim do that. But it is usually worth a couple of hundred dollars and extra stuff thrown in.
These are the tips I've gathered from watching the haggle-master in action:
1. Research good prices on the internet. Print out pages for proof.
2. When you go into the store (or ring, though in store usually you'll get a better result) NEVER tell them what prices you have already.
3. 'What price can you do this for?'
4. If they didn't beat your internet price, then tell them you can get it cheaper. But don't tell them how much.
5. If they give a good price, don't look happy. Just say that you will consider it. See if they'll throw in anything else (UV filters/memory cards for example).
6. If they tell you that this price is only valid if you buy now, they're lying. So walk away.
6. Be prepared to walk away and try somewhere else.
Christine, as you can see, Lairdy is talking you up, so have you got any more advice about specific brands?
Rodeo- thanks that is an interesting site
Amy- I really like those tips. I will definitely keep this in mind. I especially like the idea of not telling the price you already have.
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Gotta say though, this is turning kind of stressful. research. Negotiation. Haggling. This is all why I very rarely buy big ticket items-- too much hard work.
I'm the kind of person who walks into a grocery shop for a loaf of bread, and if they haven't got it, I won't think 'well I'll go to the shop down the road', I instead go, 'well, what's the closest thing they've got to a loaf of bread... aha! Crumpets!
And I'll get the crumpets and be satisfied. Although I end up with a bunch of stuff that isn't quite what I was after.
2 things:
1)Don't be misled by pixel count. This matters very little - look for good quality lenses (Olympus / Nikon / Canon / Pentax) and, if you go for a P&S, a high physical zoom rather than digital zoom (which can be done by your computer anyway).
2) Physically play with the type of cameras in which you're interested. You may have done all your internet research, be happy with the specs but then find that the feel of the product in your hands and the positions of the important buttons (those you'll use most often) just don't work for you.
February last year I had to buy a DSLR (client wanted all digital images, not film). I came down to the Nikon D40x or the Canon equivalent. The Canon had beautiful focus control and was otherwise a very attractive camera but my small hands had trouble with the placement of important buttons and dials. In addition, the auto-pop-up flash had a real kick to it, so you could have a great shot set up but have your focal point move due to the kick from the pop-up flash mechanism.
I bought the Nikon from Good Guys. Here in Qld they consider a debit card to be cash so they gave me the cash price - apparently that doesn't apply everywhere around the country.
I bought from GG because I got a great deal (twin lens pack, back pack...) but more importantly, I got great service from someone who actually had a clue about the product. As someone who works in service industries, I appreciate that and am prepared to pay for people to give it to me as it keeps the good employees employed. I also wrote a letter to them telling them that I appreciated it.
If you're after a P&S camera, consider the Olympus SW series. The SW stands for Shock and Water as they are resistant to both. In fact, they can be taken underwater. We bought the lower end one for around $400 or $500 in September last year to take with us on our trip to the Whitsundays. Unfortunately it was overcast on the day we had snorkelling so the flash had to work overtime and the battery didn't last as long as it otherwise might but it was worth it. We also got it from GG.
Thanks Laetitia-- I'll write down those brands and models to check out.
Good point about having a play with it to see how it feels and stuff. you don't want some weird clunky thing that doesn't feel right.
Canon Powershot G10
short and sweet, I like it. Will whack it on my list.
My parents bought a Panasonic Lumix DMC T23 about 2 years ago for $700. It won best camera of the year back then. It takes really great photos.
It can be good to get one that uses the most common memory type as well. SD cards are pretty standard now (so cheaper) but some brands use different types (Sony/Olympus). Just can be annoying if you want to use your memory card in another camera or even just that you can't get a bargain.
And agree with Laetitia - lens is everything.
And avoid Fuji like the plague - I've not seen a good photo from a digital fuji yet...
Lairdy is a little generous with his comments ;) I might know a little about SLR camera's, but other than that I'm not very useful I'm afraid.
However, I have heard good things about the Canon powershot.
We've always found Canon to be very reliable with great photo result (and with relatively little skill).
If you don't want an SLR then Nikon Coolpix look pretty good to me - and Nikon are steps in front on cameras (but also more expensive than just about everything for that reason).
The Nikon v Canon debate is one of those binary oppositions that won't be resolved until we get to heaven and God takes photos for our ID cards with a Canon.
We have a Canon DSLR. I love it.
That's just silly. Canon are like the johnny-come-lately everyman's camera. You won't catch Nikon making calculators and fax machines. :)
Thanks everybody for your help and advice. We found a model that we think we like, so we'll look a bit more into it and look for a good price. It was a Nikon by the way.
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