All you photogs out there.. Looking for digicam..

[AH]

Must be more or less snow-resistant and be able to work in cold weather. Must be quite bombproof too and without too much stuff that can break. Must be able to zoom.

Will be used for internet publishing only, so the resolution needn't be to high, but acceptable (at least 1024x768?).

Any suggestions on decently priced cams? Minolta Z1?

[summit]

www.dpreview.com

Kodak DX6340 (DX6430?) seems extremely easy to operate with gloves I'm considering it or a A70. Those are both around $260.

For cold weather, you want NiCd batteries and carry extras (NiCd are lightweight).

[AH]

Dou you know anything about the lag? I initially went for the Z1, as it's supposed to have almost no lag when taking photos, which comes in handy when you want to take action-shots.. Plus, it has killer zoom and standard NiCd batteries..

[backpack]

I've had two canons, and both have had almost no lag time (as long as you're already focused on the subject) and both survived some pretty crappy conditions (the G2 survived submersion in a lake, several drops to pavement, snow caked into every crevice from falls, and various other things, all accidental, of course... the s400 semi-survived [IE kept functioning, though some things, like manual features, didn't work) a six-foot drop onto concrete, snow and water contact several times, extreme humidity in the rainforest for a month, salt spray on the coast for two weeks, me falling on it on a boardwalk with the lens extended, and the extreme cold when climbing cotopaxi.)

All the other digital cameras that were taken to the various environments in ecuador died. That includes sony, nikon, and kodak digital cameras, all of them mid-range, 3-4 MP, 3x zoon types. Given, the nikon was only shut down by a small poor design choice on nikon's part (a really flimsy battery door latch that has to be closed for the camera to turn on... it broke pretty quickly). The kodak died due to humidity in the rainforest, even when in a drybox each night, and the sony stopped functioning in the cold of cotopaxi.

That's a decidedly non-scientific observational 'study', but if you're going to be using your camera outdoors in crappy conditions a lot, you should think about it.

If it's just web posting, and you're being cheap, you could always get a fixed lens camera and just use digital zoom, which reduces quality but with most you're starting from 4 MP, so you can crop down pretty hard and still get a web-worthy shot.

[Mcwop]

Test these two (Ritz has em in the store) - they are both fast and have killer lenses:

http://i.i.com.com/cnwk.1d/sc/305669...overview-1.gif

The FZ10's stunning Leica lens boasts the equivalent of a 35mm-to-420mm focal range, a fast f/2.8 aperture across all of it, and optical stabilization. Panasonic also claims to have added performance improvements across the board, including a new continuous-shooting mode that snaps 4-megapixel images at four frames per second--we'll believe it when we see it.

FZ10 Review
----

http://i.i.com.com/cnwk.1d/sc/204853...amera+on-1.gif - I just bought this one.

Panasonic's Lumix DMC-FZ1 is a telephoto fanatic's dream come true. This camera's 12X Leica Vario-Elmarit zoom lens, equipped with an optical image stabilizer, extends to the equivalent of an amazing 420mm in 35mm-camera terms. If you don't mind its 2-megapixel resolution and its mostly automatic operation, this Lumix offers unequaled zooming bang for the buck.

FZ1 Review

[AH]

Originally posted by backpack

That's a decidedly non-scientific observational 'study', but if you're going to be using your camera outdoors in crappy conditions a lot, you should think about it.

That's exactly the point i'm thinking about, as I've heard quite a few stories on digicams that die during cold weather.. I wanna use it for the shooting of outdoor events (big mountain lines, but also parkriding, etc), so I'm prolly looking at the zoom-end of the digicam-spectrum, as digizoom just doesn't do it for me..

which canons did you use?

[AH]

mcwop, I've been looking at those (esp the f10z, which seems to be a winner), but they're slightly above budget (about 200 bucks ).

Can you post some shots with your 2mp version? What did you pay for that cam?

[Mcwop]

Originally posted by AH
mcwop, I've been looking at those (esp the f10z, which seems to be a winner), but they're slightly above budget (about 200 bucks ).

Can you post some shots with your 2mp version? What did you pay for that cam?

I paid $329 from B&H Photo online. I don't have any pics to post - yet - I will when I get back from Taos this week.

But, here is a picture database to look at samples from every dig camera out there (very cool site):

Link To FZ1 Sample pics

Pbase.com

[AH]

I think I will go for the Minolta Z1. It has some issues with purple fringe, but apparently new firmware is on it's way.

The canons won't make my zoom-criteria, and the panasonics are a tad bit too expensive and don't have AF illumination, combined with bad AF during lowlight situations.

Anyone know where I can find or order this cam in the us? I'm looking at buying one in februari, when I'm in the SLC area.

[wookalar]

I got the Canon A80, in part from glowing reccomendations from this board. It cost 400 bones, and my dumb ass has managed to take some decent pics with it. That's about all I can tell you.

[Mcwop]

Here is a price rundown from various stores on cnet.

[FreakofSnow]

What specs would you look at to determine if there would be the delay?

[Mcwop]

Originally posted by FreakofSnow
What specs would you look at to determine if there would be the delay?

Unless the manufacturer states it, you have to rely on reviews and/or test it yourself.

[AH]

My dad picked up a cam once in SF on the cheap in quite a funny shop (ran by an italian guy). I'm looking for a shop like that in the SLC area. I don't need service (I won't be returning the cam anyway), but I just need a shop that doesn't rip me off and provides me with a decent product.

The window for ordering online and pickin it up is very marginal and a last resort at this point.

[midget]

Kodak digital cameras (point and shoot) suck goat balls. Avoid them. Go Canon, the A70 is an awesome small point and shoot camera. If you don't mind the smaller zoom, the digital elph's area smaller than a pack of smokes and takes great photos especially for the money.

I'd go with the Canon, lower end Nikkon coolpix, or any of the Olympus point and shoot digicams. I have been very very unimpressed with the image quality coming out of most of the other point and shoot digicams out there.

[summit]

midget is quite right avbout hte brands and quality, but, since he wan't looking for quality... the Kodak I mentioned is fantasticly easy to use with gloves and has a better zoom than the A70/A80.

A70 and A80 are the exact same except the A80 is 4MP instead of 3MP and like $119 more.

The A70/80 has difficult controls to work with gloves on if you want anything but apoint and shoot.

[AH]

I don't need as much a point and shoot cam, I like it when I can fiddle around with settings somewhat. The mentioned cams look good, but they don't have as much zoom as the Z1 (10x optical, 4x digital).

[Mcwop]

Follow up:

Here are a couple of sample pictures from the Panasonic Lumix FZ1. These are unaltered direct from the camera. The first picture is using full zoom (12x). YOu can see the power by looking at the second picture (taken on a different day). In the second picture in the distance you will see the same flat-top peak. These were from slightly different vantage points, but distance is approx same. I like this camera a lot, especially for the price.

Pic One at 12X zoom
http://homepage.mac.com/mcwop/.Pictu...D5456A11D8.jpg

Pic Two at wide angle
http://homepage.mac.com/mcwop/.Pictu...2E456A11D8.jpg