New to photography

[dardaa]

hi all,
i'm also looking for a new cam, but being new to photography, i'm not going to rush in to a dSLR.. i'm thinking of the casio ex z-110 or z-120 and z-750, but more inclined to z-110 cos of the price as well as not much difference except for being 1 less mp then the other 2. and z-750 need the cradle which is quite bothersome when travelling
hope to hear from all of you experienced photographers out there as well as users of the following models.
jus a little background, i'm using a canon powershot s20 which i got many yrs back. it's my 1st digi cam and have been using it ever since,but it's giving me battery problems (otherwise every thing else abt it is fine)..

[Isaiahfortythirtyone]

since ur already using canon, why change? get a S80? whats your budget? i;m a canonian so im biased

[dardaa]

erm preferably below $500.. thinking of changing to casio cos i see it uses AA batts and has good reviews.. canon has good reviews too, but the casio has the anti shake function..
btw, does ur canon give u batt prob? i bought a new battery and the same problem occurred after a few weeks..

[karnage]

Haha! I also thinking of asking u to get S80. Then again, what functions are u looking at? And what specifications? Do provide your requirements so we can recommend... =)

[Isaiahfortythirtyone]

S80...wide angle.....*drool.

hehe i use A95, Ixus 500, EOS 300, EOS 350D, all no problem leh. just buy a new batt la? www.eastgear.com i think its prob just a batt prob.

[dardaa]

erm, like i said earlier, actually i'm new to photography, but since i'm going to be free and on holiday after my As, might be interested to get to know more abt photography.. so the camera should preferably allow me some manual control so i can play around with it..
my current S20 only allows me to change the mode and whitebalance.. and i'm not even sure how to use the white balance (pardon me, i'm really new to photography)..

so i guess:
- a decent amt of mp so i can make prints
- possibly CF card (so i can use my current ones) or SD cards, cos i realized prices for sd cards are generally lower then others
- uses AA batteries
- has an optical viewfinder
- can take short vids?
- anti shake?
thanks for the replies, i'll go look up on the S80 now

[dardaa]

Originally Posted by Isaiahfortythirtyone S80...wide angle.....*drool. hehe i use A95, Ixus 500, EOS 300, EOS 350D, all no problem leh. just buy a new batt la? www.eastgear.com i think its prob just a batt prob.

i already got a new batt last yr, but after my trip, the batt life decreased really by alot, now a days i fully charge my batt, only can take around 20 shots.. very scary.. the old batt that came with the cam lesser, only like switch on the cam, then take 3 quick shots then die liao.. could it be the CR2016 round battery that's the problem and not my Ni-MD batt?

[Isaiahfortythirtyone]

the more u look...the more ull be sucked in by the S80. haha.

no but on a more serious note, consider the F11 by fuji. high ISO function, has shutter and aperture and WB controls. exposure compensation also. not as comprehensive manual controls as canon, but certainly enough. 6.3mp, great in low light. and it wont blow ur bank.

[dardaa]

Fwah, the S80 really looks good, just read it's specs, though i don't really know abt apature and stuff and ISo setting, but it looks like it has alot of features.. but it's almost 1k?!
the fuji F10 already above my budget, the F11 sure over also!!
hee, thanks for recommendations though..
how abt casio? there isn't a casio thread on this forum, but on other forums, there seems to be good(and bad too) reviews abt casio, and many who use it claim that once u get it u won't regret..

[Isaiahfortythirtyone]

haha i dunno. but somehow i still (in my biased opinion) think that casio should stick to making watches.

wait for the Fuji F11. it will rock your socks off. canon and nikon will be left floundering. 5th generation CCD processor, HAD CCD with High ISO performance. alraedy many are watiin for this. i tihnk it will worry the big boys who still struggle with either the lack of IS or the lack of a clean image at high ISO settings.

go read the fuji forum on F11.

[dardaa]

Originally Posted by Isaiahfortythirtyone haha i dunno. but somehow i still (in my biased opinion) think that casio should stick to making watches. wait for the Fuji F11. it will rock your socks off. canon and nikon will be left floundering. 5th generation CCD processor, HAD CCD with High ISO performance. alraedy many are watiin for this. i tihnk it will worry the big boys who still struggle with either the lack of IS or the lack of a clean image at high ISO settings. go read the fuji forum on F11.

hm, ok, i'll go read the fuji forum.. any other cams that are more within budget.. cos i'm looking at this site where they offer bundle deals http://www.bargaincity.com.sg/
i'm hoping to get the cam by next weekend latest.. wonder if it's too hasty a descision..
edited:
F11 doesn't have a viewfinder, and i think it's pretty necessary, cos some times in bright light the LCD can be tough to see

[Isaiahfortythirtyone]

bargaincity is always still more ex than if u went to AP or CP or MScolor. go get equotes first

1) www.alanphoto.com.sg
2) email@cathayphoto.com.sg
3) www.mscolor.com.sg

think carefully la. its not $60 leh. its $600. and if u do decide on fuji F11, wait till christmas. meanwhile, read the threads on CS, learn more stuff first. and most impt, when u get the cam, RTFM (read the friendly manual) so ppl don scold u for askin stoopid questions

[dardaa]

ok thanks for the sites.. yeah it's a lot of money but i'm going on holiday and i want to take pics!! but with my batt prob, it seems almost impossible
anyway the F11 and S80 are out of my budget.. looks like i may be getting the 'watch'-camera casio ex-z110 after all if i can't find anything else
and yes, i'll read the manual and learn from CS!!
thanks so much for ur help

[Expiredyoghurt]

i would suggest looking up www.dpreview.com and find a cam that suits your needs/wants (haha) then drop by MScolor or some reputated cam shop and test the cam abit ... before deciding ...

[dardaa]

Thanks Expiredyoghurt, i've been lurking around dpreview for a few days reading the reviews and user opinions.. haha, yeah it's needs/wants

[Expiredyoghurt]

haha .. no prob ... if u want to drop by MScolor after 'A's and look see, play with the cams, then decide ... can drop me a pm .. hahah ... i'm also a JC2 student here .. =P

[felixcat8888]

Originally Posted by dardaa Thanks Expiredyoghurt, i've been lurking around dpreview for a few days reading the reviews and user opinions.. haha, yeah it's needs/wants

Another review site to look at is www.dcresource.com. or www.steves-digicams.com/hardware_reviews.html

Last time I asked, the price of the Casio Z-110 was $420 w/GST.

Cheers......

[dardaa]

Originally Posted by felixcat8888 Another review site to look at is www.dcresource.com. or www.steves-digicams.com/hardware_reviews.html Last time I asked, the price of the Casio Z-110 was $420 w/GST. Cheers......

i got the quotes, but the e quote and the price at the shop is different? is it with e quote you get better price?
anyway, i was introduced to the kodak C360 instead of the Casio Z-110, anyone has opinions on it?
but i checked online, and C340 is somewhat to C360(as is the C330)..
thanks in advance

[cookie monster]

yo....why not considering to have a Panasonic Lumix FZ5?....it's a great prosumer camera....i have been using it for a few months already and it doesn't give me any problems......

[dardaa]

panasonic.. hm, any idea how much it is? anyway, don't really have good experience with panasonic, 2 panasonic phones i had gave me probs..