Am currently using Canon Ixus 400. Ya, damn old camera. Anyway, its nice & compact just that the zoom is only 3x optical. Not sufficient at times. I frequent roadshows pretty often & sometimes you just can't get close enuf to the stage so you HAVE to zoom.
Don't intend to get those bulky SLR type cameras 'cos they're way too big. I'm not necessary looking for something tiny enuf to fit in my jeans pocket. As long as its reasonably compact & can fit into my sling bag, that'll do.
Now I've been looking around & I notice that the smallest cam with the most powerful optical zoom is the Coolpix S4. What I like about it is the 10x zoom and the fact that it has a swivel screen. Damn useful when you need to raise your arms & then snap photos 'cos someone in front is blocking. Unfortunately it doesn't have an image stabiliser. Would that be an issue? I don't use tripod, too much of a hassle for a non-pro.
I mean technically speaking I guess if I zoom out to 10x optical WITHOUT stabiliser, the picture MIGHT be blurry. But the thing is, I have a Canon camcorder which has optical stabiliser. And despite this, even the smallest shakes still appear. Which lead me to wonder if the stabiliser even works at all.
Now the DMC-LZ1 has an optical stabiliser but the zoom is only 6x optical. So right now I'm in a dilema. The extra zoom provided by the S4 will prob come in handy more often than not. And there's that swivel screen too. But LZ1 has stabiliser.
ARGH!!! Anyone have any comments/recomendations?
Don't intend to get those bulky SLR type cameras 'cos they're way too big. I'm not necessary looking for something tiny enuf to fit in my jeans pocket. As long as its reasonably compact & can fit into my sling bag, that'll do.
Now I've been looking around & I notice that the smallest cam with the most powerful optical zoom is the Coolpix S4. What I like about it is the 10x zoom and the fact that it has a swivel screen. Damn useful when you need to raise your arms & then snap photos 'cos someone in front is blocking. Unfortunately it doesn't have an image stabiliser. Would that be an issue? I don't use tripod, too much of a hassle for a non-pro.
I mean technically speaking I guess if I zoom out to 10x optical WITHOUT stabiliser, the picture MIGHT be blurry. But the thing is, I have a Canon camcorder which has optical stabiliser. And despite this, even the smallest shakes still appear. Which lead me to wonder if the stabiliser even works at all.
Now the DMC-LZ1 has an optical stabiliser but the zoom is only 6x optical. So right now I'm in a dilema. The extra zoom provided by the S4 will prob come in handy more often than not. And there's that swivel screen too. But LZ1 has stabiliser.
ARGH!!! Anyone have any comments/recomendations?