Buying a new camera for holiday

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rokki

374 posts

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#140636 16-Feb-2014 08:08

Hi all thinking of buying this http://www.sony.co.nz/product/dsc-hx300 up until now I have only used a cheap and nasty point and shoot and iPhone for my needs. But they aren't really up to the grade the spec on the sony seems quite good I should be able to pick one up for the $700 mark does anyone have any thoughts ? Should I look at something else up to a $1000 max is my budget hopefully including the storage medium.

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#988083 16-Feb-2014 08:26

What ever you buy give yourself enough time to know how it works before your holiday. Last trip overseas every view point was clogged with US tourists with a new DSLR that they were having problems with.

nedkelly

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#988086 16-Feb-2014 08:38

That camera should cover all your needs with the 50x optical zoom that is on it.
The other cameras would have lesser zoom capabilities and maybe some extra features but you need to decide if you want bells and whistles or the zoom range, personally I would go with the camera you linked above because it has the great zoom on it, I have seen quite a few people with cameras that are 5x or 10x zoom and they dont get the picture they want in the distance due to lower zoom capabilities.

timmmay

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#988109 16-Feb-2014 09:23

It has a 7mm sensor which is pretty small. My DSLR has a 35mm sensor, and my Sony RX100 has a 1"/13mm sensor - even 13mm is four times the area. It's a big camera with no real benefits to being large, other than being annoying.

50X zoom is pointless - just stand closer to what you want to take photos of. 24-1300mm is ridiculous. The larger the range of the lens the poorer the quality, generally. 3X zoom is fine.

Suggest you look at the Sony RX100, v1 or v2. It fits in your pocket (front or back), big sensor means great images even in low light, good raw mode, 1080p video. I'm taking the RX100 on my 3 week overseas honeymoon and leaving the DSLR at home. The only downsides are no hotshoe for an external flash and it has a 28mm lens.

sonyxperiageek

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#988143 16-Feb-2014 11:20

Agree with Timmmay, the Sony RX100 MkII is one of the best cameras you can get right now, but at a price.

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timmmay

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#988145 16-Feb-2014 11:25

The Mk1 is still an awesome camera, available for $640 from shops I've never heard of or $800 from places I trust. The Sony centre gave me a decent discount when I got it, from $1000 down to $900 or so I think, but they're selling it way more than most other now.

rokki

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#988228 16-Feb-2014 14:01

Hi all thanks for the response the RX100 2 looks like the one but out of my budget :( Is their an alternate from another brand ?

sonyxperiageek

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#988231 16-Feb-2014 14:04

You can always try and get the RX100 M1. :)

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timmmay

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#988249 16-Feb-2014 14:23

rokki: Hi all thanks for the response the RX100 2 looks like the one but out of my budget :( Is their an alternate from another brand ?

You said your budget is $1000, you can probably get the v2 for less than that, and you can definitely get the v1 for less than that. Have you read the replies already posted?

rokki

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#988279 16-Feb-2014 15:34

I also need to get the sd card and spare battery for $1000 max so if anyone knows somewhere tame. I wouldn't buy the R100 it would be the mark 2.

blackjack17

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#988317 16-Feb-2014 16:21

http://www.steves-digicams.com/knowledge-center/digital-camera-holiday-gift-guide---400---600-cameras.html

and

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/9961962217/entry-level-mirrorless-camera-roundup-2013

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jarledb

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#988339 16-Feb-2014 16:58

You are going to have to have extremely good lighting to be able to get anything decent with a full zoom on the Sony. f 6.3 is nothing to write home about (it tells how much light the lens will let through).

Most anything that is not the cost of a brand new good brand car is going to be pretty bad at 1300 mm btw.

I would take a good long look at this camera if you want a super zoom:
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonic-lumix-dmc-fz200

It a has 25 - 600 mm lense with f 2.8 all the way from wide to zoom.

It sells for around $750 here in New Zealand and for a compact super zoom that is what I would look at.

My own setup for zoom is a Canon 7D with a Canon 100 - 400 mm lense. And even with this heavy camera (with battery grip) its hard to hold it still to take photos at full zoom.

Forget about what 1300 mm would be like - you need a really good stand and a day without too much air movement (so forget taking full zoom pictures on a hot day) to get anything decent on 1300 mm.

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jarledb

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#988342 16-Feb-2014 17:04

BTW: I am using my iPhone 5S as the main camera these days, and usually travel with my Canon S100 as well. http://www.canon.co.nz/en-NZ/Personal/Products/Cameras-and-Accessories/Digital-Cameras/PowerShot-S100 which is not at all a super zoom, but it is one of the best compact cameras I have ever used.

The updated version is this one (which have Wi-fi as one of the upgrades, as well as f 1.8 to f 5.7 compared to the 100s f 2.0 to f 5.9) http://www.canon.co.nz/en-NZ/Personal/Products/Cameras-and-Accessories/Digital-Cameras/S120

JimmyH

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#988366 16-Feb-2014 17:39

What sort of photographs are you likely to be taking?
What's your skill level?
How much is camera size an issue?

rokki

374 posts

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#988395 16-Feb-2014 18:02

Hi all my thoughts around the first camera were from a future proofing point of view not so much the zoom itself so I have been educated a bit.

rayonline

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#988873 17-Feb-2014 13:45

If you just want some photographs casually and in a dark setting like restaurants at night lit up by busy skyscrapers overseas ... I look at the Sony RX100 which has a smaller zoom lens or a non zoom fixed 35mm like the disposables but it has a larger sized sensor even better in low light settings Fuji X100s. But they're not your single camera from wide angles to superzoom african safari ......

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