Any camera buffs in here?
A young family member wants a camera but is being vague about requirements.....
Wants to join a photo club, so summat with all the features/adjustability (which I presume most do these days) of a proper camera, but I doubt they'll want to lug a DSLR round, surely something more portable and hence readily usable will hold their interest....
Any input appreciated.
Mirrorless (micro 4/3, or EOS) remove a lot of bulk, while keeping interchangeable lenses, but you lose the viewfinder (some offer an electronic viewfinder but most just have a big screen on the back)
which isn't a lot of use in bright sunlight
There seems to be very little in the budget market these days, mobile phones have taken over. Sony do some nice ones I think, but these days cameras are not my thing except for ocr. Brian
Pick up secondhand digital compact with zoom.
If the interest is there they will soon work out what they want
Check out "bridge cameras". These are fixed lens cameras with good zoom capabilities. I've been using a Panasonic DMCF27 (among others) for the past
12 years although I had to get it out of its case and google it, to remember what they were called. Apparently they still make this type of camera in various makes and models although maybe not all have viewfinders. But many will offer options both for auto-modes and both shutter and aperture priority, manual focusing, close-up mode and white balance to accommodate different types of lighting, all of which would otherwise be done automatically in auto mode.michael adams
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Depends a bit on the twelve year old. Does it need to take HD video and survive rough handling and trail biking in mud or wet weather?
If not then one of the Ixus series isn't a bad starting point for a beginners camera with more capabilities than most smart phones that isn't too challenging to learn on. They start at about £100 or so.
The camera that you always have with you on a smart phone may get more use. What sort of budget did you have in mind? My suggestion for a first camera would be a more advanced point and shoot rather than a DSLR.
I was going to say something very similar. I have a Ricoh WG-60 which is robust and waterproof. Convenient to hang around neck when out and about. Small sensor of course, not the greatest images, but does video and has an interval timer so you can make "videos" of sunsets, tides, traffic, building sites, skate parks, etc. It does macro (not as good as an Ixus) but has a half-hearted built in "ring illuminator" in the form of six white LEDs around the lens.
Box Brownie. Make sure it takes 120 film as 620 is hard to get hold of.
Can you ask the photo club?
Probably vague as he doesnt know what he wants. Over the years had 35mm, then digital SLRs now settled on a Nikon coolpix s70000. Has 16MP, 20x optical zoom, Macro, video recording, Wi-fi. Cost around £130 and is compact. Something similar will get him started until he finds his feet, at the end of the day...as they say.....Dont blame the tools, more so with cameras.
Let him form his own opinion about what he would like AFTER going to the camera club. As a TV programme broadcast a few years ago stated, its more about taking a good photo rather than the camera you own. The TV programme sent out professional photographers with nothing more than the camera on cheap smart phone to see what they could capture.
Part of the fun of joining the club may be in researching the different camera types to buy.
Personally I think you are probably correct with not wanting to lug around a whole bag of equipment with interchangeable lenses etc. as it can start becoming a chore and always left at home.
Perhaps initially something more compact with a zoom lens. It may teach with such a camera that you cannot easily hand hold a camera at a high zoom and poster size prints may not be so good from a smaller sensor and only a compressed output format.
He's 12. Failing eyesight hasn't set in (yet).
Join the camera club FIRST and then rely on their advice on what hardware to start with. Some of the other members might even have old, unused cameras that they will happily give him/her.
Or an Olympus Tough TG-6 which seems to be same camera internals but different external features. It also has an internal flash but you have to pay extra for a macro-flash diffuser that clips on the front. Unlike the Ricoh you can attach a lens adapter that allows normal filters to be screwed on.
I still have my Ricoh Caplio GX8, bought 2005 and it runs on two AA batteries which is handy because a set of Eneloops and a couple of AA Lithium batteries (for backup) goes a long way. Downside is it only uses SD cards and they are becoming as rare as hens teeth.
The Tough TG-6 can also record in RAW format, which may or may not be useful.
Apologies if I've misunderstood. You referred there to him/her. So who exactly were you referring to your post made 2 minutes previous to this one ?
Which in any case would be irrelevant as bright sunlight can indeed represent a problem in the absence of a viewfinder either optical or electronic.
michael adams
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I'd say mirrorless or a good compact with a bit of zoom. It depends on price too, might be best to join the club first, most memebers love showing off what their prefered camera can do, and even allow him to have a few goes at a club night. They might even have one to sell cheap to a 12-yo that they have in a draw somewhere. Does he have any particualr interests of things he'd like to take pictures off that can be key too in narrowing down the type of camera. There's rec.photo.digital NG probbaly others too.
Most do alright, but it is a valid point, I put teh screen brightness to maxium in daylight conditions. One advantage is that yuo can angle the display, so it makes it easy to hold the camera above your head and still see the FoV (field of view) I did that at a recent Toyah wilcox gig, when 5 deep from the front.
There's several degrees of separation. I've asked questions but nobody is coming back with answers.
Good call, I've ordered one.
I first ordered a Lumix FZ82. But i'm keeping that. :)
I looked hard at the Tough models, decided the extra features didn't justify the extra price (I have a couple of Fuji X for more serious stuff). With hindsight the optional extra ring illuminators are probably much better than the Ricoh.
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