[X4U] Who loves ya Digi Camera? [TAN]

[Ralph]

My sister has the Panasonic Lumix, and her results are stunning. She  
is a film industry professional who studied both film and photography  
in college, and she chose the Lumix based upon the recommendation of  
a well-known director.

The Lumix is a re-branded Leica product (Leica optics) and also takes  
movies. It's a beautifully engineered piece of gear.

Ralph Jones
Avatar Community Business Center
Fairfax, California
ralph at avatarbiz.com


> OK, so the Misses wants a digital camera for Chrissy... something
> kinda compact for the handbag and coz I got me a digital movie camera
> 2 Christmases back I won't be seeing a serious digital camera of my
> own for some time to come.
>
> Therefore I'd like to marry our two worlds together and get something
> that I could happily use when I need to and she'll be happy with in
> her pocket. She wants the camera for quick happy family shots and some
> professional macro close-ups of botanicals.
>
> As a designer I want the flexibility to take shots and blow them up or
> zoom in a few hundred % without it looking too crappy too quickly.
>
> The SPECS:
> At least 7mpix (pref 8 & above)
> 10X zoom would be preferable but would settle for 5X (3 just won't cut
> it in my opinion)
> Good quality lens (the bigger the better I've been taught re: letting
> in more light for better exposure)
> Decent flash strength
> Good size LCD (2+ inch)
> Viewfinder would be a bonus.
> Pref SD card (XD are more expensive) but not a show-stopper
> Price range under AUD$500  (prob US$350-400)
>
> To give you an idea, I've been looking at the following cameras
> (probably coz that's all the shops have been thrusting under my nose):
>
> Fuji FinePix S5700 & S5800 (maybe a bit bulky)
> Panasonic Lumix DMC-T23
> Olympus 161795
> Canon SX100 IS
>
> So I'm looking for real-world experience from people who've already
> broken down all of the above walls to find a great solution.
>
> And a merry Christmas/holidays from down-unda,
>
> Cojcolds
>