Martinad wrote:.
As though it has a little better picture quality but cost 350.00 andfor 50.00 more I could buy a Pentax K100D. I am an evironmentalscientist so my pictures are typically wildlife and nature oriented.Any suggestions on how to proceed would be great. Thank you..
But a lot more than $50 difference to get lenses to cover that focal range. If you are reasonably certain that you are going to move up to a dSLR at some point, then you would be saving money by skipping the superzoom. But if you are uncertain, then the equivalent of a 432 mmfocal length and IS is really hard to beat..
Brian A...
If you decide to go the superzoom-way, I would buy the S5 IS..
Because:- it uses AA batteries- has an excellent swivel and tilt LCD- has an classleading movie mode.
The FZ8 may not be bad mut it has a sledge hammer noise reduction. Its up to you - looking at images from Canon and Panasonic I like Canon more because they dont have these "watercolor effect" like the Panasonic cameras. You decide if you prefer a bit more grain(maybe remove it with a bit PP) or a clean image with loss of fine detail..
For wildlife I wouldnt recommend the K100D because it has a very loud shutter noise. Most animals will run away....
(\__/)(X.X )(> < ) I killed bunny on his way to world domination..
I agree with you. FZ8 additionally has Raw mode. So whenever you need to bump up ISO, shoot in Raw mode and covert to jpg during post processing to have best possible IQ. FZ8 has less fringing problems too. And the price differential simply is too much. Save the differential for your DSLR purchase.
Martinad wrote:.
Hi everyone I am new to the site. I have most of my experience withfilm SLR cameras (typically pentax). I am looking at getting intothe digital world and was considering a super zoom for the time beingto play around and then moving up to a DSLR. Right now I am on thewall over the Canon Powershot Pro Series S5 and the Panasonic LumixDMC-FZ8. The panasonic looks appealing because of the price at250.00 (especially if I am going to eventually move up to a DSLR) butI am concerned with the noise and Venus III system. The canon seemsas though it has a little better picture quality but cost 350.00 andfor 50.00 more I could buy a Pentax K100D.
Thank you..
Keep smiling, Ajayhttp://picasaweb.google.com/ajay0612(Thanks for your precious time & invaluable comments)..
I am in your situation, and just pulled the trigger on an FZ8. Reasons were based on:.
- Price - $100 is quite significant percentage-wise in this price range.
- Batteries - I don't need to spend more on AA rechargeables. Spare Li-on can be had for about $10 on eBay and generally last longer- Ability to shoot RAW - better to learn PP techniques.
- Venus III processing can be set to low, to minimize it's effect (though would be better if it could be shut off)- Movie mode wasn't a huge deal for me- Leica name on the lens - yeah, the marketing got to me .
IQ-wise, either would have been a huge step up for me, since I've only used ultra-compacts in the past...
Thanks for all the advice. Movies aren't of any concern to me so I pulled the trigger on the FZ8 last night. I just couldn't resist the price. It will be a good intermediate camera for a while until I decide to move up to the big guns. Again thanks for all the advice...