Kenya and bright sunlight.... you'll not find IS so vital after all. Follow that rough rule we had for 35mm cameras and lenses 1/focal length to keep camera shake at bay. So 1/300sec for 300mm should be more than enough. Remember too that if using the self-timer you can rest your camera on fences, rocks, trees, vehicles etc and get much more interesting shots than from the oh-so-generally-boring human eye level..

Image stabilisation is yet another thing that can eat into battery life, and in any case you should take the number of shots given by manufactures with a large pinch of the proverbial salt. I think the issue for you here is that you have convinced yourself that you need image stablisation, so it would be counter productive not to have it available; you can of course always turn it off..

If you want to shoot wildlife a long zoom is essential, so don't you think you'd better go for that Panasonic and have a couple of backup batteries?.

John.Please visit me at:http://www.pbase.com/johnfr/backtothebridgehttp://www.pbase.com/johnfr..

Good reply thanks..

The reason I think I will need IS is for long zoom shots, and taking photos if i'm on a moving vehicle. I'm still not 100% sure I really need IS, but yes I would like to have the option of using it..

The fuji has a slightly shorter zoom (x10), but does have 28mm focal length rather than the panny's 35mm..

Just remembered the other bonus for the fuji and thats that the zoom is manual. I was thinking having a manual zoom would mean less battery power used and faster more accurate zooming..

John farrar wrote:.

Kenya and bright sunlight.... you'll not find IS so vital after all.Follow that rough rule we had for 35mm cameras and lenses 1/focallength to keep camera shake at bay. So 1/300sec for 300mm should bemore than enough. Remember too that if using the self-timer you canrest your camera on fences, rocks, trees, vehicles etc and get muchmore interesting shots than from the oh-so-generally-boring human eyelevel..

Image stabilisation is yet another thing that can eat into batterylife, and in any case you should take the number of shots given bymanufactures with a large pinch of the proverbial salt. I think theissue for you here is that you have convinced yourself that you needimage stablisation, so it would be counter productive not to have itavailable; you can of course always turn it off..

If you want to shoot wildlife a long zoom is essential, so don't youthink you'd better go for that Panasonic and have a couple of backupbatteries?.

John.Please visit me at:http://www.pbase.com/johnfr/backtothebridgehttp://www.pbase.com/johnfr..

Shots from a moving vehicle on rough terrain? Image Stabilisiation isn't going to do much to stabilise the subject, all of which will be moving then. For that you need a bright lens and a high shutter speed. Manual zoom definitely, as it will help you to hold the camera securely. That leaves you with the Panasonic FZ50 if you need IS for other times, and you might for example in shaded areas or for evening shots..

I'd be careful with my settings on a Fuji so that whenever the big yellow camera shake warning came up I did something about it other than switching to their auto high ISO mode. Definitely do-able..

As an alternative to the intermediate level Fuji (and only if you're prepared to work around the lack of IS for the gain of better EVF, flip out LCD, hot shoe, cable release socket, and sturdy manual zoom) you should find the Fuji 9100/9600 available at a great price at the moment. Such a camera is every bit as involving as a DSLR and you may not need that at this time..

I still think you should go with the heart instead of the head and get a Panasonic camera with IS. The only thing it won't do is decent wide angle shots, for me a deal breaker but maybe not for someone more into wildlife where the long zoom is going to be a major advantage. You'll kick yourself later if you end up with the animals too small in the middle of the frame..

John.Please visit me at:http://www.pbase.com/johnfr/backtothebridgehttp://www.pbase.com/johnfr..

Why did you leave out Canon S3IS? It is one of the best in the segment. Swivel LCD is real bonus (helpful in street, flower, overhead, self portrait, on-tripod photography). IQ is also good. High ISO performance is better than FZ8.Next is Panasonic FZ8..

Rangor wrote:.

1. Fujifilm S6500fd (aka S6000) great camera and cheap at 150 but no IS2. Canon A710 IS smaller and lighter than my other choices but onlyhas x6 zoom3. Panny DMC-FZ7 my prefered choice at the moment. slightly moreexpensive than the others, and also means I will have to splash outextra cash on lith-ion batteries. I already have lots of AA NiMHs andneed to buy more anyway, so would much prefer a camera that ran on AA.4.



Any others you think I should look at?Idealy I would like a camera just like the FZ7, but cheaper, and runson AA NiMH batteries, but with IS (otherwise the fuji would beperfect!).Thanks in advance!.

Keep smiling, Ajayhttp://picasaweb.google.com/ajay0612(Thanks for your precious time & invaluable comments)..

Yes I would love the S3 IS, but i'm afraid it's over budget. I could get an FZ7 with case, 2x battery, 1GB card for less than I could get S3 IS just by itself.The FZ7 is about as much as I want to spend...

The other panasonic and fuji look like great cameras but out of my budget really..

I like your thinking - 'go with the heart and not the head'.

I just wish the black FZ7 was the same price as the silver. 20 pounds more for having a black camera! who are they kidding?..

If nothing you want to shoot has the poor taste to stand in the shade you can do without stabilization. In bright Florida sun at midday I am right on the edge of being able to handhold at 12X if something is in the shade. I usually shoot a three shot burst hoping that one will be really sharp..

I often find the camera metering to 1/30 second for targets in the shade on a sunny day. And I have one of the older FZs that maintain f2.8 at 12X. Newer models without that wide aperture at full zoom probably wouldnt generate as much and you would have to crank up the ISO. At f4.9 at full zoom you would need the S6000 at ISO 400 just to make up for the slow lens. Then crank it up to 3200 to make up for lack of stabilization..

On the other hand stabilization does nothing to capture movement. High ISO is more versatile, but I would personally prefer stabilization..

Is the FZ7 that much cheaper than the FZ8? The FZ8 was released at a lower price. I would prefer it because of raw mode. Panasonics cycle raw fast enough that it is useable. It also has a much better EVF and a little better LCD. The high quality EVF would be significant to me..

The wide angle of the S6000 would be nice for the trip. When I got my first pocket digital I really wanted wide angle because my pocket 35mm had it and I used it a lot, but there was nothing available. I learned to hold the camera with the long side up and shoot two or three panorama shots. The stitched image cropped to a 4:3 around 27mm from a 38mm lens. That doesnt work well for big waves or shots with things moving. But it substitutes for a wide angle most of the time.

You would get even wider for a 4 X 6..

The manual zoom is not about battery power to me. I absolutely hate an electric zoom, especially on a long zoom range camera. Ive had one for a couple of years now and still dont like it. A manual zoom is much more useable IMO...

I never even looked at the FZ8!.

Not much more expensive at all. and there are some good deals to be had. Again silver is cheaper than black!!! why oh why...

Than I would advise you to go for Fuji S6500fd as it is the best prosumer as on date (less noise, tad better DR, it allows shooting in Raw mode too).Although I.S. is useful feature, but IQ is first priority..

Rangor wrote:.

Yes I would love the S3 IS, but i'm afraid it's over budget. I couldget an FZ7 with case, 2x battery, 1GB card for less than I could getS3 IS just by itself.The FZ7 is about as much as I want to spend..

Keep smiling, Ajayhttp://picasaweb.google.com/ajay0612(Thanks for your precious time & invaluable comments)..

I have an S3IS and had a Panny FZ7 for a couple of weeks. The Panny is really a nice camera, and I loved the VERY sharp lens, the IS worked well, and the operation is straight forward and intuitive. It even ships with a petal style lens hood, which would be of great benefit when shooting in bright sunlight to decrease flare. The litium ion battery seemed to last a long time between charges, depending on flash, IS use, etc (IS uses more battery power), and keeps the camera lighter overall than using the AAs. Video was decent, if not inspiring, but that's not what you are buying it for..

I ended up taking it back for the Canon, and sometimes I regret the decision, but here is what the Canon does better: Lots of features, excellent video function that records in stereo, uses AAs, much less noise than the FZ7. That was the reason I took the Panasonic back: lots of visible noise in low light situations. However, if the primary use will be in bright light, I think you will love the Panasonic. It has dSLR speed with it's autofocus system, and the Lieca designed lens is very very sharp. While it lacks the S3IS's swivel screen (I do like that), it has a feature that allows viewing with the camera held overhead, as when shooting over a crowd, etc..

If you won't be shooting in low light much, I don't think you would be disappointed with the Panny. Again, ships with the petal style lens hood, which will cut down on flare in Kenya's bright sunshine..

Good luck!..

I went for the FZ8 in the end. It was real close between that and the S3 IS, but the FZ8 was slightly cheaper (as a bundle package), lighter, and smaller.Maybe i'll swap it for an S3 after I try the FZ8 for a few days. But I doubt it...

I'm thinking about getting one and am curious about your experience with them over the past couple of weeks...