yes 550 is a fatty
get the assessory kit while u're at it! :p

The lens on the sd550 is superior it derived from the older s400 series hence its thicker.. but the mp war has mis led the general public, more mp doesnt mean its a better camera. more mp = more noise in low light at higher iso. I found a nice threshold to be around 4mp on point and shoots where its not very noisy at high iso.

My 2 cents

is that true?
only for point and shoot cameras though i'm assuming as they have a smaller sensor?

It's more noticeable with smaller sensors.

Ahh.. ok must remember bigger MP = more noise at higher ISOs for small sensor cameras (seems common sense the more I read it :p)

If you have an APS-C size sensor and pack it with say, 30MP worth of pixels, it would be noisy, too. A majority of noise is caused by heat from adjoining pixel sites.

So what's considered the best MP for a sensor from a small point and shoot camera? Around 4-5MP?

sd450 for the reasons mentioned above.

does anyone know how much a hoya multi coat UV filter costs around here? becuase i am looking to maybe getting one from lensmate.com when i order my adapter, but if the price is compariable to here, i wouldnt need to spend extra on my shipping to get filter.

TIA

Sweet thanks for the info ppl. Got my sister to pick me up the SD450 in Calgary, so I only pay one tax. Hmmm wonder if I should have just waited for boxing day though ... BaH! I hate impulse buying haha

Does anyone know if places still sell the SD200?

It's still listed on Canon's website...

http://www.canon.ca/digitalphotograp...p?id=681&cid=6

What size? My friend just bought a 67mm Hoya filter for $30 at Beau. My advice: get a better brand like B+W or Heliopan. Hoya coatings are quite delicate.

About certain Cameras
 

I dunno if its the appropriate forum, if its not let me apologize in advance.

I'm searching for a Canon Elura 85 DV Camera. So I was wondering where are some good places to buy cameras aside from future shop and best buy

Thanks in advance.

Is this an older model camera or relatively new? There's plenty of camera stores in the lower mainland: Beau Photo, Leo's Camera, Broadway Camera, Lens and Shutter... look in the yellow pages.

it's a video camcorder :)

i am looking at a 52mm... thanks for the input i am a complete noob haha... how much do b+w or heliopan cost? would u recomend tiffen?

Purchasing my first digital SLR in the next day or so and i've narrowed it down to the following two (my budget is roughly $1200 pre-tax).

Canon Digital Rebel XT with Kit Lens + 1 Gig CF Card = $1189+tax

vs.

Nikon D50 with Kit Lens (apparently 2 lenses included) and 512 SD card = $1199+tax

The guy at Broadway Cameras suggested I go for the d50 because the starter kit is better. Sharpness is important, but obviously not the most as I can upgrade lenses to achieve that.

I'm going to be using the camera amateurly. I like to shoot people and portraits more than anything else, weight doesn't bother me at all, but I am a bit wary about the d50 only being a 6.0 megapixel (I know megapixels aren't everything but I do like to print my photos in large format).

I've taken a photography course in the past, but really have learned more in the last month or so than anything else.

Can anybody sway me towards one camera?

I have the D50 and all I can say is that it'll take awhile for you to outgrow its potential (same with the XT), so instead of spending more on the camera body I suggest spending more on the lenses. I think you can get the D50 body for less than 780 bucks now and instead of getting 2 OKAY lenses, I think you should use that money to get ONE GOOD lens. You'll be happy with the little bit of extra money you spent on a good lens a few years down the road.

I was choosing between the 2 cameras as well a few months ago but ended up with the Nikon because of a few things:

- feels better in my larger hands
- doesn't feel as cheap as the XT which's like a plastic toy camera (but of course it's not)
- I like Nikon's lenses better, having seen shots taken with friend's D100, D70, and D1x
- Excellent low-noise shots at ISO1600, which I think is important for me because I shoot indoors a lot (Canon 20D is good for that as well but it's double the price, not in the same leauge)

a few things I DON"T like about the D50:

- no vertical battery grip
- top LCD doesn't light up, can be a pain in the butt sometimes when you shoot at night
- Uses SD card, however this could be a positive if you're coming off a Point&Shoot that uses SD cards
- some settings are buried in the menus, but it's the same with the XT or any other entry-level SLRs

Other than those it's a great beginner camera for you to learn, and you can always sell it off a year or two from now if you think you need more freedom and better build quality with your camera.

Good things I like about the XT:

- a bit more resolution to play with espeically if you crop a lot... I've seen prints from both cameras and honestly the difference's really not that big. Most people won't even recognize that "Oh is this from a 6MP camera or an 8MP camera?"
- Vertical grip! The damn thing's so small that if you don't have a grip it just feels wrong
- Canon's selection (not color) of lenses, I think they have a bit more options in this category, so you might be able to find something that better fits your need. Nikon's good too but the selection's not as huge
- More camera body selections as well, though they're always more expensive than Nikon's offering for similar specs

What I don't like about the XT:

- did I say cheap-feeling already?
- too small for me personally
- interface's not as intuitive as Nikon's
- kit lens is not as good as the D50's, if you're comparing the two kits


The thing is that you can't go wrong with either one, but keep in mind that you're buying into a "system" so if you go with one, it's better to stay with it to avoid spending lots of money when jumping between Canon / Nikon.

I hope I didn't sound too pro-Nikon but that's my opinion on the two systems based on my limited experience with digital photography.

actually theres a 3rd party grip out for the d50

Thanks for the info Bonjour43MA.

I just found out that BestBuy is having the D50 kit on sale for $839 on boxing day so I think I'll go pick that up, and like you said, when I'm legitimately ready to upgrade cameras in a couple of years I'll do so.

I know, there's a few out there but they serve nothing more than to give you more battery life and a bigger grip.

You can't half-press the button to focus, no command dials and it's useless for taking fast-moving objects because the shutter is released by an IR signal coming from the grip, so when you press the shutter relase button on the grip, it goes like this -> signal gets sent to the IR sensor, camera attempts to autofocous, camera attemps to take a shot, end of sequence. It's too slow.

Burst-mode is impossible with 3rd party grip so it's uselss for sports photography.

Please Nikon, make a damn vertical grip for the D50/D70/D70s.

Pentax OptioWPi vs. Canon Powershot A520
 

Well I just opened my x-mas gifts a little while ago, and my parents got me a digital camera (actually two) and I get to pick which one I want.
One of them is the Canon PowerShot A520, 4.0 megapixels, 4x optical zoom, 35-140mm lense
the other is the Pentax OptioWPi, 6.0 megapixels, waterproof (up to 1.5m), dustproof, 3x optical zoom

Anyone used either of these or have input/opinions?
thanks,
~Steve

The A520 is probably one of the most popular 4MP cams out there, I like the colors straight outta the camera and there's quite a few manual features that you can play around with to be more creative. The downside of that camera is the flash recycling time which is unacceptablly slow, at 3 or 4 seconds or something like that, so everytime you use the camera with flash you'll have to wait 3 or 4 seconds before you can take the next shot. I don't think the Pentax is that slow but I can't remember.

The Pentax is nice because it's waterproof, my friend took hers with her to Egpyt and took some pretty amazing underwater shots that wouldn't have been possible with other cams unless you get the waterproof case, which ususally costs 150~200 bucks alone. It's small, easy to use and seems to have pretty low noise when taking night shots.

If you only print 4x6 or occasionally 8x11, I don't think you'll notice any noticeable difference between the photos from either camera, so it comes down to ergonomics and features that you have to decide on. If you get a chance you should drop by a camera store and play with both for a bit to see which one feels more comfortable.

Canon A520

Pros:
- comfortable grip (personal preference)
- nicely built
- Canon color
- 640x480 movie mode (but only like 30 seconds or something, kinda short)
- uses AA batteries (I see this as a pro because you can find replacements very easily, and NiMh recharable batteries are cheap)
- can use adapters for telephoto or wideangle lenses (but they're expensive)

Cons:
- slow operation time
- slow flash recycling time
- bigger than the Pentax
- refresh rate for the LCD screen is a bit slower than the Pentax


Pentax Optio WPi

Pros:
- waterproof, dust proof
- almost instant start up, good operation time
- Very good colors and details
- smaller
- continous AF

Cons:
- movie mode's kinda lacking at only 320x240 res
- more of a point-and-shoot camera with limited manual features
- Lithium-Ion battery (con for me cuz a replacement is harder to find and more expensive, but could be pro if you prefer a smaller camera)


There, my opinion's based on having used both cameras either through friends or at work, so take it as it is and see what other ppl say about them. Notice how my comments on them are mostly on the build, features, and certain operation issue because I personally believe those have more to do with choosing the right camera than megapixel count or brand name.

Either way you'll be happy with the camera, and hopefully you'll enjoy doing photography. Post some pics too after you've decided on either one, have fun!

Thanks for the info!
You basically told me everything I wanted to know, I was kind of leaning towards the pentax due to the waterproof/dustproof, because I'd like to take it travelling (most likely thailand/australia) so the sand could be an issue. I do have access to a very nice Canon SLR with some Zeiss lenses, so as far as if I want to get into fancy shots and stuff like that I'd probably be using that one anyways.
I was mostly wondering about the time it takes between pictures and actual image quality, the batteries are a drawback IMO as well, but its something I can live with, I'll be taking it up snowboarding and stuff too, so I think its prettymuch a slam dunk for the Pentax. thanks for the help!

oh i forgot to mention:

the Canon's got an optical viewfinder so it's good when it's too bright outside or if u're taking shots in darker rooms, the Pentax only has the LCD... I don't know if that's a big deal to you or not cuz I see you've kinda decided on the Pentax already.