Tip #3882 - Ultra Portable Digicams
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Ultra
Portable Digicams
These are a few, though
rare, tips that you need to look into before buying any ultra portable
digital camera. A camera's functionality and convenience are what should
determine your choice. Here are a few tips that could swing the pendulum
either way.
Form Factor
Ultra compact sized
cameras might be easy to fit into your pocket and carry around, but there
is a downside to them. They can make controlling your shots quite difficult.
Particularly, models like the Fuji Z3, Nikon S7 and the Samsung NV3, all
of which are exceptionally thin. However, Canon IXUS and Panasonic FX01
provide the right balance of shape and size. They are small, but a bit
stout, so they fit in the hand really well and make it easier to shoot.
The other good ones include the Kodak dual lens cameras with their V610
and V705 models.
Types of Lenses
Different cameras
have different lenses. Take a look at the four different types and decide
what suits you best. There is the telephoto lens that offers zoom capabilities
that are usually 3X optical. There's the wide angle lens, which offers
a much larger frame, allowing you to capture better landscape shots. The
dual lens cameras combine a wide angle and telephoto lens together to
give you the best of both worlds. However, in the small size lenses, they
end up compromising quality in favor of versatility. Lastly, telescopic
lenses enable a much sleeker look with no protruding lenses. The Samsung
NV3 and Fuji that use these lenses appear compact, but they might suffer
a bit on quality. But, go ahead if you are looking for extreme portability.
For good quality, go for the telephoto lens with wide angle capabilities,
like the Canon IXUS 850IS and Panasonic Lumix FX01.
Features
Technological marvels
abound in every camera model. It's important to know what you want from
the camera before you decide on any model. Take the Samsung NV3, for instance.
It is the only camera in its price range that has a Personal Media Player
and MP3 player with it. You can play both Mpeg4 videos and MP3 audio.
It also has a built in speaker if you find your headphones uncomfortable.
Besides that, its LCD resolution, refresh rate and viewing angle make
it a great pick. On the other hand, Nikon sports the biggest three inch
screen, but Panasonic has the most responsive LCD. Theirs gives good refresh
rates and color reproduction. Canon is good as well, but not as much as
Panasonic. The Kodak cameras have the worst refresh screens and they are
exceptionally grainy. Cameras come with various scene modes to help you
shoot pictures in different settings, come rain, sunshine or snow. Most
have 10 modes, however, the Kodak V610 has 21 different shooting modes.
It’s a problem of plenty. Can you find the right mode before the
moment has passed? One big reason we carry ultra portable cameras is to
take a shot whenever, wherever and most times, as soon as we spot a Kodak
moment. Therefore, start up times become critical. However, most cameras
score on this, so no worries there.
Design
It’s also important
to have the best controls to enhance your photo taking capabilities. Nikon,
Fuji and Canon provide immaculate menus to access all the features in
a jiffy. Kodaks are great for two handed operations, as the controls are
well spread out and well marked. However, some Samsung models don’t
score well on this front. The cameras also need to be of outstanding build
quality to withstand the situations they go through. Thankfully, most
branded cameras are good, particularly Nikon and Canon. They feel nice
and are rugged to boot!
Photo Challenge
The best way to check
the photo taking capabilities is to do a test run before buying them.
And what are you checking for? A few things: Do they fare better in good
light conditions and bad in low light or vice versa? How well is the macro
feature (extreme close up?) Do they capture the correct skin tones? How
good is the detailing and focusing capabilities? How good are they in
outdoor and indoor shooting? I found that Fuji, Canon and Nikon score
well in this feature. The Kodaks lose out at the cost of providing versatility.
Panasonic scores well with indoor photography.
Overall
Fujifinepix, Panasonic
and Canon come out trumps on most of the capabilities mentioned above.
But then again, the choice is left to you and what you want. However,
don’t go by the megapixels. Most digital cameras are used to printing
4x6 photographs, for which even a 5.1 megapixel camera is good enough.
It can produce as good of a result as any other camera that has a 10.1
megapixel function.
Have fun picking out your new
digital camera!
~ Zahid H. Javali
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