Adive on a What P&S

[IainUK]

Hi - a friend at work wants to buy his wife a P&S and has asked me for advice. I really don't know anything about the Canon range in this area as I use a DSLR. His requirements are:

1. Around £250 - could probably stretch
2. Doesn't need to change lenses
3. Wants minimum shutter delay (instant click if poss)
4. Nice large viewfinder at the back
5. Don't think video is that important but may be a nice to have.

Any help or suggestions very welcome.

Thanks

PS I can spell "advice" really :)

[Big Hands]

With the somewhat limited requirements listed, I would suggest looking into the A720is.

Just remember, all cameras have their downsides, the trick is to find the one whose downsides have the least affect on your shooting style.

[Bruce_B]

I recently bought an SD850is for my wife and we like it a lot. It uses a rechargeable lithium battery so the flash recycle time on it is very fast. Her last camera used AA's and was much slower. It's also small enough to stick in a purse and take everywhere. You won't find an instant click in a P&S but it's pretty fast

[Changeling]

I was thinking about this very subject today. The Canon A720IS is a highly recommended camera by practically every one on this web site that has been involved with one.
As I said in my first sentence, I started thinking that you will probably not see another camera with the bells & whistles that it has for the price ever again, not with the way prices are going up these days. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see the price of it start going up when other people start realizing this.

With this in mind I bought a new one about an hour ago.
Is that a good enough endorsement lainUK ?

Changeling

[IainUK]

[QUOTE]With this in mind I bought a new one about an hour ago.
Is that a good enough endorsement lainUK ?[QUOTE]
Couldn't ask for a better one! ;)

Thanks for all the replies - I will pass on the details.

Iain

[Nick_C]

I use the A720IS, its well within your budget & produces images as good as any of the more expensive P&S cameras, they are all very close in terms of IQ, except for a few lemons out there (usually from Sony) ;-)

If you want to see the quality of the A720IS, have a look at my other post here:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showpost.php?p=5819359&postcount=4

The main reason I went for the A720IS was the zoom range & the manual controls, I needed a camera that has full manual control, as I dont like the ones that only have auto modes, also I went for the A720IS due to the CHDK firmware hack, its 100% safe & doesnt modify the internal firmware at all, it just sits on the SD card, delete it & its back to a standard camera, but with it you can shoot in RAW mode & it has lots of other features, like exposure bracketing, focus bracketing, tons & tons of extras!!

[troutfisher]

As I am also considering a P&S to take walking, rather than start another thread can I ask how the A720IS compares with the G9 or S5 IS . I am tempted to the S5 for the zoom and the fact that it will take the 580 and 430 flash units. Sorry if I have hi jacked the thread

[Nick_C]

As I am also considering a P&S to take walking, rather than start another thread can I ask how the A720IS compares with the G9 or S5 IS . I am tempted to the S5 for the zoom and the fact that it will take the 580 and 430 flash units. Sorry if I have hi jacked the thread

Not at all, if we feel you have hijacked the thread we will just ignore you!! lol :p

I found a website that did a direct comparison between the A720IS & G9, I found there were minimal differences, if any!! so I went for saving the cash & got the A720IS.

I will see if I can find it for you.

[Nick_C]

Here you go, it wasnt too hard to find.

A720IS test shots:
http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/canon/powershot_a720-review/gallery.shtml

G9 test shots:
http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/canon/powershot_g9-review/gallery.shtml

If you compare 2 images loading up in photoshop or whatever you use you can see any differences by looking closely at 100%.

Take these for example:

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/canon/powershot_a720-review/IMG_0004.JPG

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/canon/powershot_g9-review/IMG_0007.JPG

The G9 looks a little dingy to me, but on other shots it can be around the other way, sometimes its actually the light which im liking better, as he couldnt do these tests on exactly the same days of the year, but overall there isnt a great difference between the 2 cameras.

The G9 wins on build, & also has more features but once you add the CHDK for the A720IS it adds all of those features & more.

[Bruce_B]

As I am also considering a P&S to take walking, rather than start another thread can I ask how the A720IS compares with the G9 or S5 IS . I am tempted to the S5 for the zoom and the fact that it will take the 580 and 430 flash units. Sorry if I have hi jacked the thread

If you're going to do much indoor flash shooting the external flash will make a world of difference. The G9 will also take one of those flashes.

[Nick_C]

Yes flash is something to consider, for me it wasnt an issue as I use the following:

Sigma 500DG Super flashgun in optical slave mode

I have the power of the internal flash down at the minimum, so it really has NO effect on the scene, then I just either hold my flash with the other hand or usually I place it down on the table or a shelf, then I just use my A720IS as normal, everytime the little internal flash fires the main Sigma flash fires (bounced of course), the results are FAR better.

Of course this setup only works if you have a flashgun with an optical slave mode, you can either pay the extra for the G9, or buy an optical slave unit, they are quite cheap & save a load of cash.

I like this way as mounting a big flashgun on a little P&S looks silly, but more importantly its a little top heavy then, another plus of using an optical sync is that you can use ANY make of flash, doesnt have to be a Canon ;-) you could use a really cheap flashgun, a vivitar, a sunpak, anything will work, it doesnt even have to have a swivel head, you can aim it to the ceiling to bounce the flash.

[Changeling]

Yes flash is something to consider, for me it wasnt an issue as I use the following:

Sigma 500DG Super flashgun in optical slave mode

I have the power of the internal flash down at the minimum, so it really has NO effect on the scene, then I just either hold my flash with the other hand or usually I place it down on the table or a shelf, then I just use my A720IS as normal, everytime the little internal flash fires the main Sigma flash fires (bounced of course), the results are FAR better.

Of course this setup only works if you have a flashgun with an optical slave mode, you can either pay the extra for the G9, or buy an optical slave unit, they are quite cheap & save a load of cash.

I like this way as mounting a big flashgun on a little P&S looks silly, but more importantly its a little top heavy then, another plus of using an optical sync is that you can use ANY make of flash, doesnt have to be a Canon ;-) you could use a really cheap flashgun, a vivitar, a sunpak, anything will work, it doesnt even have to have a swivel head, you can aim it to the ceiling to bounce the flash.

Nick, first off I know very little about photography but am intending/trying to learn as time permits. However from what I have (personally) seen there is no way an A720IS will take photo shots like the G9 if all things are equal. I make that statement without ever owning or comparing the 2 cameras in a side by side test, but viewing G9 shots taken by a professional photographer.
This is not much of a rebuttal on your statements, but, a G9 in the right hands (A720IS for that matter ) can make some very great shots.
That said, I was totally impressed with your shots on the "Door" with a A720IS , the composition and photo quality was awesome, dude those shots were GREAT! It just totally surprised me that you were able to get that kind of quality with that camera!
Dam, I'm glad I bought one yesterday.

As for the flash situation, I have a strong feeling I'll be "bugging" you on that fairly soon!
Changeling

[troutfisher]

Thanks everyone for the help and the consideration

Cheers

[Nick_C]

Nick, first off I know very little about photography but am intending/trying to learn as time permits. However from what I have (personally) seen there is no way an A720IS will take photo shots like the G9 if all things are equal. I make that statement without ever owning or comparing the 2 cameras in a side by side test, but viewing G9 shots taken by a professional photographer.
This is not much of a rebuttal on your statements, but, a G9 in the right hands (A720IS for that matter ) can make some very great shots.
That said, I was totally impressed with your shots on the "Door" with a A720IS , the composition and photo quality was awesome, dude those shots were GREAT! It just totally surprised me that you were able to get that kind of quality with that camera!
Dam, I'm glad I bought one yesterday.

As for the flash situation, I have a strong feeling I'll be "bugging" you on that fairly soon!
Changeling

I felt from those websites I quoted, the difference between the A720 & G9 were really minimal, the G9 may have the edge but nothing major, they all suffer the same P&S problems.

Thanks for the comments on my photos, they were never intended to be photos as such, I only took them on the quick as simple test images to see what the A720IS could achieve, composition was last on my mind.

This may sound like a shameless plug, but I think you would really find the CD available on my site to be invaluable, it covers so much of all of these subjects, right from the basics, flash photography, macro photography, with all my tricks & tips, its had some very positive feedback so far..