I am looking for something to replace my Fujifilm F500EXR. When I got it I noticed it was reviewed well as a "travel camera", so therefore I am interested that dpreview listed the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS40 in their travel camera recommendations. I like the normal looking style and black color of that camera. The type of photography I do is industrial and construction photography for technical reports. I do not really have a budget, but I do not want to buy the latest thing new. I am wanting to buy something slightly used on ebay, maybe a camera a few generations back without wifi or bluetooth or gps. I am willing to pay for what I need, but I don't want to pay top dollar for something new when I may eventually loose or break it on a construction site, and when people are selling stuff on ebay every day that is like new but a few generations back.
What I like about my F500EXR that I have to continue having: Lots of optical zoom, 24mm on the low end, good low light, good color, panorama mode, quiet, black. Very easy one button flash and macro controls. (You don't have to arrow to flash mode and then press another button to turn on the mode, you just press the flash button until the mode you want shows up and then wait and the camera sets that mode.)
What I like about my F500EXR that I do not have to have but would like to be able to do in some way: There are three notched places on the rotating knob at the top of the camera that I use for my three go to modes: 1. Auto / usually with forced flash, 2. Advanced/Panorama, 3. Scene/Low Light (no flash). I can take pictures all day by just rotating the main knob into those three positions and then working the flash and macro modes. (Ok, sometimes I have to jump over to Program and adjust the darker / lighter exposure compensation.)
I do not need or want a view finder, and I like having more space on the back for the screen. I do not need lots of mega pixels, the level of camera we would talk about would have more than I would normally need.
Ok. This is the deal. The reason I am looking a Panasonic is that I have read that some of them have burst with continuous focus. Where the camera autofocuses betwteen each burst picture. I want that. Last year I went to a running race to take pictures of a friend of mine during the race and it was a disaster. The national guard was not called in, but the police had to take my camera away from me and calm me down. In burst mode my camera would focus on the first picture and then keep that same focus, so that each of the next pictures were more and more out of focus. I kept yelling "But I Am Shooting In Burst Mode!" The police almost called in the FBI. There should be a law. The White House has not returned my calls.
So. What would be a good range of a few cameras that you would recommend I look at? Maybe a generation or two back. 24mm. Burst with CAF. Big screen on the back. Black. Normal looking. Looks to me like the ZS30, 40, 50, 60 cameras meet my 24mm and zoom needs. Do these have burst with continuous autofocus?
And, what am I missing? What did I not ask that I should have? What do I need that I do not even know exists?
Timza!
