S3/S4 vs 10D

As an update to this thread I tried an Olympus 550 the other day at Best Buy and while the zoom longer then the S3's its far too sluggish to boot or zoom the lense so I picked up an S3 to try. My wife took it for the weekend as she was flying out to visit a friend for the weekend and they were going to the Rockies for a day so we'll see what she thought of it for that sort of shooting and we'll try it with the kids and see if its something we can live with or if we'll need to find a way to get around the bulk issues with the 10D. I'll update the thread again and let you know how it turns out.

JustShootin wrote in post #2731029
=JustShootin';2731029]​I have the S2, and it does everything I need for it to do. I have no reason go to an SLR. However, if I already had the DSLR, I don't believe I would make a move to a compact. There's just no way any of these cameras will be as fast as your SLR.

I did exactly that a couple years ago. I sold off all my dSLR equip to move to the S2 IS. Big regret. It was a great camera, but I couldn't live without my Rebel. I had it for 8 months and then bought all new dSLR equip again. Expensive trial-and-error that's for sure.

I understand what you are saying about the size and how easy it is to leave it at home, but force yourself to carry it more often and you will simply get used to it. Good luck on your decision.

Craig

Craig I returned the S3 and sold the 10D to buy a Rebel XT instead...slightly smaller body that's much lighter and still an SLR.

Would you mind listing either her or your drawbacks of the S3 that made you decide to go with the XT ?
This would be helpful to those on the edge of making the step to an SLR.
Thanks

If I had kids, being able to beautifully capture memories would be of extreme importance. For that reason, I would not make the switch to point and shoot. P&S would be a lot easier to carry around, but why carry a camera at all if you're going to have a hard time getting that perfect picture?

Woogie wrote in post #2921704
If I had kids, being able to beautifully capture memories would be of extreme importance. For that reason, I would not make the switch to point and shoot. P&S would be a lot easier to carry around, but why carry a camera at all if you're going to have a hard time getting that perfect picture?

Anyone who has any amount of expearence in photography, and has used the S3 can tell you that this camera is much more than a point and shoot, and is capable of taking beautiful pictures of almost anything, including children. But you do have to know how to use it.

Andrew Pratt wrote in post #2920927
Craig I returned the S3 and sold the 10D to buy a Rebel XT instead...slightly smaller body that's much lighter and still an SLR.

Good choice! I just sold my XT and got a new XTi. Not much difference, but I liked the new AF system since it's the same as the 30D and the screen is just awesome.

Craig

JustShootin wrote in post #2921976
=JustShootin';2921976]​Anyone who has any amount of expearence in photography, and has used the S3 can tell you that this camera is much more than a point and shoot, and is capable of taking beautiful pictures of almost anything, including children. But you do have to know how to use it.

Do you own a DSLR, by any chance?

Lets say you're shooting your kids sports events. is your AF fast enough for outdoor sports? How about your ISO 800? Is it decent enough for indoor sports / concerts / recitals? Grain Central.

How about the ability to be able to use a flash unit without having to control it optically? Can you do bounce flash?


I've owned an S3. While I do agree that it's a very capable camera, it sure as hell isn't as capable as a DSLR.

Compak wrote in post #2921588
Would you mind listing either her or your drawbacks of the S3 that made you decide to go with the XT ?
This would be helpful to those on the edge of making the step to an SLR.
Thanks

I have an S3IS and an XTi. My daughter is learnng about photography and I bought the S3 for her to learn it with.

Drawbacks of the S3:

ISO 200 is as noisy as 1600 on an XTi, hence the useability is limited

Slower to react and operate (big time!) - specifically shutter lag and evf lag

Electronic view finder

There are others but these are mainly it

Drawbacks of the Xti - a tad bigger than an S3 and the additional toys cost a fortune!

Dave

Woogie wrote in post #2924319
Do you own a DSLR, by any chance?

Lets say you're shooting your kids sports events. is your AF fast enough for outdoor sports? How about your ISO 800? Is it decent enough for indoor sports / concerts / recitals? Grain Central.

How about the ability to be able to use a flash unit without having to control it optically? Can you do bounce flash?

I've owned an S3. While I do agree that it's a very capable camera, it sure as hell isn't as capable as a DSLR.

And I sure as hell didn't say it was as capable as an SLR! I said it was more than a point and shoot, and it is. I spent more than thirty five years making a very good living with SLR cameras, and yes, I still have a few bags full of them! In retirment, It's simply my choice to keep it simple. My S2 does just what I want it to. When it doesn't, I will get something else. I know how to use them all, and I can afford whatever I want! And that's all I've got to say about that!

Your shooting children playing, that shouldnt require a $900 camera and then some for lenses. I just came from a airshow and shot with a S3. If I can get clear crisp shots of a jet flying by faster than sound then I think I could get a kid playing on a playground/slide etc. The S3 is slower than a DSLR no doubt, but the $400 more for a little extra speed is a hefty price. Maybe you have the cash to blow like that though. I'm actually thinking of getting the xTI myself, just gotta sell my soul to the devil on my way to bestbuy.

Mrselfdestruct wrote in post #2925582
Your shooting children playing, that shouldnt require a $900 camera and then some for lenses. I just came from a airshow and shot with a S3. If I can get clear crisp shots of a jet flying by faster than sound then I think I could get a kid playing on a playground/slide etc. The S3 is slower than a DSLR no doubt, but the $400 more for a little extra speed is a hefty price. Maybe you have the cash to blow like that though. I'm actually thinking of getting the xTI myself, just gotta sell my soul to the devil on my way to bestbuy.

I have to tell you that following an airplane and clicking a shot is a lot easier than taking a photo of your kids. That split second of a moment between your kid smile and then it's gone. A plane follows a predictable trajectory unless you are shooting an F16 at the moment he goes and turns on a g force move.

I appreciate my 10D to take those kid shots and I could never get them with my powershot. My wife and I miss those precious moments all the time while we are hand holding the powershot and wait for the lag and wait and wait and click boom the moment is gone. Trust me, you need a DSLR for kids. I hate lugging the 10D also but it's why we miss some moments. I will try the carrying it around all the time, that someone else suggested. That way I get used to it.

My credentials: I am also a professional photographer for sports so I know the need for speed. My preferred camera for sports is the professional 1D types.

While I'm in no way suggesting that the S2 could be used for sports photography, but I do not find it to have any measurable amount of shutter lag. It also does pretty good with flash at high shutter speeds, so I rarely miss shots of my grandchildren having fun. The below photo was taken out in the dark, with flash at 1/320 shutter speed. Certainly not a master piece, but not bad for a grab shot in the dark with a compact.

The photo didn't seem to want to upload, so I just posted the URL.
http://www.geocities.c​om/folkcat/jumpingchai​r.jpg

JustShootin wrote in post #2975728
=JustShootin';2975728]​While I'm in no way suggesting that the S2 could be used for sports photography, but I do not find it to have any measurable amount of shutter lag. It also does pretty good with flash at high shutter speeds, so I rarely miss shots of my grandchildren having fun. The below photo was taken out in the dark, with flash at 1/320 shutter speed. Certainly not a master piece, but not bad for a grab shot in the dark with a compact.

The photo didn't seem to want to upload, so I just posted the URL.
http://www.geocities.c​om/folkcat/jumpingchai​r.jpg

Thanks for sharing Gary. I think if we can predict what is going to happen next, you can take photos like this you showed us. Very nicely. However, what if you didn't know she was going to jump and you didn't know you wanted to take that shot. Without a DSLR you wouldn't have been able to get that shot. That's all I mean.

Here's my example. I was the director of photography for a film shoot. The director was taking still shots of the actors. I was hanging out behind and to the left of the assistant taking the profile shots while they got these shots: http://www.iconfilmstu​dios.com/SeverCastCrew​.html

The actor jumped once and one second later I asked him to jump again. At the third second I took the shot. I caught him in mid air with my DSLR during his one and only jump. Even though I wasn't shooting the profile shots hat was my only shot first and last of him, it was his second jump. Notice the angle of my shot is diffferent than all the other profile shots. He was improvising.

I know that a shot like this would've been really hard to get on a point and shoot. Maybe afer a few jumps, like five or ten I would get it on point and shoot.