My Sister wants her first Digital Camera (Coming from a DSLR Enthusiast) Help!

Hey guys well my sisters birthday is coming up and she wants her very first digital camera. Her boyfriend is going to get it for her but because they both know nothing about camera's they asked me. (I'm a DSLR Enthusiast) and I'm not sure on how the P&S are. This is what she told me she wants.

• Compact (Not to small, not to big)
  
• Wants to be able to shoot pets, friends, sunsets, general.
  
• She wants both wide and good zoom (but you can probably not find many of those unless you get into the bigger more enthusiast kinds of SLR's)
  
• Good Flash for at the bars (To me a bigger aperture would be better to go along with it, but she doesn't know what that is or ISO for that matter, but something with a decent ISO, like 800 min but higher would be nice. If you can manually change it, all the better.)
  
• Biggest size she will print is a 5x7 maybe an 8x10, so mega pixels is not as important but still nice for cropping.
  
• Picture Quality is key
  
• IS (I'm adding that one in, she doesn't know what it is but I would like her to have it.)

Here are the few I have looked up and really seem to like, tell me what you think.

Sony Cybershot DSCW80
Sony Cybershot DSC-T200
Sony Cybershot DSCT300/B 1
Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Canon PowerShot SD870IS

I second bakerbranded posts, I was just in the same situation with my friend, I needed to help her pic out a good P&S

I suggest the Canon A720IS!

Great little camera, it's quite inexpensive, leaving you with cash to buy some accessories.

It uses AA size batteries.

Quite a few of my latest shots on Flickr are with the A720IS.

S5IS = 350

Done.

new_user wrote in post #5693877
S5IS = 350

Done.

S5 IS = $329

Link: http://www.newegg.com …aspx?Item=N82E1​6830120207

SimpleGirl2008 wrote in post #5698871
S5 IS = $329

Link: http://www.newegg.com …aspx?Item=N82E1​6830120207

Aeye!! BETTER online shopper!

Regards.
Vic

SD870 IS since it's listed. Don't want to spend as much get the 850 but aside from that the 870 is wider, bigger screen (which she'll love), and looks sleaker.

Seriously it does and to some (females) that means something. Sony, and not IMO but fact, sucks. ISO, gag me. No I have no tests on me but boredom at CC I did some tests and printed out photos.

Don't mind bigger opt for the SX100 over the A720.

...and the reason why to opt for the SX100IS over the A720IS? I'm curious to the reasons.

Aside from longer zoom and nicer LCD.

^Those reasons and now you can find it for around the same price so why not?

new_user wrote in post #5702663
Aeye!! BETTER online shopper!

Regards.
Vic

Lol.

just be sure to get something with a 28mm wide lens... essentiual for those drunken bar photos!

"Good flash".. well potentially you might want to be looking at something with a hotshoe. Looking at those specs you listed, I'd recommend the G9.

_aravena wrote in post #5703084
^Those reasons and now you can find it for around the same price so why not?

Why not? Because the SX100 has no viewfinder. The 720 is more compact, and it takes sharper photos with less chromatic aberration. That's why not.

As mentioned it's not that much smaller and the viewfinder is preference. As for sharper, opinion as well. I did enough tests, the typical users of this can stare at a 4x6 for hours and still scratch their heads. MY word, come up with something better than preference opinions.