Cryppy Loc: Gouldsboro, ME

I wanted a decent pocket camera in the $500 region to carry in situations where my heavy gear is inconvenient. I thought the SONY HX90V would be the answer but it fails miserably in low light. It's t's got a nice EVF, good zoom (30x) and takes pretty qood images in daylight but it's unsatisfactory in every low light situation, outside or inside (even with lights). The flash does little to improve its performance. I'm now leaning toward the Nikon P900 which will probably get passing grades in every category but size - it isn't a pocket camera. Any suggestions for a small camera that meets my criteria without approaching the $1K region (e.g. the RX100 series) would be appreciated.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Panasonic LX100. Sharp Leica f/1.7-2.8 lens. Larger sensor than the HX90V to capture more light. Slightly larger than the HX90V, but not much. Certainly smaller than the P900. About $600.

blue-ultra Loc: New Hampshire

Sony RX 100 III, shoots RAW, has a 1.8 Ziess lens, great in low light, shoot 1080P video, fits in the palm of your hand. Retails for 995.00 can be had used for 500 - 600 at B&H and others. one negative, fixed lens no zoom. I all depends on your needs. I have one and use it in low light all the time, awesome. Have shot several award type photos with it in low light. Remember you get what you pay for.

BebuLamar

You will have to compromise the zoom

PHRubin Loc: Nashville TN USA

I believe that there will be that problem with all cameras using a 1/2.3 sensor. I just got a Panasonic DMC-ZS100 with a 1" sensor and a 10X zoom for a walk around camera. I can't comment yet on IQ, it is too soon.

blue-ultra Loc: New Hampshire

Sorry I wrote this incorrectly. he Sony RX 100III does have a zoom wide angle to med tele. It is a fixed lens. This is what I really meant to say... Sorry!!!

le boecere

Glad you clarified that. I was wondering why my RX100III was different.

BTW; did you see where the new VI has quite a different lens? Causes me to wonder if the Panny ZS100 pushed them (Sony) in that direction. (I'll still stick with my RX100III as it works so very well in low light.)

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

What ISO were you using?

tomad Loc: North Carolina

My experience is that you won't get good low light performance on any camera with a sensor that size. As PhRuben said above the closest you are going to come to what you are looking for is the Panasonic ZS100. It has a 1" sensor, will fit in a jacket or cargo pocket and has good image quality and good low light performance. It has less zoom than you want but you can't have everything you are looking for at the price point you want to pay. The ZS200, which was just released has a longer zoom, but at the cost of some low light performance, so if that is your main desire (good low light performance) stick with the zs100, which will be cheaper now that the 200 is out.

BTW, I read that the next Sony RX100 version is coming out this month and it will have a much longer zoom than the previous version.

TRAVLR38 Loc: CENTRAL PA

I have a Lumix zs50, a pocket camera with a 1/2.3 sensor like yours. I chose this camera because unlike yours it is only 12 magapixels, so the pixels should be a bit bigger than yours and gather more light. Still, mine is not very good in bad light. I do not like to push it beyond 400 ISO. ButI have come up with a couple of ways to improve results.
The first is simplest. Use the in-camera HDR function. This will take--at least in my camera--three images with varying exposures and average them. Since noise is random, not all of the noise will appear in the finished picture. The result will be JPEG, on my camera at least.
The second is more complex, but once you have things set up, it is easy. I can use burst mode to take six pictures of the same thing. In Lightroom, either from FILE or DEVELOP, I choose edit in... At the bottom of the page that opens, click on OPEN AS LAYERS IN PHOTOSHOP. It takes a moment or two for all the images to open as layers. Select all layers. Then align the layers. Then convert to smart object. Then set stack mode to MEDIAN. The resulting image should have far less noise than any of the individual pictures. This might seem complex, but if you create an ACTION in Photoshop to do this, it becomes real easy.
Try these before getting rid of your otherwise fine pocket camera.

rwoodvira

I’m an art researcher and I’ve had great luck with my old LUMIX lx-7. Very fast lens and accurate color. You can probably pick up a used one well under $500.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

You’re going to find that all else being equal, low light high ISO low noise performance is directly related to sensor size - the larger the better. The best solution I’ve found (not sure you’d call it pocket size, but close) is one of the Fuji APS-C models. I use an X-E2 with an 18-55 zoom which weighs about a pound. With the zoom, it’s a little large for most pockets, but with a smaller/shorter prime, I could easily carry it in a coat pocket, and it produces good results to at least ISO 3,200. Cost was about $600 (gently used). Amazing little beast with every feature you might want including IS on some lenses.

Cryppy Loc: Gouldsboro, ME

Thanks for the advise, but Photoshop is terrain I have trod yet - but I do LR and love it. I've resolved to get a used/refurbed RX100 iii to eliminate my low light problems.

le boecere

That's my EDC. Careful shopping should get you one in Excellent Condition for $500, or less.

le boecere

This is my "most fun" camera. When I want "compact", I mount the 27mm pancake on it. Can capture and "develop" an image to acceptable, in camera, and Wi-Fi it onto a "pad" for show and tell, in just minutes. I most often carry it cross-body, under my left arm. Very quick into operation.

I'm seeing your setup on CL for well under $600, right now.