Paul Buckhiester Loc: Columbus, GA USA

I stand corrected!

Another consideration is flash shoe.

Paul Buckhiester Loc: Columbus, GA USA

I stand corrected!
Also recommend flash shoe.

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

One of my favorite bridges (of the 11 I have) is Fuji's HS-50EXR ... why? ... not only is it the quickest responder of all my bridges, it HAS a flash shoe!

Other features include the EXR mode (an excellent fallback to providing perfect shots, every time) and a super zoom - all the way from 24 to a 1000mm (35 eq.)

I also like the dual macro feature of the Fuji dig cams - a) Close Macro b) Super Close Macro ... not infinite like the Canon Powershots, but just as usable)

Plus, it has the articulated 3" screen, just like they do ... and - it's built like a tank! ... By the way, the zoom on Fuji bridges - is fully manual ... another plus!

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Canon Powershot SX60 HS is a 16MP "bridge" style camera with a 65X zoom equivalent to film/full frame 21mm wide angle through 1365mm telephoto (actual focal lengths are 3.8mm to 247mm). It can focus to within 1.6 feet in macro mode.

Bridge cameras are "SLR-like", but with a fixed lens. The SX60 has a hot shoe to be able to utilize an accessory flash. There also are lens hood and filter mounting accessories available for it, as well as wired remote releases.

It has image stabilization, an articulate 3" LCD screen and an electronic viewfinder. ISO range 100-3200 (expandable to 6400)... can capture JPEG, RAW (CR2) and MP4 files... Shutter speeds from 15 seconds to 1/2000, has a built in 10-second self-timer... Can shoot 6.4 frames per second continuously and has Evaluative, Center-Weighted and Spot metering. Exposure modes include Manual, Manual w/Auto ISO, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Program, "Super" Auto (point n shoot A+ mode), and Scene modes.

It's currently on sale for $429 ($120 off).

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

IMO, there's really no comparison... The Tamron 18-400mm is a crop-only lens with slower focus drive, lower performance stabilization (requiring faster shutter speeds and higher ISOs) and a 7-blade aperture that's less capable of smooth background blur effects than some of the other lenses listed here. This "do everything" type of lens simply HAS TO compromise in some respects... The first and most obvious being that it's only usable on crop cameras, while all the other lenses are full frame capable. It's also not got as good image quality... in particular it's a bit softer at some focal lengths, especially wide open and particularly in the corners or at the edges of images. I haven't used it and there aren't a lot of in-depth reviews yet, so can't say if it has issues with chromatic aberrations. With such an extreme (22X!) zoom I'd also expect some signification distortion at the extremes... barrel and pincushion. And because the lens hood has to be able to work with an 18mm wide angle, it's far less effective at the telephoto end. A lens like this is all about convenience... great for travel or anyone who simply doesn't want to carry much gear. It'll probably be fine for modest size prints - 4x6, 5x7... maybe some 8x10 - or most online image sharing. Just expect some compromise if you ever want to make larger prints or need to crop your images very much. You won't have much latitude with this lens, as much as you would with the other lenses listed here. While the Tamron 18-400mm is pretty amazing, it's simply not in the same class as the other lenses here.

The Canon EF 100-400mm II IS USM is pro-quality build, materials and images. The guys at Lensrentals.com love to take things apart to see what's inside, and when they did a tear down of the 100-400 II, they called it "the best built zoom they'd ever seen" (I don't think they'd taken apart a Canon 200-400mm f/4L 1.4X, though). It uses a fluorite element (as do many other Canon telephotos), which you won't find in ANY Tamron, Siggy or Tokina. Nor in any current Pentax, Olympus or Sony lens... Nikon only just this year updated their 70-200 and several of their big primes with fluorite... but charges premium prices for them (the Nikkor 70-200 is $1000 more expensive than the comparable Canon).

The 100-400 "II" also has advanced three to four stop Image Stabilization. It's IS features "Mode 3" - "instant stabilization" - like the Canon super telephotos that cost 3X, 4X and 5X as much. The Canon lens also is said to work well with their 1.4X teleconverters (on cameras able to autofocus an f/8 combo... personally I haven't tried it yet because I just haven't needed the add'l reach). Of course, for $1900 one might expect the Canon 100-400 "II" to be top notch. That's a sale price, it was selling for $2200 until recently.

The original, 16 year older Canon 100-400mm "push/pull" zoom is still widely available, now selling for $1300. In spite of it's age, it's also a fine lens, uses fluorite and comes with a tripod mounting ring. Note: It's one of five Canon lenses that require IS be turned off by the user, when it's locked down on a tripod or in other situations where there's no movement. If IS isn't turned off, an effect called "shake return" can occur when there is no movement at all for IS to correct. It's sort of a feedback effect, where the IS actually causes shake, when there is no movement. The 100-400 "II" and most other Canon IS lenses don't do this, but the original 100-400mm is one of five older models that's known to do so. The original 100-400mm weighs a little less, too... just over 3 lb. versus close to 3.5 lb. for the "II".

But the Tamron 100-400mm VC USD appears to be pretty darned good.... and at $800 it's a lot less expensive. Note that it doesn't come with a tripod mounting ring... although one is available to fit it, sold separately (an add'l $129). The Tamron is the lightest of the four, at just under 2.5 lb. However, no doubt that's without the tripod ring, which might add close to a half lb. There are almost no independent user reviews of the Tamron yet... some early test shots done with it appear pretty good... but more in-depth review and comparisons are needed.

The Sigma 100-400mm OS HSM is even a little lower price right now, on sale at $700. But that lens doesn't come with or have option of fitting a tripod mounting ring, which I consider a big mistake. The Siggy 100-400 was announced about 6 months prior to the Tamron and has been available for a while, so there are quite a few reviews of it. The Sigma is also 1/3 stop slower than the Canon throughout the focal length range... It starts out at f/5, but drops to f/5.6 at just over 100mm. In comparison, the Canon is f/4.5 up to about 135mm and then remains f/5 until 300mm. The Sigma further drops to f/6.3 from about 235mm and longer. So in truth the Canon lens is more like 2/3 stops faster at a lot of focal lengths. This may be part of the reason the Canon 100-400 "II" seems to have a little faster autofocus acquisition and more consistent tracking of moving subjects.

All three of the current 100-400mm use a 9-blade, curved blade aperture. The earlier Canon push/pull zoom uses an 8-blade aperture.

For close focusing, the Tamron specs suggest it's the best of the bunch and is claimed to be able to give 0.36X magnification. The Canon 100-400 "II" is close, at 0.31X. While good, the Sigma isn't as close at 0.26X. The old Canon 100-400 push/pull version is the worst, at only 0.20X.

The Sigma and the Tamron both use 67mm filters. Both Canon 100-400mm use a 77mm filter (and so does the Nikkor 80-400mm).

The Tamron's optional tripod mounting ring has a neat feature that other lens manufacturers would be wise to adopt: It has built-in Arca-compatible quick release dovetail. The Canon lenses don't have this and, in fact, the shape of the tripod foot of the 100-400 "II" makes it difficult to effectively mount an Arca-type lens plate. Replacement feet with an Arca-style dovetail are available from several sources (Really Right Stuff, Kirk Photo, Hejnar Photo). But those add some cost... roughly $75 to $100. Those third party tripod feet are more secure mounting than the Canon, too (which uses a thumb screw to allow easy removal without tools... I found that hard to tighten up as snugly as I'd like.) Note: Apparently Tamron has done similar and incorporated an Arca-style dovetail in their latest 70-200mm f/2.8 zoom, too. Canon (and NIkon, Sigma and everyone else), please take note!

Nikon shooters would want to compare with the AF-S 80-400mm VR II ($2300, 77mm filter, close to 3.5 lb.), which has quite similar, pro-quality build and performance to the Canon "II". There also is the Nikkor AF-S 200-500mm f/5.6 VR for just under $1400, though it's not got the same level of build quality, sealing, etc. as the 80-400 or Canon lens. The 200-500mm alsouses 95mm filters, is considerably bigger and heavier at about 4.5 lb.

The Nikon 80-400mm, both Canon lenses and purportedly the Tamron all have extensive sealing for weather resistance. Not sure if the Sigma or the Nikkor 200-500mm are as well sealed.

All these lenses come with a matched lens hood. The Tamron and Sigma are simple bayonet mount type hoods. The Canon is a newer type, similar to what they've been including with some other lenses, bayonet mount with a more secure latching and release mechanism. It also has a little "door" in the underside to allow access to filters that require rotation (such as a circular polarizer). The Nikon 80-400 uses a standard bayonet mount, but is a "tulip" style hood, while all the others aren't. All the lenses' hoods can be reversed for storage.

None of the above lenses are internal zooming. That means they grow in length significantly when zoomed to the longer focal lengths. That changes balance a bit, which can be noticeable if using them on a gimbal mount in particular. If you want an internal zooming/internal focusing zoom, be prepared to carry around larger, heavier gear and get ready to spend a lot more. The Nikon AF-S 200-400mm f/4 VR II costs almost $7000, is 5" in diameter and almost 15" long (w/o lens hood) and weighs close to 7.5 lb. The Canon EF 200-400mm f/4 IS USM with built-in, matched 1.4X teleconverter (it becomes a 280-560mm f/5.6 at the flip of a lever!) is even pricier at $11,000, bigger and heavier at almost 8 lb. Both these super telephoto zooms are incredibly high quality and top performing.... but at significant cost!

Hank Radt

Gee, you'd think those guys would be serious about their work!!!! (j/k - as you note, at current prices it's an $11k lens...).

ralphfr Loc: Long Island, NY

My HS25EXR is my most used camera. Almost went the extra bucks for the HS50 but at the time I was enamored with AA Ni-MH batteries and wasn't and am still not using RAW. It does everything but make coffee.

As for the Nikon P900 with no flash shoe too bad they didn't include the CLS function. You can slave a flash to it but it's hit or miss from what I understand.

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

I started in the Digital Era with the Fuji HS-10, Ralph ... still have it, still use it, occasionally ... but, every time I go to it to use, it's run down the AAs. I used the rechargeable AAs for a while, but, eventually - you can't charge those, anymore - they do have a limited life. So I went right back to Alkalines. Then, I upgraded to the Fuji S200 EXR - which used a NiCad ... but, actually - even though it was an upgrade in that sense, it wasn't - in the zoom department - 14x vs. 30x. Still ... then - I decided to go to the SL-300 when it appeared. Back to the 30x 24-720 zoom, but, this one - for the first time with a Fuji - was electronic. It was touted as having 100x Digital Zoom. But, in actuality, that 100x DZ was pretty useless, because at THAT length, you couldn't hold it steady - so all the shots were wasted ...

Although I had considered jumping to the HS20EXR, and then the HS30EXR ... I held off ... until I saw the HS50EXR ... not only had Fuji incorporated a Ni-Cad, (as they did in the HS30EXR) but they also - finally - had increased the range from 720 - most significantly - to a 1000!!! Plus, it had the articulating screen!!!!

Unfortunately, that was the last of the line ... as Fuji doesn't seem interested in continuing it. They did introduce the S-1, but it lacked EXR ... so, I didn't bother!

insman1132 Loc: Southwest Florida

Well as you can see, finalimage, your inquiry brought many suggestions - also got a little sidetracked from time to time. As an exclusively Bridge camera owner/shooter, I own many of the cameras mentioned. FZ70, B700, P900, SX60. While each one has its own advantages and shortcomings, based on my experience with them your Daughter will be pleased with any of them.

I wish your daughter much happiness in selecting and learning to use her new camera!

Pytrouble

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

Paul ... I just checked all of my Bridges, and was surprised to find only "half" of them have flash shoes ....

Out of the 11 I own ... only the Fujis always have them - they include the HS-10, the HS50EXR, the S200EXR and the SL300 ....

The only other one which incorporates a flash hot shoe - is my Panasonic Lumix FZ-70 ....

None of the rest have them - including both Nikons (P-500/P-600) both Canons (SX-30 IS/SX 40 HS) the Sony Cybershot HX100V, and the Olympus Stylus SP-100EE ....

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

Paul ... I just checked all of my Bridges, and was surprised to find only "half" of them have flash shoes ....

Out of the 11 I own ... only the Fujis always have them - they include the HS-10, the HS50EXR, the S200EXR and the SL300 ....

The only other one which incorporates a flash hot shoe - is my Panasonic Lumix FZ-70 ....

None of the rest have them - including both Nikons (P-500/P-600) both Canons (SX-30 IS/SX 40 HS) the Sony Cybershot HX100V, and the Olympus Stylus SP-100EE ....

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

Top Ten Bridges w/ Longest Zooms

Three Longest [1550mm (35mm equiv.) or above]
1) Nikon Coolpix P-900 83x 24-2000 16MP $699.95 GPS EVF 7fps flip-screen
2) Kodak AstroZoom AZ651 65x 24-1560 21MP $497.38 EVF 9fps flip-screen
3) Sony Cybershot H400 62x 25-1550 20MP $269.99 EVF 3D Panorama
-------------
4) Nikon Coolpix P600 60x 24-1440 16MP $599.99 EVF 7fps 3D flip-screen
5) Nikon Coolpix P610 60x 24-1440 16MP $899.99 GPS EVF 7fps flip-screen
6) Nikon Coolpix B700 60x 24-1440 16MP $424.95 EVF flip-screen
--------------
Four Widest [20-21mm (35mm equiv.)]
7) Canon Powershot SX60 HS 65x 21-1365 16MP $429.00 EVF 6.4fps flip-screen
8) Panasonic Lumix FZ-80 60x 20-1200 18MP $347.99 EVF 49 foc.pts Touch Screen
9) Panasonic Lumix FZ-70 60x 20-1200 16MP $299.99 EVF 9fps 3D Panorama
10) Samsung WB2200F 60x 20-1200 16MP $392.69 EVF 8fps 3D Panorama

jdub82 Loc: Northern California

Chris,

Interesting fact about the Canon line of Bridge Cameras. I happen to own both the SX20IS and the SX50HS. Quite interesting that the SX20IS has a hot shoe, as does the SX50 model. They removed the hot shoe from the SX30 and SX40 and then it was returned as a feature in the SX50HS. The newer SX60 also has the hot shoe.

Chris T Loc: from England across the pond to New England

Yes, that IS interesting, J ...

When I first wrote about hot shoes here on bridges - because all of my Fuji Finepix models had them, and my most recent - the Panasonic Lumix FZ-70 ... I made the assumption they ALL did ... but, when I checked it, later - was most disappointed to note neither Canon had one, nor either Nikon, nor the Sony ... nor the Olympus ...

Thanks for cluing me into the fact both models Canon released AFTER my two - had them ... I wonder if the next one will (due, any day, now) ....