kbikski wrote:
I've been following this forum for a few weeks, but just registered to post today. Years ago ('74-'94?) I had a film SLR and saw myself as a 'photographer'. Lost the camera, quit taking photos. A few years ago my wife gave me a basic Nikon P&S, which I used to take some good photos (mostly snapshots of the grandkids) but now I'm ready for a little more versatility & quality. I don't really want a full DSLR (more size, weight & cost than I want to bother with) but something more than a pocket camera -- so I've been looking at "in betweens" in the $300-600 range. One that was recommended by a relative in the Lumix series by Panasonic... My wife knew this so ordered me a Lumix DMC-GF3K for Christmas.
But I've done some more research (including this forum) since then and thinking maybe a "super zoom" camera has more of what I want. Something like the Canon SX40 HS... Don't necessarily need super zoom, but the Canon has other features.
Questions: Which has better image quality? How much will I miss the optical viewfinder if I keep the Lumix? And how limiting will the 14-42mm lens (that comes with the Lumix) be? I mostly take photos of my grandsons, and travel/nature; will probably start taking flowers, waterfalls, etc again. Some sports (oldest grandson plays football, but I usually leave those shots to the photogeeks with very long telephoto -- my Nikon Coolpix was no good for that). If I have to buy a long lens for the Lumix, the price advantage gets flipped real quickly... I'm not going to do a ton of post-shoot editing (don't have time, still work 5-6 days/wk) but want to compose & shoot good quality stills (& short video clips) I can be proud of. Ideas?
I've been following this forum for a few weeks, bu... (
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You previously use a film SLR and you used the view finder. With most PSs you don't have a view finder. Therefore in bright light, if you use just the LCD screen, you'll have difficulty in "seeing" what your shooting at.
I would suggest the Nikon P7100 or the Canon G12, both have view finders. I would suggest you review them and others that do have a view finder.