Sd800 Question

[PAdiver93]

Ok, wife is in the market for a digital camera - point and shoot type. Her only preferrence is that it takes pictures QUICKLY (We have two little kids - their reactions and poses have to be photographed quickly - or they r gone). (Exposure speed? - I am not sure what the term is, but for THAT I like the dslrs).

I am not in the market for a UW camera, BUT... I saw my friend diving with the SD800IS with Canon's case and he attempted to take a pic of me with a lobster that I just caught. Underwater, here in Jersey, with that little thingie - I almost spit my regulator I was laughing so hard. Guess what, he was laughing topside when he saw my reaction to the quality of the pics. For $400 for the package, I can get into taking pics. Bottom line, would this camera be a good choice for wifie? (I know that it would be MORE than enough, for at least now, for my shooting needs).

Thanx in advance.

 

[jarhed]

for a little more money you can get the powershot G9 which should be in stores soon. It will be much better suited for underwater photography, because you can shoot in manual and record RAW files. These are pretty big deals for U/W photography.
It's at least worth taking a look at.

Take care,
John

 

[PAdiver93]

I really like the wide angle lense feature on the SD. But thank you for your input

 

[TheMotrCty]

go to www.dpreview.com and do a comparison. They have every camera imaginable.

Just sayin'...

Ron

 

[alcina]

The SD is a great little unit. And I mean little. It is much smaller than the G9 and other compact offerings. This makes it a great walk around pocket camera. It doesn't have shutter and aperture controls, but it does have white balance and ISO controls, I believe. These are helpful and do help somewhat in lifting this beyond a total P&S.

You need to determine what your priorities are before you a) take too much advice and b) look at too many options.

If you will be using this once or twice a year underwater but really want something to take with you everywhere on land to capture the kids wherever they are etc then the SD range might be perfect. They sure do a lovely job on land shots.

If you want to really get into photography, the SD range will be limiting. BUT a ton of people with "serious" rigs also have something quite like this little guy, too.

I say go for it! Sounds like the SD will suit you just fine.

 

[CompuDude]

Sounds like the issue the OP is dealing with is shutter lag... the time between the moment you press the button and the camera actually takes the picture.

Current-model cameras as MUCH better in this regard, but they're still nowhere near DSLR levels, especially if you don't pre-focus and lock the shutter, so auto-focus has to hunt, etc.

The good news is, topside they are working MUCH better than they used to. In low light conditions, however, such as when diving, I've seen much slower "reaction" times for those quick, unexpected shots you take without time to prepare.

The SD series will likely work very well topside, and you can take some great shots with them underwater as well. You're limited by the fully-automatic controls, however. (No manual options for these)

 

[PAdiver93]

Wow, thank you for great answers. And yes I would not be taking this out too many times UW - have other things to do there.

And yes - "shutter lag" is exactly what I am concerned with - wifie currently uses a Coolpix 5600 (I think) - and it is the biggest PS (not point and shoot). My kid turned three by the time the CAMERA finally took her first picture.