If it just for vacation, and taking shots of your Focus, it's a good camera. It might be a bit expensive though for an occasionally used piece of equipment. You can go to ZDnet.com and get a review of this camera, and the competition.
Nice camera for the price. Futureshop is clearing them out since a new model is coming out shorly.
The big selling points to this kit are...
- 8 megapixel
- 2 lens kit
- built in anti-dust system
I'd pick it up if I was getting a DSLR for basic photography and learning, and I wasn't married to a system already. For more advanced photography, other brands offer more options and features. But for the price, you can't beat it.
Ryan
Honestly if its just for your vacation get something very small so you can just put it in your pocket and take with you everywhere.
I have a SD600 and a Pentax PZ10 SLR. I never take the pentax out anymore.
- its too heavy, after an hour of walking your shoulder will kill you.
- i have to take with the bag bc i have 3 lenses for it
- big camera means bigger target for thevies.
- if you are going to a sandy beach, don't even think about taking your DSLR, if sand gets in there it will cost you over 3-400 to fix/clean it. this happened to me in Wasaga :(
- can't just leave the bag by the beach, it will get stolen in less then 5 min.
Advantages of small point ans shoot camera
- easy to carry
- won't get noticed so you won't be a target
- you can just hide the camera in your pants pocket and go to the water and just leave your pants behind.
here is my 2 cents. I have been to too many vacation spots and i only too my SLR once and regret it ever since. Point and shoot all the way
If you want a true Digital SLR, get the Canon Rebel XTi. If you want SLR like performance in a smaller package and easy to use, get the Canon S3is
Canon/Nikon DSLRs are the way to go. Tons and tons and tons of lenses and you can buy old used equipment and it'll still fit on to most modern cameras (though with a 1.6x or 1.5x crop, and sometimes with a loss of advanced or automatic features).
If it's for a vacation though, as previously mentioned, get the best smallest camera you can. You're not gonna wanna pull out (or carry) a big honkin' DSLR all the time. I have this same problem, the only camera I own is a Nikon D100 with a few lenses. Yes, camera is great, I love using, it I get some great pictures. But when it's just for a snap shot or two, it's the biggest pain in the ass, no one wants to wait for you to put it all together and set it up. And it's harder to capture 'moments' with a DSLR, because I swear everyone stops what they're doing when you pull it out (probably because it takes you so long)
The good thing about vacation photos and photos of family and friends. Even if they aren't perfectly exposed pictures, they're still great because of the memories from when you were actually there.
I used a P&S throw away camera in Florida in 1998 (I was also 14), worst pictures ever, but I can remember taking each and every one of them, and to me that's all that matters, in a vacation picture anyway.
Other advantages include
- not looking like a tourist
- not having something huge and visible that someone would want to steal and constantly having to worry about where you left it and will it be ok
- P&S cameras tend to have a pretty good zoom range vs kit lenses on DSLRs (big zoom costs big dollars on DSLRs)
- P&S cameras are simpler to learn meaning more consistency in pictures if you're a beginner
- Quite a few P&S cameras have manually adjustable options that allow some control over the exposure of a picture, similar to that of an SLR (Aperture, Shutter speed, ISO etc..)
But if you really do want to learn, go for it. Despite all of the negative comments about DSLRs I made above, I love my camera, and love going out and trying new things. It's an expensive hobby, as all worth while hobbies are. But I would definitely go with Canon or Nikon. Once you buy a camera, you're locked in really, because they don't share lenses. So if you invest a few thousand dollars in equipment, you're stuck with that company, unless you want to spend a few thousand dollars more to switch later on.
I'll try to throw my opinion in somewhere, for fun.
If you want a DSLR, get one worth buying, a few things about that olympus sketch me out, like the start up time being almost 3 seconds..
If you want to get a decent camera, look at Fuji S700 or any other S series, they're solid camera's without all the crazy difficult things to learn like your standard DSLR's.
I recently grabbed a Nikon D50 and going from a point and shoot to a dslr was crazy, if you want something to just take the picture, look at Fuji S's..
IMO.
*edit*
I had to add before passing out, go down to a few photography stores and actually hold the camera you're thinking of. When I was in the market, I was looking at a Pentax K*, Canon Rebel, or Nikon D50/70 - When I picked up the Canon I thought .. Why is this camera over a thousand dollars, it feels cheap, plasticky, and really, not worth the money IMO. However, Canon ARE number 1 in the market for a reason, Rebel's take amazing pictures if you know what you're doing..
I grabbed the Pentax and thought it just didn't feel totally right in my hands. It's a nice camera, they can take great pictures, and the Pentax K mount has been around since what.. the 50's? You have near 60 years of lenses you can use.. Plus Pentax antishake etc. in the body is excellent.
I chose Nikon because the first camera that actually felt /right/ in my hands was a D50. The D70 felt too bulky and heavy, like a brick, and the D80/D40 wasn't out yet when I was shopping... It's an extremely expensive hobby, and if you don't want it to go anywhere but just being a hobby, there are other ways to go about getting into photography.. Cost wise, getting a D50/40/40x or something similar, is very wise if you're just going to be taking creative shots, however.. add ons get extremely pricey, when you've outgrown your gear, it starts adding up big time. It's like drag racing - you want to run 15's.. well that's not that hard, running 13's takes a bit of money, running 9's drops your wallet a little too hard every time you want to step your game up another step.. Oh that stock zoom isn't good enough anymore.. 600 dollar lens later.. Oh you want better macro shots.... you get the idea.
Once you pick a lens mount, you typically stay with it. You pick up a Canon, you learn it's controls, you know how to use it.. once you grab a Nikon you're just like ".. huh?" Plus when DSLR bodies are around a grand for a decent setup, you don't want to be dropping upwards to 1500-2k cus you "like the feel of so and so brand more" - make sure it's right for you before you purchase something so important.
If you pick up that Olympus and you start thinking.. this isn't my camera.. Then put it down and walk to the next brand. If you decide Pentax fits your hands better, consider them instead, it's worth the extra few hundred dollars to get something that will actually fit your style.
It's like buying jeans 4 sizes too small just because they're on sale and your size isn't.. Oh it's a good deal, but if it doesn't fit, it doesn't make sense purchasing..
Hope I shed a little light ?
You don't need a fancy/expensive camera to take good pictures
<-----that pic was with a $20 hand wind camera with a plastic lens and held together with duct tape
I love my Nikon D50. Having the power and flexibility of a "real" camera makes taking pictures all that much more fun.
I'll never go back to a P+S exclusively. There'll be blood everywhere before I do.
Lenses, filters, flashes... all changeable and there's a damn lot of them out there for most SLRs. You'll end up with a new hobby once you pick up your first SLR - serious hobbyist / amateur photography.
I'll second
http://www.dpreview.com.
Good luck!
Well, thanks to all for the input. I went and bought it...couldn't resist :D
The options it shows as having on the futureshop site do not even come close to what this camera can do (ok, maybe compared to other dSLR's it's not got as much, but compared to my Kodak P+S Z740, it's got TONS of things). The manual is over 140 pages.....lots of reading. There is a quick start guide too, so you 'can' point and shoot if you want.
Personally, as a camera to 'learn' on, I love it! Easy to use, easy to learn (sorta), and great snaps even when just P+S.
I've been learning about it today, just taking shots of anything etc...then clearing them out lol....then I decided to try a dark lit glass shot...and got this...
![[Image: P5050135.jpg]](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v48/Scorpion101/P5050135.jpg)
Took me about 20 mins to get 'the' shot, but I had fun learning.
I'll try to post some day shots if I get time to go out tomorrow.
Laterz...