Please forgive me for posting the same image on 2 consecutive blogs. I don't usually do that but in this case it's appropriate and I'll explain in a little while.
Considering my background in Photography a lot of my friends come to me for advice on what camera to buy. Usually they are looking for a point and shoot, a market I don't really pay much attention to. The technology changes about every 90 days so my knowledge of specific models would be outdated by November. For these reasons the answer is usually the same...cameras are designed by computers and built by robots so if you stick with one of the major brands it's pretty tough to get a bad camera. Mostly it's a matter of which one fits your hand and your budget being the best camera for you.
There are 2 things I do mention, though, when I answer the question. I think it's important to have an optical viewfinder and the maximum amount of optical zoom you can get. These are two critical features in my opinion. But there's a problem. If you sense a rant coming on you're right but not just yet. Just now I'm camera shopping for my wife and trying to take my own advice.
About 7 or 8 years ago we were at a family reunion in northern Nebraska. My brothers in law and I decided it would be fun to take a canoe trip down the Niobrara river and I wanted to take some photos. Having been in canoes before and knowing their propensity to tip over sometimes I asked if I could borrow the spousal camera, a nice little Canon Sureshot film camera. The question: "Why can't you take your own camera?" The answer: "My camera and lens is worth over $1000, yours is a little over $100. If we tip the canoe over the math doesn't make sense." With logic like that it was an easy sell so me and the Sureshot headed out for a canoe ride.
Along the way there was some discussion about who would drive the canoe. I mentioned I'd been in canoes quite a bit when I was younger so I was nominated to steer one of the canoes. I neglected to advise them that the last time I was in a canoe was about 1963 but it wouldn't have mattered. So there we were, getting the canoes in the water, arranging the coolers and cold drinks, and pushing off. I thought I'd be cool and jump in the stern after pushing into a little deeper water and that's where my judgement came into question. Forgetting my canoe experiences I neglected to jump in directly from the stern, choosing to approach from the side. An instant later the canoe was upside down and I was sitting in 3 feet of water with just my head above the surface. Worse, Judy's camera was hanging around my neck and to my dismay, it didn't swim very well. In fact, it drowned instantly. After much explaining when we got back I promised to buy her a new camera, relishing the opportunity to get her away from film and into the digital world.
Two weeks later she was the proud owner of a Canon A75 digital camera. It was 3.2 megapixels, a lot for that time, had an optical viewfinder, and wonder of wonders, allowed her to shoot video which she did in profusion every time Heather was competing in Special Olympics. After much whining and groveling she even allowed me to borrow it for a trip to San Francisco. (that's why the same image is posted on 2 consecutive blogs. This image was shot with that camera before being altered in Photoshop) It's been a great little camera and has served her well for many years. But now it's dying. The LCD no longer works for viewing so you can't see what you're about to shoot or have just shot. So I'm camera shopping. LET THE RANT BEGIN
In attempting to heed my own advice one of the critical options of a camera is an optical viewfinder. After shopping a few stores, though, I'm learning that those options are becoming more and more difficult to find. In fact, the local Best Buy didn't have a single point and shoot camera on the shelf with an optical viewfinder. Ditto the local Costco. What the bleep is wrong with the camera manufacturers? Do they think people never shoot photographs in bright sunlight? Is it their opinion that all photographs are taken indoors? What the bleep? When I bought my Canon G10 last year it seems there were a lot more cameras with optical viewfinders. Of course, the G10 and it's replacement G11 cost about twice what I've been authorized to spend.
So I've been shopping cameras. After a quick discussion it's been made clear to me that an optical viewfinder may be one of the things I'm a bit OCD about. With that in mind I'm going to disregard my own advice. By dismissinng an optical viewfinder I can concentrate on sticking with the major brands and merely look for a robust optical zoom. So far I've looked at a Nikon and an Olympus model. And I think we've found one at Costco. Better yet, it's on sale! Boooo yahhhhhhh! Now I'll have one more camera to learn. So what if there's no optical viewfinder? It ain't my camera!
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