I am looking for a digital camera that will take shots indoors with no flash. Not really low light but under normal lighting conditions. Any suggestions. The best type of camera is a DSLR with a fast lens....however, I think you are probably wanting a more affordable, compact camera instead.
As far as I know, the best compact camera which does very well in normal to very low light indoor settings, is the Fujifilm F31fd.
It's the replacement for the 'king of low light', the F30 (which I own). This little camera was the best high ISO, low light performer for 2006, and it's replacement (F31fd) is just as good, if not slightly better. The F40fd is not as good, because it does not have aperture or shutter priority modes.
Now, I just happened to use my F30 last night in a reasonably well lit indoor hotel and took a few photos with the flash off and the ISO at 800. The shots came out surprisingly well. Upping the exposure a little also helps in some situations.
ISO 1600 is also quite good, as long as you keep the camera very still.
The only downside to this camera is...that it uses xD memory cards...they are a quite a bit slow compared to the much faster SD.
It also doesn't have a histogram...and it's manual mode does not allow you to select the shutter speed AND aperture, but either or.
But, a big plus...battery life is an excellent 500 shots+.
Some other camera brands (namely Sony etc) are promoting some of their new models as having ISO 1600, and right way up to ISO 3200...but be warned that the photo quality at these high ISOs are just a marketing gimmick because photo quality will be highly degraded and quite unprintable.
The closest contender to the F30 at the time (in regards to high ISO) was the Canon SD700 IS (which I also own)...so, it's update, the SD850 IS might also be worth a look at.
A big plus is it has image stabilization.
It's only downside...it has no full manual controls.
In my opinion, Canon definitely wins hands down with it's speed, excellent features and general photo quality.
Anyway, Good luck...with whatever you decide. Canons, I would prefer to find one with color accents. The seemingly undisputed low-light champion of point and shoot digital cameras is the Fujifilm FinePix F30. The price is now down around $200 without a memory card and you can add whatever amount of memory you need.
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/fujifilm...
http://www.steves-digicams.com/2006_revi...
You might also look at the F31fd or F40fd if your budget allows.
Actually, I'm not finding the F30 any more, but maybe it's in stores. The F40fd is at B&H Photo for $220 and they have the F31fd for $240. Look for one that has an ISO range of 1600 or more and an f/stop of f/2.8
Bigger sensors (not the mp values) are usually the ones with the higher ISO settings it's called... Ebay Even though I personally own this ultra compact camera, I would still like to highly recommend the purchase of a Nikon Coolpix L10 for the following reasons:
1. Besides taking well-exposed hi-quality 5 megapixel pictures, it uses a standard set of rechargeable double AA batteries which last a very long time;
2. Has a 3x optical zoom;
3. Takes "continuous" 2 frames per second "action/sports" images;
4. Has macro feature for close-ups of small objects focused under 6 inches;
5. The flash setting for "red-eye" correction is on the navigator wheel and not within a submenu;
6. It's very small and light;
7. Uses inexpensive SD memory cards - a 2 gig card sells for $19 at samys.com;
8. The digital video feature takes wonderful "sound" videos which are noise free. It records the piano very well with it's built-in microphone;
9. It comes with a USB 2.0 transfer cable which you connect to your USB computer port;
10. Has tripod mount on bottom of camera;
11. And the price is a mere $119 [sold at Samy's Camera - www.samys.com, and Staples.com.]
Review(s) can be found at www.amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-Coolpix-Digi...
along with pictures provided by satisfied purchasers.]
Good luck! |
