Help me choose a camera!

ryanj

Hello,

I am looking to buy a new camera on Black Friday.  The two cameras that I like are the Canon PowerShot SX130 and the Canon PowerShot SX210. 

There is one thing about each of these cameras that I do not like...

Canon PowerShot SX130...Takes AA Batteries (I want a camera that has a rechargable battery).

Canon PowerShot SX210...I have read some reviews that the pop up flash is in a weird spot.  It sits right where the shooter's left pointer finger would be when taking a picture.

Does anyone know about these two cameras? Is there anything that is comparable to these but fulfills my concerns I have about these two cameras?

TIA!

MrsLele

I'd go with the sx 210...not as bulky!   the AA batteries in the 130 would be a pain, and I think they would create more "noise" in your photos.  Canon lithium batteries last forever!

GilliC

I have the SX210, and the flash doesn't really bother me.  I do have to adjust how I hold it slightly, but I don't notice it anymore.  I don't know why people make such a big deal about it.

However, having said that, I finally hit a problem with the flash last night, oddly enough. If someone else turns the camera on, they're likely to have their finger over the flash, so it won't pop up.  But really, you just have to make sure you turn on the camera before you hand it over.  Not a huge issue IMO.

My bigger issue with the SX210 is that sometimes the photos come out oversaturated.  In some cases this makes for gorgeous photos, but in other cases it can look a little weird.  For instance, I took a few photos of the snow on my way into work a few days ago.  The bright colors of the fall leaves came out fine, but the snowy path that was in the shade came out blue:

In general, though, I've been pretty happy with it.  And I looooove the long zoom.

ryanj

Thanks! I figured if I bought this camera, I would get used to holding the camera a little differently. NBD really.  Do you know of another camera that is close to the same as this one that I can compare it to?

mairindubh

If you like the SX130 more and the no-rechargeable-batteries is the deal-breaker, why not pick up a pack of rechargeable AA's to go with it? For example:

http://www.amazon.com/Duracell-Charger-Rechargeable-Batteries-CEF14DX4N/dp/B000XSBVMU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1289151405&sr=8-1

 I have a much older Canon PowerShot and that's what I do. And in the occasional situations where my rechargeables are dead and I don't have time to recharge them (e.g., a spur-of-the-moment trip) it's been really convenient to be able to stop at a gas station or drug store and pick up some AA's to use just for that day.

GilliC

dance717:

Thanks! I figured if I bought this camera, I would get used to holding the camera a little differently. NBD really.  Do you know of another camera that is close to the same as this one that I can compare it to?

I believe the SX200 was the previous model from Canon and is reasonably similar.  The comparable models from other companies that I looked at are the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5 & DMC-ZS7, the Nikon Coolpix S8000, and the Kodak EasyShare Z950.  I believe there's also a similar Sony Cybershot, but I hate the way they still use their own proprietary memory format (instead of standard SD cards).  Since I already have SD cards and readers from using previous cameras, I didn't even consider Sony.

Jess9289

GilliC:

My bigger issue with the SX210 is that sometimes the photos come out oversaturated.  In some cases this makes for gorgeous photos, but in other cases it can look a little weird.  For instance, I took a few photos of the snow on my way into work a few days ago.  The bright colors of the fall leaves came out fine, but the snowy path that was in the shade came out blue

Snow comes out blue because of your white balance, it has nothing to do with the camera. And this can be easily fixed in any photo editing program. You just have to use a color balance. Just an FYI

GilliC

Jess9289:

GilliC:

My bigger issue with the SX210 is that sometimes the photos come out oversaturated.  In some cases this makes for gorgeous photos, but in other cases it can look a little weird.  For instance, I took a few photos of the snow on my way into work a few days ago.  The bright colors of the fall leaves came out fine, but the snowy path that was in the shade came out blue

Snow comes out blue because of your white balance, it has nothing to do with the camera. And this can be easily fixed in any photo editing program. You just have to use a color balance. Just an FYI

Sorry, I should have specified that I was talking about using the Auto settings.  So you're right that it's not the camera's fault; it's the camera's software's fault for calibrating the white balance incorrectly.  Or it's the user's fault for trying to leave the camera on "Auto" instead of switching to a manual shooting mode and overriding the AWB.

And it does have advantages in other areas.  I think it's calibrated that way because shots like these did better in their test market:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=4874031&l=5131008baf&id=731852070
That was a pretty evening, but the water wasn't quite that blue!