Camera advice

[earicome]

Mods: If there is a better place for this post, then can you please moves

 

As I will be going to Patts in the next few weeks, I would like to contribute to the forum with a trip report. As I am no photographer I would appreciate advice on which camera to buy and take with me. My only input into this is it must be easy for a dumb farang to use and produce good pictures. Would also like it to be able to take short video's. I also do not see the point in spending loads of wonger on a first camera. I will also be taking my netbook so will have lots of storage for the photo's

 

 

I would also appreciate some input on hotels to stay at. I normally stay in the LK Metro / Soi Diana areas but am always open to further suggestions between the 750 to 1500b per night range. I am thinking of Areca Lodge to start with for a few days

 

 

Any help appreciated.

 

Viva Patts,

 

Eari

[jerry]

With a Canon ixus you got a simple but good camera . Even the cheapest ixus will do fine .

[Edge]

Mods: If there is a better place for this post, then can you please moves

..................................

 

For both the camera and hotel advice, you would probably find everything you're looking for if you explored the sections and sub sections of the forum.

 

You would also find a lot of answers if you played tunes on the Search facility - not the standard box but try the silver button next to it and then eg, put Canon in that box, tick Title Only and Search Forums.

The answer is Canon S95 btw, or wait for the S100, though you haven't said what your budget is.

[John McClain]

Recently I changed my P&S camera, and I bought the Sony HX9V. Good quality picture and excellent video FullHD. Another good camera I tested was the Canon SX220, better photo quality, but a movie quality worse than the Sony.

 

Cheers!

[Farangkie]

Iv'e just bought the Olympus EP3 for my next trip in December because it takes DSLR quality still photos,1080p High Def video and is small enough to fit in my pocket so I can carry it with me all the time.

[Andrej]

if you want a compact one, get a Panasonix Lumix DMC FT2

it has 14 Mp and Leika lenses

takes great photos, you can take it with you on Songkran ( I use it for diving); you can drop it or use it as a defence weapon ; you can drop it in your beer to entertain your TG or sit on it (I would never wear cargo pants so I use my back pocket to keep it - a normal camera would have died on me long time ago).

It worked perfectly even at -25 deg C in the Alps and at +50 in Afghanistan.

[MONOCHROMEMAN]

if you want a compact one, get a Panasonix Lumix DMC FT2

it has 14 Mp and Leika lenses

takes great photos, you can take it with you on Songkran ( I use it for diving); you can drop it or use it as a defence weapon ; you can drop it in your beer to entertain your TG or sit on it (I would never wear cargo pants so I use my back pocket to keep it - a normal camera would have died on me long time ago).

It worked perfectly even at -25 deg C in the Alps and at +50 in Afghanistan.

 

good monger thinking there, andrej. i once forgot i had a canon powershot in my pocket and in a hurry to get my trousers off [!] i threw them acros the room. when they missed the chair and hit the tiled floor i heard a crack and sure it was the camera. o no, ran over and fortunately only the back had popped off battery compartment and batteries came out. camera worked fine. so waterproof etc is important.

[kopite]

Iv'e just bought the Olympus EP3 for my next trip in December because it takes DSLR quality still photos,1080p High Def video and is small enough to fit in my pocket so I can carry it with me all the time.

 

You lucky bastard. Was just out of my price range, I went for the Panny GF2 in the end. Decent enough pic quality but really nice video. Only problem is video quality as 1080i is in raw MTS so it's quite big.

[capricorn]

Iv'e just bought the Olympus EP3 for my next trip in December because it takes DSLR quality still photos,1080p High Def video and is small enough to fit in my pocket so I can carry it with me all the time.

 

I own a DSLR (Nikon D5100 with 2 lenses) but I hardly carry it with me on a night out. It takes great pictures, almost on par with the D7000 but while it's OK to carry when I want to do normal tourist landscape and temple pictures in Vietnam, Myanmar or Laos, I just can't be bothered lugging it around in WS gogos or Insomnia.

 

I've been thinking about buying the Fuji x100 but it's almost impossible to get (out of stock) and while the lens on it is great, it's still a fixed lens. The Olympus EP3 might be a good option.

[Inked Up]

I just recently purchased the Olympus XZ-1 I got it for $400 USD and it will cost anywhere from $400 - 500 USD. It hasn't been on a trip yet but I will be using it next month for my trip. All the reviews I read about it gave it great reviews for picture quality and so far I have to agree that it does great pics. The video reviews was the cameras only negative feedback, but I got the camera soley for pics.

 

It has an auto setting which makes it very easy to use and has built in flash. You also have a hot shoe so that you can add another flash or a view finder. It has several other modes on the camera as well, such as. aperture priority, shutter priority, art mode, sceneic mode, and a full manual mode, if you want to try it. I personally got the camera for the pics, and that it can shoot in RAW format, and has a full manual mode. Good luck in your camera search.

Edited September 1, 2011 by highroller17

[Diar]

Personally I think the canon s95 seems to take the best pictures, especially when its a bit dark. But the rugged panasonic is really intresting too since I tend to break anything I have in my pockets, if anyone has tried it during nighttime it would be intresting to know what kind of picturequality it has. A photographer I know tells me to go straight for the s95 simply because it has the biggest sensor and don't read too much into how many megapixels a camera has since it usually just adds colourdistortion if the sensor does not match the size, or something like that

[linnsondek]

Hi

 

My friend uses this little camera and its totally excellent

 

Sony dsc hx5

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a review

 

http://www.trustedre...l-Camera_review

 

 

Ps You can buy one at the moment at jessops for £180

 

http://www.jessops.c...shx/$s=DSC-HX5V

 

 

Good Luck

[Dave16]

As for choosing a camera it all depends on what your budget is and whether you are likely to want to carry it about all the time. I usually take my Nikon D40 DSLR as it is reasonably small amd light and use it during the day if I am deliberately out taking shots. I carry the 18-55 and 55-200 lenses in a small camera bag.

At night I slip a small Olympus compact into my shirt pocket for bar and room pics. It is fine with the built in flash as long as your subject is not too far away. A few samples of the Olympus output:

 

 

 

 

 

[bababooey62]

I bought an Olympus PL1 for my photography, it might be a touch big for hanging out in go go bars so I will probably pack my Canon AS590 for those nights. Last trip I tried only to take my camcorder but I was disappointed with the night shots. None of my WS photos came out worth a crap.

[pubstud]

Go for a small compact camera that is light and fits easily into a shirt pocket. if you get a large DSLR it'll become a pain in the ass and you'll end up leaving it in your loom more often that you'll take it out.

 

Any of the top names - Sony, Canon, Panasonic, Nikon, Pentax, Olympus and so on will take great photos and be suitable for your needs. it's just a matter of looking through the various models for one that has the price and specs you like.

 

Don't be dazzled be high megapixels, you'll read and be told that with blah blah megapixels you can blow up an image to Billboard size. Yeah, well ask anyone when was the last time they did that. And the guys who do shot photos that end up on billboards don't use Canon compacts. I set my cameras on 5 megapixels even through they go up to 12MP.

 

You say you're no photographer. It's worthwhile looking online for a basic course or buying a small booklet to give you the tips on what make a pleasing photograph. But one thing I'll tell you now. I see it all the time on this forum, guys post images of girls and Thailand scenes that are out of focus and unsharp. Mate, if a photo is out of focus and all shaky and blury then delete it. Do not post it on a forum.

 

Finally before you post photos on this or any forum or email them to mates - RESIZE. I use a free app called photo razor that's a piss of piss to use and will resize a batch of 20-30 images down to manageable sizes in seconds.

 

Have fun, there are great photo opportunities all over Thailand.

[obsrving]

Just a point about the posted pictures. These are very obviously taken with the stock flash. Look at the harsh shadow around the girls and the over-exposed faces, many times we say "she looked better in person, honest" and 99% of the time the flash is to blame. If you are in your room and have an slr or hotshoe based camera, put on an external flash (cheap is fine) and point it straight up in the air or point it at a wall to "bounce" the flash. This will make a dramatic improvement on your pictures for only a slight change in technique. Then of course post those newly improved pictures of naked thai girls for all of us to appreciate.

 

As for choices, canon s95 is fantastic. It fits in a slightly thick pocket but has a very large sensor. Gives you the ability to take pictures even if the conditions are much too dark for most point and shoots with a bit of bokeh if you try really hard. If you still want to retain small size but want to change lenses at will and have a proper depth of field effect, go for the micro 4/3 series, like the panasonic gf3. The sensor is 5x bigger than pocket sized cameras, though still 1/2 the area of a dslr.

 

I will be taking both my s90 and a gf2 (with a hotshoe and external flash).

 

Oh and one cool thing you can do with the gf2, The flash is on a hinge, you can aim it up to provide a nice fill flash. Not as good as a true external flash (GN6) but in a pinch with the 14mm lens and the lowest f stop (2.5? Can't remember off hand) you can end up with some amazing pictures.

[kuteguy]

With a Canon ixus you got a simple but good camera . Even the cheapest ixus will do fine .

 

totally agree

or my personal favourites are Panasonic - they take beautiful pictures and a lot cheaper than Canons

[therealnapster]

totally agree

or my personal favourites are Panasonic - they take beautiful pictures and a lot cheaper than Canons

 

yup i did some research and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FS16 fits my needs, under a 100 euro (98 to be precise), 14mp, lot of settings for different moments and 720p video...

And i was amazed at how small it is, VERY easy to take around, almost size of a pack of smokes...

[nova2727]

i would go for the nikon but depends on your budget,but if you want a camera that can film in hd video too then go with the cannon 7d camera.

[Dickyboy1]

Just got a new Canon SX130IS compact, brilliant, many functions+auto, and full HD, also Argos £70 off in there sale.

[John McClain]

Just got a new Canon SX130IS compact, brilliant, many functions+auto, and full HD, also Argos £70 off in there sale.

Not FullHD (1080), but HD (720p).

[Dickyboy1]

Not FullHD (1080), but HD (720p).

I stand corrected. still a good buy

[niterider]

With all the water about, has anyone had experience and recommendations for a waterproof camera?

I've been looking at KODAK EASYSHARE SPORT Camera or Fujifilm Finepix XP20 or OLYMPUS TG-310

[illuxion]

Sony TX-10. Decent pics, small, WATERPROOF, and tough(drop from a table is NO problem). Fast startup, 16.2mp, 1920x1080 60i(or 30p) video, very good low light(except 2s max shutter so not much for artsy farts pics), just a great all around little camera. I had a lumix TS10 and it was just too bulky to make me happy, and it's low light was hideous. As I also usually bring along a big shooter so the whole point of a P&S to me it to be small, light, and not have to worry about it, and I love my TX10. Also having it be waterproof is a must especially this time of year. I love snapping pics of wet lil honeys lol.

[jay757]

Hi

 

My friend uses this little camera and its totally excellent

 

Sony dsc hx5

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a review

 

http://www.trustedre...l-Camera_review

 

 

Ps You can buy one at the moment at jessops for £180

 

http://www.jessops.c...shx/$s=DSC-HX5V

 

 

Good Luck

yes i own hxv5 awsome camera but its been superseeded last year

the new model is the hxv9 even better

theres a sample of my hotel room view in pattaya