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Perennial Camera Poll

Original Post
James Beissel · · Boulder, CO · Joined Aug 2004 · Points: 905

I'm looking for a new point and shoot to carry with me on climbs.

I have a D40 and love to geek out about DSLRs (see my pics at jamesbeissel.com ), but really what I need right now is something that is "rackable" if you know what I mean.

I want something with excellent image quality, at least some degree of manual control, a reasonable amount of optical zoom, as well as being compact, light, and durable.

Right now I'm leaning towards the Canon Powershot G9 but I am looking for other suggestions.

Adam Stackhouse · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2001 · Points: 13,970

I was just having this conversation with someone else, but going the opposite way, towards a DSLR. But in keeping with this thread, I came this close to buying a Canon S5 IS. The G9 has a bigger sensor, but is priced pretty high. Currently I have a SX100 which would probably fit the bill for what your looking for. Wanna trade for your D40?

Malcolm Daly · · Hailey, ID · Joined Jan 2001 · Points: 380

The G9 is a great camera but is larger that what I consider "rackable". My favorite is the canon SD 870 because it's the only P&S that goes wide angle. It's tiny and it's easy to override the exposure with the +/- control. Sure, you don't get to chose shutter speed and aperture but, who cares in that situation? Colors are great and controls are easy to work.

If you want telephoto instead of wide-angle, get the SD 850.

Olympus makes some nice rackable cameras that are waterproof.

Post up when you get some new pics.

Mal

trispad · · Boulder, CO · Joined Jul 2007 · Points: 10

I don't know much about taking pictures other then point and shoot. I have a Canon Power Shot SD 1000 which works well for me. It fits nicely inside an Otter Box ( otterbox.com/waterproof-cas…). I put some 1/4"x3/4" padding on the inside of the top and bottom of the case. When the camera is in the case I can bang it against the rock and drop it in the water without worry. I also glued a loop of 2mm cord to the inside of the box, so I can attach the camera to the box with the camera's wrist strap. I use some 3 or 4mm cord to attach the box to my harness and don't need to worry about dropping it.

RobR · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2006 · Points: 10

I've dealt with choice before, and currently shoot with a Nikon D70, Canon G9 and Canon Power Shot SD600. My experience has been that the G9 when shooting in RAW is quickly replacing my D70. For almost every situation it is almost as good as an entry or mid level DSLR kit, but much smaller. Plus with an adaptor it will take filters and conversion lenses. That being said for climbing where I am an active part of the team and not just taking pictures, the Canon Power Shoot cameras can't be beet. I have a formfitting Lowepro neoprene case that will velcrow on to the waist of my harness between the buckle and gear loops, this works great for one handed shooting. The other nice thing about the Powere Shot cameras is that you can pick up a metal bodied one for very little money so if it does get broken your not out that much cash.

Rob

John Hegyes · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Feb 2002 · Points: 5,636

I really like my G9, I've been shooting with it since January and it does a great job. It has a lot of manual features and the pictures look good.

Kai Larson · · Sandy, UT · Joined Jan 2006 · Points: 436

I am partial to the Ricoh GR Digital II.

It has a fixed (non-zoom) lens that is about the equivalent to a 28mm lens for a 35mm film camera.

One of the best quality digital pocket cameras around.

Here is a review.

photographyblog.com/reviews…

Paul Hunnicutt · · Boulder, CO · Joined Sep 2006 · Points: 325

My Canon Power Shot SD 1000 works great. I would second getting something not too pricey as I found out when I smashed my old Canon Power Shot on the Nose last year. Doh!

It still managed to take pics though as only the screen was damaged. It finally quit the other weekend.

If you want an idea of quality...here are the photos I took with it on the Nose....except for the shots of us from far away - which were by a pro photographer with a "real" camera in the meadow.

flickr.com/photos/9311892@N04/sets/

Tim Stich · · Colorado Springs, Colorado · Joined Jan 2001 · Points: 1,520

I and Tarbuster use Nikon L10s, which have given way to the L11. They are around $109 now, 6 meagapixels, 3X Zoom, and pretty small. A Lowe Apex 5AW case holds mine fine. Definitely easy to pop in a breast pocket on a climb, as I have done many times. 2AA batteries and uses the tiny postage stamp HD card.

timt · · Wheat Ridge, CO · Joined Jan 2006 · Points: 50

I love my Leica D-LUX 3. It is small enough to rack, durable & has the sweet Leica optics. For panaramics, you can set it to 16:9 aspect ratio, it can operate fully auto to fully manual, and is 10 megapixels.

Alan Nagel · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Feb 2008 · Points: 5

Any opinions from experience with the Panasonic DMZ TZ series? latest model I think is TZ5.
It seems from a friend's experience and what I can read to have just about everything except a viewfinder in a shirt-pocket sized, ca. 9 oz. digital pointandshoot. The 10x optical zoom and folded Leica lens are points in its favor, I believe hard to match otherwise. Image stabilization and other details also seem strong.
Just got ridiculed enough in Jackson Hole that finally converting to digital may be in order. But in the <$300 range and small size for grab and shoot moments while roped.
I hear the support for Canon ....

rob bauer · · Golden, CO · Joined Dec 2004 · Points: 3,929

Get a viewfinder. It's bright out there and it's frequently extremely hard to see the LCD screen, no matter how bright. (Everybody over 21 is used to a viewfinder since it's the traditional natural position. Don't be oversold on the megs, in my experience it's a rare shot that needs much over 7megs. The computer power to edit them excessively isn't required unless you're a pro. Really. Someone once said "f8 and be there," which is oh so true.

Allen Hill · · FIve Points, Colorado and Pine · Joined Jun 2004 · Points: 1,410

We just got a D-Lux 3. Great camera. Bought it for the aspect ratio options (4.3, 3.2 16.9.) If it was up to me I would have bought the Lumix version of it. A lot missing from the Lumix but it cost a lot less and takes a good photo. The 16.9 is great for me right now but I can't imagine using it other than for work stills. Leica glass is like no other.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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