I have a Sony Mavica, it's a good camera for still shots, but is unreliable for motion pics. It takes a floppy disk so you just feed it into your computer. You don't need any programs to use it on your computer. I really like this part. It's kind of heavy though. So it has pros and cons, but I really like it for still shots.

I use a Canon Power Shot S1 IS. I got it because it has a 10X optical zoom capability.

It still doesn't take the type of close ups I would 'like' to get, but life is not perfect. It doesn't do well in lower light situations and can end up with some strange shots because of it. If I try to take plant pictures at night, I often end up with firey streaks rather than nice pictures. In that instance I would have better luck using my tripod to erase any type of movement whatsoever while taking the pictures. (Gotta breathe, you know?)

It has a LOT more options than I ever have or will use, but it is nice to HAVE the options, than not have and want...

The price was good and it was available to goof around with in the store. I took a detailed, crenolated small sea shell out with me when I went camera shopping. I wanted to see what kind of detail it would show at different zoom levels.

My best suggestion would be Not To Hurry. Check out every camera in every store around you. Mess about with it. Let the sales person know you are Definately Going To Buy A Camera, you just don't know which one yet. Be aware there could be sales incentives for a rep to sell you one camera over another. ASK bazillions of questions. Hold them, focus on folks in the store, try far away, close up, mixed textures. It is really hard for my camera to take good pictures of my cactus. The spines are in the focus field, but they radiate at all different angles, directions, and depths of field, so it makes it very tough for the camera to choose one thing and focus on that one thing. So, I don't get good pix of cactus unless I set the plant up next to something the camera CAN focus on. Which leaves them always lightly furry, as the object is the focus, not the subject of the actual picture. Another reason to spend some time with the camera.

It wouldn't hurt to check a few books out of the library, either. I sound like I know what I'm talking about, but really it is stuff I picked up from my amature photographer father. I also have two exquisite sets of technical 'how to' books that were handed down to me about taking pix.

Number one, it has to comfortable in your hand. Number two, easy for you to use. Hard to get candid shots when you have to stop and read the booklet every time you want a good shot. Number three, you don't have to spend big bucks to get a decent camera for your needs.

Hi GH,

I have a Nikon CoolPix 3mega pixal camera. I am very pleased with it. It takes wonderful close-ups and also is very good in low light situations. It was recommended to me by somebody in a camera department that did not sell Nikon CoolPix. She told me that the CoolPix was the best camera for the money in her opinion and that even though she couldn't sell me a camera she would suggest that I go and buy the Nikon. I thought that was quite a recommendation. If you would like to see some of the pictures I took with this camera you can click on the Larry_b at the top of this thread entry. If you would like to see a lot more pictures you can visit my website. Most of the pictures on this site were taken with the Nikon CoolPix. There are some fuzzy pictures in that collection and those were taken by another camera. So if it's fuzzy it wasn't the Nikon.

I also know people who like the Kodak EasyShare. Catalina is one person on G. W. that comes to mind. She can give you some examples of what her camera will do. The EasyShare is a little less expensive than the Nikon so that may be a consideration for you. Personally, I would not hesitate to buy either camera.

I hope this helps,

Larry

It ~is~ really hard to choose a digital camera, isn't it? I was shopping for one this past fall, and what a nightmare! I didn't even know what the different megapixels were all about.

Cena's advice is really good. Play with it in the store, so that you can decide if the zoom and clarity are good enough for your needs. But even though you say that most of your pics will be plants, I think that you'll likely find that you end up taking more and more pics of other things, too - friends, family, outings, sunsets, whatever. I find that I take way more shots of *everything* now, since I can easily delete them.

I ended up getting a Canon Powershot A510 (3.2 megapixels). It's a good little camera for the price (somewhere around $250), but I have two problems with it. One, I find that the flash is WAY too bright, even when I set it to the lowest intensity, so that if I take a closeup shot, the people/plants look washed out. This means that unless I have optimal natural lighting, my shots are either dark or super-bright. And two, unless I have it on the "action" setting (for action shots), my shots come out a little fuzzy. Now, I know I'm not *that* spastic, so I clearly chose a camera that was too sensitive. Also, I wish it had a delay so that I could get into some of the family/friends shots that I take. And I would have liked a bigger screen to preview the photos. The pluses are great, though: the price was excellent for the product I got; the camera has a panorama setting, so I can take shots of an entire garden, or group photos of my gigantic extended family; and transfer from camera to computer is quick and almost effortless. For what it's worth, though, I've never heard anything bad about Nikon cameras... I just couldn't afford one.

As for fussing around with the photos once they're taken, I've been told that it's much better to use a computer program, rather than do it on your camera. I only have Kodak Imaging on my computer, and I absolutely hate it. I can't do anything - resizing is minimal, I can't really play with colour. Also, with Kodak Imaging, the photo quality is really poor when I look at the shots on my computer (although they print out fine). And finally, I can't modify any shots (not even rotate them!), and then save them again in jpeg. Kodak Imaging is the absolute WORST. I'm getting Photoshop with my next computer, no question. Friends of mine use it, and it's wonderful. But because Kodak Imaging is so horrible, I tried zooming photos on my camera (after I've taken the shot), and they looked rather pixelated. I asked a friend about that, and apparently it's pretty standard. He suggested that I only edit photos on my computer, because even with a crappy program, it's generally better than editing with the camera itself.

If you want to take a look at some of the shots I've taken with the Canon Powershot, I'll link to my yahoo photos account. This shot is of my tattoo - it was taken without a flash, and with no zoom. I just held the camera really close, maybe a foot away.

Here is a link that might be useful: Canon Powershot close-up shot, with no flash

And here's another shot taken with the Canon Powershot, with zoom (I think a 3x zoom?) but no flash:

Here is a link that might be useful: Canon Powershot; zoom, no flash

I hope you find these helpful - when I was shopping for a camera, professional shots taken with the camera were no guideline at all, since I knew there was no way I'd be able to use the camera like that. But seeing regular-folk shots really helped.

Anyway, here's one with flash, but on the lowest setting:

Here is a link that might be useful: Powershot; with minimal flash and 2x zoom, in a dark bar

Hi,

Actually, my Nikon CoolPix only cost me $200 at best buy Christmas of 2004. The Kodak EasyShare cameras were about $150. I am not sure if the 3 megapixel camera is still available. My sister was looking for a digital camera is Christmas and said that the 5 megapixel CoolPix cameras were about $250.

Larry

Thanks guys for sharing advice and examples with me! It was so helpful. I'm going to take my time and engage the sales rep, to no end. LOL

GH

Hey, I just got a new Olympus with macro and super-macro, 5 MP for $179 :) it's fantastic and takes great phots, XD memory... takes movies that are good too :)

Hey, I just got a new Olympus with macro and super-macro, 5 MP for $179 :) it's fantastic and takes great phots, XD memory... takes movies that are good too :)

My twin told me she had only bought me a little present and I was relieved, because I had bought her an inexpensive pedometer (to help now she's back on her feet).
She bought me a Nikon Coolpix! I'm learning to use it, I'm not good at technology!

You'll have to post some of your new photos for us, Marguerite!

Larry - now that IS a good price! I wonder why all the Nikons were so expensive here... next time maybe I'll go across the border into the States to buy a camera, because the currency exchange wasn't that bad when I was pricing them. $200 would only have been maybe $275-$300 Canadian.

Shelly, blush blush, the kids are showing me how to use the camera, little by little. Hope to be able to post eventually :-)