Help Please on purchase (1 Viewer)

Hi all

I want to buy a new camera. I want one that I will be able to didgiscope with.
I just don't know where to start I have three in mind the minolta Z3 4.0m with 12X optical zoom. Nikon 5700 5.0m 8x optical and the Minolta A2 8.0m 7X optical. Apart from the difference in pixels and price. I don't want to spend out on the highest priced one if the cheapest gives the same results in picture quality and features.

Any help would be apreciated.

Christine

Christine, thought your digiscoped pictures with Konica 310Z looked good.
Big zoom cameras such as those on the list you give are not normally recommended for digiscoping; likely to give problems with vignetting.
Take a look at Andy Bright's Digiscoping site for digiscoping camera recommendations. The Nikon Coolpix 990/995/4500 series were de facto standard for years (also great for close-up photography and can give good results with teleconvertors of 5+ x magnification) but series is now discontinued. New kid on the block with good review is the Contax SL300RT and cousin Kyocera SL400R.

Normjackson Thanks for your reply.
The results I get with the Konica are acceptable but there are no manual settings, or very little. They just don't do it for me I want that extra bit of clarity and more hands on rather than automatic. I don't wish to go back to conventional 35mm and lots of different lenses. Been there done that. I am now starting to get the bug back where I want to do better without going over the top. I will have a read of Andy Bright's site to see what he reccomends.

Thanks again
Christine

I still like the Nikon CP4500 for digiscoping, though I have just received a Contax SL300RT which is very impressive indeed - I have a feeling I'll be soon swapping to the Contax almost exclusively for digiscoping.

I agree about the 10-12x zoom cameras. I look on them as being for use for distances less than around 15'-20' and digiscoping for anything over that. These longer length zoom cameras generally have wider lens diameters which lead to excessive vignetting with the scope. You can zoom it out, but then the zoom is too much for the scope optics and leads to soft images.

As regards the Konica, does it have ev adjustment? To be honest with my Nikon CP4500 I generally leave it on automatic adjustnig the ev setting to allow for light or dark subjects and half depressing the shutter release to lock the camera settings before fine focusing using the scope.

An ideal combination for me is a digiscope set-up and a decent 10-12x optical zoom camera. The new Panasonic DMC FZ20 which has an image stabiliser seems to be performing well.

Ianf

I am now getting spoilt for choice. I was going to make a list of what I would like on the camera but then I probably would have to pay around £1000 LOL. I would be back where I was 10 years ago with loads of equipment. Sitting and going through all the various options. I have come to the conclusion I may be better off keeping my Konica for Digiscoping, and going for one of the larger lense cameras with long zooms and manual settings for when I can't take my scope. I now have two more to add to my list the contax and the panasonic.

My hubby doesn't know it yet but he will be buying it me as a present so I must make sure I get the right one.

Christine