Which superzoom.....

Quick background: I've always liked photography but recently am really getting into. I have an old dusty film SLR that I retired when I got my first 1.3 mp digicam. A couple months ago I purchased an Olympus SP-320... wish I could go back in time and get my 200 back. On the one hand it opened up new possiblities but at the same time didn't fulfill them. I found I'm hooked on the supermacro mode, so must have that, but really want better quality photos. DSLR's are just too pricey (with all the lense options and such, I'd have to buy some kind of super macro lense also, and the higher mega pixel ones are really pricey). The last few days I've read so many threads on here and so many reviews I think I've popped a few neurons! Sidenote: I've been into astronomy and telescopes for years to the 'lense quality' 'aperture' factors are always on my mind.

I read some reviews on my current SP-320 and found most find it pretty lacking on quality. It kinda seems no matter which decent superzoom I would buy would most likely beat it on quality. Plus the SP-320 is so darned slow! Especially with the flash enabled. I can make a grilled cheese sandwich in the time it takes to reset between pics LOL

The one that catches my eye the most is the Fujifilm S9100. I love the zoom and focus rings for manual control and the supermacro mode. I see the Panasonics have manual control also but don't see an option for supermacro...

Ugh... what to do!

I like indoor, outdoor, macro... pretty much all types of photography.

Any tips, links, thoughts to add to my confusion would be much appreciated!

Ron

Panasonic are the leaders in superzoom, IMHO nothing else comes close to the IQ of the Leica lens. You are right about the speed, but all the cams in this class are way too slow.

You can speed up operation with a separate flash, Panny FZ50 has a dedicated ETTL flash available now, but you will need a macro lens attachment for your macro work.
--
Kevin Coppalotti
http://razorsharp.smugmug.com
http://maxhr.zenfolio.com/

Thanks for the reply Kevin, to clarify, from what you've seen, the Panasonic gives the best images (because of it's lense?)?

Do you know off the top of your head what type/cost of lense attachment is needed for really close macro work with the panasonic?

Thanks much!
Ron

Yes, the Leica lens is the jewel in the crown of this camera. The consensus is to shoot RAW with the FZ50 for best results, but it is slow to write the large files.

For macro the Nikon 4T or 6T is very popular, but you may want research on the Panny forum for the current best macro lens, - there seems to be quite a few brands that can be used.

I don't do macro, but I have seen a lot of good work on the panny forum. I use the 8MP FZ30 and a DSLR Canon 20D, but the Panny can still surprise me.
This pic below taken at 1/25 second

Ron777 said:

Thanks for the reply Kevin, to clarify, from what you've seen, the
Panasonic gives the best images (because of it's lense?)?

Do you know off the top of your head what type/cost of lense
attachment is needed for really close macro work with the panasonic?

Thanks much!
Ron

Click to expand...

--
Kevin Coppalotti
http://razorsharp.smugmug.com
http://maxhr.zenfolio.com/

For good quality super-zooms, consider the Panasonic FZ series.

For full-size camera with manual zoom ring, try FZ30 or newer FZ50.

For compact super-zoom, try FZ7 (my favorite) or the soon-to-be-released FZ8

**** Stevens, FZ20, FZ30, FZ7, etc.

Kevin Coppalotti said:

Ron777 said:

Thanks for the reply Kevin, to clarify, from what you've seen, the
Panasonic gives the best images (because of it's lense?)?

Do you know off the top of your head what type/cost of lense
attachment is needed for really close macro work with the panasonic?

Thanks much!
Ron

Click to expand...

--
Kevin Coppalotti
http://razorsharp.smugmug.com
http://maxhr.zenfolio.com/

Click to expand...

Man nice photo......
I just with it had macro built in.. dang it.
I keep also looking at the canon X3 IS...

Man this is hard to decide! I'll check more on the panasonics though, now you put them in the running for me. thanks much!

**** Stevens said:

For good quality super-zooms, consider the Panasonic FZ series.

For full-size camera with manual zoom ring, try FZ30 or newer FZ50.

For compact super-zoom, try FZ7 (my favorite) or the
soon-to-be-released FZ8

**** Stevens, FZ20, FZ30, FZ7, etc.

Click to expand...

Thanks, I'll check those too

If you want a pocket camera that takes fabulous macro, try to get your hands on a Ricoh R4. I am completely hooked on macro thanks to this camera. I can use the super macro and put the lens on what I am photographing. paired with 28mm and 7x zoom, it's a great carry around cam. The proof is in the pics. (and I don't have a clue what I am doing and still get great pics)
LG
http://www.bytephoto.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=998&stype=2&si=lettingg0

If you really don't want to spend much money at all, buy a Fuji S6500fd. It has very fast AF and has never held me up when shooting (unless you switch to a very pointless burst mode). It has a nice lens just like the S9000, but the sensor is nicer and (I think) captures more detail and performs better at higher ISOs. Sounds like a good choice to me. You can even use the xD card from you SP-320 on it. The S9000 is, unfortunately, somewhat slow and has crummy CF card performance. It has too many megapixels and the lens can't keep up. Spend your money wisely - you want a S6500fd!

The article below is a must read for anyone in the market for a superzoom:

http://firingsquad.com/hardware/panasonic_lumix_dmc-fz30_canon_eos-20d_camera_shootout/

BTW after reading the article I decided on a dSLR but I have always liked to waste money.

lettingg0 said:

If you want a pocket camera that takes fabulous macro, try to get
your hands on a Ricoh R4. I am completely hooked on macro thanks
to this camera. I can use the super macro and put the lens on what
I am photographing. paired with 28mm and 7x zoom, it's a great
carry around cam. The proof is in the pics. (and I don't have a
clue what I am doing and still get great pics)
LG
http://www.bytephoto.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=998&stype=2&si=lettingg0

Click to expand...

Thanks much! I do actually like the larger SLR "like" cameras, ... I really am hoping to get one with a focus and zoom ring. I miss that from my old film SLR.

Kevin D said:

If you really don't want to spend much money at all, buy a Fuji
S6500fd. It has very fast AF and has never held me up when shooting
(unless you switch to a very pointless burst mode). It has a nice
lens just like the S9000, but the sensor is nicer and (I think)
captures more detail and performs better at higher ISOs. Sounds
like a good choice to me. You can even use the xD card from you
SP-320 on it. The S9000 is, unfortunately, somewhat slow and has
crummy CF card performance. It has too many megapixels and the lens
can't keep up. Spend your money wisely - you want a S6500fd!

Click to expand...

Oh man another to think about I'll have to look that one up. I did find the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ50K really cheap online. Now I noticed it has 10 meg pixels... but everyone seems to like the Panasonic... I wonder now if that's good or bad???

I also like the Canon PowerShot S3 IS, but it doesn't have the focus or zoom rings but does have supermacro...

Does the S6500 have supermacro?

Thanks!
Ron

Ron777 said:

Ugh... what to do!

I like indoor, outdoor, macro... pretty much all types of photography.

Any tips, links, thoughts to add to my confusion would be much
appreciated!

Ron

Click to expand...

Look at the various camera reviews that DPreview does!
Sheesh. The answers are in there if you look. They cover good
P&S's and Dslrs in detail.

Also have a look at the current crop of super zooms from Kodak, the Z612 and P712. Gorgeous colors and the Schneider-Kreuznach lens is a gem.

You really need to read the reviews here (and on other sites) and decide for yourself. There are a number of good superzoom cameras on the market, but none of them are perfect, and the tradeoffs will determine which one is right for you.

When I was shopping for mine, I looked closely at the Panasonic, Kodak, Fuji, Sony, Canon, and a few others. I quickly eliminated some of them. The Fuji had no image stabilization, which is critical for the long zoom, so that dropped off my list (too bad, because I really like Fujis in general). The Panasonic has such severe noise reduction that at higher ISOs its images look more like watercolors than photographs, so that one quickly dropped off as well. I wound up narrowing it down to the S3 and the H5, and I bought the H5 because it had better low-light performance.

But low-light performance may not be as important to you, so your decision may be different. You really need to read the reviews, look at the sample images, and decide for yourself.

Read the reviews of the panasonics and decide whether IS is a real deal breaker for you. If it's not, seriously consider the Fuji long zooms.

Jim Gilliland said:

You really need to read the reviews here (and on other sites) and
decide for yourself. There are a number of good superzoom cameras
on the market, but none of them are perfect, and the tradeoffs will
determine which one is right for you.

When I was shopping for mine, I looked closely at the Panasonic,
Kodak, Fuji, Sony, Canon, and a few others. I quickly eliminated
some of them. The Fuji had no image stabilization, which is
critical for the long zoom, so that dropped off my list (too bad,
because I really like Fujis in general). The Panasonic has such
severe noise reduction that at higher ISOs its images look more
like watercolors than photographs, so that one quickly dropped off
as well. I wound up narrowing it down to the S3 and the H5, and I
bought the H5 because it had better low-light performance.

Click to expand...

Finally, someone gave some good recommendations and advice.

Jim Gilliland said:

But low-light performance may not be as important to you, so your
decision may be different. You really need to read the reviews,
look at the sample images, and decide for yourself.

Click to expand...

--
Steve McDonald

Marcel Geers said:

Read the reviews of the panasonics and decide whether IS is a real
deal breaker for you. If it's not, seriously consider the Fuji long
zooms.

Click to expand...

Yes. Even so Fuji S600fd (6MP) will give 2 stops of equivalent advantage by shooting at higher sensitivity at low noise. Lens is 10.7x manual zoom. Pixels are not crammed in its small size (which is still better then S3IS and same as Panasonic FZ50, but Pana.. crams 10MPS in that!).

--
Regards, Ajay
http://picasaweb.google.com/ajay0612

Both from the Panasonic FZ30

This in macro mode auto focus



This manual focus with the Raynox 150 lens attached



--
Steve

Think you've already got a lot of good info in this thread, but here's my opinion:

Haven't used the S9100, but I've tried the previous model, the S9000 (very similar) and the S6500fd which is a simpler model. Someone pointed out that the s6500fd could be a good option, and I agree for general use, but for macro use I'd prefer the S9100 because you can tilt the LCD which makes life a lot easier when you're shooting close to the ground or in other difficult positions. The big minus with the the S9100 (and the S6500) is the lack of IS which would move it quite a bit down on my list. If you're going to shoot mostly macro on a tripod then the lack of IS is not a big point.

You say that the supermacro mode of the Fujicameras is an advantage, I disagree. Supermacro locks you to 28mm (equivalent) wideangle which mean very short distance between the front lens and the subject. I prefer a macro function that works on the whole zoomrange (I know the Fujicameras have that too) even if it doesn't get that close to the subject. So, I don't mean the extra supermacromode is a disadvantage, but I dont think it's a big advantage either. It's just a mode I find I rarely use.

The Pana FZ50 doesn't get quite as close as the Fujis in supermacromode, but personally I prefer the FZ50 macro anyway. If you want to use a macro attachment lens to get higher magnification then I'd also prefer the FZ50 which has a lens that doesn't change length while zooming. That's gives a really sturdy construction which I'd feel much more comfortable attaching a macro lens to than the extending lens of the S9100.

The FZ50 also have IS, but suffer image quality suffer from too much/poor noise reduction (read the review).

If macro is really important then I'd stick to models with some kind of tilt (and swivel) LCD. That limits the intersting models a lot. A simpler one (no RAW) is the Canon S3IS, and if you can mange with only 4x zoom then the Canon A640 (or A630) also have good macro modes.

Last I'll mention the Samsung Pro 815 which has a lot of shortcomings. Big camera, no IS and a fixed LCD, but it does have a pretty good macro mode and a big zoomrange. The model is over a year old, but seem to still be available.