I know, I know...but give me your opinion anyway....

Alright, I've been shooting a old C-750 for about 4 years now and have had a great time, and have got some incredible shots....to my eye and friends. Now, I'm sure there are many "pros" that would outright laugh at my images...

I'm looking for a new cam. I'm rough on them and this guy is just plum worn out from abuse... (dirt, rough handling etc...I'm a field biologist and tote it all over...not carefully enough either)

I love the ultra zooms...

My question is... wont most of the new UZ's leave this 750 in the dust for IQ? Speed? Functions?? I am very interested in the new SP570, and know there are no reviews out yet, but it would certainly satisfy me if a C750 would...right? Same with the Pannys and S5IS... Right??

I appreciate your input,

Ernie

Remember this is only 1 mans opinion. I wouldn't personally go anywhere near ANY of the new ultrazooms. All have too many pixels crammed onto too small a sensor and more features that are frivolous. Okay then smart guy, what do I buy? Easy answer is one of the new smallish DSLR's. The E-410 or E-510 dual lens kit gives you close to the amount of range as those ultrazooms. If you really need more than 500mm of range add a $50 2X magnifying filter to the 40-150 lens and voila 600mm of zoom. My other suggestion would be the humble Nikon D40. Just bought one for the wife ( and as a backup body to my D200) and it is fabulous. You can get the D40, the 18-55 kit lens and the 55-200mm lens for less than $700. Again if you really need ultrazoom just add the aforementioned 2X magnifying filter. The D40 is a peach because for the average consumer it has loads of image editing capabilities right in the camera. Cropping, B&W, Sepia, D-Lighting is all there and it's nothing short of amazing. The D40 is no worse to carry around than my wifes Kodak Z712 10X zoom point and shoot and will run circles around it in every way.

Mike
--
E-1
SHLD-2
Zuiko 14-45mm
Zuiko 40-150mm
Zuiko 14-54mm
Zuiko 50mm macro f/2.0
FL-40
Nikon D200
Nikon 55-200mm AF-S G VR
Nikon 18-70mm AF-S DX
Nikon 50mm f/1.8 AF-S
Nikon 85mm f/1.8 AF-D
Nikon SB-600 speedlight

http://www.proac.smugmug.com

Photography is the power of observation, not the application of technology.

...the SP550UZ. The result is, I no longer use the C-750.

You say you have used your C-750 heavily.

In that department, I feel the SP-550 is better. The buttons don't malfunction at the slightest hint of moisture. Extending the lens does not suck in dust, which then settles first on the EVF, and eventually on the CCD.

Picture Quality? I note that C-750 users have gotten used to the coarse sharpening, particularly at the default setting. Compared to the C-750, the SP-550 is still soft when setting sharpness, contrast and saturation at +1. But there is heaps more detail in those pictures, and I don't get artifacts on my moon pictures when setting the contrast at +4, which brings up artifacts on the C-750. Since you are a scientist, you may care more for detail than artifacts.

Admittedly, I have a GOOD SP-550UZ.

If the SP-570UZ proves to be no worse in the noise department (With the SP-550 I have to be careful when using PSE2 'Levels' during PP), then that should be a worthy successor to your C-750UZ.

Henry

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Henry Falkner - C-750UZ, Stylus 800, SP-550UZ http://www.pbase.com/hfalkner

Thanks much. I have been weighing my options with the low end DSLR's and the D40 is right up at the top.... I was just playing with one at Vanns and enjoying it. i was playing with the FZ18 too... I like it, but man, its NOTHING compared to the D40. On that note, though, the Canon XTB 8 mp DSLR with a standard lens is on sale for a mere $444. I found that to be unreal... i didn't buy it, but Im not entirely sure why.

I really like a "packable" camera... the DSLR's are not packable for me. Sometimes I go on 7-10 backpack trips and lightweight is very important... A camera you have with you is the best camera right... I really fear I wouldn't have the DSLR with me...

I took some amazing pictures of my daughter with a pup today, they were about 25 yards away and zoomed in, everything is great. I'll try and upload them. If ANY of these UZIS willl do this, they will suffice, And I cant imagine why they wouldn't...

Aaaargh.

:0)

Current super-zooms are versatile alright, in a small package, too.

Last Thursday I got a passable video with a 20ies jazz big band as the subject - I finished the DVD this morning. Here are 9 out of the 22 minutes I recorded:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IubqeNzJgXs

Here is a moon movie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBYmAjDE6n0

Here is one from my series of our moon eclipse - 28th August 2007:



Here is a tree bloom:



But where my SP-550 is showing its limits is with night shots where movement demands high ISO settings:



Talking about movies again, getting them from the SP-550 is much easier and more reliable than doing a transfer from my Canon MV100 DV tape camera (1998 vintage), but you get AM broadcast quality mono sound only, and no optical zoom, with most models (there are eceptions like the Canon S3/4/5).

Cameras like these are like Microsoft Operating Systems - they do everything, but not brilliantly.

I wonder whether the Fuji S100FS is going to hit the sweet spot for both IQ and bulk.

Henry

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Henry Falkner - C-750UZ, Stylus 800, SP-550UZ http://www.pbase.com/hfalkner

and one woman's. At the price of the E-510 two lens kit, you can't beat it for entry level dslrs. I just can't see spending near that on a p&s these days.
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Theresa K
E-3, E-300, 14-54, 50-200 and 50mm lenses, FL-50
http://theresak.smugmug.com/

Having used a 750, 8080, e500 and the sp550 I strongly advise you to get the e510. The new ultrazooms don't come anywhere near the IQ (sharpness, bokeh, contrast...) of the old 7XX series cams. Those were amazing cameras - but the lens was what made them really special. The lens is still the most important part of a camera and although it's just my opinion, the new ultrazooms simply don't compare. Perhaps the 570 will be different, but there has to be some sort of trade off for all the zoom they are trying to get out of these new ultrazooms.

The e510 is a great deal now - the liveview and IS are excellent selling points for it. The kit lenses are great - plus it will give you a platform to expand your photography. The 14-54mm is a fantastic multi-purpose lens and that 70-300mm looks great and does pretty decent macro as well. You might want to consider just getting the package with the 14-42mm and add the two lenses I mentioned above - it's up to you. With that, you'd have a really light wide angle lens that's very sharp; a multi-purpose lens in the 14-54 that has almost no distortion, is pretty fast, and can focus very close; and a very sharp lens that takes you all the way out to 600mm! Oh, one more thing - the dust buster on the e-series cams really does work. I've seen dust bunnies on my sensor seldom - but when I do see them, they don't last long. The duster really does take care of them. You won't get that kind of performance out of any other dslr and you'll appreciate it when you are out in the field and want to change lenses. You still need to be careful when changing lenses, but as I said it's a very good feature to have.

Having said all that - go out and try them yourself. I love shooting with a dslr, but I've seen plenty of people who would rather shoot with a p&s.
--



Marc

Tonight and all day tommorrow I have an S3IS to play with... I really like the feel of it, and I really like the IQ so far, compared to the FZ 8 I'm playing with...soooo...

Just not sure I"m ready for DSLR yet... I sure appreciate your guys input though...

:: On that note, though, the Canon XTB 8 mp DSLR with a standard lens is on sale

:: for a mere $444. I found that to be unreal... i didn't buy it, but Im not entirely sure
:: why.

The kit lens that comes with the XT/XTi is awful, so factor in the cost of at least one other lens there....

You love your C750. I loved my C-765. I haven't seen a whole lot of shots from the SP-series that equaled the 765 and 770 shots that good photographers could coax out of those good cameras. If it were me, and I needed something a lot lighter than my E-3+50-200+EC20 (which is a burden around my neck when hiking...but I still do it) I'd go to eBay and pick up a C770. If you go through the past OTF Challenges you will find a lot of winners using the c-765 and 770's, even against DSLRs. The only Challenge I won was with my 765. The lens and sensor in those cameras were very well matched and the pics exceptionally sharp.
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Sharon

http://www.pbase.com/slengst/galleries
E-3; C-5060
Lenses: 11-22, 14-54, 50-200, EC-20 and Canon 500D

Hi, Ernie,

Just in case you haven't viewed our Challenges, here is the link to past challenges. You may be surprised at how may winners or top contending photos were taken with the 750, 765, 770's. Hope you enjoy these.

http://www.pbase.com/otfchallenge/challenges
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Sharon

http://www.pbase.com/slengst/galleries
E-3; C-5060
Lenses: 11-22, 14-54, 50-200, EC-20 and Canon 500D