Panasonic FZ7 vs Canon S3IS - Please recommend

[hebegb]

Hello everyone,

I'm looking for a new camera for a very specific purpose. I take horse racing photos as a hobby, so I need a digital camera that has a good telephoto lens (12x) and is fast enough to freeze high-speed action. Although bright daylight is typical, it is not unusual to be faced with overcast/rainy weather or late afternoon/evening dusk/shadows.

Most of the photos are for website use.

I am currently looking at the Panasonic Lumix DMS-FX7 and Canon S3IS.

Am I looking at the right cameras and which would you recommend for my application?

Thank you for any advice you can offer.

-Greg

 

[klh]

You also want no shutter lag. You want the picture taken when you press the button not 0.4 seconds later. Thus you want a DSLR.

A Nikon d80 with an 18-200vr would be a very nice combination.

If you want to keep price down, you could get two lenses - such as the 18-55 and the 55-200. You could get the D50, but if you are far from the action the 10 megapixels of the D80 would be better as you can blow up the center of the picture more.

Canon, Pentax, Sony, also make good quick dslr's. Go to a store with a choice and play with the major brands, and see which ones are quickest for you to use, both based on their ergonomics and responsiveness.

 

[Telecorder]

For your indicated uses, the two you are considering would both probably give you good performance...

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_post.asp?method=sidebyside&cameras=canon_s3is%2Cpanasonic_dmcfz7&show=all

While I haven't used the S3IS, I have the two Panys below/above the FZ7 and would recommend the FZ7 over the S3IS. Both the 5/30 are generally considered to be the leading super zooms in their class and the FZ7 is considered to be an improvement over the FZ5.

My recommendation is due to the ease that the possible noise of the Pany is easily addressed with programs such as Neat Image whereas the CA/PF in the Canon images is usually much more problematic...

http://www.digitalcamerainfo.com/content/Panasonic-FZ7--Canon-S3-IS-Sony-H5---Head-to-Head-to-Head-Review/Overall-Impressions--Conclusion.htm
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1033&thread=19295310

In the end, do some due diligence and vote with your pocketbook based on your assessments for your intended uses. There are very few that own and have done their own comparisons with both but there are a lot that have their own subjective brand loyality.
--
Telecorder (Dave)
FZee5/FZee30+RD-S+OlyTC1.7X
Dee50+Nikkor18-70DX+Tam70-300LDKitties

 

[hebegb]

Thanks for the replies...I think the FZ7 would suit my needs best (given the price advantage), but i've noticed that panasonic seems to release new versions almost exactly a year to the day, which means an 'upgraded' FZ7 will be out in January '07...

does anyone know what the new version will be and does it make sense to wait?

Thanks,

Greg

 

[tbcass]

I would add the Fuji 6000/6500 to your list. It has better high iso performance than either of those which allows for higher shutter speeds to freeze the action.
--
Tom

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25301400@N00/