FZ 30 owner...what to purchase next ?

[jcr]

As a FZ30 (and previously FZ20) owner for a year now, hundreds of shots later I feel that I "need" to climb asome more steps on the scale of evolution... mostly due to low light situations (some indoor and some even outdoor) that I am not really in love with FZ30, In general I must say that FZ30 is far better that FZ20, and with plenty of light it is enough for me...a wider angle would be nice, a faster burst speed... a larger buffer for RAW...a more usable iso gama...lower noise...

Where to go ? FZ50 ? D50 ? D70s ? D80 ? 350D ? 400D ? 30D ? higher models are way to far as lack oftime ($$$) 30D is alreadymore than a bitof...

...OR does FZ50 really deserve a chance ?

...and we must consider glass if SLR ... FZ30 is to go if a new purchase is done, what glass should we stick on the chosen SLR ?superzoom was interesting...but I can drop a bit of zoom (only a bit...ok), a bit wider is prefered...when compared to FZ30

any ofour pana friends tried or own any SLR to compare to FZ30 ? that can give an overall idea of real differences

[genece]

This is not a sales pitch...but I have a D50 also and the reason for choosing Nikon over Canon was the 18 to 200 VR lens.....and while I really like that lens I usually have the 80 to400 OS lens on the camera.....Not as good a lens but 600mm is more to my liking and IS is an absolute must for me.

And I also have a 50mm F1.8 lens for low light shots.....as you can see this gets to be complicated....

About the second day of vacation I soon realized I want another body, and it most likely will be a D80.....not because the D50 is not a great camera...as it truely is a very good camera.....I think the best entry level DSLR but that is only my opinion.



But I still have a FZ with me about 100% of the time....I am just having a hard time deciding about the FZ50......I have seen some good photos from it but that darn NR it uses..and then as you mentioned if the Raw could be used in a burst....the NR would not be a problem.

If they would have addressed the write time for RAw and forgot those 2 mp I believe they would have been on the right track. But what do I know.

[Rriley]

quite right genece, I didnt think of using raw as a workaround
for me the FZ50 very reluctantly is off an extensive list
I really hoped that would work out
that leaves me with just the E330 left
unless I hang on and get an LC1 s/h from the states, and I just might do that

[Rriley]

jcr the trouble with SLRs is all about the glass
you keep the lenses and trade bodies in my world
with 4/3rds you are at least a little less locked into one brand

to assist your decision over Nikon / Canon this link might help

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/20dd70.htm

I looked at them, and the Nikon D70s appeals to me but the 3x2 frame just isnt for me
financialy it works out fine, they are good buys in my opinion. I would have gone for the Tokina wide lens or the Nikon. I never got around to liking the Canons, the sight of a camera that looks like a toaster with a lens on it makes me shudder.

The E330 is a tad pricey, as is the 11-22 wide that I need, but it has everything I need, and my existing Oly gear will work with it. The tag on L1 is kinda out there, if only it was available body only. As yet there is zero second hand market for L1's, and LC1's are rare but around, they attract 'buy it nows' almost equal to new price and seem somewhat sought after.

Riley

[genece]

Boy if you will not use a 3/2 format you have pretty well limited the choices in a DSLR.

[Rriley]

genece thats the truth
Seriously tho, the dSLR makers could join the 21st century and apply some smarts.
In digicams u can have 3x2, 4x3, and 16x9, for makers that would claim to be the a place or two higher than the digicam market, it is sad they dont see this.

For me, 4x3 isnt a choice its a necessity, Im buying a new camera to do less work on images not more. Sadly if I spend 5 minutes on an image its 3 minutes too many, unless there are some very special needs to satisfy.

Riley

[milrodpxpx]

haven't checked out the panasonic forums for a few months now; i'm a very happy pentax *ist DL owner now - the new pentax k100D has shake reduction, and the body and kit lens are under $700. all pentax are backwards compatible with any K mount lens, auto or manual, ever made, and you can even use older screw mount lenses with a $20 adapter. I paid $367 after rebate for the DL, i sold the fz30 for more than that and i couldn't be happier with the upgrade.

i recently purchased a 28-200 sigma lense for $75 shipped on ebay that is very nice, and while it may only be 'consumer grade' it easily outperforms the fz30 in most conditions - and i'll bet a similar nikon lense would cost 4x that at least. the kit 18-55mm lens is rated highly and has a good wide angle as well. I've purchased several older manual prime lenses like genece referred to (his f1.8 )- got a 50mm f2.0 at a local shop for $20, and a 28mm f2.8 macro vivitar lens on ebay for $20 too - they both take awesome pictures, playing with depth of field is something not afforded to prosumer camera owners, and it is a shame because DOF can make some very interesting pictures!

[LoveLife]

jcr wrote:

As a FZ30 (and previously FZ20) owner for a year now, hundreds of shots later I feel that I "need" to climb asome more steps on the scale of evolution... mostly due to low light situations (some indoor and some even outdoor) that I am not really in love with FZ30, In general I must say that FZ30 is far better that FZ20, and with plenty of light it is enough for me...a wider angle would be nice, a faster burst speed... a larger buffer for RAW...a more usable iso gama...lower noise...

Where to go ? FZ50 ? D50 ? D70s ? D80 ? 350D ? 400D ? 30D ? higher models are way to far as lack oftime ($$$) 30D is alreadymore than a bitof...

...OR does FZ50 really deserve a chance ?

...and we must consider glass if SLR ... FZ30 is to go if a new purchase is done, what glass should we stick on the chosen SLR ?superzoom was interesting...but I can drop a bit of zoom (only a bit...ok), a bit wider is prefered...when compared to FZ30

any ofour pana friends tried or own any SLR to compare to FZ30 ? that can give an overall idea of real differences

How about some samples of your work?