Advice on a P & S vs. DLSR, again....

[mtclimber]

For clarity sake, are we discussing two different cameras or will the Sony H-20 be used at work and at home. If just one camera is involved, I would be looking at the Pentax Kx, instead of the H-20. The quality will show through in your photos.

Sarah Joyce

[TCav]

Originally Posted by Luke Stepp

My interior real estate photos will not be of residential properties. These properties are large enough, and the process in which I present the photos, will not present distortion (I inspected 4 properties today -- the largest was about 1 million sf, and the smallest was 55,000 sf).

Do you mean you'll need shots like these?

[Luke Stepp]

Those photos, with the addition of exterior photos, would be along the lines of what I am shooting. A simple P & S tends to work for us. I did borrow an old Sony cybershot today that has a somewhat more "wide angle" view in the initial auto setting than my old Canon A80 and it was convenient.

I am thinking the answer to my question is to get a good DLSR kit that I can add to as I learn the camera and become more comfortable with it and limp along with I have now and pick up an affordable P & S later for work.

Some of the "shockproof/waterproof" cameras are enticing, although they are more expensive than what I am currently looking to spend, and I am always skeptical of anything advertised as waterproof.

[robbo]

Make sure that you are buying whatever you get from a reputable etailer. I am somewhat surprised that you can get a Pentax K-x for $445. Try running the name of your etailer through www.resellerratings.com before you plunk down your credit card number.

[TCav]

Originally Posted by Luke Stepp

Those photos, with the addition of exterior photos, would be along the lines of what I am shooting. ...

Those were shot with a Tamron 17-50/2.8 at a focal length of 17mm (35mm equivalent of 25.5mm). That lens has a large aperture so it's good for available light photos indoors, and it's very sharp and has very little distortion, so it's a good choice for architectural photos as well. On a Pentax or Sony body, it would be stabilized. For Canon or Nikon, the optically stabilized version doesn't appear to be as good.

[Luke Stepp]

That lense does produce nice results. Our interior photos of buildings, which are shot with a P & S, are transmitted to our client in a PDF or hard copy of a paper report and are for reference purposes. We usually reduce the size of the file to about 3' x 4' and include three per page. As a result, distortion of the image has not been an issue.

[TCav]

Originally Posted by Luke Stepp

... As a result, distortion of the image has not been an issue.

Just to be clear, I'm talking about rectilinear distortion.