Hello All

I would like your help in choosing between the three cameras above. I don't currently own a camera - everytime I decide I am going to buy one I get so overwhelmed by the various specifications and reviews out there my brain hurts and I put it off for another day. Well, that day has arrived - I am going on safari in a couple of weeks and definitely need to buy a camera for that and for going forward and have narrowed my choice down to the three above. From reading other threads on this site it seems to me that there is very little difference between the out of the camera shots from the 38 and 45 but the 100 needs a little more manual intervention. I used to own a Nikonos V which I enjoyed using to take underwater pics so I have a little knowledge of ISO, exposure, f-stops and the like, but have probably forgotten 90% of what I once knew (which wasn't a great deal to begin with!!). For that reason the 100 doesn't scare me too much but I am leaning towards one of the others simply because it has been so long since I took photos, that I think I need a camera that is more forgiving in auto but which I can play around with to learn how to use manual settings again.

Of the 38 and the 45, I assume the greater zoom would be most useful on safari....but then the 11 fps of the 100 makes that useful too.....!

My brain is starting to hurt again....please help...!!

Oh, and to add something else into the mix...a camera that has an underwater housing would be useful so I can take it diving - I particularly used to like taking macro shots.

Stellingirl-

Welcome to the Forum. We're pleased that you dropped by.

Clearly, the FZ-45 is the better choice. The FZ-100 seems to require a lot of manual setting and nurturing. With the Safari date so close, I wonder if you have time to sort out the FZ-45 and the FZ-100 would present a much greater challenge, that I would not suggest.

Sarah Joyce

I'm sure people with more experience will jump in, but I just wanted to see if you had checked in the Panasonic P&S folder here at Steve's? There are several threads that compare all three of these models.

I'm more of a beginner, so keep that in mind. I just tested out the FZ100 and Auto was not very friendly to me. The 11fps is nice if you are at a wide angle and closer to your subject. Zoomed in, at least for me, it was much more difficult to keep your subject where you wanted it. The 2 fps burst mode was nice though and greatly improved the shot-to-shot time. The video is also really nice on this camera, as is the articulating screen. But this camera does take some work to get some good shots.


From everything I've read on here, between the 45 and 100, most would choose the 45 with the price difference and because the 100 takes a little more tweaking. The 45 also has a burst mode at 1.8 fps.

Here is a link to just one of those threads, but there are quite a few:

http://forums.steves-digicams.com/pa...mparision.html

Good luck on your camera choice!

Sarah was much faster in her response than I was (it wasn't there when I started...so Like I said, someone with more experience would chime in).

I would take her advice. The FZ100 has a lot of bells and whistles but you really have to work to take advantage of them. With your trip so close, I don't know that I'd want to risk not having the kinks worked out before I left.

Thank you both for your advice. I had read a few threads, including that one you suggested purpleehobbit, which was why I was leaning towards the FZ38 or FZ45 - there just seemed to be a lot of conflicting views out there as to whether the FZ38 still has the edge over the FZ45 in terms of image quality. But I guess its 'horses for courses' and I would hate to miss that once in a lifetime shot of a lion because I went with 18x instead of 24x!!!!

Thanks again...I'm off to order the FZ45 now!

Congratulations, stellinggirl-

I think that the Panasonic FZ-45 will serve your needs very nicely.

Sarah Joyce

I just had my Canon SX10 stolen last weekend and ready for a new one.

I narrowed it down between the Fiji HS10, Nikon P100, Panasonic FZ100 and now it seems I've added the Panasonic FZ45 based on this thread.

I take a lot of pictures of my dogs at the beach in action, and fps was somewhat of an issue with my SX10, but I dealt with it.

I really like the features of the FZ100, but now I'm thinking it's too complicated to operate, some say the quality is not as good as expected, and the battery life also concerns me.

I'd really like good quality photos, super zoom, and a better fps speed. I can live without the fps speed if I get good quality and I can actually operate the thing.

Thanks.

Logan'sdad-

That is why the FZ-40/45 is a logical compromise.

Sarah Joyce

I had been waiting for a price drop on the FZ35, but to my surprise, the price gap between the FZ35 and the FZ40 dropped way farther than I thought it would. Today, the FZ35 is around $337 (including shipping), but I can get the FZ40 for $350 (including shipping). I finally couldn't wait - for $13, I figured the higher zoom is a sweet deal (though the proprietary battery is a concern I'll have to live with). Can't wait to get my hands on it!

Congratulations, Glen-

I think you made a great decision.

Sarah Joyce