I want something FAST

[toddjohnson]

I've been very pleased with the picture quality that I've been getting from my Cannon G2. However, I'm increasingly frustrated by the (a) amount of time it takes to turn it on and (b) amount of time between shots. The majority of my photos are those of my young kids and it seems like I miss many many shots because the camera is never ready. Do I need to get an SLR to get a fast camera? Or are there point and shoot cameras capable of multiple fps? I'd like to spend between $1000 and $1500 all in. (body, memory, battery lens, flash, tax, shipping, EVERYTHING). Does anyone have any advice?

Thanks,

TJ

[ccallana]

I've heard that some of the newer p&s cameras are faster than they used to be. The Panasonic FZ30 is supposed to be really fast.

Otherwise get yourself a Canon 1D MarkII - 8 FPS (a little out of your given price range)

If you truly need speed speed speed, SLR is much faster, but typically bulkier (more lenses), so your camera might be ready, but its got the wrong lens on it

Check out www.dpreview.com - his reviews have cool tables that show all the various timings.

[[email protected]]

I would say a Canon Rebel XT would be up your ally.

When you start the camera, it's ready to go by time you lift it to your eyes.

Shutter lag is minimal, probably less than a film SLR.

Nice pro 8 meg CMOS sensor, nice smooth images, and good quality right up to ISO1600.

You can get a Rebel XT with a kit lens for about $850 online if you shop around.

That gives you another $650 to shop for a card, a second lens, flash, etc.

You can get a 2gb compact flash card, reasonably fast, for about $100 online.

A cheap flash like the Sunpak 383 would set you back another $70, unless you want a full-on Canon flash.

Get yourself a camera case.2nd battery? Never needed one myself.

There are some cool Sigma and Tamron lenses you can look at in addition to the kit lens for somewhere between $200-800 per lens depending on the quality, focal length, etc.

-- Terry

[KENNETHD]

Ha, ha.....good luck getting anyone to agree. I am throwing my weight behind the Panasonic FZ 30 all the way. It's fast fast, and has a great (fast) auto focus. Writes the shot to the card and is ready to go nearly as fast as you can shoot. And i burst mode, it is as fast as you can shoot. Too many features to list but image stabilization and fantastic zoom are key options. Go buy it. I got a two week return no questions asked from the place I bought it at, if you get the same deal, how could you possibly lose? Good luck...

Kd

[[email protected]]

KennethD,

I sense you really like the FZ30.

I checked out Digital Camera Review's review of the FZ30 and they gave it only a Recommended rating and not a Highly Recommended rating.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/pana...z30/page17.asp

They said the FZ30 is a fast camera, but the downside is incredible noise, even at the lowest ISO settings.

The Rebel XT actually has the same Frames Per Second rating as the FZ30.

I just thought that if the gentleman liked his Canon G2, he'd be more than blown away by the Rebel XT.

Here's the Highly Recommended rating:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos350d/page28.asp

Of course, ultimate enjoyment is subjective. I've always wanted to own a Panasonic but alas, too many cameras and too little cash!

-- Terry

[ccallana]

My understanding is the noise issue is blown way out of proportion. If he's shoot pics of his kids, he may just be printing 4x6, 5x7, etc - not 13x20. Noise shouldn't matter much at those sizes.

Look at some of the test shots - see if it bothers you. I think fast for less (no need for more lenses) with some minor noise is an attractive option to lower noise, more money, more stuff to carry around, etc...

[rjseeney]

ccallana wrote:

My understanding is the noise issue is blown way out of proportion. If he's shoot pics of his kids, he may just be printing 4x6, 5x7, etc - not 13x20.

I think noise is a major issue. Yes noise is handled well by most current photo printers, and is negligible at the 4x6 size, why limit your ability to produce larger photos. Indoor, low light, fast action shots are a struggle for most consumer and even prosumer digicams. Based on what I've read in these forums, most people don't like to use flash which further compounds the problem. For these situations, a DSLR is the only way to go. The Rebel XT , the Nikon D50, or any other beginner DSLR will handle just about any shooting situation and provide the flexibility and image quality needed to produce great prints. There is simply nothing faster than a DSLR, and nothing can match the image quality, especially at high ISO's.

[Robb]

rjseeney wrote:

I think noise is a major issue. Yes noise is handled well by most current photo printers, and is negligible at the 4x6 size, why limit your ability to produce larger photos. Indoor, low light, fast action shots are a struggle for most consumer and even prosumer digicams.

On the other hand, I think noise is often made out to be much more of an issue than it needs to be. It is certainly true that it limits your ability to produce larger photos. But at the resolution of the current generation of digital cameras, that limit has become irrelevant to most of us. We will never print anything larger than 8x10, anyway.

However, whether it's a major issue or a minor one, there doesn't appear to be any reason for the original poster to have to deal with it. I don't see anything in his question that suggests he needs the features that are unique to ultrazooms like the FZ30. Several good dSLR kits are available within his price range, and that's the logical way for him to go.

[rinniethehun]

Somehow this thread has degenerated into a "who has the most noise" contest, rather than "which is the fastest camera" contest, which is what TJ was looking for.

TJ, according to reviews, your G2 isn't exactly blazing fast. As an example, one site reports a power off to record time of around 6 seconds for the G2, while the highly touted (at least in this thread) FZ30 comes in at 1.1 seconds, the Fuji S9000 at 0.9 seconds, and the Rebel XT at <0.5 seconds. I don't think that a startup time difference of a half of a second is all that much, but a 5 second difference is a bit extreme.

Of more importance is shutter lag, especially pre-focus lag. Here the FZ30 had a time of 0.2 seconds, (with IS on), The G2 0.1 seconds, and the S9000 was only 0.07 seconds. I couldn't find a timing for the XT, it might have been too short to measure. At any rate, the difference of 1/10 of a second here could mean missing an expression or an action.

One last consideration in the speed game is shot-to-shot times. The G2 was measured at 2.6 seconds, the FZ30 at 1.35 seconds, and the S9000 at 1.15 seconds. Once again, the XT wasn't reported, but it was probably the fastest of this group.

How fast do you need? There are probably quite a few P&S cameras that can blow the G2 off the tripod when it comes to speed, but the SLR's will still be faster, and have higher ISO capability, and have less noise. Do you really need a DSLR?

Good luck.

the Hun

[toddjohnson]

Thank you to all for your input. I've decided to go with the Rebel XT.

TJ