toddler cam -- DSLR? four thirds? point and shoot?

[brian78]

I'm currently using an older Nikon point and shoot. I want a better camera to take family pictures, especially of my toddler. She moves too fast for me to get decent pictures with, and even when I get one, I'm disappointed with the quality (too dark, too blurry, too noisy, etc).

My budget for camera and lens is $400 to $500.

I'm looking for a camera with minimal shutter lag, so that I can focus and wait for my toddler to make a face or expression that I want to capture -- or get a good picture if she's running around and playing.

Low light performance is important, a lot of pictures will be inside and I'd rather not use a flash if I can avoid it.

I'm not worried about a long zoom at this point, but would like the option to get a long zoom in the future.

Portability is nice, but not a must have. I don't think I would be happy with the Canon S95, so I've accepted that whatever I get it won't be pocketable.

I like the narrow depth of field you can get with a dslr, I haven't seen a point and shoot that can replicate that.

Video is not important, but would be nice.

My favorite old digital camera was a sony dsc-f505 which had an lcd that rotated so you could view it at any angle. An articulating lcd would be a nice feature, but not a must have.

Im currently going back and forth between the Lumix G1 and Pentax K-x, maybe the Sony A500. Any thoughts? Anything else I should consider. Any help is appreciated, thanks.

[lisalonewolf]

look at the sony a55

[shoturtle]

A55 is not in the stated budget at 400-500 dollars. At 1000 for just one lens.

With that kind of budget, the pentax k-x is right at the top part of the budget at 499 with the one lens. And it is a good low light camera, and good for action. And you have HD if you want to take the occasional video clip.

The G1 is not the best for low light shooting. And the contrast base AF is not that fast on the G1. Not the best option for shooting a fast moving child.

The A500 is a good option, with the lens it is about 40-50 dollar above your budget. Good low light camera like the pentax. And better AF system then the G1.

None of the point and shoots will produce the results you are looking for, you are in the realm of the dslrs.

The other thing you need to add in time is a good flash. The built in ones are not the best. And a flash will give you much better results when bounce properly.

[JohnG]

I also believe you need to re-adjust some expectations about indoor low light photos of a toddler without flash. You're going to need very bright light since toddlers don't hold still as you well know. Available light shooting with DSLRs is great - when you have a lot of light. When you don't - like when it's evening time - an external flash, bounced, is your best bet for getting good shots.

[gwlaw99]

The Pentax k-x is definitely your best bet for an SLR in that price range. Can be had for under @500 with the 18-55mm lens (27-84mm equivalent).

[JohnG]

Originally Posted by gwlaw99

The Pentax k-x is definitely your best bet for an SLR in that price range. Can be had for under @500 with the 18-55mm lens (27-84mm equivalent).

The k-x is a fine camera. but no dslr on the market is going to get you non-flash photos indoors of a moving toddler unless you have an extraordinary amount of light. For example, in my living room - in the evening, my f1.8 lenses aren't good enough to get quality shots of my toddler without flash.

This is true of whatever DSLR you decide to buy.