Camera Buying - should I sacrifice zoom or picture quality?

**Matjok** · 02-07-2013, 22:29

Take a look at this Canon.

http://shop.usa.canon.com/webapp/wcs...0201_-1#bvtips

50X optical zoom in a compact camera. I haven't used it, and know nothing about the picture quality. However, the best compact cameras I have used are Canon G series. I have DSLRs, but my Canon G12 is the the camera I always reach for when I go hiking.

**swjohnsey** · 02-07-2013, 22:47

I have a G9 and S95. I think I would take the S95.

**moongoddess** · 02-07-2013, 23:44

I think Olympus has discontinued it, but I love my Olympus XZ-1 as a travel camera. It's wonderful to have a truly fast lens (f1.8) at the wide end of zoom range. And when shooting outdoors, 90% of the time I find myself wishing for more wide-angle coverage, not more telephoto capability.

**HooKooDooKu** · 02-08-2013, 12:27

Blurry shots is my biggest culprit to creating bad shots in the woods.

I would suggest that you find a camera with Image Stabilization technology that is designed for low light. That generally means looking for cameras with small f-stops (the smaller the number, the less light is required). F-stop is NOT a linear thing. The 'steps' are f/1.4, f/2.0, f/2.8, f/4.0, f/5.6, f/8.0. Each step up means the camera needs twice as much light to take a picture. I personally prefer a point-n-shot with an f/2.0 or small, and would consider an f/2.8 or smaller. When you see two f-stop numbers, that is for zoom lenses. The smaller number is the f-stop when zoomed out, the larger number is the f-stop when zoomed in.

**Ender** · 02-08-2013, 13:22

Something to keep in mind, is that the 5X zoom or 10X zoom is relative based on the initial mm of the lens. So you can have two 5X zoom lenses where one lens magnifies the image much more than the other lens. The S100 is a 5.2mm-26mm lens, which on a normal SLR is the equivalent of a 24mm-120mm lens, and gives you fairly decent reach. It also still gives you a decent enough wide angle, not super wide, but decent enough. I'd be fine with those specs for most situations.

**peakbagger** · 02-08-2013, 16:14

I have talked to many thruhikers who carried a lof of extra weight and spent extra time taking really great view shots and the majority of them say that they wish they had taken more campsite shots and had more pictures of themselves and the folks they met along the trail. They generally recomended going with an easy to use lightweight camera and keep it handy as those campsite shots were what they usually looked at in the years after a thru hike. This tranlate to weather and shock proof camera. I have a Olympus Tough shot that seems to fit the bill

**Liminal** · 02-08-2013, 16:27

I have a Powershot and it is good but I wanted waterproof and went with Olympus Tough Tg-1... and small tripod.. I am very happy with quality

((not sure if this photo will show))

**fwish** · 02-08-2013, 16:53

Having lost a Canon Point & Shoot that decided to take a swim in the Buffalo River, I have decided to go with the Nikon Coolpix AW100 and so far it seems to be working out fine. I decided that I needed a waterproof/shockproof Point & Shoot if it was going to keep up with my clumsiness.

**hikerboy57** · 02-08-2013, 17:01

Originally Posted by peakbagger

I have talked to many thruhikers who carried a lof of extra weight and spent extra time taking really great view shots and the majority of them say that they wish they had taken more campsite shots and had more pictures of themselves and the folks they met along the trail. They generally recomended going with an easy to use lightweight camera and keep it handy as those campsite shots were what they usually looked at in the years after a thru hike. This tranlate to weather and shock proof camera. I have a Olympus Tough shot that seems to fit the bill

this is true. even on my section hikes i wish i had taken many more shots of the people i met rather than hundreds of shots of woods that all look the same.

**vtrek** · 02-08-2013, 17:30

Take picture quality over long zoom. You can easily blow up a picture to get a "closer" view

**Another Kevin** · 02-08-2013, 18:16

Originally Posted by GoldenBear

On the other hand, when I've been drudging along for days, my thoughts turn to avoiding another knee injury, or tick bites, or melanoma, or sleepless nights, or blisters, or cuts on my wrists, or socks that never seem to get dry, or getting drenched in the rain, or heat exhaustion, or any of a dozen other hazards I've ALREADY EXPERIENCED -- without ever hiking for more than five days! At this point, the effort needed to get a good photo becomes a luxury I've decided I just can't afford.

You know, comments like this one are what keep me a clueless weekender. All the Real Hikers seem to tell me that they get totally absorbed in making the miles and avoiding the hazards. I think that long before I decided that photography was a luxury I can't afford, I'd be asking myself, "why am I out here?" I concede, I don't carry a DSLR - that much weight, I won't go for - but I carry a decent P&S (Canon SX20IS with CHDK), and get fair if not stunning pictures.

Maybe I'm reading you as being more negative than you intended - since you go on to suggest features to look for in a camera (lightness and durability). Maybe we agree on the most important point: the best camera is the one you have with you when you can get the shot. I've had at least one outdoor shot where a good photographer asked me, "what kind of lens did you use to get that?" and I pulled out my cell phone, pointed to its lens, and answered, "I don't know, whatever this is. It's all I had on me that day."

**leaftye** · 02-08-2013, 18:21

Originally Posted by vtrek

Take picture quality over long zoom. You can easily blow up a picture to get a "closer" view

Please, for those saying this, post up your wildlife pictures taken with short zoom cameras. Emphasis on "wild".

**FarmerChef** · 02-08-2013, 18:59

Originally Posted by Another Kevin

Maybe we agree on the most important point: the best camera is the one you have with you when you can get the shot. I've had at least one outdoor shot where a good photographer asked me, "what kind of lens did you use to get that?" and I pulled out my cell phone, pointed to its lens, and answered, "I don't know, whatever this is. It's all I had on me that day."

I had a bit of a chuckle reading that. We recently had a photography competition at my corporate office. I was one of about 15 photos selected from hundreds submitted and my photo (as well as the other winners) will be used as art in our offices worldwide. My winning photo? Shot on the AT (I love that there's even a blaze barely noticeable in the photo) with an iphone when the light was just perfect. I love it when folks win contests with shots from a disposable camera for the same reason. It's the photographer, not the camera that makes all the difference. I have to remind myself of this every time I read one of Ken's recommendations on the newest Nikon or Canon.

**hikerboy57** · 02-08-2013, 19:04

Originally Posted by FarmerChef

I had a bit of a chuckle reading that. We recently had a photography competition at my corporate office. I was one of about 15 photos selected from hundreds submitted and my photo (as well as the other winners) will be used as art in our offices worldwide. My winning photo? Shot on the AT (I love that there's even a blaze barely noticeable in the photo) with an iphone when the light was just perfect. I love it when folks win contests with shots from a disposable camera for the same reason. It's the photographer, not the camera that makes all the difference. I have to remind myself of this every time I read one of Ken's recommendations on the newest Nikon or Canon.

its so true and with a bit of luck that you happen to notice the light will never be the same and you happen to snap the shutter and capture the moment

**fredmugs** · 02-08-2013, 19:18

DSC00598.jpg

This is with my Sony camera from maybe 50 yards away. Camera has a 16X optical zoom. Pics are soooo much better.

**fredmugs** · 02-08-2013, 19:20

BTW - That's a marmot just as I was getting ready to climb Forrester Pass on the PCT.

**GoldenBear** · 02-08-2013, 19:26

> Maybe we agree on the most important point: the best camera is the one you have with you when you can get the shot.

Yes, I agree. A smart-phone can capture that smile on your hiking mate just as well as a super-duper DSLR with all the bells and whistles.
I even agree that, for day hiking, a good zoom and wide angle are essential to getting those shots you really want to get -- whether it's a wide view of a cliff in British Columbia
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pr77x/3...4008/lightbox/
or a zoom of the climbers on that cliff
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pr77x/3...4008/lightbox/

Which is why I still carry my SLR for these shots -- I hate having the camera decide when the shot is in focus, or taking even half a second to do so.

But that wasn't the question asked, and it wasn't the one I answered.
As I tried to make abundantly clear, I tried to give advice for what camera to use on a THRU-hike -- not a weekend hike.

For the former, durability and weight are what counts. And that's because, if you're trying to complete a thru-hike, your focus will have to be on doing the miles and avoiding hazards.
Not that you can't possibly get great shots -- you very likely will. But, if you make THAT your focus, then you won't complete your thru-hike. And the latter, after all, is why the OP is out there.

Me? I'll continue to have my SLR camera on easy day hikes, a digital camera on weekend hikes, and a smart-phone on longer hikes.
That way, I'll keep getting the shots I hope to get when THAT is my focus, and doing the miles when THAT is my focus.

That way, all those minor inconveniences I mentioned (Lyme Disease, knee surgery, removal of melanoma) won't keep me from completing the AT all the way to Kathadin.

**leaftye** · 02-08-2013, 19:56

Originally Posted by fredmugs

BTW - That's a marmot just as I was getting ready to climb Forrester Pass on the PCT.

Here's a PCT bear.

bear.JPG

That's all the pixels I got on the bear, even with 10x zoom. I wasn't very far from the bear either. Nevermind the quality. I brightened the image horribly for another purpose and I can't find my originals now. If I did post the original, you'd be looking at the picture for a while before you found the bear.

**NotYet** · 02-08-2013, 21:20

A nice all around pocket-sized camera is the Canon SX260. It has a good cmos sensor and a 20X optical zoom. Its picture quality isn't rated as high as the S110, but it's much less expensive and has that great zoom on it. The Canon SX50 that Matjok posted a link to above is a fabulous camera. It does have a 50X optical zoom, and uses RAW and/or jpeg format, BUT it is NOT a pocket-sized camera...it's quite large has a similar $400+ price tag as the s110.

I'd be willing to lug around the SX50 if I could afford it, but I'm probably going to buy the SX260 for myself due to the price. (p.s. I get to play around with these all day, ever since I started working part-time job Best Buy!)