Award Sounds

I'm still figuring out what I want from a compact camera. I'm aware I want more control over shots than the standard point-and-shoot and that I do not need a lot of the gimmicky features that come with newer consumer cameras. I can't believe I forgot to mention the lens in the previous article on the subject. D'oh!

List of required features

These are my must-haves. If the camera can't do all of these, then it's immediately discounted

• Capture images in RAW
• 6 megapixel + ( I don't need 10 megapixel or more especially as the density on that size of sensor appears to negate the advantages of the greater pixel count)
• Dialable (i.e. not through a menu) control over aperture and shutter speed
• Aperture-priority
• Self-timer
• Solid tripod mount thread
• Auto-focus
• Manual focus or easily-selectable focus zones
• Focus lock
• Auto-ISO
• Manual ISO
• Inbuilt Flash or easily-attachable and affordable remote flash (e.g. hotshoe)
• Lenses that provide for a range from 18mm-150mm. (I guess that's roughly a 35mm equivalent of 25mm-200) - This is for general usage, so I'm not looking for a fixed length prime lens.
• Able to turn digital zoom off...permanently
• Compatible with OS X 10.4 and 10.5
• Comfortable position for holding by hand with easily accessible buttons
• Limited in-camera image noise reduction and/or the ability to turn off image noise reduction

Other required features

I need to figure out what values I'm happy to work with. Once I've done that, they'll end up in the list above. The reason I've separated them out is that I'm not sure what's acceptable to me and what's possible in this range of cameras.

• Decent shutter speed range
• Decent aperture range
• Decent shot speed
• Decent time to first shoot
• Decent time to repeat shoot

Potential features

These are bonus features that may sway me between choosing one camera or another assuming that all the must-have features have been confirmed.

• Metal body
• Histogram view
• Changeable lenses
• Shutter-priority (I hardly ever use this, I'm more interested in controlling Depth of Field using aperture-priority)
• Video
• Video with sound recording
• Video with external mic input
• HD Video
• White balance controls for video
• Shutter speed/aperture controls for video
• Video to be recorded in a standard that can be exported/imported easily into 3rd party applications. Proprietary video formats from the camera manufacturer will not be acceptable

Don't care about

These features are just noise to me. They may potentially detract and move me away from choosing a particular camera, e.g. if the main buttons are given over to direct printing as opposed to useful photography-related functions

• Digital zoom
• Audio Captioning
• Wireless
• Direct printing from camera
• Direct emailing from camera
• Image Editing on the camera
• Video Editing

Some other thoughts

I was hoping that the Sigma DP-1 would be a suitable camera but I think that there are too many negatives for me, e.g. the fixed lens, timelags and other constraints would be compromising too far.

I've also read the specs on the Panasonic Lumix and FZ/TZ range. Some interesting cameras in that, but the compacts that have the right features, have a smaller sensor size. Just can't get one camera with all the features.

Canon powershots are just ugly in my opinion. They look like a throw-back to the early days of digital consumer camera design. Maybe they are.

From a perspective of image quality, I'd be better off buying a more useful all-in-one lens for my current DSLR and accepting the size of that body and lens package. I'd have to restrict myself to one lens. Carrying a package of that size should fit nicely in a stylish messenger bag or backpack. It would mean constraining my choice of shots by the choice of kit, but does allow for more flexibility than a compact when I need it. However taking a DSLR with a 18-200mm lens takes up space and is still a lot more conspicuous than a compact camera. There's a lot to be said for having a camera that fits in your coat pocket.

Hmmm, back to a bit more research first before I decide.

I notice that Thom Hogan has the compact challenge. Looks like I'm similar to that, although I'm happier to accept a more consumer-level camera for my purposes. I acknowledge that, for what I want to do with it, a prosumer camera should be sufficient. What I don't like is the gap between consumer megapixel-count-and-feature-point-madness and the size of a full pro solution.

Current Short-List

Canon Powershot G9

Ricoh GR Digital II

Any more I should be considering?

Why new?

I've read around and noticed that a few photographers are buying discontinued cameras as their spare. Some cameras exist from a year or two ago that have many of the features. It's an option. For me though, there are still some attributes of the newer cameras that appeal, e.g. speed to first shoot, speed of writing to the memory card, type of memory card, focussing accuracy, etc. I know the speed of my 4 year old Canon Ixus. It's dead slow and the focussing can be problematic.

What now?