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04/18/2007 12:10:25 PM · #1 |
I'm thinking of upgrading my husbands Kodak. (he insists on a point and shoot) He loves his Kodak CX7530. Just his 'speed' not complicated, etc. I would like to get him a bigger zoom. (He tries to take pictures of the birds at the feeders, and I can hardly see the feeders let alone the birds! :-(
I don't understand the difference between optical zoom and digital zoom.
So in my little feable mind. am I to understand this will zoom the equivalent of my 300mm zoom lens?? (Actually has more mp then my D50 too!) Thanks for the help. I truley appreciate it.
Kodak Z710
CCD total pixels 7.4 MP (3152 ร 2342)
Effective pixels 7.1 MP (3082 ร 2314)
Lens 38รข380 mm (35 mm equiv.) f/2.8รขf/3.7 SCHNEIDER-KREUZNACH VARIOGON Lens
Zoom 10X optical, 5X advanced digital zoom, total zoom range 50XShutter speed 8รข1/1000 sec. in 1/3 step increments
Currently has Kodak CX7530
Image resolution 5.0 MP (2560x1920 pixels)
Zoom 15X total zoom
3X optical zoom -- 5.6-16.8 mm (35 mm equivalent: 34-102 mm)
5X advanced digital zoom
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04/18/2007 12:22:27 PM · #2 |
I OWN A KODAK Z710, AND I SAY GO BETTER!!!!
I DID THE DUMBEST THING, I HAD A CANON REBEL XT....YES I DID! AND FELT REALLY GUILTY FOR SPENDING THAT MUCH MONEY ON MYSELF, SO I RETURNED IT AND PURCHASED A KODAK Z710, YES I AM STILL KICKING MYSELF IN THE ASS!
BUT FOR A POINT AND SHOOT, THE Z710, ISN'T THAT BAD, BUT ALTHOUGH, I HAVEN'T REALLY TRIED ANY OTHER DIGITAL CAMERAS, (sorry caps)
All the pics in my profile are from a Kodak Z710, even though I am not that good at photography, you will be able to see some examples.
That is all the help I can give...
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04/18/2007 12:48:12 PM · #3 |
ok to understand the diffrence between optical and digital zoom.
Put on your 300mm lens onto your camera. go out and take a picture at 300mm. then then take that image into your editor and then enlarge it by using resize by 500% then you would crop to the center to your effective size which is 3082 ร 2314. this would give you a digital zoom of 5x. Now this is all done in the kodak camera little computer. While it might be useful for snap shots, its not the most effective way of blowing up an image.
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04/18/2007 01:14:22 PM · #4 |
Originally posted by Dirtypainter:
ok to understand the diffrence between optical and digital zoom.
Put on your 300mm lens onto your camera. go out and take a picture at 300mm. then then take that image into your editor and then enlarge it by using resize by 500% then you would crop to the center to your effective size which is 3082 ร 2314. this would give you a digital zoom of 5x. Now this is all done in the kodak camera little computer. While it might be useful for snap shots, its not the most effective way of blowing up an image. |
Digital zoom is just a marketing feature and gives you absolutely nothing. You should never look at that number when considering cameras. Only the optical zoom is important.
That said, a 10x optical zoom is a lot and is very hard to hand hold. If you are looking for something with that much zoom, look at the image stabilized cameras, it will be worth the extra money.
Message edited by author 2007-04-18 13:15:07. |
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04/18/2007 01:35:20 PM · #5 |
| Hi Melissa - Sent you a PM... :D |
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04/18/2007 01:48:49 PM · #6 |
thanks everyone...
Barry I did get your PM and responded...
He usually just takes snapshots and we rarely print large sizes...He likes to catch the deer outside, and birds as I described...
TJinGuy....saying 10x is hard to handhold....are you telling me he will be blurring his pictures??? even moreso if he goes into the 'digital' zoom?? |
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04/18/2007 01:58:26 PM · #7 |
Melissa - Back at ya. :)
Regarding what TjinGuy was mentioning handholding at 10x...it would be similar in nature to trying to handhold your Nikon D50 with a 300mm lens.
Until about a year ago I was using a KM Z3 with 12X optical zoom. It zoomed in roughly around 400mm (35mm equiv). The KM Z3 has built-in IS (Image Stabilization). This made a big difference at lower shutter speeds and/or high zoom magnifications. It's one of the main reasons I went with KM with a DSLR (for the IS).
Built-in IS is available on several brands now (Sony and Pentax DSLR's, Canon, Kodak, and ???'s in P&S cameras).
I apologize in advance if this info is redundant. :) |
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04/18/2007 02:02:30 PM · #8 |
Originally posted by dassilem:
thanks everyone...
Barry I did get your PM and responded...
He usually just takes snapshots and we rarely print large sizes...He likes to catch the deer outside, and birds as I described...
TJinGuy....saying 10x is hard to handhold....are you telling me he will be blurring his pictures??? even moreso if he goes into the 'digital' zoom?? |
Anything over 5x is hard to hand hold. I had a Nikon 5700 with an 8x zoom and I rarely got good pictures from hand holding it. On a mono-pod of a tripod or even propped against a wall, you can do it but it is always risky.
Again, the digital zoom has nothing to do with the focal length of the lens and only "crops" out a portion of the full sized picture. I ask you to please just forget about the digital zoom and pretend it doesn't even have one :) And why we are on the digital zoom subject, be very careful of cameras specifying 50x zoom or 30x zoom. Remember to always look only at the optical zoom.
If I was going to recommend a new camera with a big zoom, I would recommend the Canon PowerShot S3 IS. From what I can tell it is a little more expensive but you get a long zoom and IS. I think it would be worth every cent. |
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04/18/2007 02:05:58 PM · #9 |
Originally posted by glad2badad:
Regarding what TjinGuy was mentioning handholding at 10x...it would be similar in nature to trying to handhold your Nikon D50 with a 300mm lens. |
Actually it would be like hand holding a 400mm lens on a D50.
And here is a link to the Canon at DPReview.com.
Edit: So I started to read the info on the S3 and I gotta say, that looks like a nice camera. The lens has a USM motor and a UD element. They sell both a wide- and tele-coverters for it to give it a 35mm range of 27mm-648mm or 24x optical zoom. It has shooting speed of 2.3 fps. It uses SD cards and runs on AA batteries. I may have to buy one of these myself. It is about time to replace my Nikon Coolpix 2100.
Message edited by author 2007-04-18 14:18:52. |
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04/18/2007 02:14:30 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by TJinGuy:
Originally posted by glad2badad:
Regarding what TjinGuy was mentioning handholding at 10x...it would be similar in nature to trying to handhold your Nikon D50 with a 300mm lens. |
Actually it would be like hand holding a 400mm lens on a D50.
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Well, I was factoring in the 1.6 (? not sure on Nikon D50) sensor ratio. Hmmm...actually, 300 @ 1.6 crop = 480mm equiv. Dang numbers anyway! :P |
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04/18/2007 02:20:04 PM · #11 |
Originally posted by glad2badad:
Originally posted by TJinGuy:
Originally posted by glad2badad:
Regarding what TjinGuy was mentioning handholding at 10x...it would be similar in nature to trying to handhold your Nikon D50 with a 300mm lens. |
Actually it would be like hand holding a 400mm lens on a D50.
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Well, I was factoring in the 1.6 (? not sure on Nikon D50) sensor ratio. Hmmm...actually, 300 @ 1.6 crop = 480mm equiv. Dang numbers anyway! :P |
I thought you might have been but I still don't think the 1.5x FOC has anything to do with hand holding. Just my personal belief. |
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04/18/2007 02:26:03 PM · #12 |
Don't forget the Panasonics: great image stabilization, lenses, camera construction. If you are not printing big, the legendary noise issue should not be a problem. Also a fast lens at the end of the zoom range.
A lot to choose from within the pannys too. |
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04/18/2007 02:35:26 PM · #13 |
Originally posted by TJinGuy:
... I still don't think the 1.5x FOC has anything to do with hand holding. Just my personal belief. |
I was looking for the "rules" on focal length to shutter speed (1/xxx) that I'd seen posted here (DPC) somewhere.
This thread ==> Is image stabilization necessary? had some interesting discussion on the topic, particularly the first 8 postings or so. |
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04/18/2007 02:55:07 PM · #14 |
Originally posted by glad2badad:
Originally posted by TJinGuy:
... I still don't think the 1.5x FOC has anything to do with hand holding. Just my personal belief. |
I was looking for the "rules" on focal length to shutter speed (1/xxx) that I'd seen posted here (DPC) somewhere.
This thread ==> Is image stabilization necessary? had some interesting discussion on the topic, particularly the first 8 postings or so. |
I have read many such posts and I just don't believe the FOC ratio has any impact. The FOC ratio is kind of like a digital zoom. Your camera is looking out the same lens as a full frame but is only looking at the center portion of the whole available FOV. Then you are using more pixels to record what you see. It just makes no sense logically to me. It would be like saying that having a higher MP camera requires faster shutter speeds to hand hold.
Anyhow, that is my take. It is probably wrong but that is how my mind works. |
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04/19/2007 12:14:19 PM · #15 |
Barry, PM'd you...
Melissa |
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04/19/2007 12:26:40 PM · #16 |
Originally posted by dassilem:
Barry, PM'd you...
Melissa |
Ok, got it...replied. Thanks! :) |
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