Looking for a compact camera up to £200

[Merlot]

Hello; I've just found this forum

I have previously had a Canon EOS SLR which I loved, but found that I wasn't dedicated to the cause enough to take everything with me when I went out. I have since purchased a Fuji s6500fd camera but even now I find this too big to carry with me all the time, and only take it out if I am specifically going somewhere to take pictures (Holiday, weddings etc).

I've decided I would like to get a good compact camera which will give me the same manual override settings. Budget will be up to about £200 or so, and if I could get a waterproof case for it (outside of the budget) then this would be perfect as I am off to the Maldives in March and would love to do some underwater photography which I didn't get to do last year.

I know this is a bit vague, but I don't really know what else to look for in a compact - any recommendations would be great!

[beano500]

Merlot said:

Budget will be up to about £200 or so, and if I could get a waterproof case for it (outside of the budget) then this would be perfect as I am off to the Maldives in March and would love to do some underwater photography which I didn't get to do last year.

You might be better off getting a digital that's waterproof down a few metres. I've used a Sony in a waterproof case before and it's not great shakes for snorkelling trips. Plus the cases are never cheap. (I always find I waste valuable snorkelling time by faffing around with them instead of enjoying the scenery too) If you're diving you'd need some serious lighting kit anyway. Otherwise you can get surprisingly good results out of the disposable waterproof ones from Fuji or whoever that you see all over the grockle shops.

[leyorkie]

Canon Powershot D10 is water proof to 10 metres out of the box price £210/230
http://www.camerabox.co.uk/product.asp?ProductID=6...

[Goochie]

Dont know about the water-proof aspect, but I've just bought a Canon SX200IS. It has full manual over rides that you would expect on your SLR and can be modified using third-party software to provide RAW files (a bit like re-mapping a car)

If you include the £40 cashback Canon are offering until the end of January, it can be had for just under £200.

Some reviews complain about the pop-up flash but I think thats just people jumping on a band waggon before they've seen it.

[clonmult]

leyorkie said:

Canon Powershot D10 is water proof to 10 metres out of the box price £210/230
http://www.camerabox.co.uk/product.asp?ProductID=6...

Or the Panasonic FT1 :

http://www.camerabox.co.uk/product1.asp?ProductNam...

£189.

I went for the FT1, as its possible a better all rounder than the Canon. Maybe not quite so good underwater, but it does have the benefit of recording video at 720p in AVCHD, and the video quality is stunning - files playback directly on the PS3 without any issues.

Looks considerably more normal than the Powershot D10 as well.

Overall I'm finding it a fantastic little camera. Its replaced my Kodak Z1285 12mp P&S as well as the Toshiba H20 1080p camcorder. Stills are better than the Kodak, and it does video better than the camcorder - it has both a video light and a flash.

[Trackside Junior]

[quote]Some reviews complain about the pop-up flash but I think thats just people jumping on a band waggon before they've seen it.
[/quote]

The pop up flash isn't THAT annoying and you can turn it off, it's just that it's always up.