Camera phone vs P&S

akescpt

akescpt

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so my newborn is just over a month old. problme im sitting with is getting a new phone with a nice camera or a dedicated p&s.

im not really leaning towards two seperate devices but the p&s must have advantages over a camera phone! i dont want to carry my camera everywhere either but i need a good enough quality to develop prints when i need to.

options for the camera phone are:

n8 - vodascum has it for R226/pm; R90 on 8ta but they dont have stock - end of life apparently;ideal i think
samsung s2 - R190 on special on mtn; nice 8MP camera
s3 - price doesnt make this an option but i think its the same camera as in the s2
nokia pureview - about R450/pm; if it were cheaper

p&s:
samsung jobbie thats 14MP and 6xoptical zoom+memory card + bag for R799

i need to sort this out asap since my kid is changing everyday!!!:cry:

before you ask i have a crappy 8520 as an everyday. fine for what it was built for but that is all. i cant develop these crappy pics.:mad:
 
Point&Shoot.

Get a cheaper phone that still does what you need it to and get the compact. You can get a belt holster for the compact to be able to always carry it with you or simply stick it in your pocket in general.

And it's not so much about the megapixels as it is about the optical quality and the end results. Your 8520 will serve you fine going forward as a phone and those phones you were looking at end up costing R4.5k+ minimum (as in the case with the Samsung S2).

Virtually any Canon Powershot ought to serve you well since you can get CHDK to take raw photos with them, which gives you better post-shot headroom for working with your photos. The more you spend, generally the better the optical quality and the greater the amount of control buttons - you'll gain manual control over most of its settings with CHDK on anyway, having more buttons just makes things easier/quicker.

http://www.dpreview.com/ <- use this site to compare cameras
http://www.dxomark.com/ <- this one as well
http://chdk.wikia.com/ <- then use this one to determine which of the cameras can run CHDK

*edit* 8520 will serve you fine as a phone, not a camera. Definitely not as a camera.
 
Well it sounds like you need a phone upgrade and a camera so I would definitely get a smartphone.

I find my son (2 weeks old) doesn't like the camera, all the photos are of him looking at the camera with a confused look, the phone is more discreet and therefore I can get more natural shots... plus it never leaves my side.
 
nanonyous said:
Point&Shoot.

Get a cheaper phone that still does what you need it to and get the compact. You can get a belt holster for the compact to be able to always carry it with you or simply stick it in your pocket in general.

And it's not so much about the megapixels as it is about the optical quality and the end results. Your 8520 will serve you fine going forward as a phone and those phones you were looking at end up costing R4.5k+ minimum (as in the case with the Samsung S2).

Virtually any Canon Powershot ought to serve you well since you can get CHDK to take raw photos with them, which gives you better post-shot headroom for working with your photos. The more you spend, generally the better the optical quality and the greater the amount of control buttons - you'll gain manual control over most of its settings with CHDK on anyway, having more buttons just makes things easier/quicker.

http://www.dpreview.com/ <- use this site to compare cameras
http://www.dxomark.com/ <- this one as well
http://chdk.wikia.com/ <- then use this one to determine which of the cameras can run CHDK

*edit* 8520 will serve you fine as a phone, not a camera. Definitely not as a camera.
Click to expand...

must admit not looking forward to carrying both. like in summer. awesome pic opportunities and theres no holster for a p&s on a shorts for example. just looking at it practically. can always have it in the car but then the worry is remembering to take it out to download pics but you get those moments when you need to take a picture fast. most of the time the phone will already be there nearby. but i think the point about the raw shots is very true.

lol yes the 8520 is rather limited for pics....

doobyscoo said:
Well it sounds like you need a phone upgrade and a camera so I would definitely get a smartphone.

I find my son (2 weeks old) doesn't like the camera, all the photos are of him looking at the camera with a confused look, the phone is more discreet and therefore I can get more natural shots... plus it never leaves my side.
Click to expand...

this is what im thinking. picture quality wise i shouldnt be losing out too much right compared to the dedicated p&s?
 
It's not going to be so much about the quality as it's going to be about the controls available to you.

This is where some of the people arguing in this thread have a point - on a phone camera you're going to be missing a lot of 'moments' of your kids because a phone camera simply isn't necessarily going to be up to snuff in terms of its speed and controls to get you what you want.
 
Camera phone sucks for kids, to slow, by the time it's focused and taken the shot your kid will be doing something else already or simply looking in a different direction and you end up with many blurry images as they don't like holding still for very long.
The other problem you will find is terrible low light conditions.

That said, camera phone with decent hd capabilities is ok for video and most are fine for pics of a sleeping baby.
 
AstroTurf said:
Camera phone sucks for kids, to slow, by the time it's focused and taken the shot your kid will be doing something else already or simply looking in a different direction and you end up with many blurry images as they don't like holding still for very long.
The other problem you will find is terrible low light conditions.

That said, camera phone with decent hd capabilities is ok for video and most are fine for pics of a sleeping baby.
Click to expand...

My S3 is a lot faster than my P&S. If I was having a kid though I'd definitely invest in a decent prosumer camera.
 
Point and shoot. The kid is going to be doing plenty of stuff when you're not around wiith your phone.

Even better would be a cheap secondhand dslr with a inexpensive 50mm f/1.8. You'll end up with shots you'd never dream of getting with a point and shoot.
 
If you are wanting to go the phone only route then there is only one choice in that list the Nokia N8 great camera and the xenon flash means those moments in low light environments are captured perfectly. I put the xenon flash in bold as this is what differentiates the mentioned phones from the standard LED lit camera phones which are limited in low light environments.

If you really want the king of camera phones then take a look at the Nokia 808 Pureview. Awesome of note. There is the Lumia 920 which looks good but it lacks the xenon flash and I am not sure it meets the same levels.

I, of course, totally disagree with the stand alone point and shoot option and speak from experience, I have a four year old. My phone is ALWAYS close at hand whereas a camera will not be unless you are a professional photographer.
 
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bwana said:
Point and shoot. The kid is going to be doing plenty of stuff when you're not around wiith your phone.

Even better would be a cheap secondhand dslr with a inexpensive 50mm f/1.8. You'll end up with shots you'd never dream of getting with a point and shoot.
Click to expand...

Too tight on a crop camera and, for many shots, still too tight on a full-frame, which would just cost him more. I'd be inclined to say that by the time he bothers with a used DSLR, he'll want to get a 28mm f/1.8 instead, and that's getting really expensive.

If indoors, 18-55mm kit lens and a bounceable-head flash. Point flash at ceiling, let it fill the room, light issues sorted out. It shouldn't take too long for the kid to get used to the flash popping. They're also afforded a zoomable lens for outdoor use.
 
nanonyous said:
Too tight on a crop camera and, for many shots, still too tight on a full-frame, which would just cost him more. I'd be inclined to say that by the time he bothers with a used DSLR, he'll want to get a 28mm f/1.8 instead, and that's getting really expensive.

If indoors, 18-55mm kit lens and a bounceable-head flash. Point flash at ceiling, let it fill the room, light issues sorted out. It shouldn't take too long for the kid to get used to the flash popping. They're also afforded a zoomable lens for outdoor use.
Click to expand...

i find myself always stepping a few feet back when using the 50mm and in small rooms that's a bugger . 1+ for the 18-55mm
 
I just checked Picasa and I took 2625 photos last year with my Nokia N8. A large whack of them of my daughter! One is hanging on the wall in front of me now in a 40x30cm frame.

People may say 12MP is unnecessary on a phone but when cropping, and printing, those extra pixels come in handy.

I would have loved to get the 808 Pureview but it was not available when I was upgrading and I'm impatient. I went for the SGS3 and have regularly been reminded of the limitations of the camera when compared to the N8.
 
nanonyous said:
Too tight on a crop camera and, for many shots, still too tight on a full-frame, which would just cost him more. I'd be inclined to say that by the time he bothers with a used DSLR, he'll want to get a 28mm f/1.8 instead, and that's getting really expensive.
Click to expand...
I've got a portfolio of newborn shots I've taken for parents all with a 50mm on a crop so I'm going to have to disagree. Infants are small ;)
 
nanonyous said:
From what distance? Are you going to get a photo of your kid on your lap with a 50mm on a crop camera? ;P
Click to expand...
I'd never try and take a photo of myself with my kid on my lap without a tripod and a remote trigger anyway.

Edit. I use the 50 because of the results it gives me, I've got a bag full of lenses so I use the one that suits the situation. I know the parents enjoy the results because they keep coming back for more, despite my rates. :)
 
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bwana said:
I'd never try and take a photo of myself with my kid on my lap without a tripod and a remote trigger anyway.
Click to expand...

I don't think "I want to set up for a mini studio session with my newborn every two weeks" quite compares to "I want to be able to take snapshots of my kid when they're doing whatever, whenever" ;p
 
nanonyous said:
I don't think "I want to set up for a mini studio session with my newborn every two weeks" quite compares to "I want to be able to take snapshots of my kid when they're doing whatever, whenever" ;p
Click to expand...
You were talking about a situation where the photographer is taking a photo of himself with the kid in his lap. You might enjoy a stretched out arm or two in your photos but I can't say I do.
 
ClintZA said:
If you are wanting to go the phone only route then there is only one choice in that list the Nokia N8 great camera and the xenon flash means those moments in low light environments are captured perfectly. I put the xenon flash in bold as this is what differentiates the mentioned phones from the standard LED lit camera phones which are limited in low light environments.

If you really want the king of camera phones then take a look at the Nokia 808 Pureview. Awesome of note. There is the Lumia 920 which looks good but it lacks the xenon flash and I am not sure it meets the same levels.

I, of course, totally disagree with the stand alone point and shoot option and speak from experience, I have a four year old. My phone is ALWAYS close at hand whereas a camera will not be unless you are a professional photographer.
Click to expand...

the n8 is my first choice but reckon vodacon is taking a chance with that price. but then again they know about that great camera dont they:mad:

a have a 350d that i use for shots at home but the photo opportunities wont just happen at home and i dont want to lug the 350d around. hence the need for another solution.

i will look into the 50mm f/1.8 lens (where can i get an inexpensive one?) for the home shots. thanx for the tip.
 
bwana said:
You were talking about a situation where the photographer is taking a photo of himself with the kid in his lap. You might enjoy a stretched out arm or two in your photos but I can't say I do.
Click to expand...

Okay, I should've clarified. I meant the parent sitting with their kid in their lap in their livingroom, their kid begins gobbing on their new iPhone 5 and they want to get a snapshot of the kid stuffing their face with a R10k piece of status symbol - not getting a photo of them with their kid ;p
 
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