"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
...
D.Duck wrote:
"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
news
Don White wrote:
Wife wants to upgrade from my 3 yr old HP R707 compact digital camera.
This camera works fine...although the original battery doesn't seem to
hold its charge as long anymore while sitting on the shelf.
Costco just happens to have a super price $270.00 CDN
for its popular Canon A650 IS compact.
I also see the Nikon D40 on sale here with lens at just under $500.00.
I can't justify the higher end SLRs...especially when they seem be be
somewhat obsolete every three or four years
vs the old manual film SLRs that were still fine after 20-25 years .My
usage these days is more snapshot than trying to be artistic...although
I do like to do justice to scenery.
The D40 is a great simple to use camera, that can be used in it's auto
settings or allow you to manually adjust all settings.

It is light weight and you and your wife will absolutely be pleased with
the quality.

As far as the "obsolete" factor. The digital cameras will only be
obsolete, if you want the new and improved features of the newer
improved digital cameras. If you are pleased with the camera, you can
expect over 100,000 photos from the D40. A digital camera will have an
expectant average life similar to the average film cameras.


Just curious. What is the *wear out* mechanism in a digital camera?

The shutter and mirror mechanisms are a problem with both digital and
film. It needs to flip up to take the photo, but not allow any light
through when it is in the down position. They can lock up or lose there
ability to close completely and not allow any light to pass through. My
wife had an old film camera that the foam around the mirror (to block the
light in the down position), dried up and needed to be replaced. It was
not worth the expense to repair.

With Digital cameras your image sensor can burn out or get enough bad
pixels that you will want to replace them, but I have never heard anyone
who replaced a camera due to this problem.

Thanks. That's just about what I was thinking.

On Nov 28, 10:35*am, "Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq."
wrote:
D.Duck wrote:
"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
news
Don White wrote:
Wife wants to upgrade from my 3 yr old HP R707 compact digital camera..
This camera works fine...although the original battery doesn't seem to
hold its charge as long anymore while sitting *on the shelf.
Costco just happens to have a super price $270.00 CDN
for its popular Canon A650 IS *compact.
I also see the Nikon D40 on sale here with lens at just under $500.00..
I can't justify the higher end SLRs...especially when they seem be be
somewhat obsolete every three or four years
*vs the old manual film SLRs that were still fine after 20-25 years .My
usage these days is more snapshot than trying to be artistic...although I
do like to do justice to scenery.
The D40 is a great simple to use camera, that can be used in it's auto
settings or allow you to manually adjust all settings.

It is light weight and you and your wife will absolutely be pleased with
the quality.

As far as the "obsolete" factor. *The digital cameras will only be
obsolete, if you want the new and improved features of the newer improved
digital cameras. *If you are pleased with the camera, you can expect over
100,000 photos from the D40. *A digital camera will have an expectant
average life similar to the average film cameras.

Just curious. *What is the *wear out* mechanism in a digital camera?

The shutter and mirror mechanisms are a problem with both digital and
film. *It needs to flip up to take the photo, but not allow any light
through when it is in the down position. *They can lock up or lose there
ability to close completely and not allow any light to pass through. My
wife had an old film camera that the foam around the mirror (to block
the light in the down position), dried up and needed to be replaced. *It
was not worth the expense to repair.

With Digital cameras your image sensor can burn out or get enough bad
pixels that you will want to replace them, but I have never heard anyone
who replaced a camera due to this problem.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

My best 35mm was a Pentax, believe it or not. That thing had more
dents in it than you could imagine and still worked fine. I was hiking
one time and had swung it around my back because I was climbing some
rocks, thing slung around and hit the rocks hard. Didn't hurt it a bit.

On Nov 28, 9:52*am, wrote:
On Nov 28, 10:35*am, "Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq."





wrote:
D.Duck wrote:
"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
news Don White wrote:
Wife wants to upgrade from my 3 yr old HP R707 compact digital camera.
This camera works fine...although the original battery doesn't seem to
hold its charge as long anymore while sitting *on the shelf.
Costco just happens to have a super price $270.00 CDN
for its popular Canon A650 IS *compact.
I also see the Nikon D40 on sale here with lens at just under $500.00.

"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
...

D.Duck wrote:

With Digital cameras your image sensor can burn out or get enough bad
pixels that you will want to replace them, but I have never heard anyone
who replaced a camera due to this problem.

No, but it may account for why a digital camera becomes "obsolete" faster.
The CCD or CMOS sensors are under constant improvement, and not just in
terms of the number of pixels or resolution. Efficiency of converting
light to electrical energy, power drain, sensitivity, etc.

Sorta analogous to new or improved film types developed for older, film
based cameras.

Eisboch

Eisboch wrote:
"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
...

D.Duck wrote:

With Digital cameras your image sensor can burn out or get enough bad
pixels that you will want to replace them, but I have never heard anyone
who replaced a camera due to this problem.

No, but it may account for why a digital camera becomes "obsolete" faster.
The CCD or CMOS sensors are under constant improvement, and not just in
terms of the number of pixels or resolution. Efficiency of converting
light to electrical energy, power drain, sensitivity, etc.

Sorta analogous to new or improved film types developed for older, film
based cameras.

Eisboch



You are absolutely correct, but if you are happy with the quality of
your old camera, when a new improved camera comes out, it does not mean
you have to upgrade. You will continue to get the same quality you have
come to love and enjoy.

Computers are always upgrading their CPU's, video cards etc. It seems
that the state of the art computer is replaced with a new state of the
art computer every 30 days, but I only replace my computer when it will
no longer do what I want. I probably get a new computer every 5 yrs or so.

Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq. wrote:
D.Duck wrote:
"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
news
Don White wrote:
Wife wants to upgrade from my 3 yr old HP R707 compact digital camera.
This camera works fine...although the original battery doesn't seem
to hold its charge as long anymore while sitting on the shelf.
Costco just happens to have a super price $270.00 CDN
for its popular Canon A650 IS compact.
I also see the Nikon D40 on sale here with lens at just under $500.00.
I can't justify the higher end SLRs...especially when they seem be
be somewhat obsolete every three or four years
vs the old manual film SLRs that were still fine after 20-25 years
.My usage these days is more snapshot than trying to be
artistic...although I do like to do justice to scenery.
The D40 is a great simple to use camera, that can be used in it's
auto settings or allow you to manually adjust all settings.

It is light weight and you and your wife will absolutely be pleased
with the quality.

As far as the "obsolete" factor. The digital cameras will only be
obsolete, if you want the new and improved features of the newer
improved digital cameras. If you are pleased with the camera, you
can expect over 100,000 photos from the D40. A digital camera will
have an expectant average life similar to the average film cameras.


Just curious. What is the *wear out* mechanism in a digital camera?


The shutter and mirror mechanisms are a problem with both digital and
film. It needs to flip up to take the photo, but not allow any light
through when it is in the down position. They can lock up or lose there
ability to close completely and not allow any light to pass through. My
wife had an old film camera that the foam around the mirror (to block
the light in the down position), dried up and needed to be replaced. It
was not worth the expense to repair.

With Digital cameras your image sensor can burn out or get enough bad
pixels that you will want to replace them, but I have never heard anyone
who replaced a camera due to this problem.

I have a Cannon A7 that had the sensor wash out. The camera was 3 yrs
old at the time. Turns out it was a known problem and Canon replaced the
image sensor for free. Turn around time was 1 week. I was very
impressed. We went on a trip last month and I forgot my camera. I picked
up a Canon 470. Turns out it is a very nice camera for casual snapshot
takers like myself and the wife.

Jim wrote:
Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq. wrote:
D.Duck wrote:
"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
news Don White wrote:
Wife wants to upgrade from my 3 yr old HP R707 compact digital camera.
This camera works fine...although the original battery doesn't seem
to hold its charge as long anymore while sitting on the shelf.
Costco just happens to have a super price $270.00 CDN
for its popular Canon A650 IS compact.
I also see the Nikon D40 on sale here with lens at just under $500.00.
I can't justify the higher end SLRs...especially when they seem be
be somewhat obsolete every three or four years
vs the old manual film SLRs that were still fine after 20-25 years
.My usage these days is more snapshot than trying to be
artistic...although I do like to do justice to scenery.
The D40 is a great simple to use camera, that can be used in it's
auto settings or allow you to manually adjust all settings.

It is light weight and you and your wife will absolutely be pleased
with the quality.

As far as the "obsolete" factor. The digital cameras will only be
obsolete, if you want the new and improved features of the newer
improved digital cameras. If you are pleased with the camera, you
can expect over 100,000 photos from the D40. A digital camera will
have an expectant average life similar to the average film cameras.


Just curious. What is the *wear out* mechanism in a digital camera?


The shutter and mirror mechanisms are a problem with both digital and
film. It needs to flip up to take the photo, but not allow any light
through when it is in the down position. They can lock up or lose
there ability to close completely and not allow any light to pass
through. My wife had an old film camera that the foam around the
mirror (to block the light in the down position), dried up and needed
to be replaced. It was not worth the expense to repair.

With Digital cameras your image sensor can burn out or get enough bad
pixels that you will want to replace them, but I have never heard
anyone who replaced a camera due to this problem.

I have a Cannon A7 that had the sensor wash out. The camera was 3 yrs
old at the time. Turns out it was a known problem and Canon replaced the
image sensor for free. Turn around time was 1 week. I was very
impressed. We went on a trip last month and I forgot my camera. I picked
up a Canon 470. Turns out it is a very nice camera for casual snapshot
takers like myself and the wife.

My son used the Canon 470 when he traveled to SE Asia, India and Africa.
He started with the Canon A570, it was stolen from his room, and he
purchased a Canon 470. They both took great photos of his trip.

"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
news
Don White wrote:
Wife wants to upgrade from my 3 yr old HP R707 compact digital camera.
This camera works fine...although the original battery doesn't seem to
hold its charge as long anymore while sitting on the shelf.
Costco just happens to have a super price $270.00 CDN
for its popular Canon A650 IS compact.
I also see the Nikon D40 on sale here with lens at just under $500.00.
I can't justify the higher end SLRs...especially when they seem be be
somewhat obsolete every three or four years
vs the old manual film SLRs that were still fine after 20-25 years .My
usage these days is more snapshot than trying to be artistic...although I
do like to do justice to scenery.

The D40 is a great simple to use camera, that can be used in it's auto
settings or allow you to manually adjust all settings.

It is light weight and you and your wife will absolutely be pleased with
the quality.

As far as the "obsolete" factor. The digital cameras will only be
obsolete, if you want the new and improved features of the newer improved
digital cameras. If you are pleased with the camera, you can expect over
100,000 photos from the D40. A digital camera will have an expectant
average life similar to the average film cameras.


The big thing about the SLRs vs the compact cameras is the size of the
processer.
I saw an illustration where the D40s processor looked like a 35mm slide
compared to an old 110 frame equaling a compact.
Dramatic difference!
Another concern...I really like to control shutter speed, F stop and focus
manually. ( re my Minolta SRT200 manual film SLR)
I'll have to go to a real camera store and find out what the Canon compacts
can do.

Don White wrote:
"Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq." wrote in message
news
Don White wrote:
Wife wants to upgrade from my 3 yr old HP R707 compact digital camera.
This camera works fine...although the original battery doesn't seem to
hold its charge as long anymore while sitting on the shelf.
Costco just happens to have a super price $270.00 CDN
for its popular Canon A650 IS compact.
I also see the Nikon D40 on sale here with lens at just under $500.00.
I can't justify the higher end SLRs...especially when they seem be be
somewhat obsolete every three or four years
vs the old manual film SLRs that were still fine after 20-25 years .My
usage these days is more snapshot than trying to be artistic...although I
do like to do justice to scenery.
The D40 is a great simple to use camera, that can be used in it's auto
settings or allow you to manually adjust all settings.

It is light weight and you and your wife will absolutely be pleased with
the quality.

As far as the "obsolete" factor. The digital cameras will only be
obsolete, if you want the new and improved features of the newer improved
digital cameras. If you are pleased with the camera, you can expect over
100,000 photos from the D40. A digital camera will have an expectant
average life similar to the average film cameras.


The big thing about the SLRs vs the compact cameras is the size of the
processer.
I saw an illustration where the D40s processor looked like a 35mm slide
compared to an old 110 frame equaling a compact.
Dramatic difference!
Another concern...I really like to control shutter speed, F stop and focus
manually. ( re my Minolta SRT200 manual film SLR)
I'll have to go to a real camera store and find out what the Canon compacts
can do.



There are some compact cameras that do allow you to manually adjust your
shutter speed, aperture, focus and other numerous other settings you did
not have on your film camera, it is still a trade off on compact vs
DSLR. I personally find it very difficult to see the compact LCD screen
in the sun, I (and probably all people) find the small compact camera
impossible to hold steady at slow shutter speeds. You are holding the
camera away from you instead of using your arms and head to stabilize
the camera. On the other hand, the compact cameras fit in a pocket or
purse easily. Many photobugs own both, just so they always carry a
camera and never miss a shot. If you think about it, the best camera is
the one you have with you.

I am thinking about buying this Nikon P80 as my compact camera. It not
only has the LCD screen, but an eyepiece so you can hold it the same as
a SLR and see your composition in bright light. It is not as tiny as
most compact cameras, but it is easy to carry, even if it is bulky in
your pants pocket.

http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Ni...OLPIX-P80.html

On Nov 28, 11:17*am, "Reginald P. Smithers III, Esq."
wrote:

I am thinking about buying this Nikon P80 as my compact camera. *It not
only has the LCD screen, but an eyepiece so you can hold it the same as
a SLR and see your composition in bright light. *It is not as tiny as
most compact cameras, but it is easy to carry, even if it is bulky in
your pants pocket.

http://www.nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Ni...era/26114/...- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

My wife has a Nikon Coolpix, not sure which model, and it's a damned
fine compact camera. I had a Fujifilm compact that just sucked! The
processor lag was just horrific. I took a lot of blurry shots because
of it. The nikon coolpix doesn't have that lag.