My 14 year old step-nephew has about £300 that he wants to spend on a camera. He thinks he would like a bridge camera or possibly a compact. He'd like manual controls as well as the ability to point and shoot, he doesn't mind if he can't change the lenses. He's had a look at the Canon Powershot G16 Digital compact which he liked.
He is not well at the moment and is in and out of hospital so he can't spend a lot of time browsing camera shops so I was after some views and advice to help him choose.
If you had about that amount of money to spend on your first camera what would you buy?
Sony RX100 Mark I (£253 on amazon). Large sensor for a super tiny compact, giving excellent image quality for the size and price. Full manual control or point and shoot. 4k video as well.
If he doesn't need it pocket sized, the Sony A5000 is very good value these days (about £250 with a kit lens) and could be a good choice.
@jasperc Thanks very much Jasper. We'll read up on both of those. At a quick glance the A5000 could be a good choice - he's not too worried about the size.
The a5000 is a good choice, the newer a5100 better, but with only the kit 16-50 lens I think you'd be disappointed. That is indeed the issue with Interchangeable Lens Cameras, lenses are expensive if you want more than the kit. The a5000 also doesn't have a viewfinder, and that would be a large negative for me.
As Jasper suggests, the Sony RX100 series @jasperc are competently designed and put together. I'd go for the Mark II, at the high end of your price range in the US, but they are limited in "zoom range" but since it is only a 1 inch sensor, maybe is OK..
The Lumix (Panasonic) models do video OK too, FZ1000 especially well.
The DMC-ZS50 fits your budget, has a nice large zoom range, has a viewfinder (electronic) and does video OK. It's also small and compact.
The DMZ-FZ1000 is in my mind "top of the line" in this category. Excellent still quality, and does video well, even 4K which no DSLR even the expensive ones has, and has a pretty impressive zoom range. It is a bit bulky (looks like an old fashioned "bridge" or DSLR-like body), It is probably over your price point, but is one of the few cameras in this category that could be said to do stills well, and video competently.
For my two cents worth, Lumix (Panasonic) and perhaps Sony are the two manufacturers I would go with in this category. As others might say, that's only because I know them better, and I would have to agree.
@frankhymus thanks so much for such detailed advice Frank. Really appreciated. I'm not familiar with Lumix so your information is really helpful. We'll have a browse through all of the ones you mention.
I can vouch or the Panasonic bridge cameras too. I started my project here with one and always recommend them to people who tell me they want to develop their interest in photography.
I've got a Panasonic lumix FZ200 bridge camera. Shots manual and RAW, good zoom range. Not pocket size but easy enough to carry around. It came highly recommended by a Nikon user who actually prefers the FZ200.
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If he doesn't need it pocket sized, the Sony A5000 is very good value these days (about £250 with a kit lens) and could be a good choice.
The £100 saved can go towards his first fancy lens once he's caught the bug.
As Jasper suggests, the Sony RX100 series @jasperc are competently designed and put together. I'd go for the Mark II, at the high end of your price range in the US, but they are limited in "zoom range" but since it is only a 1 inch sensor, maybe is OK..
Perhaps a step up from your price range are the cameras here.
http://www.dpreview.com/articles/1860119223/2015-roundup-long-zoom-compacts
The Lumix (Panasonic) models do video OK too, FZ1000 especially well.
The DMC-ZS50 fits your budget, has a nice large zoom range, has a viewfinder (electronic) and does video OK. It's also small and compact.
The DMZ-FZ1000 is in my mind "top of the line" in this category. Excellent still quality, and does video well, even 4K which no DSLR even the expensive ones has, and has a pretty impressive zoom range. It is a bit bulky (looks like an old fashioned "bridge" or DSLR-like body), It is probably over your price point, but is one of the few cameras in this category that could be said to do stills well, and video competently.
For my two cents worth, Lumix (Panasonic) and perhaps Sony are the two manufacturers I would go with in this category. As others might say, that's only because I know them better, and I would have to agree.
Good fortune on what you finally decide on.