Question for all the travelers out there . . . if you were going to Peru on a vacation and wanted to buy a new camera for the trip . . . which one would you purchase? I don't want to be hauling a great big heavy one but I want something that will give me a variety of settings . . . I am not even sure that I want to have to change lenses . . . anything new and exciting out there? Thanks for your help in advance!
If I were going, I would get a Nikon Coolpix P510 ONLY for the 42x zoom (and it does have good reviews). I went to Tibet several years ago and trekked for three weeks. We did have electricity (to charge batteries), but everyone's advice was similar to what you have said ... get something light and easy and enjoy your trip. I just think the 42x could come in handy to get some shots otherwise "ungettable"
i would probably bring Nikon coolpix 510-- it offers a massive telephoto zoom range, starting quite wide at 24mm and telescoping 42x to 1000mm (35mm equivalent focal lengths). This range will enable you to shoot comfortably in tight indoor spaces and capture wide landscapes, while giving you the long reach to capture wildlife, sporting events, and much more. Throw in its special Smart Portrait mode and Easy Panorama (360° & 180°) modes, and the P510 makes a breeze of pretty much every type of shooting.
I would take a Canon SX240/260. It is small enough to keep in your pocket (some places you really don't want to advertise the fact that you are a tourist with an "expensive" camera) but it still a capable camera that will do everything you want it to do (except maybe extreme close-ups). The lens zooms from 25mm to 500mm and you can use it on Auto or Full Manual and everything in between. Canon hasn't jumped on the megapixel bandwagon with this camera but kept it at 12 megapixels so noise level and image quality is quite decent for a small sensor compact as well.
Oh, and I would take an extra battery ;-)
I shoot most of my 365 shots with this camera - not because it is the best camera in the world but because it is so versatile and I always have it in my pocket.
@juletee I agree with @helstor - I also have Canon SX240 and it's really good to take with you on the trips. Like Helge said - it's small and won't draw too much attention. Image quality is great and even in auto mode you can take really nice pictures.
Nikon P7000 or newer version. Spare battery. Consider an old Film compact as well. I have a Little Rollie 35mm somewhere. Somthing like this would make sense. No dependance on batteries and a classic mountaineering/traveling camera.
A friend has just done a trip and lost all of his photographs. Use several different memory cards and consider how to back up /protect your pictures.
A good quality compact. I suppose the Sony RX100 looks like the class leader at the moment (leaving the premium Fujis aside) but the in camera battery charging and large file sizes were deal breakers for me so I wound up with the Panasonic LX7 ... there are quite a few equivalent offerings from the other manufacturers.
If you want more zoom and the "enthusiast" features aren't a must, the travel zoom compact class of cameras ought to be ideal at a lower price. You'll still get full manual mode and so forth, but will probably have to navigate more menus.
As everyone else has said, budget for a spare battery and memory cards.
@dlaxton@jodimuli@helstor@hauss@la_photographic@daviddobedoe@automaticslim Thanks for all the suggestions for the vacation camera . . . unfortunately it is not me who is going to Peru - although I did volunteer to go and take the photos for the couple that is going . . . and I gave your suggestions to him. He thought that he wanted a big camera with extra lenses but I think I have convinced him to go small (bigger is not always better!)
Write a Reply
Sign up for a free account or Sign in to post a comment.
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
Oh, and I would take an extra battery ;-)
I shoot most of my 365 shots with this camera - not because it is the best camera in the world but because it is so versatile and I always have it in my pocket.
A friend has just done a trip and lost all of his photographs. Use several different memory cards and consider how to back up /protect your pictures.
If you want more zoom and the "enthusiast" features aren't a must, the travel zoom compact class of cameras ought to be ideal at a lower price. You'll still get full manual mode and so forth, but will probably have to navigate more menus.
As everyone else has said, budget for a spare battery and memory cards.