Over the years, I have fielded countless requests from friends,family, workshop attendees, and strangers for advice on what camera, lens, camera bags, filters, film (remember that?), and other oddities related to photography that they should buy. Advice on camera gear goes with the territory when you are a photographer, but lately I’ve been receiving a lot more questions about what camera to buy.
Now there is never one answer to this question as there are a tremendous amount of cameras choices out there and different people have different needs. However, if you are in the market for a point-and-shoot camera that will keep you in good stead for the next 5 years or so, then I suggest you check out the Canon S-95. I’ve helped enough people buy this and the previous version (the S-90) that I wish I owned stock in a local camera shop so that I could get a kickback.
This remarkable bundle of photographic capability has a beautiful screen, 10-megapixel sensor (enough to take care of any typical users needs from online to enlarged prints), facial recognition, 2.0 f-stop, RAW mode, and HD video capability to boot. Not to mention a lot of creative shooting modes to get your creativity flowing. All of this comes in a package that is small enough to fit in a shirt pocket or a small handbag and has a street price of USD400 (I don’t recall the local going rate, but it fluctuates with the exchange rate). If you would like a more comprehensive review of the S-95, or any other camera, do a search on www.dpreview.com. You won’t find a more thorough review of cameras anywhere and you can do side-by-side comparisons of camera models on the website.
Bottom line, I always keep my Canon S-95 with me, even on client shoots, and I’ve seen enough people happily using this model that I have no reservations telling people to stop looking and just go out and buy one.
