High Sierra Topix

I just got a Coolpix A100, very light and compact. Hopefully it takes decent pictures, occasional fish photo, etc. It was only $90 with accessories so I guess I can't really go wrong. Composing a good scene (foreground, background, etc.) and keeping trees vertical are simple ways to help get a good picture in my experience.

John

oleander wrote:I have found my Canon Powershot S100 12.1 megapixel camera (7 ounces) to be the perfect upgrade over my former $100 camera.

I considered that camera when I bought a new P&S last year. For me it was just a hair too large for what I wanted (a camera that would disappear in my pocket). But it is clearly a superior camera and if that small size/weight consideration hadn't been a factor it's what I would have bought.

John Harper wrote:I just got a Coolpix A100, very light and compact. Hopefully it takes decent pictures, occasional fish photo, etc.

It'll be fine in good lighting and disappoint you in poor lighting when your phone will probably outperform it.

Whatever P & S you eventually choose, as Mav said, your going to get much more out of your tool by learning about photography. Too many rely on the camera to take control of the shot rather than you. Understanding the basics of light, exposure, composition, dynamic range, white balance, etc. will help you to take control and get the most from whatever tool you decide to purchase.

Couldn't agree more.

The mountain photographer is interpreting the face of nature—that mysterious infinity; eternally a refuge, a reservoir, an amplifier of the spirit, a mother of dreams, a positive though elusive voice in whose depth lies its subtle power...Great art is usually created under some such saturation of awareness, where the work is permeated with an inner perception of beauty and an inner personal philosophy.

Cedric Wright, "Mountain Photography,"
Sierra Club Bulletin, Volume 26, Page 83, February 1941

As much as I agree with the view that automatic modes are not extracting the maximum performance of a camera, I would say that a $3000 DSLR will take far better images in auto mode than an $99 P&S - it's just a function of the better sensor, glass and hopefully better metering system.

Is it worth the price if that is all you're going to do with that camera? Absolutely not. I think at the $500 price point, the point-and-shoot full auto performance hits a plateau of diminishing returns. Back in the film SLR days, a better camera body bought you absolutely nothing as long as film and lens were the same.

In fact, talking about auto modes, I recall having my first experience with such "progress" back in 1987 I went from a Nikkormat EL to a Nikon F3HP: I lost the EL's very reliable 60% centerweight metering in favor of a more strongly 80/20 centereighted metering in the F3. At that point I switched over to manual exposure, because the expensive camera wasn't getting it right a lot of the time. And wouldn't you know it - on a normal sunny day in the mountains, 100 asa film any variant of the 500/f8 rule usually worked just fine, e.g 1/250s f/11.0 on a sunny afternoon will likely give you a better exposure than the camera will meter, especially if there's a large patch of snow near center frame

I have exactly the same questions - what did you end up with and how has it worked out?
Thanks much!

tlsharb,

Not all of my pictures turn out perfect either. Have you ever tried editing your photos with an editor like Adobe Photoshop Express to adjust the exposure, contrast, highlights, shadows, etc.

Adobe Photoshop Express is free and you can download it from the Apple Store or Windows Store (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/adobe ... verviewtab)