[ismaelg]

Hello,

Sorry I've been away from the forum for the past few months. Been very busy at work.
My daughter (and my niece) will do a month long university student trip to Europe this summer. She asked me for a camera but immediately specified she is not lugging around a DSLR kit nor a vintage film camera.
So there goes my idea of the K20/18-55WR atomic proof combo or a K1000
Discussing with her, she wants better image quality than just the phone, zoom function, portability and discreet. That rules out a gold plated Leica.
In reality, I'm thinking something along the lines of a Lumix P&S. I thought of a GR but it has no zoom. I don't want to break the bank either as it will most likely collect dust afterwards. Either new or lightly used. Not sure.
Any general recommendations?

Thanks,
Ismael

[Madaboutpix]

Matti Sulanto makes some pretty solid suggestions in this recent video - including zoom options - which might be a good fit:

You Tube

You Tube

[AstroDave]

I like my Canon G15. Small, 3-4X zoom, and takes great pictures with automatic white balance and exposure (show her how to display the histogram and dial down EV by one or two thirds if necessary - it's VERY simple - there is an EV dial). Later versions in the G series have more resolution (I think).

Whatever she totes around will need a charger, which can be a bit of a nuisance. Make sure she has adapter(s) to plug into whatever power socket varieties and voltages they encounter in Europe. I think most chargers these days are compatible with both 120 and 220 VAC.

[allanmh]

My suggestion would be the Lumix TZ100. That is its European name, it'sprobably different in the US. It has a 1" sensor and the all-important 25-250mm focal range. It has very good IQ, and is easy to use. As mentioned, a universal power adapter is necessary. I have one with two USB ports, which allows me to charge my phone and my camera simultaneously.

[FozzFoster]

My Mom really likes her Canon PowerShot SX 50 HS.
I've personally used the PowerShot SX 60 HS with good success.
I know the new one is the PowerShot SX 70 HS.

Although the electronic viewfinder is absolute abhorrent (just use Live View), the zoom range is outstanding with good image results (65x; 21-1365mm FF eq.)
Used versions can be had for relatively cheap.

[AfterPentax Mark II]

Hello,

Sorry I've been away from the forum for the past few months. Been very busy at work.
My daughter (and my niece) will do a month long university student trip to Europe this summer. She asked me for a camera but immediately specified she is not lugging around a DSLR kit nor a vintage film camera.
So there goes my idea of the K20/18-55WR atomic proof combo or a K1000
Discussing with her, she wants better image quality than just the phone, zoom function, portability and discreet. That rules out a gold plated Leica.
In reality, I'm thinking something along the lines of a Lumix P&S. I thought of a GR but it has no zoom. I don't want to break the bank either as it will most likely collect dust afterwards. Either new or lightly used. Not sure.
Any general recommendations?

Thanks,
Ismael

I have a Lumix LX3 and it has quite a good zoom range. More modern versions are the LX 7 and LX100. Panasonic always has great zoom range and IQ and they fit in a not too small pocket. But an older Samsung NX with the 20-50mm zoom or the 16-50 Power zoom retractable is another one that springs to mind. A compact NX is 100 up to the 500 or the 1000 to 3000. The other models are all DSLR like but small, but the EVF is not that bad.

[mlag]

My suggestion would be the Lumix TZ100. That is its European name, it'sprobably different in the US. It has a 1" sensor and the all-important 25-250mm focal range. It has very good IQ, and is easy to use. As mentioned, a universal power adapter is necessary. I have one with two USB ports, which allows me to charge my phone and my camera simultaneously.

My vote also goes to the panasonic TZ series, aka Travel Zoom pocket cameras. Decent 12(older models)...20 mpx sensor, zoom range 20 to 200...400 FF equivalent depending on model,... they have also a decent EVF, so you do not depend on the lcd back display to frame pictures (which on a sunny summer day doesn’t work well).

In some areas it is the ZS series, so TZ100 would be a ZS100.
But TZ 80 or 200 or other (even bit older) variants will do as well.

Over time we (my family of 2+4) acquired 3 generations of it, complementing our family’s panasonic FZ bridge & Pentax DSLR(s) .
Because sometimes a pocket camera is more convenient (pocketable) but still with decent optical zoom etc (read : outperforms a smartphone). We still use all three of them (the oldest 12mpx is for those rough occasions/events where we don’t dare to risc the newer ones ).

Not sure for your area or budget, but ...:
Search results for: 'Dmc-zs' at KEH Camera

[JohnMc]

My favorite travel cameras shot 616 film. Then had to migrate to 620/120. 2 1/2 x 4 1/4 is sweet.


Which phone does she have, and could it be improved camera wise? There's much to be said for the camera you have (in hand) is the best one to use, and separating most youngers from their devices is hard if not impossible. Then there's the learning curve.


I'd agree that some of the compact P&S's are compelling, especially in the second hand arena. I got my niece a Canon PS something (her choice) and gave her a crash course when she went to Peru, Chile, then to work in Argentina. She did well with it... when she took it. She always had her phone though, even where there was no service.

[ThorSanchez]

What phone does she have? If it's of reasonably recent vintage and reasonably high end (Pixel, iPhone, etc) you might be hard pressed to get better quality photos out of a point-and-shoot. Especially with a phone with multiple focal length lens/camera modules. And she may not want to haul around all the stuff necessary to post-process the camera images and upload them.

[UncleVanya]

My first trip to Paris with my wife I took a k100D super and the 18-55/50-200 combo. It worked but several years later the trip to London and Paris involved four additional people; two kids, her dad, and my mentally challenged brother in law. For that trip I knew I couldn’t leverage the strength of an interchangeable lens camera. Changing lenses wasn’t an option. So in the spring of 2016 I took a Panasonic Lx7 and the external EVF. The camera was a small wonder that gave me keepers I still love today.

P1200691 by -vanya_42nd-

Today I have sold the LX7 and I use a Sony RX100 IV. The IV / V / Va are very similar offering a 24-70 like view with a fast lens and a strong 1” sensor. The VI and VII offer a 24-200 perspective with a slightly slower lens. Both offer a jpg only 2x option that is not simply cropping and yields better detail than a simple crop. Effectively this makes the range 24-140 and 24-400 when raw isn’t needed.

In all of these small cameras external controls are limited but they are not missing entirely like a smartphone. Additionall they are ai free allowing more nuanced control more easily than the phones.

I strongly suggest getting a model (whatever is selected) that has an EVF to avoid the lcd when bright sunlight poses a problem as well as providing a more stable way to shoot (human tripod) when light is scarce.

---------- Post added 05-02-23 at 05:57 PM ----------

One last thing. I love the idea of a prime only small camera but feel it’s too limiting compared to just using a phone for a trip like this. Zooming and sensor size (1/1.7” was much bigger than most phone sensors in 2016) is what set the small lx7 apart from my phone pics on the trip.

---------- Post added 05-02-23 at 06:03 PM ----------

P1200680 by -vanya_42nd-

These are all from Notre Dame before it burned.

---------- Post added 05-02-23 at 06:03 PM ----------

P1200672 by -vanya_42nd-

[robgski]

I owned a few Lumix P&S cameras, those would be my first choice, incredible images were the result every time.

[rpjallan]

I second @UncleVanya's recommendation of one of the Sony RX100 cameras. I have the Mkiii but a later model with a longer lens may suit you better.

[UncleVanya]

I should also point out that the images I shared are SOOC not RAW and converted - I have the RAW files somewhere. They are more flexible than the SOOC files. The LX7 is a good camera for the time - but eclipsed by the 1" sensors available today. I would still use an LX7 over many other options however.

[JoelA]

A vote for Lumix point and shoot. A DMC-ZS100 is still my go to when I don't want to haul a "real" camera. The thing is pretty much bomb proof. It has literally been all over the world from in a bicycle bag in Vietnam to on chicken busses in Peru and even the streets of Paris. Highly recommended...

[ProfessorBuzz]

I'd go with the GRIII - easy to care, hide, charge, and inconspicuous.