Camera Recommendation

I've been asked a few times about the camera I use so I thought it's time to write about it.

Short Summary:
It's a Canon G9 and I'm very happy with it.

Ultimately I hope to own:
Canon Digital Rebel with wide screen and telephoto lenses.

Details:

Money
First of all, my financial philosophy. I am frugal. I loathe waste. I believe planned obsolescence is the cornerstone of our environmental woes. It's easy to be enticed by the daily changes in electronics of all kinds, but I try and stand back and let it flow by without getting caught in the desire for the latest and greatest. Best case scenario? Buy top quality and value and use that item until it has worn itself out.

Me and Photography
I am a compulsive photo taker. I take approximately 4000 photos a month. I have no delusions of grandeur: it's simply a favourite hobby. Words cannot express how thrilled I was when digital photography became affordable. That's artistic freedom at its finest. While some people can't leave the house without being well-groomed, I cannot leave the house without a camera. Must. Take. Photos. Routinely forget to brush hair....

I always have my camera handy when I'm gardening. Pay attention and you know there's always something interesting going on there.

My Current Camera
Previously I had a low-end Canon Powershot which died after about 2.5 years of constant (understatement) use. It was a very good camera and really took a beating. I chose the Canon G9 because it was in the right price range (funded slowly but surely by ads on my blogs) and it's a perfect compromise between a basic point and shoot camera and an SLR (single lens reflex) camera.

One fantastic feature of the point and shoot cameras is the movie setting. It's simple to go from still photos to shooting good-quality movies. In our family we have these insane fun and highly competitive annual home/family movie contests, and I can't begin to tell you how much excellent and ridiculous footage I have shot because I happened to have my camera handy at all times. To me, there is no reason to have a separate movie camera, and both MACs and PC's come with good movie editing programs. I use Windows MovieMaker.

While the G9 has some more advanced shooting features than the basic point and shoots, unlike the SLR cameras, it still has the movie setting.

When you are a compulsive photo taker, it can become a hassle to carry a heavy camera. I know this is going to take some getting used to when I get the Digital Rebel. For now, the G9, while bigger and heavier than the point and shoots, is still a manageable size though the body is really heavy duty. Mine came with a neck strap which makes it easy to keep handy. Truth be told, I actually tuck it in the front of my bra strap to keep the weight off my neck.

We also own a Canon digital elph SD710, and that is the finest example of a very slim, lightweight camera with a nice big screen and excellent features but I definitely overall prefer the G9 because it offers more control. The digital elph is perfect for my little girl who is a wonderful photographer.

Research
My budget was $500. When I buy a big ticket item (which a camera is, for me), I do my homework. I read the discussion boards, consumer reviews and the complaints, to form a short list.

In this case, I knew I already like and trust Canon, so it quickly came down to a contest between the G7 and the G9. Ultimately I chose the G9 because it can shoot in RAW format. I'm just a novice in Photoshop and photo retouching, but by all accounts, once you become more proficient in that, you will want to shoot in RAW. RAW captures the image without locking you in to any photo settings. This means you have post-shooting control over everything: hue, light, contrast, and so on. I've only just begun to experiment with RAW in recent weeks but I'm glad I have the choice. Otherwise, I shoot in the default jpg format. If I had no interest in the whole photoshop aspect of photography, I would have very happily purchased the G7 for less money but again, the RAW option was the deciding factor that settled me on the G9.

When I was certain the G9 was the camera I wanted, I started watching all the ads, locally, and online throughout Canada and the U.S. I also monitored the 'completed sales' of G9's on eBay to get an idea of how much they actual sell for by auction.

From there, I noticed the option of buying the camera with an accessory package which included the following items:

-G9 camera body with built-in lens with neck strap: 12.1 mega pixels of resolution
-an extra wide angle lens: 0.5X (the camera also has an excellent built-in wide angle shooting feature)
-an extra telephoto lens: 58mm 2.0 digital lens (the camera also has a very good built-in 6x optical zoom with Optical Image Stabilizer)
-adaptor for the extra lenses
-a full-size tri-pod
-a desk top tripod
-a mini gorilla-type grabbing tripod
-two rechargeable lithium NB-2LH batteries (much longer lasting than AA's and AAA's)
-battery chargers for electrical outlets and car
-256k and 2 gig memory cards (I later bought a 4 gig card at a very good sale)
-a camera bag
-lens and camera cleaning supplies
-hand strap and neck strap

I found mine through an eBay store in the U.S.. I checked for a seller with very high feedback rating (over 99%), and free, insured shipping (since it would be coming from the U.S. to Canada). I used the 'buy it now' feature because the same camera package through bidding auctions was selling for more than the listed price. (People still don't seem to know how to do thorough searches on eBay!)

Total Paid: $449 U.S.
I've been very happy with the price paid because even with the improvement of the Canadian dollar in recent months, I've still never seen the camera alone (without all the extra trinkets I got) for less than $479 CAD (more than I paid for the entire package).

What I Love
-while not light and small, it's still a reasonable size to take wherever I go
-shoots stills and movies
-auto and manual settings for shutter speed, ISO, focus, etc.
-nice big 3" display screen
-batteries stay charged a long time (up to a few thousand shots)
-the zoom on the movie setting is fairly good: great for getting birds at a distance
-the built-in wide screen shooting option is gorgeous, enveloping a nice wide panoramic view. I use it constantly.
-RAW format option
-the macro setting takes some amazing close-up photos

What it's lacking
-I feel like I'm earning my way up in the photography world. I want to get an SLR camera so I can have fuller control over the shots, particularly the depth of field, and choice of focal points. I can usually make the G9 focus on a particular (fairly close) subject but my inner artist is craving greater control.
-Telephoto shooting: the extra lens that came with my G9 does improve the zoom, but I'm ready to go paparazzi on mother nature and really get close. When there's a fantastic hawk at the very top of tree, I want to be able to zoom right onto it and get a close up from far away. I definitely have telephoto lens envy.

Am I glad I bought it?
Absolutely. When I finally get the Digital Rebel, I'm sure I will carry both cameras (though perhaps not in my bra!) since I always want that movie feature handy (to ensure top honours at the annual family contest).

Sample Photos:
This turkey was photographed through a fence with the built-in zoom:


Macro of a bee, shot about a foot away:


I can usually make the camera focus on a subject with the desired blurry background:


I'm gradually learning to goof around with the settings to get the colours the way I really see them:


I'm also slowly figuring out how to achieve various textures:


One last point of interest: a lot of my photos are shot through my livingroom window (including the one above of the sparrows). It's double pane glass yet somehow this camera manages to ignore the glass and get the shot:



More:
See the G9 at Amazon
Canon G9 at Digital Camera Reviews
See my photos at flickr