Is there anything wrong with the quality in digital super-zom cameras?

Skimming thru some answers a few days ago I thought I read digital zooms don’t have high quality. Isn’t there only 2 types of zooms,the digital and the older 35mm lenses? Looking at Nov 06 Consumer Reports they don’t mention any negativeness.

Answer by stopmeifimwrong
There are two kinds of zoom. Digital and optical. Digital zoom is what you get when you zoom in on part of the picture that has already been composed. Optical zoom really focuses in on your subject. Digital may maybe be compared to looking at a small part of a picture under a microscope. Optical may maybe be compared with looking at an object through a telescope. Digital zoom only manipulates the picture you already have. Optical uses glass (or additional) lenses to bring the object quicker. Forget digital zoom when buying a camera. You can do that on the computer after you take your pictures. Invest in the most optical zoom you can afford.

Answer by sm
in digital photography there is digital zoom and optical zoom.they are leisurely by how much quicker you can get to your subject, like 3x quicker. digital zoom is when the camera zooms and crops on what you want, so if it doesn’t see something, lets say in the shade outside on a sunny day it won’t be in the photo cause the computer in your camera doesn’t see it. optical zoom is when the lens moves, so the lens will see that something in the shade.If you want to get just a small bit quicker for a causal shot, the digital zoom will help. but if you zoom on all you shoot for the fun of it, you will lose some detail in your photos.Some cameras will allow you to shut off the digital zoom if you don’t want it at all.

35mm camera zooms are leisurely differently but are the same as optical zoom on digital cameras. it’s call 35mm film because the lens is 35mm away from the film. then they added long lens to get quicker to the subject. most automatic cameras today come with 35mm-80mm lens meaning they are that far away from the film.

I reckon a 3x optical zoom is equal to about 60-80mm lens

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I’ve gone to persons consumer report websites, but I figured I may maybe get more input here.
What is a excellent camera to get for action shots. I need something that can shoot system shots really well and wont place me in the whole money wise. I have $ 500 to spend on a excellent camera.

If it helps most of my shots are of skateboarding and surfing.

Answer by The_Smak_Daddy_SMACK!!
I have a List Rebel and like it…just my .02

Answer by jenwinlee
I just got a Pentax K110D 6.1 megapix with a 18-55 mm lens for a small more than $ 400 on Amazon. I took it to my nephew’s baseball game and got fantastic continuous frame photos. Very apparent. I also used continuous frame/action at night to get photos of the fireworks on the 4th of July. They came out wonderfully. There are many different settings to chose from so I reckon you may maybe get excellent action shots. I will say that you’ll have to buy a memory card to go with it, but you can get a 2GB card for less than $ 30. Also, even though it’s a digital camera, you can’t use the LCD screen as a view finder. You have to look through the eye piece to set up your shot, which is really better when you’re in the bright sunlight at the beach anyway. You can view the shot on the screen afterwards. This helps save the battery life though, which is a very excellent business. The camera comes with software and the cords for transferring photos to your computer. I highly recommend the camera! (BTW, the 6.1 MP should be plenty for photos unless you’re going to blow them up to lifesize.)

Answer by DougF
The make of camera is less vital than the frame rate and lens combinations you will need for the circumstances you describe.

To ‘stop’ action you will need to be shooting at shutter speeds of 1/500s or greater, and to realize this consistently, you will need a reasonably quick lens. Most consumer zooms seem to be around f3.5 at the close end, but go out to f5.6 at the slow end. This is relatively slow, but part of the price you pay for zoom. Unfortunately, you pay for nearer lenses, and I don’t reckon what you are prepared to pay will get you something nearer.

The additional lens issue you face is that for surfing, you will need a lens with a longer focal length. Just how long depends a bit on how close you reckon you can get, but something around 200mm would be a minimum. Have a look at the link below for some thoughts and additional tips.

I am not familiar with US prices. Someone else will no doubt tell you about that.

Answer by TomTom
my suggestion
go to yahoo shopping
digital cameras
digital camera GUIDE
be sure to check titles on the left side
the guide should answer your questions

Answer by Dr. Sam
You need a digital SLR for the shots you want. The cheapest dSLR worth owning is the Pentax K110D, as mentioned above by Jenwinlee, so follow her advice and check her link.

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