www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Time to step up and buy another terma camera.

The one I have has a tiny screen and is only 3.5 megapixel.

I'd love some feed back from the gang.

great source of information is

http://www.digitalcamera-hq.com/

I bought a Canon Power Shot A95 last year and am very happy with it. Might be a little to big for comfortable use in a terma.

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

Hoserack:

I'm not sure what a terma camera is, but................

After researching I chose Canon Power Shot SD 700IS Digital ELPH. It is small enough to fit in a pocket (seems pretty heavy for the size) 6 MP, 2.5" LCD screen (very good resolution), manual view finder, up to 800 ISO (adjustable to automatic), 3 or 4 flash options, approximately 8 different view settings. Many other features. It was highly reviewed by the so-called experts. I paid $339.00 from Circuit City on-line, it retails for about $399.00. So far I am very happy with it. Also bought the latest and fastest 2 meg card $49.00 after rebates. It says it will hold approximately 750 pictures at highest resolution.

cnet.com is another good source for searching.

Health & happiness.

santas bro

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It's not the size of the wand that put the rabbit in the hat, it's the magic in it!!!

I like the Casio Exilim EX S600(6MP). It's what I have.

It's small, light, very slim(fits in termas robe pocket). Comes with a small case that attaches to your belt or you can keep it in your pocket.

You can use the video mode and take pictures at the same time- means you always get a photo and a nice little clip of the girl's personality when she's posing for pics or anything else she lets you video.

The video mode it the best I have seen of any camera because it uses the MP4- most cameras(canon for instance) use the AVI video codec(god knows why) and it means a 1GB video card gets used in 15 minutes of video. The Casio can record 3 hours of decent quality video on a 1GB stick.

There are better cameras out there if you want to take seriously good photos but nothing I know of is as versatile and easy to use.

Here's an excellent review site:

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/allreviews.php

Wow, you can record video while taking pictures, that's really kewl.

Is is small? I like it small enough to fit in my pants pocket.

Think of it more as taking pics while you are recording video because you engage the video by pressing a button and then you can take pics too. But, you cannot take pics that fast while you're in video mode with flash- probaby 1 every 4 seconds

It will fit in your pants pocket but you need some kind of case that protects the LCD screen(as with any camera). My Exilim S600 came with the case that slides onto your belt or fits in your pocket and I think you can stick a credit card or something inside with the camera to protect the LCD.

http://www.dcresource.com/reviews/casio ... ndex.shtml

For adventures I advise getting a small small camera. Look at the Canon Powershot SD500 for a start. They are known as the ELPH series in Europe.

It is the size of a pack of cigarettes. If it is bigger than a pack of cigarettes you cannot carry it without it being obivious to pick pockets and theives.

Those little Canons will take great photos of your trips to the countryside or fishing trips, nomatter the fish. Video clips too. Recharge the batteries each night and you will be fine. You can unload the photos onto a CD at any Kodak store for about $2 and clear your memory card.

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PacoLoco: "You pay for it one way or another."
Ace: "Rent everything, do not buy in Costa Rica"

I agree with TF on the casio ex-z60 Exilim (6mp)its about the size of a pack of smokes and I paid about 270.00 at Radioshack 2 months ago. There is a new model out (8mp) for 399.00.The carring case offrered to go with it is to big , but my friend who has one suggested that I use a mini crown royal bag and it fits perfect.Just slide it in pocket and your ready to go.Great photos for mongering 3x optical zoom not for the far away scenic shots.

I recently bought the Casio EX-S600, the 6MP model that TicaFan mentioned. It sells for around $270+tax in stores, but I got a good deal on Ebay. I paid $220 (+20 ship) for a brand new camera AND a 1GB memory card ($40 value). It is small enough to carry in your pocket. But I wouldn't recommend, that's how I broke my other one. I just bought the case with the belt loop on Ebay for $6. The camera is very small and thin. It's something like 3.5"X 2.5"x .6". The pics look very good and the video is cool. I haven't tried to do both at the same time yet. RECOMMENDED.

I can't remember the last time I bought electronics in a store. Ebay is the way to go. But read the fine print. Make sure it's brand new, not refurbished, open box, or just plain used. I always email the seller and ask before bidding just to make sure.

If anybody has any questions about the camera or Ebay, PM me, I'll gladly help you out.

Houtex is right about carrying one in a protective bag or something that protects it from scratching. I just know from reading that LCD screens break easily. Use a couple rubberbands and put a credit card-like layer over the LCD. Big cases are annoying and the smaller you keep it the easier it is to hide anywhere on your body in case you're worried about getting robbed or anything.

A note on pixel density: If you have a 6 megapixel camera(makes 6mb pictures) and you have it set to take pics at 1(1mb) megapixel those pics will not be any denser or better than a 3 megapixel camera on a 1 mp setting- they are both taking 1 megapixel(1mb) shots. You only increase the resolution of the pic by increasing the pixel setting. So if you are taking postcard pics(640x480) and that's the size you like, a new camera will not make that sized photo better unless the new camera is a big step up in lens quality or some other feature that improves general picture quality. If you want a large pic of a beautiful girl or "situation"- the kind that opens up on your entire screen without losing quality- you have set the camera. By and large though, a 1mp photo has good resolution, 3mp is a pretty dense, high resolution picture on your computer screen. If you have 3mp camera and you are not happy have you even been using the entire resolution capability?

If it's something you are going to email or won't necessarily want to view on large resolution later, set the size accordingly. The bigger the setting, the more memory you chew up on your memory card, so you have to take that into consideration. Naturally though, if it's a girl in a termas that's posing for you, take high resolution shots. They make for great memories.

I know that all sounds obvious but I learned the hard way that settings matter to what you end up with when you get back from your vacation.

The same thought process matters when you record video with your camera(if you do). Many cameras have different video resolution settings such as 320x240 or 640x480. The lower resolution is decent quality video and uses less memory but 640x480 is generally great quality but take a lot more memory. At 640x480 most cameras chew up a 256 card in 6-8 minutes or a 1GB in 15-20. That's exactly why I love the Exilim S600- video for hours on 1 GB card because it uses the MP4 video codec- Not an issue if you don't care about videoing events.

Question, how large a picture file are we able to upload when we post pics on CRT?

Wow great info TF.
Thanks

Hoserack:

A couple of items:

Image stabilization: For me being an old f*rt I liked the fact that my camera came with image stabilization. This can be a problem with the little cameras and slight movement. Go to a local Best Buy/Circuit City and try them all. Image stabilization may not mean much to you.

Screen protection: They sell protection sheets (clear plastic) for most cameras LCD screens. Won't do anything if you drop the camera, but will keep the LCD from scratching. They make them for PSP screens that are larger (you can cut at least four) and less expensive.

Buying on-line: Orange is right, if you do your homework it is much less expensive to buy on-line. A word of caution, some vendors sell Janpanese models (do you have to send back to Japan for warranty items?). They are the same camera, just marked different. The canon 700IS is 800 IS in Japan. Make sure that the warranty is good in USA and voltage is the same for chargers, etc. In most cases it should be, but reading through the reviews by people that have bought from some, it is not always the case. Also, some vendors sell reconditioned cameras, be sure to ask if it is new.

It sounds like Casio would make wonderful choice, as well as Canon. Go and try them all, some have menu items easier to access, some may feel better in your hand, etc. It's kind of like with women, no right answer except what is your preference.

Health & happiness.

santas bro

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It's not the size of the wand that put the rabbit in the hat, it's the magic in it!!!

Ticafan,

Is that the same camera you were using in March?

That little unit took some oustanding shots best I can recall.

Yeah, I guess you saw some of the shots. Hope I make it to SJO in November when you all are there.

Cool, I have been looking at cameras for my November trip, now I know which one to purchase, thanks to you!

I hope you do make it in November, I am staying at Castillo again , but for 10 nights this time and traveling solo, would be nice to see a familiar face to hang with .

Get off your tail and call Darren and book that room !