Missing: my big black Canon S70 with pictures from my birthday dinner at Hearth (a surprise from Craig), pictures of chicken knees at Yakitori Totto where I went with Diana, and the dessert she and I had at P*ng where the bartender practically hissed at us for not ordering drinks. Likely camera location: outside Food Network (at The Chelsea Market) where, yesterday, my umbrella inverted and I went tumbling into the street. (You may have seen me: I was literally splat on my face and my umbrella went gliding into the distance).In the very likely chance that my camera is gone forever, any suggestions for a pocket-sized camera that takes good food photos? With my track record, I don’t think I’m ready for an SLR.
Writing about food since 2004.
Lost Camera
The Amateur Gourmet
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Oh no, your camera is gone??!! Well it will be a miracle if you get it back, but stranger things have happened. I use a panasonic Lumix (it says: 12x optical zoom, 35 mm equiv mega o.i.s….I have no clue what any of that means but maybe you will), which is small enough, and I use it for all of the photos on my blog, which are mostly of food and wine. I have no idea what I’m doing either (and maybe you can tell) but this means that the camera is easy to use. It takes 20 min of video too. I got it for about $250-300 I think.
I’d suggest a canon digital elph. They’re a workhorse of a camera and discreet too.
I recommend the Canon SD1000. It’s a great camera and not so expensive that you will be unhappy when you break or lose it.
Don’t give up. Look around the internet. You’re camera might wind up someplace like here:http://ifoundyourcamera.blogspot.com/
I spent weeks reading reviews of point and shoot cameras to take good macro shots of food, and finally settled on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3. (I also can’t be trusted with expensive equipment.)The review that swayed me was from a food blogger who uses the Lumix as a backup for her SLR – sorry, I can’t remember which blogger. Mine is still in the mail so I can’t give you my personal take on it, but there are a ton of reviews on Amazon.
I have the Canon SD1000, too. It has a great digital macro and I use it for lots of food pics. (You can see them on my blog, but the horrible lighting in my kitchen tends to fight against any decent pics. I’ll be updating in the next day with some properly lit macro shots I took last night.)
Canon SD 870. If you want to see samples shot without flash just with restaurant lighting, go to my blog, look at USC and Red Cat pictures. Not so much the YUII pics because they were an afterthought.
i suggest a Canon sd850 is – small. super easy, with great pictures. i love mine .
My friend has the same camera as Joe I believe (80% sure) and it works really good! I would certainly suggest a Cannon as a brand to look at first though.Totally off-topic:While our AG was rising yesterday in the FN ranks, it looks one person was doing the opposite. Irvine’s the butt of many jokes around Tampa Bay area now.Heres the link:http://blogs.tampabay.com/dining/2008/02/irvine-cooked-u.htmlOh and AG has his own Wikipedia article now.
I’m a fan of the Canon SD1000 and suggested it to a friend a few months ago. I’m waiting for the April release of it’s successor– the Canon SD1100 IS (adds on a few more megapixels and image stabilization).
Canon SD 800 IS is a great camera (and the image stabilization definitely makes a difference). The 800 is better than the 850 or the 1000 which don’t have the IS.
Sounds like you had a Mary Poppins moment. The question is did you sing or curse when the umbrella sent you flying. http://hotcookies.net The Iphone takes remarkable pictures.
I’ve got a Panasonic DMC-LX2 which takes great photos. It’s a little expensive but worth it. The other cameras in the Panasonic line are pretty great too. Many of them have Leica lenses which are as good as they get.
No worries AG, consider it a high-tech sacrifice to the FN gods…I will leave it up to others as far as the camera recommendations go, although I’ve always loved my elph…Cheers!
I love the Sonys. They take great pictures, are easy to use, and the only video limitation is how much memory you have available.
All of the folks recommending the Canons are dead on. I’ve had an Olympus, a Sony and a Canon and the Powershot we bought last year has done SO well on trips and just around the house. It’s got good settings to adapt to light and you can shoot at a variety of file sizes.Sorry about the S70, but go get yourself a Powershot. You won’t be sorry.
I’m sorry you lost your camera. If it was anywhere near ninth st espresso, I’ll ask this afternoon if they saw it.The camera we use is a Canon Powershot S3. It’s an amazing camera, and I love it. I hear that there’s an S5 out now, but that the screen is bigger and, because of that, the batteries don’t last as long. But the image stabilization and the macro settings are great and let me take some really good pictures.
I love my Casio Exilim…it’s small, it takes great pictures and in the 2 years I’ve had it, it’s never failed me once. And when I went to Chez Panisse for dinner last month it took great pictures of my meal.
Hey, Adam! Congrats on the new show for the FN – and cry!cry! about the camera. I would suggest you look at the Sony Cybershot. On the latest model, the screen is the entire back of the camera! You can easily see if you got the shot you want, and you simply touch the screen to move through any menus and settings you desire. We just bought 2 for our office closeups and bought them at a SONY store — they actually had the lowest price of all the major stores in our San Jose Bay Area – plus, the SONY staff knows how their products work and can give you a great demo. Good luck on your camera and TV ventures! PS The Cybershot has a special setting for closeups and extreme closeups.
I love my Nikon Coolpix. It has a huge screen and takes great pictures. I used it for these shots, and was totally happy with the results.
So you ONLY ate with Diana at P*ng. I see how it is.
I have an old Canon Powershot which has been really durable, and I hear the new ones have a “digital macro” lens, which allows you to focus up to as little as 4″ away, handy for closeup food shots…As for an SLR, I love love love my Nikon D200. It’s heavy and bulky, yeah, but somehow so comforting to hold.
So you ONLY ate with Diana at P*ng. I see how it is.
So you ONLY ate with Diana at P*ng. I see how it is.
Oh dear, so sad to lose a camera with irreplaceable pics! You might look on craigslist lost & found and post there, too. (I found a Pomeranian a few weeks ago and tracked down his owners that way. Photos here, taken with a Panasonic Lumix, which I like very much. No need for the extra software some Canons seem to require.)
I have a Samsung NV10 and I have to say this is one dinky little point and shoot and that has impressed the hell outta me. The prices have dropped since they released the NV11.What I would do if I were you, is to walk into the geekiest independent camera shop and let them talk you through the recommendations you have here. You won’t regret it. 😀
I love my Casio XLim too…neat and easy “Best SHot” (BS) mode gives you 20+ preset setting combinations. Love it! And it’s red…easy to spot.
You might look at the Exilim Card. We have the older model – the S880 – and it take fabulous pictures.
Whatever camera you chose to get you should take the time to protect it from loss. Cameras are expensive and not only that but you can lose hundreds of photos. This has happened to me and that is why I use TrackItBack.
You might actually have more luck with an SLR— the size makes it harder to leave around willy-nilly, and once you get used to the bulk you miss it as soon as you walk away.(As a chronic leaver-of-items, I’ve learned that I must sadly resist the tiny trend).Looking forward to your take on Yakitori Totto– I went in trying to be adventurous, but was sooooooo squicked out. I felt so lame.
Looks like Eater has taken notice of your lost camera and joined the cause! Has a lost camera ever made this much news? Will Larry King pick up the story too? Will a national manhunt (Pic-hunt?) begin? Will it start a cvil war in Turkey?!
Whatever camera you chose to get you should take the time to protect it from loss. Cameras are expensive and not only that but you can lose hundreds of photos. This has happened to me and that is why I use TrackItBack.
Whatever camera you chose to get you should take the time to protect it from loss. Cameras are expensive and not only that but you can lose hundreds of photos. This has happened to me and that is why I use TrackItBack.