Cameras

Last year I was at the launch of the Nikon 1 camera, and although I asked several times to review it I never got to the top of the list. Now however Nikon have just launched the Nikon 1 v1 which comes with two lenses.

This is a PowerShot but looking at it quickly you may consider it is DSLR unit as it is larger than the recent PowerShot offerings not in the battery area as it has a solid battery but all round as it is a chunky looking item.

Sometimes review products are available immediately but there are occasions when a great deal of patience is required before you get your hands on a product. This is a case of the latter.

These days’ people do not want to put their camera away when it rains and here a unit that goes one stage further with special modes for use under water. However it still takes decent images and movies in more normal conditions.

A small digital camera from a company that does a whole raft of electrical items which naturally include cameras. This is perhaps one of their smallest as they also do a range of DSLR units apart from the pocket Lumix range.

Not a DSLR but not a unit that fits easily into a pocket. This is larger than most digital cameras as it charged by ‘AA’ batteries and therefore the right hand has a solid grip should you decide not to use the supplied neck strap.

Canon does a lot of professional cameras however they also have two ranges, Ixus and PowerShot, suitable for home and pocket use. Here the latest offering, the Canon PowerShot A4000IS, in what used to be the larger of the two small units - the PowerShot, which has shrunk.

It seems a long time since I have been able to enjoy the extras of a DSLR camera. So the arrival of this Pentax offering that I first saw at a London launch last autumn was an eagerly and long awaited event to savour.

Beyond Point-and-Shoot which is subtitled “Learning to use a digital SLR or interchangeable-lens camera” is a very useful book that provides a large amount of useful photographic information without assuming that the reader has any previous knowledge. In addition to its target audience, who will find it invaluable, it provides many of the answers to questions that one has not dared ask and so will be of value to anyone who wishes to have a better understanding of photographi

It used to be that Canons smallest cameras were the Ixus brand. When this PowerShot arrived I had to look at the box to be sure it was a PowerShot as it is truly tiny and only the Canon Ixus offerings have been this small.

This is another small digital camera from a name more associated with lenses rather than cameras. But they do make rather good cameras as well. This offering has a feature that I have never seen before on any camera I have reviewed.

A slightly chunky offering from GE, but the G100 has a decent CMOS sensor and it has the ability to shoot 10FPS at full resolution. It is 15x optical and takes a 14.4MP image which of course means it can also capture Full HD video.

Capturing a photo from behind you is just one of the features with this Samsung digital camera.

While a few may still be wowed by huge MegaPixel, most now know it’s the quality of the CMOS that gives quality of image, here you get a perfectly respectable 12.1MP and an excellent 20x optical zoom in a small form factor.

Having looked at Samsung printers, smartphones and tablets, it is time to check out the company’s photographic line-up with its WB750 model.

With ‘Flips’ now a discontinued line there is a gap in the market for a small – pocket size – camcorder, this one from Kodak is waterproof to ten feet and has a range of special features as well as the ability to take stills as well as video.

I recently spent a couple of hours at the Broadcast Video exhibition, a great deal of what was on show was very expensive Broadcast equipment but then some stands had almost the opposite. I know Manfrotto for various photographic accessories. I have reviewed portable flash units, tripods and monopods, here something different.

This little black offering fits into the smallest pocket but can take HD video as well as rather nice still images. Even if you have a larger and more powerful unit, this can be ready even before that comes from the bag.

The Pentax Q has the appearance of a compact camera yet it offers the user an interchangeable lens facility.

PowerShot are the larger of two small Digital Camera ranges offered by Canon. This unit is larger than most and on first glance could be mistaken for a DSLR unit. The main difference is that its lens is not interchangeable.

I first saw this early last autumn at the impressive restaurant at OXO tower. I took some great images from their outside balcony over the Thames and have been impatiently waiting to get my hands on one to give it a thorough review.

Not slim, not sleek and the cream colour makes it look a little strange. However the important thing is image quality and here I have no complaints, in fact this ultra compact model has other features not always found with other small cameras.

The Canon Ixus 230HS is another offering in possibly the best range of small pocket cameras around. This is the latest Ixus offering, Canon do another ‘smaller’ unit the PowerShot apart from their many offerings in the DSLR market place.

I had to find my long lost feminine side to review this and endured many a ribbing while reviewing it, mind you there were certain parts of London I avoided as a man of mature years with a very pink digital camera could cause problems.

A waterproof camera that can by the aid of GPS tell you where you were when you took the image or movie. I did not get a chance to test if the two features worked together; in fact the only waterproof tests were in my bath.

This tiny handheld unit has probably got more capture power ability than a full size tripod mounted film unit of not that many years ago, so for not that much money you can capture HD movies and sound without any real effort.

Here I am looking at three different tripod type devices to allow you to let go of your camera. First the Hybrid that works with DSLR or pocket cameras. The other two are smaller the Micro250 for the pocket offering and the Micro800 for the larger pocket offering or the smaller DSLR.

Available in a choice of lime green, champagne silver or black (as in the case of the review model), the Ricoh PX is a waterproof, shockproof and dust-resistant digital camera. Perhaps I should have included the word “compact” into that description as the camera certainly qualifies in this respect. The camera’s dimensions are 100 x 55 x 21.3cm in whatever mode or zoom level is currently being used.

A small digital camera from Kodak, this however is part of their idea to make sharing easier and the camera itself has a 16MP image size and comes with 5x optical zoom so can it offer nirvana of everything to everyone?

Here something brand new and LED light that can also be a flash that has just been released. The second item also from Manfrotto is something all serious amateur photographers need is a bag to keep all their items in.