Great Camera for the price
Written: Jan 22 '04
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Pros: Outdoor photos are excellent! High level of detail.
Cons: Low light, non-flash photos not very good; slow capture speed at times.
The Bottom Line: Buy it if you don't want to spend more for a 5 Mega Pixel camera.
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| bhlang's Full Review: Hewlett Packard Photosmart 935 Digital Camera |
I had been wanting a new camera since November 2002 when my film one became unreliable (film advance unreliable; shutter unreliable). Between November 2002 and December 2003, I used my wife's film camera. Much better than my old one, and I got some great shots while backpacking this summer. But when I went to scan the photos, the quality was sorely lacking. What I really wanted was to go digital.
HP dropped the price of this camera significantly around the end of November here in Canada and finally, the time had come to buy it. This was the first 5+ Mega-Pixel camera for under $500 Canadian that I saw anywhere. Actually, there still aren't many below that price by any manufacturer.
I am very pleased with the quality of the photos this camera takes. I now have some great photos of my 10 month old son and more from a ski trip to Jasper, Alberta in January 2004.
The camera does not seem to like the cold very much (I was cross country skiing in -25C / -13F weather and I had the camera in an inside pocket). When I stopped to take pictures, the lens complained bitterly about the cold while opening and closing. It did work however. I will not use the camera again in those conditions just to be safe.
The indoor photos of Christmas parties, etc... were the best I've had in years.
Next, I need to play with the video camera mode some more. I only wish that it had slightly larger video output. But if I really want to do that, I guess I can buy a video camera.
Some other reviewers were complaining about battery life. My only suggestion is to buy a good set of rechargeable batteries. I bought 4 batteries and a charger with the camera as well as a 256 MB memory card. The batteries have been simply amazing. Sometimes I get a message that there is not enough power for live preview. So what, I use the viewfinder. Then when I try the camera again a while later, live preview is working again - without changing the batteries! another way to extend battery life is to transfer photos to your computer while 1) the camera is in the dock (if you bought it) or 2) to take the memory card out of the camera and put the memory card in a card reader connected to the computer. Using the USB cable to transfer photos can really suck the battery life down.
The memory card gives me enough room for almost 200 photos on the medium quality setting. That's more than 8 rolls of film. I've never taken that many photos at the same time. Plus now I can go home, load the photos onto the computer, pick the ones I want prints of and take the card to the photo shop to get them printed if I want to. No more wasted money developing photos that are blurry or under/over exposed - two of my biggest problems on film cameras. If the photo is unacceptable after taking the photo, I delete it and take another!
One of my gripes is that there is no way to turn off the feature that displays the photo immediately following capture. I think that that feature could save battery life. When I go backpacking this summer, I'll have to see how well it lasts when I'm 5-6 days away from civilization (and electricity!). Of course, I could buy that portable solar panel system.....
Another gripe is that the photo sometimes takes a second or two to capture after pressing the button. You have to hold the camera still during this process to get the best photo. I took some photos of my feet in the first while but I quickly adapted.
My last gripe is for non-flash, indoor photography. In low light conditions, the camera requires a much slower shutter speed which means more chance for a blurry photo. I guess I have to invest in a tripod (the camera can be tripod mounted...)
Anyways, my recommendation is to get this if you're looking for a replacement for a point-and-shoot film camera. If you're a serious photographer, you probably want to keep looking. Someone once told me that you will need to spend $11,000 to $16,000 (Canadian) to get a digital camera to replace a high end film camera. Definitely not in my budget, but if you're a professional photographer it would be worth it.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): approx. 350
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
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Epinions.com ID:
bhlang
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Member: Brian Lang
Location: Edmonton, AB, Canada
Reviews written: 9
Trusted by: 0 members
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