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Carol Linder · Aug 27, 2010, 05:47 AM

I'm looking to replace my old Kodak digital camera. The camera that I have now does not have optical zoom (only digital) and I want my new camera to have optical zoom. My question is... Is 3x zoom enough or should I get a camera with 5x zoom? I basically take recreational pictures... sometimes I enlarge a favorite shot and frame it to hang on a wall. Any opinions?

JudyKayTee · Aug 27, 2010, 06:02 AM

I just bought one with 12 zoom - it's not my work camera, it's my second camera. I looked at all the features on every camera and decided on this particular "zoom."

jcdill · Aug 27, 2010, 07:59 AM

Originally Posted by Carol Linder

I'm looking to replace my old Kodak digital camera. The camera that I have now does not have optical zoom (only digital) and I want my new camera to have optical zoom. My question is...Is 3x zoom enough or should I get a camera with 5x zoom? I basically take recreational pictures...sometimes I enlarge a favorite shot and frame it to hang on a wall. Any opinions?

Figures like 3x zoom and 5x zoom don't really tell you what you need to know, because it depends on what the minimum (starting point) zoom setting is.

I just advised my dad to purchase a new Panasonic Lumix camera at Costco. Costco offered 2 Lumix models, one for ~$150 and one for ~$250 - both are excellent cameras with a really good lens (made by Leica), and ~10x and ~12x zoom. He bought the more expensive model with the higher level of zoom. It also has digital zoom on top of the optical zoom! It's easy to use, takes excellent photos, and I'm a dedicated Canon lover and I'm recommending everyone get the Lumix. :-) I really can't find any reason why anyone would buy something different in this price range. Take a look at the Lumix line, and see if there's anything you don't absolutely love about these cameras.

cdad · Aug 27, 2010, 03:13 PM

Recreational picture taking can be in many forms. What you need to consider is that if your mostly taking wide shots or close ups then the lens is the most important part along with the quality of the picture your going to take (5, 10,15 megapixel). If you do like blowing up your images then go for the higher resolutions. You will enjoy your prints more. Also depending on how much you have to spend you might want to look into a digital SLR.