i need to get a camera for this upcoming year and i'm wondering what ones are the best. i don't want to spend more than 250. i would like one for under 200 if i could get a good one. i'm just wondering what the best camera is at a reasonable price

Look for one with optical image stabilization.  Unless you are making large blow-up, IS is probably a more important factor than a huge megapixel count.  To see what a fair deal is check out

bhphotovideo *

adorama *

Sometimes more hassel (and don't accessories) but sometimes great deals  butterflyphoto *.

You can feel quite confident with bh & adorama.  Will be very clear with USA vs Intl warranty.

I've had good luck with Panasonic, but Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax, Olympus etc. are all good.  You probably want something that takes SD cards.  Cheers

i need to get a camera for this upcoming year and i'm wondering what ones are the best. i don't want to spend more than 250. i would like one for under 200 if i could get a good one. i'm just wondering what the best camera is at a reasonable price

There are hordes of good cameras in that range, you need to compare features and see which are more important to you.

If you are looking to buy online, read THIS first.  Funny stuff.

LBH, that was awesome  If the camera price on-line is too good to be true, then it is.   I only buy from two sites (bh & butteryfly).  I don't call BH because they can be pushy on the phone, but they are considered very reliable by pro's.  I'll buy on-line from butterfly, but try not to speak to them in person since they do try for all the accessories  - and their customer service is horrible.

Be very careful buying from some of the NY stores.  Very low prices often mean gray market products, those not meant for sale in the US.  Manufacturers will not honor warranties on those products.  I used to have some issues with film that was manufactured in the US, shipped overseas, then shipped back again.  No control over temperature or conditions and often the color had shifted to the point where it was not correctable.  Obviously we don't have that problem any more with digital but I did once unknowingly buy a gray market camera.  It was defective and I had no end to the problems trying to get it repaired.  For good deals on used equipment, try www.KEH.com. I purchased a lot of used pro equipment from them, never had a problem.

Samsung has a bunch of nice cameras in that range, some are on sale this week as a matter of fact...

Without getting into the price wars

A Nikon with a Nikkor lens is state-of-the-art

(a camera is never better than its lens)

Roger

Add to you list of wanted features: the highest optical zoom in your price range.

Here's a great site to help aide in your decision.

http://dpreview.com/

Now that was some good stuff LBH.Wish i thought of that!

Like LBH i go with cheaper cameras as well. Doesn't matter which one i get it never lasts a year.We think the kid threw away our $150 one this year.We have no clue where it went to.If my kid can't get something to work he just throws stuff in the trash.Except his toys,if his toys are broken he just says "glue it,daddy!"  ;D

We never buy a camera that costs over $150 for that reason and everybody i talk to doesn't get it when they try to do that sales pitch on me.

I see that you live in Canton, MI.

If you feel like a 30-40 minute drive there is a large camera shop at the corner of Telegraph and m-59 in pontiac. (the name escapes me at the moment) Ritz Camera or something.

Ive been in this store and they have everything you can think of at every price range.  And their product knowledge is excellent.

I have a Kodak easyshare that I bought from there 2 years ago for like $250.  Im sure they have cameras in your price range and the knowhow to get you what you need.

Thanks josey,i'll have to check it out sometimes.

Cannon's and Nikon's are good cameras. Stay away from ones like Sony.  For taking pictures of fish and stuff, get a nice optical zoom. Digital zoom is ok, but your pictures are much, much clearer with a good optical zoom. My camera is 6x opticalthen it does up to like 10x digital.

BB

I don't think you can go wrong buying a Canon digicam.  They are solid.

If your new camera is for fishing use, you might want to consider a waterproof case to keep it in. I use the cases by Pelican in sizes to fit each of my cameras.