Camera advice

sesselpupser

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neema_t
Sorry if this isn't the appropriate forum but I thought I'd get better quality responses here than the tech forum.

I've been away from photography for a long time, the last camera I owned was a Canon 5D which I bought shortly after they came out. I sold that in 2010 after a long period of not actually using it and now that I'm earning money again, I've got an itch.

Sadly, my job doesn't pay quite well enough for me to be able to afford a high end SLR like that again, and even if it did I don't think I'd get enough use out of it and I don't really want to carry all that weight around again, though I will really miss the full-frame sensor and the hefty, smooth lenses.

My priorities are (in order):
- Responsiveness, which I can't stress enough! If it takes more than a few seconds from powering on and taking a photo, it's no good. The main reason I want a camera that isn't my phone is because my phone is far, far too slow. This was by far the 5D's biggest advantage over every other digital camera I've ever used, it was almost exactly like shooting on film.
- A point and shoot form factor
- Good low light performance
- At least 28mm (equivalent) at the widest zoom setting
- At least f/2 at the widest setting (preferably not much more than f/4 at the tele end)
- A decent size for someone with big hands, but not in a 'bridge' form factor unless there's a very good reason (like, an 18mm equivalent f/1.2 lens)
- Preferably knobs for aperture, shutter and maybe focus (do P&S cameras have manual focus?)
- The option to have a viewfinder, if that still exists
- A hotshoe, failing that a flash that can be bounced or tilted, failing that... Meh.

What I don't want:
- A camera that costs 50% more than a competitor solely because it does 4K, I'm not that interested in shooting video!
- Anything that shoots in proprietary formats, on a proprietary memory card or uses proprietary connectors - Sony were big offenders on all three counts when I last went P&S shopping over ten years ago so I appreciate this may not even be a thing any more...
- A bridge camera, unless (as I mentioned) it means significantly better low light performance, a much faster aperture or a much wider wide angle zoom
- A low end SLR because I won't buy a variety of lenses and I don't want to carry the bulk
- A Nikon (joking, of course).


I've been looking at the Canon Powershot G9 X because it's relatively cheap (£380), seems to tick all of my biggest boxes and is generally, apparently, a bit more responsive than the more expensive cameras in the Powershot G range.

Any other suggestions please?
 
I've heard pretty much exclusively good things about Canon's Powershot line, so that may be your best bet. I looked at some of the competitors and none of them really ticked as many boxes as the Powershot for a reasonable price. I will mention the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100, because it has good low-light performance, a pretty sweet lens, and manual controls (It doesn't have a knob for aperture, but rather a ring on the lens, which if you've shot film you'd probably be familiar with). That said, it's quite a bit more expensive than the Canon, and people in the U.K. get shafted with camera prices so it's probably even worse for you. But hey, it's something to consider.
 
@Turtle that looks great, thanks! I asked a couple of pro friends of mine, one uses a G7 X and the other a G9 X as their backup/street/compact/whatever cameras and they both love them, so I guess it'll probably come down to their specific feature sets. The Panasonic's f/1.7 aperture might swing it but I can't remember what the Canons' apertures are.
 
@neema_t Looks like the Panasonic is f/1.7-2.8 and the Canon is f/2-4.9, so the difference isn't that great until you get to the tele end.
 
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