If you want to sell pictures but don't want a digital SLR .... (Casio Exilim Pro EX-P700)

Member Name: Mr. Davis

Product:	Casio Exilim Pro EX-P700
Date:	29/08/06 (41 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Saves in TIFF format, nice Canon lense, good zoom ratio.

Disadvantages: I had a problem with it after 3 months which seems to have rectified itself

Magazine printers don't like JPEGs .... on the whole. They like TIFF files so if you want to sell pictures to publications or illustrate your articles, you need a TIFF capable camera. This camera saves in TIFF file format (unlike the majority of compact digital cameras), has a Canon lense, is well built (a metal frame no less) and has bags of features to suit a newcomer to photography as well as serve a cynical semi pro.

The 7 megapixel resolution perhaps only comes into it's own shooting pictures saved in TIFF format since when I zoomed into identical JPEG shots taken with this camera and my 5 megapixel Konica KD-510Z, I could see no difference.

Whilst shooting full resolution shots saved as TIFF files (which take up a whacking 20Mb at least per file so you'll need a useful memory card) "rendering" that amount of data takes quite a while. I use my Konica KD-510Z to shoot JPEG shots whilst the Casio's green "I'm rendering a TIFF shot" LED is blinking for up to two minutes. Allegedly, 7 megapixel shots can be printed happily up to A3.

It uses SD cards which are easy enough to get hold of. battery life is good. The display is very informative and capable of being a bit confusing though you have loads of control over what's in the display so if you don't like the display, it's your fault.

It DID let me down for a while. It refused to boot or close down properly and I had to coax it gently back to life and though it seems OK now, I'm a bit nervous about the same fault appearing again. I took the precaution of finding the recipt, putting it in the box and making sure it was all readily to hand.

I bought it in late April '06. I gave me problems in July.

If you want to shoot serious pictures and have some lenses from an ordinary SLR, it might be worth your while getting some extra use out of your lense collection by buying a digital SLR. If you're really serious about quality, look at medium format cameras.

Summary: Use it in TIFF format all the time and another camera for JPEG shots

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