Need a digital camera for work

[BetterSense]

I need a camera for work. They will be buying so money isn't a big issue. 90% of the time it will be used to take close-up shots of silicon wafers.

Basically it needs to have an idiot mode (for everyone else) and I need decent low-light performance, basic manual controls and ability to focus close. The last camera I had was a Kodak P&S that was F/3.5 and went up to 1600ISO. It had manual control but no manual focus, which was sometimes difficult since the subjects I need to photograph are often mirror-finished. It did have a macro mode but minimum focus distance was still 6-8 inches and I would like better macroability.

I have no idea what is currently available, can someone please at least point me in the right direction? A DSLR is probably too big, even EVIL cameras are kind of clumsy.

 

[R Shaffer]

Being that I am a Nikon guy, it looks like the Coolpix P100 would fit the bill for a macro camera for the masses. Focuses down to 4" in macro mode and even closer if you go wide angle and has manual focus. The usual VR stuff, ISO 1600, various shooting modes for dummies ect., ect. that all the P&S pretty much have.

The one thing that it does not have is the ability to save RAW image files. If you need idiot mode, then you probably don't need RAW, which requires post processing the images.

Canon, Olympus, Pentax & Panasonic/Leica each probably have a very similar camera with a different name if you prefer.

 

[Eric Rose]

G12

 

[jeffreyg]

Which ever camera you decide on, consider that closeup +diopter filters can be adapted or held in front of the lens to get greater magnification. I tried this with my wife's old Minolta digital point and shoot and it worked very well.

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[pellicle]

I need a camera for work. They will be buying so money isn't a big issue. 90% of the time it will be used to take close-up shots of silicon wafers.
even EVIL cameras are kind of clumsy.

Panasonic G3? a flip out screen has a lot to be said for it

 

[ROL]

There is a category of advanced P&S that I landed upon last summer. I'm still getting to know my Panasonic Lumix LX5. It is fully manual and has more automatic functions, including idiot proof ones than I may ever need. It has a fast f2.0 Leica branded zoom lens (24 – 90), shoots raw/jpg, macros to a half inch and has nice video. Unless one is going to print large, one of these or even the cheaper, smaller jpg only variety P&S, is probably all one needs. There are plenty of YouTube videos on these cameras, including one of mine.

 

[L Gebhardt]

Probably a DSLR or Micro 4/3 camera would be your best bet it image quality at ISO 1600 is a requirement. I like my LX5, but it's not great at 1600 compared to a newer DSLR. But it's probably fantastic compared to the older Kodak you are using now.

 

[ROL]

Well, here's a reason to consider only point and shoots.