Best Cameras Under $200

[McGirk242]

Hey there, just as the title says.

I'm looking for a camera under $200.

I'm not too much of a camera expert, but I do want to get into Amateur Photography so manual control would be a must have.

My main use of this camera would be general photography usually done in fair lighting conditions. I will be travelling a lot, nothing extreme though, so a camera that can help me capture a beautiful vista would be highly desired.

My knowledge on cameras isn't all that great, so can you help me out?

Thanks!

 

[RunLuke]

Would you be interested in buying something used and are you willing to use something a few years old? 200USD doesn't get you very far unless you explore those option.
I'd look at used M4/3 (micro four thirds) cameras, there are a bunch of companies making cameras and lenses for that mount/sensor standard and they do provide some excellent images. Also you are able to buy different lenses.
Then there are the Canon G-series for about 100 USD (USED), but you have to be willing to buy older, which IMO isn't a problem for starting out.

 

[McGirk242]

Would you be interested in buying something used and are you willing to use something a few years old? 200USD doesn't get you very far unless you explore those option.
I'd look at used M4/3 (micro four thirds) cameras, there are a bunch of companies making cameras and lenses for that mount/sensor standard and they do provide some excellent images. Also you are able to buy different lenses.
Then there are the Canon G-series for about 100 USD (USED), but you have to be willing to buy older, which IMO isn't a problem for starting out.

Used is not a problem at all. But are there are any drawbacks to used cameras besides obvious wear and tear that comes over time?

 

[RunLuke]

No, not in my opinion. The battery could be bad and not giving you the optimal life, but you can always get a new one unless it's a very exotic product. Then the sensor is probably dusty but you can get that cleaned. However most people, unless professioal photographers, take very very good care of their gear, so often there aren 't many problems.

What are you going for - interchangeable lenses or just something small and fun?

If you buy an SLR the shutter count could mean that you are closer to failure, but I've never had on fail for me (except for some heavy damage from a drop), even on cameras with a number of exposures above the stated MTBF.

 

[McGirk242]

No, not in my opinion. The battery could be bad and not giving you the optimal life, but you can always get a new one unless it's a very exotic product. Then the sensor is probably dusty but you can get that cleaned. However most people, unless professioal photographers, take very very good care of their gear, so often there aren 't many problems.

What are you going for - interchangeable lenses or just something small and fun?

If you buy an SLR the shutter count could mean that you are closer to failure, but I've never had on fail for me (except for some heavy damage from a drop), even on cameras with a number of exposures above the stated MTBF.

I definitely don't want anything heavy duty, if anything I'm mainly looking at bridge cameras. A higher end point and shoot, but not a DSLR. The Nikon 1 Series comes to mind when I think about it. But as I said before, I'm not really camera savvy.

 

[RunLuke]

Ok, cool, I have an ancient Olympus Pen M4/3 camera, taht's a good bridge camera, looks nice, takes lenses and flashes and makes some pretty impressive photos, the never ones are probably even better.The Nikon 1 is a pretty cool choice too, canon has their equivalent.
But I'd also look at the Canon G-series, but the older ones seems to be built at tad better than the new.