Camera equipment

[Mintty Girl]

Hi All,

 

My DH has set his heart on buying a Digital Camera for his Christmas Present. We are sailing on the Crown leaving on the 23rd December.

 

Can anyone give me any advice which Islands, which shops are good value and give good service:) . I look forward to hearing your replies.

[bhopal21]

Buy your camera at home. Many people report having warranty or other problems and you have little to no recourse after you get home.

 

Mike:)

[cjh]

Buy it at the Royal Caribbean shop in St. Thomas. I saved over $1,000 on what I got and because St. Thomas is a part of the US the warranty is no problem.

[stephenandrew]

Buy it at the Royal Caribbean shop in St. Thomas. I saved over $1,000 on what I got and because St. Thomas is a part of the US the warranty is no problem.

 

 

Hi--I am curious---what camera and equipment did you buy that you saved over $1000 on?

[chrysalis]

Buy it at the Royal Caribbean shop in St. Thomas. I saved over $1,000 on what I got and because St. Thomas is a part of the US the warranty is no problem.

 

That does not mean much when the OP is from the UK....they need a warranty that works in the UK, not the US

[Eskwire]

Do research on line at home. Search the prices on line before you go...who knows you might find a price you like. I live in New York (Long Island) and the well known camera stores in Manhattan like 6th Avenue Electronics now have on line shopping with great prices. The carribbean isn't the only place to get a deal...lots of people travel to NYC to get great prices on Jewelry and Cameras too!!!

[Giorgi-one]

I also would buy camera at home. One problem is that many internet prices are bogus. They will not sell the camera at the low advertised price unless you buy the accessories from them which are way overpriced. For example, you can buy 1Gb SD cards for about $30 with rebates which are always offered. Many of the online stores charge over $100 for these. Same with batteries, cases, etc. They also charge exhorbitant shipping charges. I did find one online store with good price and no pressure to buy accessories.

[TommyC]

Buying the camera before the trip also lets you make sure it's working. And, the cost and problems relating to returns or adjustments will likely be less onerous than a Caribbean purchase.

 

I've acquired both film and digital cameras and all sorts of accessories almost exclusively in person and over the internet at http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ and http://www.cameta.com/ with great success

 

I've you want to read reviews and opinions on cameras you might try: http://www.imaging-resource.com/ or http://www.photographyreview.com/. Both offer all sorts of tips and info.

 

Good shopping ! ! !

[PhillyGator]

Unless you're looking for a really expensive camera, get it before you go. Sure, you may save $20 if you wait, but you won't have pictures of the trip before you find it!

 

I say get it before you leave and take tons of pictures of embarcation.

[Pam in CA]

I agree with the others: get it at home before you go. A suggestion is to go to CNET (http://www.cnet.com) and look at their reviews. They also have pricing comparisons at various stores, many of them chain stores where you can go and take a look before buying.

 

Several years ago, I wanted a 35mm camera and decided that the Caribbean was the place to buy it. I did some online research and shopped in St. Thomas and St. Maarten, and finally bought what I wanted in Curacao, where it was $50 less than the other two ports. I was very pleased with myself and the "bargain" I'd gotten; took lots of pictures; then, when I got home, I took the film to my local camera/photo store. Wouldn't you know? They had the SAME camera $50 LESS than what I'd paid for it!

[Cruise2End]

Unfortunately you'll find that because equipment keeps changing - when you go and do pricing, those prices too can change from week to week, month to month, etc. depending on whether or not an updated version was released.

 

I agree with other posters though - if you do enough research on-line, you'll be able to compare and when you do buy, you'll know that what you're getting is the product for your needs and at a reasonable price.

[Don M]

Definately buy the camera before you go, especially for taking pictures en route. This site http://www.steves-digicams.com/ is fantastic for checking out just about any camera out there.

[lannp]

I would advise buying the camera before you leave home. This time of year there should be good sales offered for cameras being bought for Christmas presents. In all probability you will have no problems with it but if you should, at least living in the UK you will have a guarantee of getting service assistance.

[Gator83]

Hi All,

 

My DH has set his heart on buying a Digital Camera for his Christmas Present. We are sailing on the Crown leaving on the 23rd December.

 

Can anyone give me any advice which Islands, which shops are good value and give good service:) . I look forward to hearing your replies.

 

Go to www.bHphoto.com and buy it there. They have GREAT prices. Don't buy it overseas.

[geoherb]

I just bought a new digital camera for myself--just an inexpensive one, a Nikon Coolpix L4. I'll have two weeks to try it out before taking it with us on the Sun Princess for Christmas. My plan is to use it for lots of shots around the ship and to take my older digital camera (a Fuji Finepix) to take on excursions.

 

The Fuji was a major disappointment when I took it on a cruise three years ago. It stopped working the second night of the cruise. I had only had it a few weeks before the cruise. Fortunately all the photos on it were still there. I had to send it away for repair after getting back home. And since then, it's worked fine.

 

But by all means, having your camera a few weeks before the cruise will allow your boyfriend time to experiment with the settings so that he'll get the best shots.

[chrysalis]

Go to www.bHphoto.com and buy it there. They have GREAT prices. Don't buy it overseas.

 

The OP is in the UK...so buying from where you suggest is buying it "overseas"

[nmwallace]

Hi All,

 

My DH has set his heart on buying a Digital Camera for his Christmas Present. We are sailing on the Crown leaving on the 23rd December.

 

Can anyone give me any advice which Islands, which shops are good value and give good service:) . I look forward to hearing your replies.

I buy all of my camera equipment, printing supplies, lens and batteries from B&H photos out of NYC. They have a website and are very good about returns.

 

Nancy

Louisiana

[Gator83]

The OP is in the UK...so buying from where you suggest is buying it "overseas"

 

I meant in the Islands. Sorry

[askworldtraveler]

I buy all of my camera equipment, printing supplies, lens and batteries from B&H photos out of NYC. They have a website and are very good about returns.

 

Nancy

Louisiana

 

B&H is an excellent source and having said that....

 

1. I would go to a local shop and see what you like, features (zoom, video, screen size, sound), size, megapixels. Some people like to look through a view finder, some like to look at a screen. Many cameras offer just a screen. I prefer to look through a view finder and review the photos on a screen. Also - try the camera out in the shop.

 

2. Go online and shop in-country for the camera to see what pricing you find. READ the fine print. If the price looks too good to be true it probabaly is. The camera may be reconditioned (read: used), not come with certain necessary accessories (battery, no memory card are two of the common scams to Up sell you). Make sure the camera is complete.

Other things you may want: Battery Charger, Extra Battery, several memory cards, case.

 

3. Price list in hand go to a local shop and see if they will match the price - often they will within a few pounds/dollars/euros - and getting it from a local established dealer is well worth alittle bit more.

 

4. Use the camera before you leave. Try it in different light conditions, using the red eye reduction (often have to hold the camera still for a longer period)

 

The duty free shops at the airport (LHR, Gatwick) aren't too bad - they usually meet high street prices and often have specials. Also they offer a way to return something that doesn't work out.

 

Photography is one of my serious hobbies - I've taken a point and shoot digital to Everest base with fantastic results, and the best SLR digital to the gorillas in Rwanda and wished I had my point and shoot :-). Be comfortable with it. Buy your camera near home......

[turbo46032]

Get the camera at home, unless you live in one of these VAT-challenged places in which case saving 100 quid may be worth the gray market warranty. I do not know UK prices... hold on. I checked kelkoo and found my camera (Canon S2 IS, and it is quite a bit more expensive in the UK than in the US (the new model, S3 IS, is nearly $350 mail order in the US, 400 retail, 275 pounds in UK. 275 pounds is a lot more than $350... I see quite a bit of difference that for an expensive camera may be worth buying in St Thomas and graymarketing it.

 

It may not be as worth it for less expensive cameras - the Canon A530 I just told a coworker to get is $150 in US, 100 pounds in UK....

 

Do your math, and see if it is worth it depending on what you want.

 

How much is the OP looking to spend?

[mtmorrisgirl]

I just bought a new digital camera for our upcoming cruise (we leave on Saturday!) from Amazon.com. Not sure what their shipping prices would be to England, but I got a great deal on a Sony CyberShot (no shipping or tax in the U.S.) which I love. I've had it for two weeks which has given me time to learn all of its features, so I can't wait to use it on the cruise. Good luck and have a great trip!

[Julia’s Journey’s]

I also would buy at home before leaving, this way you can learn your camera, make sure everything is working, comparison shop on the internet, look at warehouse stores and superstores.

[Fuzzyape]

One thing I don't know, is if the Op DH has a previous film camera.

 

I had a film 35mm SLR camera. So when buying my digital I went the same route so I could use my current lenses with the camera. Now if that's not an issue, I'd check around on the internet (as so many others have suggested), get your camera, so you can get all the pictures you want.

 

After all, you know if your DH waits to purchase on an island you're going to see tons of photo opportunities that are missed because you're waiting to buy your camera.

 

Whatever you decide, have a great trip, and good luck with the camera purchase.

[tigre8664]

I agree with the posters who suggest getting the camera before you go. Make sure you get a larger capacity memory card and that you have a way to charge camera batteries while away from home. If you haven't done digital photography before, you are going to love it. You can take as many shots as you like. If the pictures aren't to your liking, delete them - it's just a bunch of electrons that cost you nothing! Play and experiment - the worse that can happen is you get a bad picture.

 

Take a look at http://www.dpreview.com This is website based in the UK which has lots of good information that will help you pick the right camera for your needs.