I'm hoping someone here will be able to offer a couple of suggestions or point me in the right direction, as I've been intermittently reading articles / reviews all day and I haven't made any progress. (It's related to selling, because I need a camera to take decent images :D).
Anyway, the jist is, my old camera malfunctioned today and I really need to replace it. I am not a skilled or knowledgeable photographer, and I'm not very rich, either, so what I really need is a budget-conscious compact point n' shoot digital camera that will take good, clear macro images (99% of my images will need to use the macro function) without too much fuss or fiddling between products (preferably none 
). I realise "budget conscious" can limit the options, quality etc, so I'm not expecting I'll be able to take magazine quality images, just looking for the best option under $300 (or $200 :D).
I'm looking to buy a new, non-grey import from an Australian retailer - I've searched and read (and searched and read!) for articles, first for recommendations, most of which are outdated (even the ones that had a post date of 2016 referenced model numbers I can't find anywhere), then for what kind of specs I should look out for when looking at a camera in order to determine whether it's suitable, but most websites just have overall reviews on specific models and don't tell what spec or feature of the camera is resulting in the relevant performance aspect, except for DSLRs etc....if that makes sense... Most of them also only seem to mention cameras in the $400 and above price bracket, so maybe what I'm looking for isn't possible or available?
So, can someone please save my sanity and help me understand what features a camera should have to take decent macro images, or offer a brand / model suggestion? (The now-passed away camera was just a Samsung ES55 - it was ok, but often a bit grainy / noisy).
TIA 🙂
Must be the new iPad then, that they have especially designed jeans with wierd shaped pockets in.........
Spoiler
BTW, don't use too many smilieys in the posts 'cos Stalks' ones are in 'murrica somewhere between Kentuckey and Alaska on the GSP holiday route..................................
Spoiler
Stalks ATM >>>>>>>>>>...........................
Mmm, hang on ill break out the big telescope to help Stawka look for them...
I've already tried this but the convoluted journey is making it hard,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Ah well, all's well after it ends well..................or something like that.
Apologies Digi for the hijacking.............................
@mbselections00 wrote:Do it quickly digi, finishes April 10 (just in case you didn't notice)
Well, that rules that one out.
@bake - they might work ok, but I suspect the phone's camera would have to be half decent and the add-on lenses would just provide more focus options (?). I will have a bit of a play around with my phone cam settings, just to see if I can get it to take passable pics, if I really need to before I can get a proper camera - it did take a fairly good video of a little stray kitten I had with me for a while, but the photos have been sub-par.
My phone's camera still sucks, no matter what settings I adjust, but I actually managed to fix my camera 
(never let anyone tell you that blunt force trauma doesn't solve anything ).
Now that I've got a little breathing space, I think I'll wait until I've got enough to get one of the higher-end Panasonic Lumix cameras (well, higher end to me, anyway, since I've never spent more than $150 of these kinds of gadgets and devices).
Thanks again for all the info and advice, it's very much appreciated definitely helped me decide which way to go. 😄
@digital*ghost wrote:
My phone's camera still sucks, no matter what settings I adjust, but I actually managed to fix my camera
I tried that when my camera started playing up and my basic setting that I used stopped working,
(but it didn't seem to have any effect),
So I mucked around with it and managed to find another setting I could use that basically does the same thing,(
it and the macro setting is the only things that work now),
@go-tazz wrote:I tried that when my camera started playing up and my basic setting that I used stopped working,
(but it didn't seem to have any effect),
So I mucked around with it and managed to find another setting I could use that basically does the same thing,(
it and the macro setting is the only things that work now),
It was the lens on mine - I've dropped it a few times, and this last time was probably the shortest distance it's ever fallen, and on to a softer surface, but it knocked something out of whack and when I turned it off, the lens went all wonky and wouldn't retract all the way, then I couldn't turn the camera back on, either.
I tried to persuade the lens with varying amounts of force, but then I figured I had nothing to lose by giving it a good hard whack with a blunt object. I heard a click so I pressed the power button, and the lens started functioning as normal - I think I knocked some sense out of it though, because some settings / functions appear to be missing. (As long as I can take no-flash macro images for a little while longer, I'll muddle on 😄 ).
@david, I think that camera might just be big enough to capture my ego.
