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So... got myself a FRIAT Mach-3 ticket to this year's Royal International Air Tattoo and figure I need a new camera...

Lately I have only used small compact digital cameras (my current is a Panasonic Lumix TZ-80). It does the job with 18Mp and 30x zoom, but I feel I'd like more of a "proper" digital camera for RIAT (and aviation photography in general).

I'm no expert on photography by any means, but there are certain things I feel are important when looking at new cameras, so the following features would be desired;
- Good amount of megapixels. (I don't know what passes as a good amount these days, but you get the idea.)
- Plenty of zoom. I would say minimum 30x, and have been looking at the possibility of a 60-80x zoom camera, depending og whether there is much to gain from such a powerful lens.
- Burst possibilities. This may be standard on all cameras for all I know, but obviously having the possibility of "rapid fire" when taking photos at an airshow is a bit of a must.
- HD video. I video a lot when using the camera, as I do video projects from time to time. As a result I would need a camera with good video settings, and (something my current camera lacks) a competent image stabilizer. (Also, none of that interlaced nonsense...)

I'm sure there are other features which are important too, but I think I've listed the ones most vital to me.

One camera which caught my eye was the Nikon Coolpix P900, but after reading some reviews I'm not so sure about that anymore.
So in short, any camera recommendations which might fit the description of what I'm looking for will be most welcome.

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Can you specify what your max budget is? You know, from an ergonomic standpoint, once you have your final 3 cameras in mind, you should go to a physical store and handle the cameras to see which you like most.

Preferably something no more than £500, though should the perfect camera come along, I could probably stretch a bit further.

Currently looking at a Panasonic DMC FZ82 which looks decent.

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Have you considered the Nikon D7200? It's listed here for best value DSLR for 2018: http://www.photographytalk.com/photography-articles/8173-hot-cameras-for-2018 My wife has this camera, it came out mid 2015, APS-C 24.2 MP sensor. She loves the camera and considering your budget this will work really good for you. For that "Stretch a bit further", you could apply that $$ to a lens or two.

To be honest there is a night and day difference between the Panasonic DMC FZ82 and the Nikon D7200. Your getting nearly 2.5X MP, battery will last nearly 3X and low light of the D7200 crushes the DMC DZ82 with 25,600 vs 6400.

In short, you'll spend a little more for the D7200, but that will be an investment that will last the Panasonic. Heck, my iPhone has more MP than that Panasonic.

Hmm, I don't think I'll be switching to a DSLR camera.
So for me at the moment it looks like I'll just settle for a Panasonic Lumix camera with around 60x zoom.
Still have a few months for something good to come around.

Thanks for the feedback.

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