PS cameras that shoot RAW

Howdy
I was flipping through the B&H site looking for a P&S that shoots 8 mp raw files. They seem to sell only two, the Panasonic LX1 and Fuji E900. Are there other RAW R&S cameras out there? I do outdoor adventure photography and carry my serious Canon gear on my back. It would be nice to have a little 8mp camera stashed in my pocket to grab fleeting moments. I really want RAW because there simply is no other way to shoot. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] Any suggestions out there? Also, what's the durability of the two cameras mentioned above. I think I noticed that the Panasonic doesn't have a viewfinder. Doesn't that eat up batteries?

Cheers
Chris

[DonLashier]

I'd have to check Phil's site to be sure, but I'm pretty sure that a number of other p/s camera's can shoot raw, including one or more Canons. Just checked, and the S50, S70, G6, also Nikon Coolpix 5700, 5400, 8700, and probably others.

- DL

[Joe_Allebaugh]

Chris,

You might refer to the Adobe Camera Raw list of supported models for more leads - http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html.

I have the E900 for the past three months as a constant carry-around camera when not carrying a DSLR. I use ACR for all Raw images, and have the E900 set to record Raw. Image quality is very good. The optical viewfinder covers only 77% making accurate framing an uncertain process, but the 9 Mpix allows for reasonable cropping. The camera ships with a pair of Fuji's 2500 mAH NiMH AA batteries, however I always carry an extra pair or two, all fitting comfortably in a small Lowepro belt pack. There are a number of reviews available, including Imaging Resource and Digital Camera Resource, and this very useful user report - http://sugarmtnfarm.com/blog/2005/12...-part-ii.html.

As for durability of the E900, I did drop it once while walking through the woods, with the usual sinking feeling in the stomach, but it survived as new and I hope not to repeat the event. A pair of AAs has always lasted the day for me, with the LCD set to be on while the camera is powered up, useful primarily for live histogram checking as well as full frame preview/review although I use the tiny viewfinder for for the capture.

I considered as many Raw-capable models as I could find, as you're doing now, and the E900 was the best compromise for me.

Joe

[Walter_Kimmel]

I'm in the same boat. I shoot with a 1dMkII, and I'm looking for a camera that I can stick in a pocket on the days that I can't lug the good stuff with me. Right now I'm wavering between a real pocket camera, which limits the zoom range, or a larger camera such as the Canon S2. Unfortunately, the S3 does not have RAW, and I'm ticked off, as it seems like a good choice otherwise.

The thing that you have to be really careful of, depending on the type of shooting you do, is that some of the cameras that shot RAW (and TIFF, for that matter,) should have a message that blinks in the LCD that says "RAW being processed. Go have a cup of coffee." Read the reviews on Steve's Digicams and DPReview and check out the processing times. Some of them are pretty long, for RAW.

[Matthew_Kartch]

I have and like my Canon S70. Shoots RAW with or without JPEG. Uses CF cards. I set WB with an Expodisc, using step-rings.

Thanks for all the info guys. After a bit more research I am interested in the Canon S70 or the E900. What are actual RAW write times for each of these cameras. It sounds like it is simply impractical to use some of these P&S cameras for RAW shooting. BTW, the links to the P&S camera review and ACR supported links were inactive.
Cheers
Chris

[Joe_Allebaugh]

Chris,

The E900 records a Raw file in about 6-7 seconds to a 1G Olympus xD card, during which time the camera is not usable. Each Raw file is 18 Mbytes (appears to use no file write compression). Most of the available reviews will provide write timing and file size statistics for the specific camera model, for Raw, JPEG or other formats.

Joe