HP Photosmart M517 Introduced

#1 Victor Nastase

The camera functions well. It can take excellent pictures in almost any condition, just that uses are not intuitive for users that do this just for fun. Landscapes can't be taken well without a tripod, macros are a bit difficult to capture, because it doesn't take small distances(smaller that 10cm, or even more if the optical zoom is used).
Also, macro mode is hard to use, because certain factors influence its behavios.
Motion mode doesn't function as it should, and FastShot need too much light for certain evironments.
What remains? With all this said, there still are enough advantages.
Like the corection of light. HP has a certain function that prevents light coming chaoticly in a photo. Then there are the lens that are very good(not the best, but definetely good).
Macros are really beautiful if you have the patience to make them. So are landscapes. And in the correct conditions FastShot obtains excellent results.
For what is it good? For anything you desire. You just have to experiment a little in the begining because it isn't that user friendly as you would expect. Not from the begining at least.
For what it isn't good? If you are a pro, you can use this camera as you wish and you can obtain excellent results. What you wouldn't know, is that a rookie could obtain the same results. It's far too easy to configure. There a are no advanced options. So, if you are a pro, you'll probably take another model.
Don't consider this camera isn't good. Some of my best pictures where taken with this. And they didn't even need to be worked on after. Excellent pictures directly from the camera. And, if you need to work on them, the package includes soft that can do that, and, even if it appears simple, it's very good.

9:17 pm - Sunday, August 7, 2005

#2 GARY POGODA

Thanks for your info on the M517. The M417 was panned for being sluggish and for having problems focusing in dim lighting. Any improvements with the M517? What is your opinion of its in-camera red-eye removal? How about its LCD?

7:36 am - Monday, August 8, 2005

#3 Victor Nastase

M517 avoids being slugigs most of the times, and the focusing is truly a problem in dim lighting, but it can be easily avoided without any damage to the picture clarity due to its options(such as the flash for night conditions, and the technique called focus lock). It cam give very good results if it is used in a correct mode. Moreover, the speed of M517 isn't that bad, giving good quality photos even with fast movements.
As for the LCD, it is of poor quality in Live View Mode, and even in playback mode. But the pictures certainly aren't. And when I say of poor quality, this means that every mode, except macro, comes with noise on the view(not on the picture).

5:05 pm - Monday, August 8, 2005

#4 GARY POGODA

That LCD noise sounds like it could be a defect. Have you had the camera checked?

5:54 pm - Monday, August 8, 2005

#5 Victor Nastase

Not a defect, every model has this. And this isn't just for this model, but the graphics look like 8bit. It's true that not always, but just in dim linght conditions in the captured image shown, but this is no problem at all.

6:50 pm - Monday, August 8, 2005

#6 GARY POGODA

Now I understand. You are referring to the "granularity" of the LCD image, which was also a problem with the M417.

4:04 pm - Tuesday, August 9, 2005