Before I start I must warn you that I am NO expert on cameras! I know a little about SLR’s - and by that I mean I can put the film in, focus, change a lens and even take a reasonable photo. I am used to my 35mm camera having had it for quite a few years. I have, in fact got two – the other being a point and shoot that was a bargain too good to miss! I’ve even got an APS – because I thought it might come in handy – but I was getting rather tired of being the only member of the family who hadn’t got their own digital camera and I WANTED one! Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of access to other people’s cameras – my nephew IS a professional photographer after all and I have used his (mega-bucks and state of the art and I’m terrified of dropping it) but it isn’t the same as having your own. So
I checked out some of the reviews on Ciao (naturally) and got thoroughly confused. Everyone seems to be an expert these days.
Eventually, I spotted one that I thought deserved a second look and decided to check it out. It was the ViviCam 3715 made by Vivitar. It seemed to be what I was looking for, basically a relatively easy small camera.
Now for all you technically minded folk I guess I’d better fill in some of the specifications: To start with it’s a 3.3 Mega Pixel camera, (image resolution 2048 x 1536 pixels, 1024 x 768 pixels, 640 x 480 pixels). It has a 1.5” colour TFT LCD It has a self-timer with a 10 second delay 4 X Digital Zoom Capture Modes: Still image and Video (movie) recording 8 MB Internal Memory (SD memory card – optional – up to 256 MB capacity) Shutter Speed: 5 – 1/2000 sec. Lens: Fixed focal length: 7.9mm F-number: 3.5 Range of Focus: Landscape: Greater than 6 feet (1.9 metres to infinity) Portrait: 3 to 6 feet (0.9 to 1.9 metres) Macro: 21 to 36 inches (0.55 to 0.9 metres) Exposure and Compensation: Automatic exposure with manual EV compensation White Balance: Automatic with presets for Daylight, Cloudy, Sunset, Fluorescent, Tungsten Interface (Ports): DC IN jack, USB Connector Power: 2 AA Alkaline (1.5V) or Ni-MH (1.5V) batteries or optional AC power Adapter (2.5A/3.3V) Dimensions: 105mm wide x 55mm high x 41mm deep (exclusive of protruding features). Weight: Approx. 4.2 ounces (120g) (without batteries and memory card)
Included with the camera were two AA batteries, USB cable, Software CD-ROM, User’s manual, Camera Strap and a case (imitation black suede). The Instruction Manual is easy to read and understand and there is also a Quick Start Guide. The software includes PhotoSuite 4, which allows you to retouch, compose and organise your images. It includes a variety of templates for making birthday cards, calendars, etc. There is also PhotoVista which is an easy to use programme for creating panoramic images. The camera is silver with a sliding lens cover in pale gold – rather attractive.
I have to say that this was just what I was looking for. When you switch the camera on the power-up is immediate – and it will tell you if the lens cover is closed (this is useful for some), the flash is designed to function automatically when needed although there are four flash modes: Auto flash, red-eye reduction, Fill flash and flash off. I will admit that I was rather anxious to start, so much so that, when playing back my first efforts, I found that they were moving! I have managed to take some still photos since however. I would say this is an ideal camera for anyone who doesn’t want to have to learn how to use it. It’s small, light and easy to handle.
I’m sure you would like to know what the cost of it was. Well, I got it from Index (on line) where the price was £69.99 plus carriage. I ordered it on the Saturday and it was delivered the following Wednesday (actually it WAS delivered Tuesday, but as I was out they had to come back as a signature was required). I think this is an exceptional price for a 3.3 Mega Pixel camera. One thing I would advise is to get the AC Adapter for transferring images to the computer as this uses the batteries quicker than anything, although they seem to be alright for taking photos.
I hope that this will be of help to you and I would like to thank you for reading it.
Pictures of Vivitar Vivicam 3715
Bonnie
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Apr 15th, 2004
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