Sony A5000 or other PnS or something else ?

I think if he wants something very compact and gives good IQ, Canon makes the S line of powershoot (s95, s100, s110 etc...) they give amazing results for the size of these camera. It really depend on what he wants to do. A sony A5000 with some lenses will be somewhat Big, and maybe he wants something that he can carry on him all the time. "the best camera is the one that's with you"

 

Yes it gives more dynamic range and more iso, but if he don't need to shoot in low light situation, and he is planning to use Jpeg only, I'am not sure between if there is that much gap. ILC will give very good IQ depending on the glass you put it on. And the lenses kit are often poor in quality...

 

The Sony 16-50 in particular is actually one of the worst name-brand lenses made in a long time.

That said, the A5000 is a nice enough camera, the 55-210mm is decent, and that's a really good price. And even given how bad the 16-50 is, it's "good enough" for most situations, and will still look definitively better than a smartphone or small-sensor point-and-shoot. The lack of a touchscreen is a disappointment, though. That's a feature that I feel is very important on all cameras, from the low-end to the high-end, and I don't want to buy a camera without one at this point.

 

The A5000 should have better IQ because it has a larger sensor than a p&s. However this is largely negated if you only use the 2 kit zooms that are pretty slow. I am not sure there will be a lot of difference between an a5000 with kit zooms and a high quality p+s which pairs a smaller sensor with a faster lens such as the RX100. Last years version of the RX100 is going for US$450 on Amazon.

 

Yes that was what I was looking at, simply because it was the first thing to come up on google.

Personally I feel if you are looking for a big sensor in a small package the RX100 is hard to beat. Throw in the fact that older models are heavily discounted because there are newer shinier models and I think at around US$450 it is a decent bargain.

 

For family stuff, I would suggest buying a more expensive current generation camera. The current generation of cameras is a leap forward in continuous tracking AF combined with face detection in video and stills. Sony has on sensor PDAF, Canon has something similar, Panasonic has DFD. Not sure if tracking AF in Fuji and Oly has a unique technology name. This level of automated AF tracking was not available a few years ago when I had my first kid.

Because of this "leap forward" in AF technology, there's a bigger gap in AF between the new and the older bodies than previous generation changes. So if your specific purpose is to follow fast moving kids around, it may be worth it to buy a current gen camera and perhaps a fast prime for indoors. Unfortunately, that means a higher budget, if that's an option. But I would prioritize good AF + prime lens over getting a 2nd zoom lens that won't be used much.

 

For the casual shooter I'd be tempted to recommend a smart-phone upgrade with a decent camera.

Alternatively, a pocketable enthusiast P&S like an RX100, Canon S120 or Panasonic LX7.

 

BTW here is the RX100ii for US$400

http://www.ebay.com/itm/31115621762...t=1&_sadis=&LH_CAds=&_nkw=311156217623&_rdc=1

 

You pay a premium for compactness. For low light and possibly some AF-C in stills, also check out consumer grade DSLR + cheap prime. Older gen entry or mid level APS-C DSLRs, like Nikon 3000 or 3100 or 5000 or 5100 must be dirt cheap by now.

 

Is your friend actually going to use that much camera? Isn't he likely just to set it to full auto and forget it? If he isn't a camera person, is he likely to notice the improvement in image quality that the A5000 represents? Will he EVER take the time to really learn the camera?

I'm thinking you might be pushing him into a camera he won't like and that will ultimately sit on a shelf somewhere. Maybe Something like the Olympus Tough TG-3 would be more appropriate.

Below is the Adorama catalog link: http://www.adorama.com/IOMTG3BK.htm...=38589028051&gclid=COrzp8vphMICFYIDaQodCqEAjQ