Point-and-Shoot Cameras for Nature Photography

Birders and Other Wildlife Watchers

Swamp Sparrow

You need zoom — lots of it. Way more than what you get from a standard point-and-shoot with its paltry 3x, 4x or even 16x zoom. Go big or go home. “Mega-zooms” or “super-zooms” give you 60x telephoto or more. No longer will you need to digi-scope that distant Ivory Gull for a record shot — your camera becomes a scope (but with lousier optics). This gallery alone should illustrate to you the shocking range and power of these super-zooms.

Insect photographers can also do well with a super-zoom. No need to approach that butterfly or dragonfly for a macro shot (and potentially scare if off). Just stand your ground, point, zoom, and shoot. Will the shot be as good as what you might get by inching close to the bug and using the camera’s macro setting? Probably not. But zoom-and-shoot is my preferred method for insects with these cameras. I often throw a little light on the subject with the camera’s built-in flash (even in daylight). It sharpens things up nicely.

So here are my picks for wildlife (with disclaimers ^[1] below):

• Nikon Coolpix B700 — For some inexplicable reason, Nikon has discontinued my top pick (and the former top pick at Wirecutter). If you can find this camera new for $400 or less or used in good shape for less than $300, buy it. It’s got a 60x zoom and a 20-megapixel sensor. And if video is your thing, the B700 shoots 4K video, which is higher quality than you’ll get from the Nikon P900 (below). The B700 also shoots RAW images; the P900 does not. One catch: if you want to geo-reference your images, the B700 does not have a GPS.
• Canon Powershot SX70 HS — Introduced in 2019 at about $450, and now hard to find and overpriced in places, this camera — with a 65x zoom, a new RAW format, and a 20-megapixel sensor — is the successor to my Nikon Coolpix B700. Also note that Canon is so much kinder to the “menu-challenged.” The SX70 HS does not have a GPS. Its predecessor, the SX60HS played to mixed reviews. But, overall, earlier versions of this camera, particularly the SX50 HS, were the go-to super-zooms among birders. So rest assured that the SX70 has a fine pedigree ^[2], and is now the second choice at Wirecutter (you don’t want the first choice).
• Sony Cyber-shot RX10 IV – If you’ve got the cash, about $1,600, this camera’s 1-inch sensor and Zeiss glass add up to fine photos from a point-and-shoot. Its immediate predecessor, the Sony Cyber-shot RX10 III, also worthy, goes for about $1,200. If you’re a birder, stay clear of the earlier models (the RX10 II and the plain old RX10) and their smaller zooms. Digital Photography Review loves this camera. I’ve not yet tested one.
• Nikon Coolpix P900 — With a (sick!) 83x optical zoom, this is a birder’s point-and-shoot if there ever was one. You’ll fill the frame with feathers for $450 or so. Not to get too hung up on pixels, but the P900 comes in at 16 megapixels; others in its range give you 4 million more pixels, 20 megapixels, which matters. This camera does indeed have a GPS. I find the P900 a bit too large and heavy for my taste. Here’s a review. Nikon in 2018 released the P1000 with a (pandemic sick!) 125x zoom — it’s a beast and overkill.
• Sony HX400V and Sony HX300 – Although I don’t find these two models among established camera reviews, they offer 50x zoom and Zeiss lenses at moderate prices. The main attraction to the 400v — at a reasonable $450 — is GPS (great for automatically geotagging images, especially if you’re a heavy iNaturalist user). The HX300 is a similar camera without the frills at about $300. If you buy either one, watch the model numbers and zoom ranges carefully (50x or bust); Sony has other cameras with similar model numbers (save a letter here or there) that I don’t recommend.
• Panasonic Lumix FZ80 — Another in the 60x zoom class, there is a lot to like about this camera, including a price under $300. For that low price, you get a touch screen, 4k video and an 18-mega-pixel sensor. Basically, lots of camera here at a great price.
  

Botanists and Other “Stationary-Thing-ists”

Blue-sided Tree Frog

If your subjects lack legs or wings, or if you can easily approach them to within inches, you don’t need a super-zoom. Nor do you need one if you’re a general ecologist who might shoot natural communities, landscapes, geological formations or other bigger places. You can probably do quite well with one of the amazing compact cameras now on the market. I have shot — and even printed — many landscape photos from cheap point-and-shoot cameras not much bigger than a deck of cards. (Landscapes are like that — more forgiving in print than wildlife.)

Those super-zooms I mention for birders still work well up close with plants, herps and other stationary or slow things. So if you think you might also be shooting birds or insects or other wildlife now and then, be sure that your zoom is at least 30x (even though that’s now about the bare minimum zoom I suggest for birders). Otherwise, you’ll be fine shooting plants and places with these cameras, provided you know how to use them correctly in macro mode. So, if you do not need the zoom, you’ve got lots of options:

• Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 VII (and its predecessors) — A field ecologist’s dream camera. You get a 1-inch sensor, an 8x zoom and Zeiss glass in a compact package. The line of DSC-RX100s has for years been a consensus top choice. The only problem is its price (and menu complexities). This latest model — the VII — will set you back about $1,200. (With rumors of a model VIII this year, the VII should come down in price.) The model VI is exceedingly similar for about $1,000. Earlier models (including the VI, VA [not the V] and predecessors) have a 3x zoom. When you’re shopping, pay close attention to those Roman numerals indicating the specific model.
• Canon PowerShot G5 X Mark II — Canons generally don’t rise to the top among the bigtime tech reviewers. But the best review site of all, Digital Photography Review, likes this as a relatively affordable 1-inch compact. So do I. Although I hesitate to say that $800 is the “poor-man’s” anything, this is the poor man or woman’s alternative to that pricy Sony Cyber-shot. (The similar Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III isn’t as good for stills, but is better for video; it lacks a viewfinder.)
• Panasonic Lumix DC-ZS200 — Here are a few things you don’t normally find in a compact with a 1-inch sensor: a 15x zoom, Leica glass and a relatively affordable price: about $650. Digital Photography Review likes it. What you don’t get, however, is a tilt-out screen. It does have a (small) viewfinder. Although the zoom won’t be ideal for birds, it’ll do okay with insects. Adding this much zoom to a 1-inch compact does add softness to the lens. But, hey, versatility comes with compromise. This camera’s predecessor, the DC-ZS100, now goes for about $400.
• Panasonic DMC-LX10 — Although this camera is getting on in years, it offers the essentials in a 1-inch compact, except a viewfinder. You can now find it for about $500. Here’s a review.
• Cameras with 1/2.3-inch Sensors — The marketplace is loaded with regular, old point-and-shoots (not super-zooms) with standard sensors at lower prices. They’re all fairly similar and do particularly well with macrophotography. So shop for some of those “essentials” I mention above. Just be sure you buy a model that shoots in aperture or shutter priority modes; you’ll see A (or Av) or S (or Tv) on the camera’s top dial.

Your Phone

Sorry, your iPhone camera isn’t good enough for wildlife (except maybe herps and other cooperative animals). Even so, the in-camera processing (basically, automated image editing) and macro capabilities in newer phones may indeed be good enough for casual botanists and other biologists and naturalists shooting landscapes, natural communities and nature in close. (I expand on why phones work for field naturalists below.^[3]) The panoramic options are lovely (like that shot above from one of my work sites in Vermont). And phones will geo-reference your images, which is always a good thing.