Best close up digital camera

[Anonymous]

Hello,
I have recently begun to search the Internet for a digital camera that will take good close ups. For an example I want to be able to take photos of crystals or something the size of a coin with fairly good clarity. I borrowed a friends digital camera - Nikon Coolpix 4300 - and it did the job nicely but unfortunately too expensive for me. I been looking into the Nikon Coolpix 2500 which seems to have a good macro setting but quite honestly I am so confused at the moment with all the cameras that are around. Can anyone steer me in the right direction to what brand I should look for? The macro feature is my most important requirement as that is all I will be using it for but unfortunately my budget is limited.
I would be extremely grateful for any help you could give me.
Kind Regards
Carol

 

[Anonymous]

[No message]

 

[Anonymous]

I would be able to spend around $250 US.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Carol, This shot was taken with a Ricoh RDC5300 set in macro mode. It's an old model now, but all later Ricoh's are very good for this type of work. The coin is smaller than my thumbnail, so I think the Ricohs do a pretty good job. Perhaps you could find a second hand one. Brian.