Choosing & Buying a Digital Camera

With the advent of digital camera technology, photography has been placed within reach of everybody, and photography has never been more exciting. Nowadays, there is a large variety of digital cameras to choose from. From the most inexpensive point-and-shoot camera to the most elaborate DSLR, each has its own features and capabilities. That is why its getting harder to choose the right camera.

When choosing your camera, the first step is to decide how you will primarily use it. If you just want a small lightweight camera to carry in a pocket or purse for occasional shooting, then you have a large selection to choose from. Many of today's compact cameras are capable of producing very nice results. If you want to take pictures which are worthy of a professional, or if you are a professional photographer, then of course you will need higher-grade equipment.

There are two major types of digital cameras in use - P&S or Point-And-Shoot, and DSLR or Digital Single Lens Reflex.

Now you'll need to determine which type of camera to buy. Do you need a point-and-shoot only camera or a DSLR?. Let me explain a bit about both. Generally, a so-called point-and-shoot camera is one which does not have interchangeable lenses, and does not offer true through-the-lens viewfinding. These cameras usually allow (and sometimes force) the user to rely on automatic & pre-programmed settings for image quality, exposure, flash, etc. but that can be their advantage because the user can often snap very nice quality images with no more effort than simply pressing the shutter button. Most mid-to-high end P&S cameras these days allow for manual settings too.

The DSLR or Digital Single Lens Reflex camera is simply a modern digital adaption of the film type SLR camera. DSLR cameras usually offer through-the-lens viewfinding - that is to say that what you see in the viewfinder is exactly what the lens sees. They also offer the ability to change lenses in order to accommodate different shooting conditions. For example, say you want to take pictures of family members during various activities. For most of these types of images you would use perhaps a 25-50mm lens which would produce good results. Now you've decided that you want to take wildlife shots too. Well for this, you need a good telephoto lens.

With a DSLR camera, you can use either type of lens with the same camera, whereas with a point-and-shoot model, you generally cannot. Many people also consider DSLRs to deliver superior image quality. I should mention here though that the line between P&S cameras and DSLRs is getting increasingly thinner in terms of both image quality and usability.

Most if not all DSLR cameras also offer full manual control of nearly all of their settings.

So which do you buy, Point-And-Shoot or DSLR?. Depends on your anticipated shooting needs. If you need ultimate flexibility, the DSLR is probably for you. If you just want a good all-around camera for everything from vacations to soccer games to simple portraits then go with a good Point-And-Shoot.

Next, determine how much money you are willing to spend. The really neat thing about this part is that you can buy a lot of camera for a reasonable amount of money these days. Within the last few years, camera prices have become quite attractive in many cases. For example, $400USD can buy you a nice DSLR camera complete with zoom lens, battery, charger, lens hood, etc. at the time of this writing. That same amount of money can also buy a very nice, full-featured semi-professional non-DSLR camera.

Another consideration is overall quality. After all, you probably don't want to buy a camera only to find that it doesn't live up to the claims of its makers or quits working after a short period of time. The key here is research before buying. It is easier than ever to get opinions from current and past users of the product you want thanks to the internet, and there are a lot of websites which offer unbiased and in-depth reviews of a given camera. Many large online retailers such as Amazon.com offer user opinions right on the purchase page.

A great way to research a particular model is simply to type the make & model of the unit in question into your favorite internet search engine, followed by the word(s) "review" or "user opinions" or both. then you can choose your reading from the results.

Okay, so let's review. You've decided what you want a camera for. You've figured out which type to get, done some research, and found what looks to be the perfect unit. And you've got money to buy said camera. Well, that pretty much meets all of the prerequisites so what are you waiting for? find out who has your camera for a good price and buy it!

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Digital Photography - The Importance of Choosing the Right DSLR Digital Camera First Time

It is one thing to have several large DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera manufacturers, but each manufacturer creates several different models as well as a variety of compatible lenses. So when we choose the right DSLR digital camera it will come complete with a fully removable and interchangeable lens. But how do you know which camera is the right one for you in the first place.

Have you ever thought about it like this? Once you feel you are a little accomplished and desire a closer or different style photograph would the next progressive stage be to buy a bigger or different functioning lens? If this is the case for the natural progression of producing better images why does each manufacturer make so many different models?

And Now, Some Answers

Modern technology has done some marvellous things with media devices and the digital camera is no exception in this progression. The general features incorporated tend to be fairly similar across the board it is just a question of different formats, components, and variants that are used by the camera manufacturers that tend to dictate quality levels and camera performance.

What this means is that pretty much all the camera companies incorporate their products abilities to be mirrored within the industry. This does not mean that each camera comes with the exact same characteristics as there are several models produced by each manufacturer and every one of those cameras are different.

It is what is known as a step up process whereby you being the owner of one camera type will hopefully once you have complete familiarity and conquered most aspects will also buy some compatible lenses as well as some other progressive accessories also associated with that make and model.

Down the road you may want to upgrade the camera body itself, but would like to get a different make. The one you have seen and like the look of has a few additional benefits that will give you the opportunity to hopefully create better photographs and provide increased ability.

This is where the step up process really comes into its own right. While as stated there are certain similarities with each make of DSLR digital camera such as picture taking procedure and adjustable picture taking enhancements such as ISO settings etc that is pretty much where the real similarities end.

Not only is going from one camera make to another like learning the whole picture taking process again, but most of the accessories including lenses that we bought for the other camera will not be compatible with the new one that you have your eye on, this makes changing from manufacturer to manufacturer an elaborate and expensive exercise.

So what is the answer I hear you say? This is why there are several different models of camera from each manufacturer, the natural progression stage as far as they are concerned is for you to buy just the camera body for the next or several models higher than the one that you already have.

This will not only save you a lot of money due to the fact that your original lenses and accessories will be totally compatible with the new camera and with the money that you have saved in doing this you could buy even more lenses and accessories that will again keep you in that manufacturers loop even more.

It is not a bad loop to be in, but it should at least make you more cautious and go into greater research prior to buying your original camera.

Manufacturers are continually bringing out better and better models so the likelihood of you ever reaching the top of the range would not only be an expensive target, but a short lived one if you did as they would soon be bringing out a newer model to supersede the one we had recently purchased.

Always chose your initial camera manufacturer wisely because chances are that you will be using them for a very long time unless you have an inexhaustible budget.

One of the best ways to guarantee that you are getting the best deal and at the best price is to make any camera or photographic purchase online.

The reason for this is that high street stores and malls have massive overheads where-as online there are plenty of competition, but only a few places that you will get exactly what you want and at a bargain price.

It is for this reason that it can take a while to locate a good source for discounts free delivery etc, but once the job is done you will not have to ever look anywhere else again.

Hopefully by now you should have a pretty good idea on choosing the right DSLR digital camera for you, or at least a grasp on what it is you might want to be looking out for?

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Digital Cameras - Choosing the Right One

There are three basic types of digital camera, compact, (slr-type or "bridge" camera) and Dslr. The slr-type and Dslr cameras look fairly similar although Dslr's are bigger and heavier. The most obvious difference between them is that you can change the lens on a Dslr. However, there is a great deal more to it than that. The Dslr is fundamentally different and designed to work exactly the same way as a high-end film camera. This makes it extremely versatile and the only type of digital camera that can cope equally well with any genre of photography.

If your budget doesn't run to a Dslr then you need to choose amongst the other types as to which one will suit your favourite type of photography best. The choice between compact and slr is a little more complicated as both are equally suited to many photographic genres. For many people, the choice will come down to convenience. Some will simply prefer a camera they can slip into their pocket rather than one they have to hang around their neck.

It is certainly the case that compact cameras at the top end of the market can produce pictures that are every bit as good as those from slr's. It's not image quality that separates these two forms of camera but rather the ease with which you can adjust the photographic controls on them. Things like exposure compensation or manual focus are usually simple to adjust external controls on an slr but may be buried deep amongst the menus of a compact camera.

Many cameras have "program modes", for example landscape, sports (or action) and portrait etc. And these will set up your camera the best way for those types of photography. However, it's not the case that if your camera does not have one or other of these modes then it cannot do that sort of photography. The only modes that you actually need are shutter priority and aperture priority. As long as your camera has these two, then you can optimise it's settings for most photographic situations.

When choosing between cameras best suited to a particular genre, you need to look a little deeper into their specifications to find the best one for your preferred type of photography. There are four sets of numbers that matter. They are about the lens, the ISO number (defines how light-sensitive your camera is), the aperture and the shutter speed. It is those numbers that really matter when it comes to choosing the right tool for the job.

Portrait photography

This is the simplest case because their are not really any special requirements of a camera for this genre. Most portrait photographers like to use a narrow depth of field (throwing the background out of focus), this requires a large aperture. The size of the aperture is given as an f number and the lower the number, the larger the aperture. Theoretically you want a camera with the lowest f number but in practice but, because there are other factors that affect the depth of field, it is not worth choosing a camera for portraiture on the f number alone. It would be better to choose a camera that you find comfortable to use. Set your camera to aperture priority and use the maximum aperture, which will be the lowest f number.

Landscape photography

Again, there is very little to choose between cameras when it comes to their suitability for shooting landscapes. The overall quality of the image will probably be your main concern. Having said that, a large zoom range (6x or more) is good because it will allow you to take a wider range of shots from the same viewpoint. A wide angle lens is very useful in landscape work but the zoom range number is no help in comparing cameras to find which one has the widest lens. The angle or field of view of a lens is determined by its focal length, measured in millimetres. The smaller the number, the wider the lens. Unfortunately, you can't always compare this number directly between cameras. What you need to find is the 35mm equivalent of the camera's focal length. That is the only number you can use to make a direct comparison. A large depth of field is what most landscapes want, so use aperture priority and set the minimum aperture, which is the biggest f number.

Night photography

You might think that a high maximum ISO number would be useful for night photography but it's not particularly. Much more useful is a long maximum shutter speed. Of course you need a tripod (or some other support) for your camera but setting a high ISO will create "noise" in your pictures. You will usually get a much better result using a normal ISO setting and a long shutter speed. You should look for a longest shutter speed of at least 30 seconds, the longer the better. Set your camera to shutter priority and use the longest shutter speed you have.

Close up (macro) photography

Most digital cameras have a built in macro facility, usually identified by a flower symbol. This allows you to focus on your subject from only a few centimetres away. Even without this, you can still do macro work by fitting a close up lens. This is made easier to do if your camera's lens has a filter thread. Working this close means that you will naturally have an extremely small depth of field. To help with this you should use aperture priority and set the minimum aperture (largest f number).

Sports or action photography

Only Dslr cameras are ideal for this type of photography. That is because all the others have a certain amount of shutter lag so you can never be sure of catching the perfect moment in a fast moving situation. Of the other types, an slr type camera is definitely more practical for this sort of work. Look for a camera with the longest zoom range and the fastest shutter speed. Set your camera to shutter priority, use the fastest shutter speed you can, zoom into the action and start shooting.

There are a few other types of photography, but they don't have any different requirements to the ones mentioned above. For example stage (or band) work has similar requirements to sports photography and architectural photography is similar to shooting landscapes. No matter what type of photography you enjoy, their is definitely a digital camera that is most suitable. It's just a question of choosing the right tool for the job.

Colin Aiken is a professional photographer based in the United Kingdom. You can view his photographs and get more tips at: http://www.lovethepictures.co.uk

Digital Photography - Choosing Between a DSLR and a Compact Digital Camera - A Practical Guide

Choosing the best camera to suit you as an individual can be compared to very little else, but when it comes to having to choose between a DSLR digital camera or a compact digital camera the choice is certainly narrowed down. There can be quite a few factors to take on-board, which would possibly start with requirements and of course prices, but what other key factors are involved that will ensure that the camera we choose is ideally suitable for us?

First I would like to cover exactly what it is that we have at our disposal with the coming of modern technology and photography.

Technology has certainly moved on in recent years and cameras and photography are no exception, they have embraced this latest spurt in technology and covered some very extensive ground with it.

In fact it would probably be safe to say that unless you have been actively involved in or been following this progress you would probably be highly impressed at how much things have actually moved forward in regard to photography.

One of the key factors in choosing a suitable camera is how extensive you intend to be with it. In other words what kind of pictures you intend on taking. If you intend only to use a camera occasionally for general use and/or maybe even a few holiday snaps here and there then the best bet for you would more than likely be a compact digital camera.

Most compact style cameras work predominately on a totally automatic basis and for point and shooting photography they are simply ideal, which produce great snaps for the album.

Not only that, but they now come with high mega pixel capability and will provide adequate quality for ad-hock photography. High quality images with a useful small size making them ideal when it comes to carrying and storing.

A couple of tips you might like to take on board when choosing a compact camera are, (A) Be sure and choose one that can be charged as opposed to using disposable batteries. (B) If you do get one that uses batteries try not to use the live-view screen on the rear of the camera too often as this is a main battery and power drain.

If on the other hand you are looking for something that can offer your picture taking capabilities a little more all round flexibility and quality then the DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera will be a more practical candidate for you. The DSLR is much more versatile and practical when it comes to photography and spending more time and effort, setting up, and looking for your pictures.

In many cases these modern day wonders seem to defy logic, especially when it comes to capabilities.

No film or heavy cumbersome camera bodies to drag around these days, most DSLR cameras tend to be made of light alloys and jam packed with sophistication. Replacing the film is history, today's DSLR's have a memory card that plugs straight into the camera itself, the memory cards offer you the capability of taking just a few hundred pictures right up to a few thousand (on each card).

Taking the pictures is as easy as 1, 2, 3, on the automatic settings then there is the manual mode and adjustments for the more accomplished photographers, but by simply using your DSLR cameras capabilities regularly you will soon be using all your in-built facilities that the camera has to offer as well as producing some absolutely astounding results in the process.

Once settled on which type of digital camera will suit your requirements best between Compact and DSLR it is simply a question of choosing the make and model that you (A) Feel comfortable handling and using and (B) Will provide you with the quality and end results that you need or are looking for.

This in itself may take a while, but it is well worth taking time looking at your options and alternatives before making a decision. Even then it will more than likely be a case of buying a camera that you can handle and use comfortably now and perhaps upgrading it at a later date.

You can in some cases get a better model digital camera than you initially thought for your budget if you become one of the people prepared to buy a used camera, most appear totally brand new and more often than not come with a six month guarantee.

Buying online provides you with some of the best options and greatest deals. The knack however is finding somewhere that can offer you all the latest camera models, but at the lowest prices. In some instances this can be a long winded operation, but hopefully a worthwhile one. It is simple a question of knowing where to look.

There are so many great things about modern day digital cameras that choosing one is only half the fun as they will provide you with so much fun and pleasure. One highly important factor to take into consideration when you are buying your new camera is the fact that you will NOT have to pay any picture development fees as was the case with the older style cameras.

You will be downloading your images straight onto your computer where you can print them off yourself or send them to relatives around the world via email.

This means that you will over time be making a vast saving, so why not add a little more to your projected camera budget and get the next model up from the one you initially thought.

The more you use your new camera the more you will enjoy using it. By now you should have a pretty good idea for your choice between a DSLR digital camera and a compact digital camera, so all that is needed to do now is decide on the best make and model to suit you and your budget.

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4 Most Important Factors in Choosing a Digital Camera

By now everyone is familiar with the term "Megapixel". This term is now what is mainly used to distinguish between different digital cameras. Essentially, the number of megapixels is a measure of the cameras resolution. "Mega" meaning "millions" and "pixel" is a term that comes from the computer industry (that was first used to describe a computer monitor's resolution) and is derived from the words "picture" and "element" (Pix-el). So a 6 Megapixel Camera comes with a sensor that contains 6 million picture elements.

Any digital camera you find on the market today are highly automated with automatic features for exposure control and for focusing. The days of film are gone and now images are stored on a memory card (Flash Memory).

You have probably noticed the huge number of cameras available and the many different types. How can you pick from all the different megapixels, features, zoom, etc. Here are the 4 most important factors in making a decision on which Digital Camera to purchase.

1) Megapixels

Try not to get too caught up in the number of Megapixels offered. Even though there are cameras available to the average consumer with up to 10 (and even more) megapixels, the normal photographer and even most professional photographers can be very satisfied with even 7 megapixels.

More megapixels does not mean a higher quality photo. Other factors can be more related to the picture quality such as the lens and other features in the camera. More megapixels are only required if you frequently crop and/or significantly enlarge your photos.

2) Zoom Capability

First, make sure you know the difference between "optical zoom" and "digital zoom". Optical zoom is actually done with the lenses of the camera while digital zoom merely magnify the center of the frame without actually increasing the detail of the picture. Most all cameras offer at least 3X optical zoom. 

If you opt for more than this, the trade off could be size and weight of the camera. The reason to select a higher zoom range than the typical 3X is if you will frequently shoot subjects that are at a distance away such as wildlife or sporting events.

Most compact and sub-compact digital cameras have a zoom range higher than 3X (some as high as 7X). Super zoom cameras typically have zoom range above 10X. For SLR cameras the zoom is completely dependent on the lens that is mounted on the camera. Most SLR's come with a lens to allow up to 3X magnification.

3) Full Control or Automatic?

A compact digital camera that is fully automatic that has at least 3X of optical zoom will meet most people's camera needs and even the needs of the more serious photo hobbyist. If you tend to shoot more photos of sports and/or outdoor subjects such as wildlife and nature in general then you may want to steer more toward the Digital SLR (DSLR) cameras.

The DLSRs offer the most flexibility in lens selection and manual features that allow the photographer to manipulate the exposure time as well as the aperture settings. Also, DSLR cameras offer a wider range of ISO settings (think light sensitivity) to allow shooting in lower light situations then the standard compact digital camera.

4) Brand

Typically most brands offer similar features at similar price points. But some things to keep in mind that are known within the photography community; Kodak is on the front edge of offering simplicity and ease of use for the photographer while Fujifilm offers image sensors with proprietary technology that give excellent image quality. Canon, Nikon and Olympus offer an amazing wide range of cameras that would satisfy any type of user.

Deciding on a Digital Camera can be tough with all the choices available, but if you can decide on the 4 main criteria described here it should make your decision much simpler and more satisfying that you have spent your money wisely.

Jeff Snyder is an internet marketer and has expertise in the area of consumer electronics and digital photography. Want to learn more about how to start making money at home with your own Home Photography Business? Get all the necessary steps at: --> http://www.DigitalPhotoBizz.com