If you want to buy a digital camera, you will get faced with a bewildering amount of choice. Therefore, to help find your way through this maze, it is worth working out what you can have, what you require and what cameras can deliver, before you go down to the mall.
So, the first question is what do you want to be able to do with this camera? A point-and-click, cheap digital camera with a limited zoom facility is sufficient for most individuals who just want to take family and vacation snapshots.
However, if you want to be able to photograph close-ups of insects or specialized photographs with special effects, you will require a lot more.
How much can you afford? A cheap point-and-click digital camera can be purchased for less than $100; a decent mid-range camera will cost around $300 and a good digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR) will cost more than $500.
However, the DSLR will do anything that you would like it to do from close-ups of insects to professional portrait photographs to family snapshots.
Do not forget that usually the spending does not finish with the camera, you may need a PC, a printer, special inks and papers, extra memory cards and a photo manipulation program, although this program normally comes with the camera.
Within the limits of the above, you have to check the resolution of the camera, which is expressed in terms of its megapixels. The more megapixels the higher the resolution, the better the quality of the picture and the more you can edit it or zoom into it.
Internal memory determines how many photos your camera will hold before it needs help from external memory in the guise of memory cards. There are a number of types of cards and they do not fit all cameras.
They also come in diverse capacities. The cards will keep your photos until you upload them to your computer and erase them, so you could have a few.
Hold the camera. Does it fit neatly in your hands? Does your little finger hang over the lens? How about the LCD display? Is it large enough for you to see without spectacles? Are the colours true? Do you like the camera?
How long are the batteries hoped to last? One hundred photos? How expensive are the batteries and can you use rechargable ones? Rechargable penlight batteries are the most cheapest.
Check on the special functions and accessories of the camera. If you wear specs, you could purchase a camera that has a viewfinder that has a diopter adjustment, so that you may see without your spectacles on. Does it have a receiver for a tripod or even a tripod as well. Does it have a flash? A carrying strap? Wireless remote controls?
So, the first question is what do you want to be able to do with this camera? A point-and-click, cheap digital camera with a limited zoom facility is sufficient for most individuals who just want to take family and vacation snapshots.
However, if you want to be able to photograph close-ups of insects or specialized photographs with special effects, you will require a lot more.
How much can you afford? A cheap point-and-click digital camera can be purchased for less than $100; a decent mid-range camera will cost around $300 and a good digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR) will cost more than $500.
However, the DSLR will do anything that you would like it to do from close-ups of insects to professional portrait photographs to family snapshots.
Do not forget that usually the spending does not finish with the camera, you may need a PC, a printer, special inks and papers, extra memory cards and a photo manipulation program, although this program normally comes with the camera.
Within the limits of the above, you have to check the resolution of the camera, which is expressed in terms of its megapixels. The more megapixels the higher the resolution, the better the quality of the picture and the more you can edit it or zoom into it.
Internal memory determines how many photos your camera will hold before it needs help from external memory in the guise of memory cards. There are a number of types of cards and they do not fit all cameras.
They also come in diverse capacities. The cards will keep your photos until you upload them to your computer and erase them, so you could have a few.
Hold the camera. Does it fit neatly in your hands? Does your little finger hang over the lens? How about the LCD display? Is it large enough for you to see without spectacles? Are the colours true? Do you like the camera?
How long are the batteries hoped to last? One hundred photos? How expensive are the batteries and can you use rechargable ones? Rechargable penlight batteries are the most cheapest.
Check on the special functions and accessories of the camera. If you wear specs, you could purchase a camera that has a viewfinder that has a diopter adjustment, so that you may see without your spectacles on. Does it have a receiver for a tripod or even a tripod as well. Does it have a flash? A carrying strap? Wireless remote controls?
About the Author:
Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on numerous topics, but is currently involved with tips for product photography. If you have an interest in photography, please visit our website now at Photography Studio Cameras