Christmas is just around the corner and it’s the time of year we start thinking about purchasing a new camera to capture those special holiday memories. Are you considering purchasing a new camera, but don’t know what to buy?
‘What camera should I buy?’ is probably the question I get asked the most. It is probably one of the most important questions to ask. I do not claim any allegiance with any particular brand and will not endorse any either. There are fabulous cameras in all shapes, sizes and price ranges.
First you need to do your research. I cannot stress this enough. This will help you focus your search to exactly what you want and need. After you have read this tip sheet, pick a couple of brands you are interested in, and search as many reviews as you can before you make your final decision. Reviews will tell how a particular model performs and its pros and cons. There are many good websites and magazines available that do all the work for you, but do not rely on just one review, check out a few. That will give you an overall impression of what the pros think of a certain product. Also, don’t just rely upon the advice of the helpful sales person (who may or may not know anything about cameras and who may or may not have sales incentives for the camera they are recommending).
5 things to consider when purchasing a camera
1. Determine what you need
It is really easy to get talked into buying a camera that is not what you really need. (Think new, shiny things!!) If you can answer a few of the questions below before you go shopping you will be able to maneuver through the seemingly endless inventory of cameras on the market today and help you get an appropriate piece of equipment.
• What do you need the camera for? Work, pleasure, family photos or vacation memories
• What type of photography will you be doing? (portraits, landscapes, microscopic, sports)
• Do you have previous camera experience?
• What conditions will you be largely photographing in? (indoors, outdoors, low light, bright light)
• Will you stay in auto mode or do you want to play with all the buttons and learn the art of photography?
• What type of features are you looking for? (long zoom, image stabilization, large LCD display, video capability)
• How important is size and portability to you? Will you be travelling with all this equipment?
2. What is your budget?
Set yourself a budget and stick with it! Looking for a new camera is exciting!! Dreaming of all the things you can do with the newest and latest versions and then there are all those fabulous accessories! Oh la la! All together purchasing a camera can easily put you into debt for the next decade.
By determining what you need in a camera and by doing some research, prior to entering a storefront, you will have set yourself a budget range to work with. But keep in mind there will be ‘extras’ which are not included in the quoted price. These are some of the items you may want (or need) to purchase as well as your camera body and lenses (if purchasing a DSLR, (digital single lens reflex)) (refer to next point).
• Camera Case
• Memory Cards
• Spare Batteries/Recharger
• Lenses (if you are getting a DSLR)
• Filters (and other lens attachments)
• Tripods/Monopods
• External Flashes
• Reflectors
Some retailers offer ‘bundles’ which include some of these extras with the initial camera purchases. Keep in mind though that what they offer in bundles might not meet your needs.
3. DSLR or Point and Shoot
While digital SLRs (single lens reflex) are getting more affordable, they are not for everyone. Keep in mind that they are usually bigger, heavier, harder to keep clean (if you’re changing lenses) and can be more complicated to operate than point and shoot. Of course there are some upsides also.
The first thing you’ll notice is that cameras have a number of different basic shapes, sizes and weight.
Compact cameras
This category of camera is usually the smallest in size and has lenses, which do not come off the body. Most compact cameras are designed to be used by people who ‘point-and-shoot’ and who like the camera to do all the hard work.
Compact system cameras
This is a newer type of camera, where there is a range of lenses to choose from as well as some accessories.
These are still small cameras, and they are still designed to do all the work, but they also allow a lot of flexibility and control.
DSLRs
The biggest and most complex cameras are called DSLRs (digital single lens reflex). These cameras have a massive collection of lenses to choose from, as well as endless accessories. While you can use them in point and shoot mode – and many people do – they are really designed for photographers who want to take control of every aspect of the way the picture is taken – its brightness, how much is in focus, the way colours are displayed and the way movement is shown. With the opportunity to carry more than one lens, and with the right kit there is no subject that you won’t be able to shoot.
Somewhere between the DSLR and the compact camera is something called a ‘bridge’ camera? These look like a DSLR, but are smaller and their lens is not interchangeable. Although they are not technically DSLRs they tend to have extremely long lenses, and can cover a wide range of situations. They are easy to use and are highly portable. (My next blog post will go into the differences in more depth)
4. Optical Zooms vs. Digital Zoom
Not all ‘zooms’ are created equal. When we talk about zooms, we are referring to ‘zooming’ in on a subject to make them appear bigger.
When you’re looking at different models of digital cameras you’ll often hear their zooms talked about in two ways. There’s the ‘optical zoom’ and then there’s the ‘digital zoom’. I highly recommend the ‘optical zoom’ only. Digital zooms simply enlarge the pixels in your shot, which does make your subject look bigger, but it also makes it look more pixilated and your picture ‘noisier’ or ‘grainer’.
5. Megapixels
One of the features that is used to market digital cameras is how many megapixels a digital camera has.
In the beginning of the digital photography revolution megapixel rating of cameras was actually quite important as most cameras were at the lower end of today’s modern day range. Today with most new cameras coming out with at least 5 megapixels, it isn’t so crucial. In fact at the upper end of the range it can actually be a disadvantage, to have images that are so large that they take up enormous amounts of space on memory cards and computers.
One of the main questions to ask your self is ‘Will I be printing shots’? If so – how large will you be going with them? If you’re only printing images at a normal size then anything over 4 or so megapixels will be fine. If you’re going to start blowing your images up you might want to pay the extra money for something at the upper end of the megapixel scale.
Hopefully with these tips on which camera is right for you, you will be able to make an informed decision and purchase the perfect piece of equipment.
Look for ‘Tips On How To Choose The Right Camera For You Part 2’, next month.
Your comments are always welcome. If you have a comment or a photography question you would like answered please ask away! You can use the comment section of this page, the contact page or e-mail me directly at inkdot@shaw.ca.
‘What camera should I buy?’ is probably the question I get asked the most. It is probably one of the most important questions to ask. I do not claim any allegiance with any particular brand and will not endorse any either. There are fabulous cameras in all shapes, sizes and price ranges.
First you need to do your research. I cannot stress this enough. This will help you focus your search to exactly what you want and need. After you have read this tip sheet, pick a couple of brands you are interested in, and search as many reviews as you can before you make your final decision. Reviews will tell how a particular model performs and its pros and cons. There are many good websites and magazines available that do all the work for you, but do not rely on just one review, check out a few. That will give you an overall impression of what the pros think of a certain product. Also, don’t just rely upon the advice of the helpful sales person (who may or may not know anything about cameras and who may or may not have sales incentives for the camera they are recommending).
5 things to consider when purchasing a camera
1. Determine what you need
It is really easy to get talked into buying a camera that is not what you really need. (Think new, shiny things!!) If you can answer a few of the questions below before you go shopping you will be able to maneuver through the seemingly endless inventory of cameras on the market today and help you get an appropriate piece of equipment.
• What do you need the camera for? Work, pleasure, family photos or vacation memories
• What type of photography will you be doing? (portraits, landscapes, microscopic, sports)
• Do you have previous camera experience?
• What conditions will you be largely photographing in? (indoors, outdoors, low light, bright light)
• Will you stay in auto mode or do you want to play with all the buttons and learn the art of photography?
• What type of features are you looking for? (long zoom, image stabilization, large LCD display, video capability)
• How important is size and portability to you? Will you be travelling with all this equipment?
2. What is your budget?
Set yourself a budget and stick with it! Looking for a new camera is exciting!! Dreaming of all the things you can do with the newest and latest versions and then there are all those fabulous accessories! Oh la la! All together purchasing a camera can easily put you into debt for the next decade.
By determining what you need in a camera and by doing some research, prior to entering a storefront, you will have set yourself a budget range to work with. But keep in mind there will be ‘extras’ which are not included in the quoted price. These are some of the items you may want (or need) to purchase as well as your camera body and lenses (if purchasing a DSLR, (digital single lens reflex)) (refer to next point).
• Camera Case
• Memory Cards
• Spare Batteries/Recharger
• Lenses (if you are getting a DSLR)
• Filters (and other lens attachments)
• Tripods/Monopods
• External Flashes
• Reflectors
Some retailers offer ‘bundles’ which include some of these extras with the initial camera purchases. Keep in mind though that what they offer in bundles might not meet your needs.
3. DSLR or Point and Shoot
While digital SLRs (single lens reflex) are getting more affordable, they are not for everyone. Keep in mind that they are usually bigger, heavier, harder to keep clean (if you’re changing lenses) and can be more complicated to operate than point and shoot. Of course there are some upsides also.
The first thing you’ll notice is that cameras have a number of different basic shapes, sizes and weight.
Compact cameras
This category of camera is usually the smallest in size and has lenses, which do not come off the body. Most compact cameras are designed to be used by people who ‘point-and-shoot’ and who like the camera to do all the hard work.
Compact system cameras
This is a newer type of camera, where there is a range of lenses to choose from as well as some accessories.
These are still small cameras, and they are still designed to do all the work, but they also allow a lot of flexibility and control.
DSLRs
The biggest and most complex cameras are called DSLRs (digital single lens reflex). These cameras have a massive collection of lenses to choose from, as well as endless accessories. While you can use them in point and shoot mode – and many people do – they are really designed for photographers who want to take control of every aspect of the way the picture is taken – its brightness, how much is in focus, the way colours are displayed and the way movement is shown. With the opportunity to carry more than one lens, and with the right kit there is no subject that you won’t be able to shoot.
Somewhere between the DSLR and the compact camera is something called a ‘bridge’ camera? These look like a DSLR, but are smaller and their lens is not interchangeable. Although they are not technically DSLRs they tend to have extremely long lenses, and can cover a wide range of situations. They are easy to use and are highly portable. (My next blog post will go into the differences in more depth)
4. Optical Zooms vs. Digital Zoom
Not all ‘zooms’ are created equal. When we talk about zooms, we are referring to ‘zooming’ in on a subject to make them appear bigger.
When you’re looking at different models of digital cameras you’ll often hear their zooms talked about in two ways. There’s the ‘optical zoom’ and then there’s the ‘digital zoom’. I highly recommend the ‘optical zoom’ only. Digital zooms simply enlarge the pixels in your shot, which does make your subject look bigger, but it also makes it look more pixilated and your picture ‘noisier’ or ‘grainer’.
5. Megapixels
One of the features that is used to market digital cameras is how many megapixels a digital camera has.
In the beginning of the digital photography revolution megapixel rating of cameras was actually quite important as most cameras were at the lower end of today’s modern day range. Today with most new cameras coming out with at least 5 megapixels, it isn’t so crucial. In fact at the upper end of the range it can actually be a disadvantage, to have images that are so large that they take up enormous amounts of space on memory cards and computers.
One of the main questions to ask your self is ‘Will I be printing shots’? If so – how large will you be going with them? If you’re only printing images at a normal size then anything over 4 or so megapixels will be fine. If you’re going to start blowing your images up you might want to pay the extra money for something at the upper end of the megapixel scale.
Hopefully with these tips on which camera is right for you, you will be able to make an informed decision and purchase the perfect piece of equipment.
Look for ‘Tips On How To Choose The Right Camera For You Part 2’, next month.
Your comments are always welcome. If you have a comment or a photography question you would like answered please ask away! You can use the comment section of this page, the contact page or e-mail me directly at inkdot@shaw.ca.