When the first cameras appeared they were large bulky items available only to the few who could afford them and understand the science of photography. To take a simple photograph you needed to understand both the mechanics of the gadget, some mathematics and a sound understanding of chemistry. Over the years the camera was developed into something which could be more accessible to ordinary folk. Eventually cameras became tiny little boxes which even children could operate but using film meant that once the photo had been taken it was necessary to have the film developed by a photo lab before we could see the results. These days we have the digital camera and there is no longer the need to send off film and most folk don’t even print our their photo’s but are they easy to understand?
As soon as you look to buying a digital camera you begin to realize how difficult it can be to make a decision. There are more companies producing cameras now than there has ever been. Well known manufacturers such as Canon and Nikon are still around but the infinite number of smaller companies appearing all the time just make the matter worse. These small firms often release fantastic bargains but it is often very difficult to understand if the digital camera deal before you is actually a bargain or not.
Buying a digital camera can be confusing and there are a few things you should become familiar with before proceeding. The word megapixel will be recognized by many but not so many may recognize the word interpolation. If a camera uses interpolation another camera with the same amount of megapixels without interpolation will be superior. Interpolation is a digital method of increasing the megapixel size of a photo so that a 5mp photo will be the same as one taken using, say, an 8mp camera.
Another term which can confuse some is zoom. Basically there are two types of zoom, digital and optical and understanding them will help you pick up a digital camera bargain.
Digital zoom is often the most commonly quoted number on digital camera packaging. Unfortunately it is not as great as it sounds as it actually degrades the image. It does this by taking your image, cropping it (cutting it down to the zoom area) and then enlarging it. Therefore the greater the amount of digital zoom the more blocky the image will be.
On the other hand, optical zoom, is something of importance. Optical zoom does not have an effect on the quality of your photo. Therefore you can zoom in and your image will still be as good quality as before. The greater the optical zoom the better the camera. However not all optical zoom is equal as the quality of the lens can vary between cameras.
It is usually the case that the more you pay for a lens the better it will be. One thing to remember is that a photo taken with a lens costing $thousands is bound to be far, far superior to the exact same photo taken using a camera which cost a couple $100.
What will you be using your camera for? This is important because if most of your photos will be of friends and general snaps you will not need to spend a small fortune on a DSLR camera with a large mm lens with a large optical zoom. In such cases a compact digital camera would be the best buy.
If you plan to take professional photo’s then forget the compact as you have no option but to buy a DSLR. In such cases you will need to buy lenses which are suitable for you purposes but there is simply no room here to cover this huge topic.
I take many photos and actually use a Canon PowerShot A480 and a DSLR with a selection of lenses. The A480 has an optical zoom of 3.3x which is great for most situations. Before you make a final decision on which camera to purchase take the time to read reviews and compare specs. It took me a couple of weeks for me to decide on the A480 and since I bought it I have seen it top of many comparisons.
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