How Do I Pick a Digital Camera?
Posted by Janice on June 12, 2007 in The Arts
It is a sign of our digital times that I am receiving lots of questions about Digital Cameras and what the terminology means. Here is a short course in digital camera language for those of you who want to know.
This information was provided by Glazer’s Camera and is very helpful when you or your staff are deciding to buy a new camera.
What is a digital camera and why do I want one?
A digital camera is one that records an image using an electronic sensor. The sensor is made up of millions of pixels, the more pixels it has, the sharper the detail of the image. The sensor transfers the picture into a digital file that is saved to a memory card.
You want a digital camera because it is easy to use, gives you full control of your pictures from taking them to editing them, to adding special effects. This is all done on your computer and sometimes in the camera.
What is a megapixel and why should I care?
A megapixel is one million pixels.
The term pixel is short for picture element. You need lots of pixels to produce a good photograph.
Most cameras today are between 3-8 Megapixels, with some offering 10 and 12 Megapixels.
So when you are buying a camera, or looking through the ads for one, remember that the more megapixels the camera has, the larger you can reproduce your image and still have good quality.
Here is a quick overview.
- 2 megapixel – These cameras will make good quality 5”x7” prints,
3 megapixel – These cameras will make good quality 8”x10” prints.
4 megapixel – These cameras will make good quality 11”x14” prints.
5 megapixel – These cameras will make good quality 13” x19” prints.
Print your pictures at the 300 dot per inch (dpi) setting.
You may really be into photography and want a good zoom lens. Remember, most of these cameras have both digital and optical zooms. The zoom that is more like a 35mm camera is the optical zoom. The higher that number the better your zoom quality.
This information is really only about point and shoot digital cameras. If you are interested in an SLR camera talk to someone in a camera shop. These cameras deliver bigger pixels, better quality shots, and interchangeable lenses. They work the same as traditional 35mm SLR cameras that photography experts like to use.
What is an SLR camera? SLR stands for Single Lens Reflex. In the days before digital cameras, SLR cameras were the tools of professional photographers. Basically the design is such that light entering the lens is reflected by a mirror up in to the viewfinder, allowing the photographer to see exactly what the final picture will look like (focus, dep[th of field, etc.). A Digital SLR is just a computerized version of the same thing, using digital memory cards and light sensor chips instead of film. SLRs also use interchangeable lenses that you can buy separately from the camera that allow for macro and elphoto photography. These cameras are expensive, but the prices are coming down.
For most of our school and family uses, the point and shoot cameras are the way to go. Just remember that higher megapixels are better as are higher optical zoom numbers for the quality of your photographs.
November 21st, 2007 at 8:18 am
Thank you for this information. It is to the point and the exact information for which I was looking.
March 29th, 2009 at 11:00 pm
This is what i was looking for.
this article make me confident to choose digital camera. thank you.