Dec 13 2008
Mobile Gadgets: How a newbie shops for a digital camera
There are so many features found on even the simplest-least expensive digital camera that a newbie to digital photography can get confused. Which one is the best and which one should I buy?
The upside is that any one of the latest point and shoot digital cameras is easy to use, and they perform extremely well. As the name suggests these digital cameras are meant to simply pick up-point-and shoot. The camera will take care of the rest.
The downside (if you consider it one) is that there are few settings that can be changed by the user. Again, these cameras are geared towards the needs of a beginner.
In order to make the best decision of which digital camera suits your needs some things need to be considered.
• Will you print your photo?
• Will you enlarge your photo?
• Will you send them through e-mail?
• Are you interested in taking close-up photos?
• Will you need to take action photos?
The number of megapixels that a digital camera has can be important when a photo needs to be enlarged. The higher the number the better resolution (clarity) you will achieve. As the enlargement grows so should the number of megapixels.
Digital photos shared over e-mail need to be smaller. Taking the photo at a lower setting may be better in this situation.
There are two types of zooms that you will see on digital cameras. Optical is the best (magnifies the whole image) and digital (degrades resolution) is the second best.
I do not want to get to technical but a few other features may be offered that you should know about.
• ISO rating – higher ISO rating is best for low light and action shots.
• Macro Mode – how close to an object do you want to focus?
• Red-Eye reduction – flash intensifies the natural color red in the eyes – especially in children and pets.
• Movie Mode – lets you take short video clips
We are almost finished now. Some digital cameras save images to the internal memory which requires you to connect the camera to your computer. Some save images onto a memory card that can be removed and viewed from your computer. Some combine the two.
Take this information and buy yourself a digital camera. Have fun and make some memories.
