It's easy to see why digital cameras have grown in popularity.
You still 'point and shoot' in the normal way, but there's no need
to buy a film or to wait for it to be processed - you just download
the images onto a computer, send direct to a printer or email them
instantly to friends.
And it's easy to get creative! Digital pictures can be edited so
you can adjust colours, reduce 'red eye', crop the picture or add
artistic effects. You can even use the images to create calendars,
greeting cards and enlargements.
What are the choices?
Point & Shoot
Entry-level digital cameras are ideal for personal or family use,
and fun for sharing memories with friends via e-mail. Good value
and easy to use, resolution can be anything around 5 MegaPixels
- good enough for printing as well as web viewing, although printed
images may look a little 'blocky' with some 5 MegaPixel resolution
cameras.
Pocket Sized
Compact digital cameras which are lightweight and portable, often
offering 5 or more MegaPixels. These modern digital cameras can
be slotted into a small bag or pocket and offer high quality images,
suitable for printing as well as web viewing, and will do justice
to a range of occasions and events.
High Zoom
Digital cameras offering either an extended optical zoom lens
(e.g. 10x or 35-350mm equivalent) to capture vivid images from
distance or powerful digital zooms (e.g. 8x) to enhance detail
of images during playback. High zoom capability can also be found
in pocket sized and high performance digital cameras.
High Performance
Digital cameras and digital SLR cameras designed for professional
use, often featuring over 7 MegaPixels or including powerful zooms,
extended features or a combination of quality photographic elements.
Digital SLRs offer the features and functionality found on a conventional
SLR camera such as interchangeable lenses, designed to cope with
the demands of professional photoshoots and media coverage.
What to look for - 5 easy steps
1) Resolution
(expressed as Megapixels, or MP)
Resolution is one of the most important ratings of a digital camera
- the higher the resolution, the sharper the image. Below is an
approximate guide to maximum print size by resolution, based on
prints at 150ppi acceptable photo quality (pixels per printed
inch):
Pixels Megapixels Max print size
2464 x 1632 4 MP 16.42" x 10.88"
3008 x 2000 6 MP 20.05" x 13.34"
3264 x 2448 8 MP 21.76" x 16.32"
3872 x 2592 10 MP 25.81" x 17.28"
4290 x 2800 12 MP 28.60" x 18.67"
2) Memory
A digital camera's internal memory can usually only store a few
pictures at any one time - its maximum image rating will tell
you how many images it can hold at the lowest possible resolution
(usually 640 x 480). The number of pictures you can store depends
upon the compression settings you choose when saving the files,
as well as on how an individual camera compresses. Higher compression
allows you to fit more pictures on a card, but image quality will
suffer.
A typical 5 megapixel camera with 64MB of memory can hold about
24 high resolution JPEG images, however if you buy a 7 megapixel
camera you should be aiming for at least 512MB of storage. If
you’re going on holiday you might not have access to a computer
and you might wish to take a number of movie clips which take
up more memory.
For this reason, and the fact that memory cards are becoming cheaper,
a one gigabyte (GB), or 1000MB of memory, is now a popular choice.
Choose from Compact Flash, Smart Media, Memory Stick, SD/MMC memory
cards or xD-picture cards. (see More on memory cards for more
information).
Here’s a quick guide to storage capacity (in number of JPEGs),
based on that of a typical Memory Stick PRO DUO.
512MB 1GB 2GB
Photos
4 megapixels 424 828 1656
6 megapixels 319 623 1246
8 megapixels 264 515 1030
10 megapixels 228 445 890
12 megapixels 204 398 796
Music
128kps
(better than FM) 534 1042 2084
Video movie clip
MPEG 4 Super Fine
(1 mbps CBR) 68 127 273
3) Lens
Lenses on most entry-level and mid-priced digital cameras are
smaller than on their traditional counterparts. For an idea of
a camera's range, check the '35mm equivalent' lens rating.
• Anything shorter than 50mm is considered wide-angle - for landscapes
and shots where you want to include as much as possible.
• Lenses longer than 50mm will give you a telephoto picture, suitable
for close-ups and zooming in on distant objects.
4) LCD screen / viewfinder
Many digital cameras come with a traditional optical viewfinder,
but most also have an integral LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) screen
which can be used as a viewfinder.
• Many now consider a large LCD screen one of the most important
purchasing factors.
• Check what your shot will look like before you take it and review
photos you have already taken, giving you the option of deleting
those you are not completely happy with.
• Bear in mind that the screen is a very power-hungry element
which can drain the batteries if used excessively.
5) Battery life
All cameras are supplied with a mains power supply - but because
functions such as zoom, flash and computer downloads are a major
drain on batteries, it is worth considering a model with a lithium
or nicad rechargeable battery and keeping an extra battery with
you if you anticipate taking lots of shots.
• Lithium batteries offer the shortest recharging times.
• Plan on recharging batteries at least every other time you use
your camera.
Other digital camera features to consider
Optical zoom: If you will be taking a lot of long-range telephoto
pictures, optical zoom magnifies the image using a traditional
multi-focal length lens. Combined with digital zoom, this allows
you to take more detailed pictures of distant objects. For example,
if the magnification level is measured as 3x optical zoom, and
the camera's minimum focal length is 50m, then it has the ability
to zoom up to 150m.
Manual settings: In addition to the automatic controls, some digital
cameras come with manual over-ride, allowing you to set the shutter
speed, aperture size and ISO speed exactly as you would do with
a traditional camera. Available on some mid-level digital camera,
Manual focus is useful for close-ups as it lets you focus on exactly
what you want - also handy for certain special effects (e.g. out
of focus lighting).
Remote control / self-timer: This delays a picture, so you can
include yourself in the shot. Also useful for low-light photos,
combating the 'camera shake' effect sometimes caused as a result
of pressing the exposure button.
Shutter speed and aperture priority: Shutter-speed priority mode
lets you select the shutter speed to control exactly the amount
of motion blur. Aperture priority mode lets you adjust the camera’s
F-value, which controls how much of your scene is in focus (a
low 2.8, for example, will put the background out of focus, a
high 8 will put lots of the scene in focus).
Image stabilisation: An unsteady handgrip will blur the still
image - especially in dim conditions or if you’ve zoomed in a
lot. If you don't have a tripod, many top-end digital haves have
Image Stabilisation which steadies the picture so the shake is
largely eliminated. This involves the optical lens or digital
sensor moving ever so slightly to compensate for hand movements.
Continuous shooting / Burst modes: This lets you take multiple
rapid-fire shots with one touch of the exposure button - a useful
feature when photographing motion, such as sporting events.
Face detection: When taking pictures of friends or family this
setting will automatically detect your loved-ones faces, ensuring
the focus is firmly on their smiles and not on the scenery behind
them!
More on memory cards
Although this memory is released once images are transferred to
computer, additional memory can often be used across a range of
portable equipment, such as handheld computers, MP3 players and
even mobile phones, so it is worth considering a format that will
be compatible.
Secure Digital (SD) or Multimedia (MMC) cards are currently the
most popular type as they're compatible with most brands and offer
advanced copyright protection. Check which type of memory is compatible
with your camera manufacturer here:
• CompactFlash - Still the cheapest format, this uses an extremely
small card about the size of a matchbook that provides high capacity
storage. CompactFlash is the most popular memory format for cameras
(particularly digital SLRs) and is also widely used on other portable
equipment such as MP3 players. Capacities range from 16MB to 4GB.
Supported by; Canon, Fujifilm, Konica Minolta, Nikon, Olympus
and Sigma.
• Microdrive - Similar to CompactFlash cards but with increased
speed and storage capacity (2GB or more). Also supported by Hitachi.
• SmartMedia (also called Solid State Floppy disc Cards, 'SSFDC')
- SmartMedia cards use Flash memory which helps keep costs down,
but the format is ageing and less widely used in other portable
equipment so compatibility can be an issue. Capacities range from
16 MB to 4GB. Supported by; Fujifilm, Olympus, Lexar and Samsung.
• Memory Stick - A removable, chewing gum sized smartcard produced
by Sony. Compatible with most of Sony's extensive portable digital
range, but not with equipment produced by other manufacturers.
Capacities range from 16MB to 4GB. Supported by; Samsung, Lexar
and Sony.
• Secure Digital and Multimedia - Often abbreviated to SD and
MMC, both are about the size of a stamp. Capacities range from
64MB to 4GB. Supported by; Canon, Casio, Concord, Contax, DXG,
Epson, HP, Kodak, Konica Minolta, Kyocera, Leica, Nikon, Panasonic,
Pentax, Lexar, Samsung and Toshiba.
• xD-Picture Card - Stamp-sized and durable, xD cards are the
only storage format that can support the Panorama function found
on most Olympus digital cameras. Capacities range from 64MB to
4GB. Supported by; Fujifilm and Olympus.
Video-clip recording
Most medium-priced digital cameras are able to take short clips
of film in AVI (Audio Video Interleave) format, which can be viewed
on a computer and emailed. The best video-clip quality currently
available from a digital still camera is 30fps VGA (640 x 480
resolution) with sound. Some cameras allow you to record a continuous
clip up to the capacity of your memory card, while others shoot
only 30 seconds or so at a time. Check whether the camera is able
to take clips with sound.
• With voice / sound: Some cameras let you record brief voice
annotations to accompany photos. A few double as voice recorders,
allowing you to record hours of audio if your memory card is large
enough. Look for a camera with a built-in speaker in addition
to the microphone.
• Webcams: Some cameras may be used as Webcams and come with the
requisite videoconferencing software. Look for a camera with a
built-in microphone so that you don't have to attach a separate
one to your computer.
• usic playback: A few cameras can play MP3 and other audio files
and come with earphones, but currently the quality and flexibility
can vary.
Creative effects, editing and connectivity
Scene modes: Most mid-range digital cameras can be automatically
set-up by selecting one of many ‘scene modes’ to offer you a range
of options, such as shooting in black and white or sepia, and
as panoramic or macro shots. Choosing ‘sport’ mode to take a photo
of a football match, for example, freezes movement so a ball and
player appear still. Without it, you might get motion blur in
your shot. Some cameras even have special shooting modes to capture
stop-motion animation, 3D pictures, and other special types of
images.
In-camera editing: Many cameras allow you to resize, copy, or
make other changes to your images before you download them to
a computer. Some even let you edit video clips in-camera on a
small timeline.
Image-editing software: To edit digital images on a computer most
digital cameras arrive with software that lets you crop, enlarge,
correct colour and add effects to your pictures.
Viewing images on your TV: A 'video out' function gives the option
of hooking your camera up to a television to view your pictures.
You can also use a DVD player to view your pictures on-screen,
if you have one that plays JPEG files - most players do. After
you’ve transferred your photos to your computer, record them onto
a CD or DVD, put the disc in your player and play. You can also
directly create a disc, or tape, by linking the camera to a DVD
recorder or video recorder.
Wireless transfer: A few digital cameras allow you to send images
wirelessly to a compatible device. Some professional SLRs are
compatible with wireless transmitters that you attach to the camera.
Digital SLR cameras
A growing phenomenon amongst photography enthusiasts, the digital
SLR marries together the modern features of digital camera technology
with the shooting flexibility of traditional SLR cameras. Compact
digital cameras are designed for maximum portability so they’re
made to be small and light - the digital SLR's design places top
priority on shooting ease and flexibility.
Advantages of ‘D-SLR’ cameras;
• Autofocus (AF): A digital SLR is designed to shoot quickly and
obtain top-quality shots. Autofocus on a digital SLR camera employs
a special, high-performance motor and built-in microcomputer for
high-speed focusing. The camera can thereby focus faster than
you can turn the focusing ring.
• Viewfinder: Through the viewfinder, you can see the scene as
it will be photographed – so you can clearly see what the camera
sees. In the centre area, there are AF points that focus automatically.
You can also select any one of the AF points to focus at that
point. At the viewfinder bottom, shooting information is displayed.
Through the viewfinder, you can see the subject's detail, colours,
facial expressions, etc. with more clarity than on many compact
camera's LCD monitor.
• Live View LCD: Some D-SLRs, such as the Panasonic Lumix DMC-L1
include a full-time Live View function through its LCD. This offers
a viewfinder style focus through the LCD screen, offering a shooting
style different from conventional digital SLRs.
• Interchangeable lenses: The digital SLR can use various lenses
to take wide-angle, telephoto, or close-up shots, to shoot a wide
variety of subjects. The shorter the focal length (measured in
mm), the wider the view will be - the longer the focal length,
the more telescopic the picture.
• Speed: You can shoot multiple shots per second, an advantage
for capturing fast-moving subjects.
Direct printing
Some digital cameras will allow you connect directly to a compatible
printer so there's no need for a PC. You can select the pictures
you want to print on the LCD screen and simply press print.
Some printers have slots for memory cards so you can slot the
memory card from your camera directly into your printer and print
the pictures. Look out for cameras which are PictBridge compatible
- this is a standardized technology that lets you print images
from the memory card in a digital camera directly to a printer
regardless of brand.
Although direct printing methods mean no picture editing facility,
some top-end digital cameras allow extensive in-camera editing,
so they’re ready to print. Many mid-range photo printers also
provide a sizeable LCD screen with which to perform editing tasks.
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