Choosing the Right Camera For You

[Ignacio Taylor]

Are you thinking about improving your photography skills?
Before you start spending rash money on cameras you don't need, do a
little research into what it is that you want to accomplish. Point and
shoot cameras, and to some extent, mobile phone cameras are all very
well if you want to record your holiday snaps or remember the good
days out you had.
However, should you wish to take things a step further, you are going
to need a step up in the equipment you are using. Digital single lens
reflex cameras (Digital SLR's) are the direction in which you should
be looking. There are many pitfalls for the amateur photographer to
overcome when choosing a Digital SLR, not least is the vast array of
terminology which is not understood (or miss-understood) by the
uninitiated.
Another Digital SLR conundrum is that most don't have a live screen
mode. I.E. With your point and shoot camera you can see the picture on
the viewing screen, this does not apply to most Digital SLR's, most
(Although not all) of the camera manufacturers tend to stick to the
old Single lens reflex camera strategy where you need to look through
the camera lens to compose the picture you want.
Before you sink your head into your hands, try this with your old
point and shoot camera, the one where you always look at the viewing
screen to compose your picture. You will find that viewing through the
lens is just as easy and indeed, most point and shoot camera
manufacturers recommend this method rather than using the screen to
compose. Back to finding out what you need. If you just need a camera
to take snaps of the family and record the highlights of days and
weekends away, stick to the point and shoot camera.
Updating it will help you a lot, cameras are similar to any other
electronic device in that, they are literally, out of date before they
are 6 months old. This is not to say that they are no good after this,
just that they have been superseded by a newer model which will out
perform the one you bought. If on the other hand you want to take
pictures that say something to the viewer, pictures that convey
feeling and mood, you are going to have to upgrade to a Digital SLR.
You need a camera that you can control fully, a camera that responds
to your input. In short you have to have total control over the
camera, if you are going to use the auto settings (which you can) you
may as well stick with the point and shoot.
So, what do I recommend?
1. If you just want to take snaps, upgrade to an up to date camera
with at least 10 Mega pixels.
2. If you want to get interested in photography and take really good
pictures, buy a Digital SLR camera.
3. Don't forget that with a Digital SLR, the lenses are
interchangeable, you can choose from a vast array of lenses and
filters that will make your pictures different and give you total
control.
4. Don't buy the top of the range Digital SLR to start with, buy a
well known make by all means, but start at the price level you can
afford.
5. Remember, there are loads of accessories, some of which you will
need almost immediately. These can be expensive, something to think
about then, when choosing your camera.
6. With these criteria you are almost always better off buying a kit
which consists of, the camera, a couple of lenses, filters, an extra
memory card and a tripod.