Digital Camera Buying Guide

Check out the October ’05 article regarding faulty chips in Digital-Cameras.

Looking for instant, high-quality photos you can easily share with friends and family? A digital camera, paired with image manipulation software, an inexpensive color printer, and a personal Web site can deliver astonishingly good results and hugely boost your fun in photography.

Overview

Digital cameras make photography easy and fun. They are as simple to use as traditional point-and-shoots, but have added features such as exposure adjustment, special effects, and clear, bright LCD screens that let you preview your pictures before you take them.

With a digital camera you can take unlimited pictures and not worry about running out of film--just download your photos to a computer, and your camera's memory is free again. Improvements in digital storage allow you to take up to 500 pictures on certain memory cards. In addition, you never have to pay for film processing, and you get your photos immediately, instead of having to wait for the prints to be developed. You can e-mail photos to friends, print them out on photo paper or stickers, or post them on the Web, all without hassling with photo labs or scanners.

When shopping for a digital camera, start by identifying your needs. Do you want to take pictures of friends and family? Will you be using the camera for professional graphics work? Do you ever plan on printing your photos? Knowing what kind of photos you'll be taking most often will help you decide what resolution, storage type, power source, and other amenities you'll need. Check out the specific features below for more details.

Choices

With close to 250 different consumer and prosumer digital cameras on the market, and more to be released, choosing the right device for your needs can be intimidating. The first step in narrowing the field is deciding what kind of photographer you are and which level of camera fits your digital photography needs.

Consumer. These have few controls; you can literally point the lens at your subject or scene and snap the picture. If all you want is to get the picture without bothering with exposure, focus, color, and other controls, this may be a good choice. But almost all digital cameras have an auto point-and-shoot-type mode, regardless of how complicated or feature-rich they are, and more controls (whether you choose to use them or not) provide the opportunity to take better pictures.

If convenience is key, you may want to check out the comparatively new category of digital cameras that have cradles, or docks, for easy uploading of images to your computer. Simply placing the camera into the dock and pressing a button launches the acquisition software. Pictures then upload from the camera to your computer automatically.
Professional. These have interchangeable lenses and lots of manual controls (for f-stops, shutter speeds, bracketing, and more). If you're an avid or professional photographer and you want total control over your pictures, this class of cameras might interest you. Keep in mind, however, that you'll have to factor in the cost for the (optional) interchangeable lenses.
Prosumer. These are becoming popular alternatives to pro models, primarily because they cost thousands less. Prosumers are defined as serious photographers who do not necessarily make their livings as full-time photographers but do need or want professional-level control over their pictures. Prosumer digital cameras are similar to pro models, with one major exception: They don't have interchangeable lenses. Instead, they use optional add-on auxiliary lenses, which, although less expensive, don't offer the range or the optical quality of true interchangeable lenses.
Digital camcorders. Which do you really want: a still camera or a digital camcorder? Many still digital cameras have limited moviemaking capabilities, just as most digital video camcorders can take still photos. If you want primarily to take still photos and only occasionally shoot short (usually low-resolution) movies, a still camera with video and audio features may fit the bill. If you need video primarily but also want movies that are longer than a few seconds or minutes, you should choose a digital camcorder.
Specialty devices. If the fun or convenience of having an unusual device is more important to you than versatility or image quality, consider buying one of the novelty digital cameras that are proliferating. These specialized or hybrid devices may double as MP3 players or attach directly to your handheld. There's even a spy-type digital camera disguised as a pen, as well as a Dick Tracy-type watch camera. And very soon, cell phones will come equipped with a built-in still and Web camera.

Budget

To some degree, it's true that you get what you pay for in terms of features and image quality. Even though a particular digital camera may fit your budget, you're not getting a bargain if it doesn't meet your needs. For example, there's no sense buying a bare bones, ultra cheap digital camera if you have your heart set on a 3-megapixel model with manual settings. It also doesn't pay to fork out big bucks for an expensive, everything-but-the-kitchen-sink digital camera when you're really just a point-and-shoot user. Here's a quick primer on the types of digital cameras out there, what they offer, and how much you should expect to pay:

Beginners ($79 to $200). These are very simple, point-and-shoot devices with few frills or features. These come with a fixed lens (no focus, zoom, close-up, or macro capability), flash, a simple optical viewfinder (no LCD viewfinder), and built-in memory (no removable memory card). Resolution is 640-by-480 (VGA) to 1,024-by-768 (XGA).
Look for a digital camera in this price range if you are on a tight budget, don't feel comfortable setting f-stops or shutter speeds manually, want only snapshot-size prints or to transmit the pictures over the Web, or are easily intimidated by new technology.
Consumers ($200 to $500). Consumer-level digital cameras are somewhat more sophisticated but still relatively simple to shoot. They're usually equipped with an auto-focus lens that has macro capability (some also come with a zoom lens). In addition to the features common to basic digital cameras, consumer-level models feature an LCD viewfinder and a removable memory card. Additional features often include exposure compensation, different flash modes, white balance, burst mode, video out, and program modes for photographing at night, making portraits, shooting black-and-white or sepia photos, and capturing landscapes. Most offer 1- to 2.2-megapixel resolution.
Look for a digital camera in this price range if you want better image quality or larger prints or some special features, such as support for movies and panorama.
Advanced consumers ($500 to $900). Expect a long list of features, great picture quality, or a combination of both. Most have excellent auto-focus zoom lenses, a variety of program modes (which may include aperture and shutter priority, fully manual operation, burst mode, panorama, and auto-bracketing), image enhancements (flash-intensity adjustment and color, contrast, and brightness controls), and special features (wireless remote control, time lapse, and manual focus). Most of these cameras have 3.3-megapixel resolution; a few of the smaller models have 2 mega pixels.
Look for a digital camera in this price range if you need certain image effects or improvements and are willing to attempt manual settings, want photo-quality enlargements, and enjoy having a full range of features and functions.
Prosumers ($1,100 to $2,000). Designed and intended for serious photographers only, prosumer-level cameras concentrate on precise control, fast operations, and superior image quality. Unlike professional models, prosumer lenses are not interchangeable, and the image sensors are somewhat less sophisticated. Loosely translated, this means that the image sensor offers lower color-bit depth and bandwidth performance. Prosumer digital cameras have resolutions between 3 and 5 megapixels.
Look for a digital camera in this price range if you want a top-quality zoom lens, near-film-like performance and image quality, and extensive manual control (basically, almost everything that pro models can do, but at a far lower cost).
Professionals ($4,000 to $15,000). Professional digital cameras have the look of a pro 35-mm SLR film camera body, and they support interchangeable lenses. Sophisticated image sensors are capable of producing photographs that are indistinguishable (or even better) than film. These cameras are also very expensive. They have a wide range of controls over every aspect of the photograph. Resolutions range from 3 to 6 megapixels.
Look for a digital camera in this price range if you want a camera system that includes lens interchangeability, true film-like performance and image quality, total manual control, faster workflow, and a high degree of ruggedness and reliability--and if price is not an issue.

Optical Zoom & Digital Zoom

Optical Zoom: Changes the magnification of images with the actual optical glass, no resolution is lost . A true zoom. BETTER

Digital Zoom: Crops then enlarges the image digitally causing a slight loss in resolution. It basically does the same thing as increasing the size of an image using computer software. NOT AS GOOD

Resolution

Resolution	Maximum desktop print (inches)
VGA (640-x-480)	3.5-x-5
1-megapixel	5-x-7
2-megapixel	8-x-10
3-megapixel	11-x-14
4-megapixel	14-x-17
5-megapixel	16-x-20


	Lots of Pixels		Few Pixels

Maximum resolution is one of the most important ratings of a digital camera. Resolution refers to how many pixels make up a photo, and it is usually measured in the horizontal by vertical resolution, as in "1280 x 960." The higher the resolution, the sharper the picture. Traditional film has a much higher resolution than what digital cameras can muster--at least for now. But today's digital cameras are getting closer and closer to the extreme clarity of film.

Most cameras offer a choice of resolutions, since high-resolution pictures take up much more memory. Common digital-camera resolutions include 1600 x 1200, 1280 x 960, and 1024 x 768 (termed "megapixel" resolutions), 640 x 480, and 320 x 240. The resolution you need depends on what you plan to do with your photos. If you just want to e-mail photos to your friends or put them on the Web, you'll be happy with a lower resolution like 640 x 480. If you want to print your photos, however, megapixel resolutions will give you better results, because most printers print at 600 dots per inch. Lower-resolution printouts tend to be grainy. Megapixel cameras often offer the option of taking lower-resolution photos so that you can fit more photos in the camera's memory. However, not surprisingly, high-resolution digital cameras are more expensive.

Compression

Another factor that affects image quality is compression, the process that shrinks a photo's file size. Most cameras take photos as compressed JPEG files, which allows you to store more images on a memory card. Compression also makes it faster to save and download photos and easier to e-mail photos or download them as part of a Web site. For most uses--e-mailing photos to friends, printing out photos for albums, or posting images on the Web--compressed images are adequate. Compression causes a small amount of data loss, however; if you need the absolute best-quality images, consider buying a camera that takes uncompressed photos. You'll only be able to fit a few uncompressed images on a memory card, but you'll get the sharpest, clearest, most detailed pictures possible.

Memory and image capacity

Memory, the equivalent of film in a conventional camera, is where pictures are stored as you take them. A camera's memory size will determine how many images you can store. If you anticipate downloading your images often, buying a camera with a large amount of memory isn't as important. But if you plan on taking many pictures without having access to your computer for downloading, you should buy a camera with a lot of included or expandable memory--or buy extra memory media.

Cameras with internal memory store their images in a non-removable memory chip embedded within the camera. However, most consumer cameras use external memory--a memory card, PCMCIA card, or even a floppy disk--that you can remove when it's full. You can increase the number of photos you can take by buying additional external memory.

A camera's maximum image rating will tell you how many images it can hold at the lowest possible resolution (usually 640 x 480 or 320 x 240). Most digital cameras can hold from 40 to 120 low-resolution images.

Note: My camera (Kodak DX3500 2.2 Mega pixel) with a 64 MB memory card in it can store 393 pictures in GOOD mode (900X600) or 98 pictures in BEST mode (1800X1200). The camera cost just over $200 and the extra memory card (8 MB built in to the camera gives you about 20 BEST photos or 40 GOOD photos) cost about $50.00.

Power source

Digital cameras use significantly more power than traditional cameras. While typical cameras usually need their batteries replaced every 15 rolls of film or so, you might find your digital camera running out of batteries before you've filled its memory (especially if it runs on AAs). Digital cameras use either a rechargeable battery pack or traditional batteries; some come with an AC adapter as well. Consider buying an extra battery pack or investing in rechargeable AAs, and always have extra on hand. The biggest drawback to digital cameras is their tendency to run out of power in the middle of a photo shoot.

LCD viewfinders

Most digital cameras come with at least an optical viewfinder--the kind you look through on traditional film cameras--but many digital cameras also come with an LCD screen built into the

back, which you can use as a viewfinder as well. The LCD screen is especially useful because you can see what your picture will look like before you take it. It also allows you to look at the photos you've already taken. Using the LCD screen is a significant battery drain, however, so if you use it often, have extra batteries on hand.

Lens

The length of a camera's lens determines how much of a scene will fit in a picture. Lens lengths vary between wide-angle (used for landscapes and shots in which you want to include as much as possible) and telephoto (used for close-ups and to zoom in on faraway objects). "Normal" lenses, about 50mm on traditional cameras, most closely approximate what your eye sees; anything shorter than 50mm is considered wide-angle, while anything longer is usually considered telephoto.

The image sensor in digital cameras is smaller than 35mm film, so lenses on digital cameras tend to be much shorter than on traditional cameras. Look for the "35mm equivalent" rating to get a better idea of your camera's range. Most fixed-length lenses on digital cameras fall somewhere between wide-angle and normal focal length. Many digital cameras now offer zoom lenses, which take you from wide-angle to telephoto. In addition to this optical zoom capability, some cameras provide digital zoom, which enlarges an area in the picture. While digital zoom adds extra close-up power, image quality may suffer at a very high magnification. Some cameras also have macro capability, which lets you focus very close and take pictures of small objects.

Focus and exposure

Fixed-focus digital cameras have a lens that is preset to focus at a certain range. Higher-end digital cameras usually have autofocus instead, which automatically focuses the camera at your subject's distance.

Most cameras automatically determine the correct exposure for the lighting conditions. Sometimes, however, the scene will appear too dark or too washed-out. In these cases, it's handy to have a digital camera that offers manual exposure adjustment, allowing you to set the exposure a few stops brighter or darker. A digital camera's ISO-equivalent rating lets you know how light sensitive it is; a camera rated ISO 100, for example, has about the same light sensitivity as a traditional film camera loaded with ISO 100 film. Higher ISO ratings mean the camera is more sensitive to light and can take pictures in darker settings.

Digital cameras work just like traditional cameras when it comes to aperture: the maximum aperture rating of a camera lets you know how much light it can let in. Aperture ratings represent ratios; the lower the aperture rating, the more light-sensitive the camera is and the better it can take photos in low light.

Flash

Most digital cameras come with a built-in flash. Basic flash modes should include automatic (senses when to use the flash according to lighting conditions), on (for all photos), and off. Some cameras include additional features, such as red-eye reduction or night portrait mode. Red-eye reduction is ideal for photographing people or animals--it fires a series of short flashes before the final flash and exposure, making your subject's pupils contract and preventing them from having glowing red eyes in the final photo. Night portrait mode sets your flash to go off at the beginning or end of a long exposure, letting you take portraits set against a night scene, such as a cityscape. However, you should find something steady to set the camera on; the long exposure needed for low light will turn any shake of the camera into a blurry spot in your image.

Display and image erase

If your digital camera has an LCD screen on the back, you may be able to view images you already took. Some cameras even let you display pictures on the LCD screen in thumbnail format, usually 9 or 12 to a screen. Most cameras also let you select pictures to erase; this handy feature gives you the chance to edit out the photos you don't want in order to free up memory.

Self-timer

A self-timer sets your digital camera for a delayed exposure, usually giving you about 10 seconds before it takes the picture. This feature is useful for getting yourself in the photo and can also be used to take low-light photos, preventing the camera shake caused by pushing the exposure button.

Audio recording

A few digital cameras have the ability to record a few seconds of audio with each shot, letting you add a personal sound bite to your photos. This feature tends to eat up battery power rather quickly, so if you use it often, be prepared with extra batteries.

Construction

The first digital cameras were heavy, clunky boxes that could hardly be called stylish. But today's digital cameras are moving steadily toward the sleek, lightweight form of traditional point-and-shoots, with stainless steel casings for added durability. Still, expect most digital cameras to be bigger and heavier than traditional cameras for a while longer.

TV connections

Some digital cameras include a "video out" function that gives you the option to hook them up to a TV to display your pictures. With this feature you can also record your pictures onto a VHS tape.

Computer connections

Most high-end cameras have software and connections for both Mac and PC computers, but make sure the digital camera you want is compatible with your platform before you buy it. All consumer digital cameras come with the software you need to download your pictures onto a computer. Most also include image-editing software--which lets you crop, adjust, or add special effects to your photos--and the cables and/or cards you need to connect to your computer. Connecting and downloading pictures from a digital camera is easier than you might think; the software and cables are straightforward to install and use.

Digital cameras can use a variety of different interfaces. Some use a serial or parallel interface, which plugs into a port on the back of your computer. Others come with a PCMCIA interface, which can be inserted directly into a notebook computer. Digital cameras can also use wireless infrared, which frees you from having to plug in cables or cards. Certain cameras use 3.5-inch floppy disks as memory or provide a floppy-drive adapter for the memory cards.

Once you've downloaded and edited your images, most e-mail programs will let you attach them to messages. You can also upload them to your Web site or copy them onto floppy disk to give to your friends and family. Some digital cameras can be connected directly to a color printer for printing out your photos; otherwise, you can use the printer hooked up to your computer. One of the advantages of using a digital camera is that you can make copies of your photos whenever you want, without having to hunt through negatives and send them out for processing at a lab. You can also make calendars, greeting cards, collages, and enlargements easily and inexpensively at home.

Price range

The first digital cameras were meant for professionals and cost more than $10,000. But current technology makes it possible for manufacturers to offer high-resolution, full-featured digital cameras at a price many consumers can afford. Today's digital cameras run anywhere from $400 to slightly more than $1,000, depending on resolution and features. While the initial expense of a digital camera is still higher than a traditional point-and-shoot, you may find that the added convenience and savings in film and processing costs are worth it.

Digital Camera Terms

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EXPLANATION OF TERMS

A/B Editing

Video editing method that is able to control more than one playback machine.

Adapter

Holds your small picture storage device, so that you can insert it into a larger area on your computer and view the pictures from it.

Adjustable Camera

A camera in which the user is able to manually adjust settings for lense openings, distance, and shutter speed.

Albada Viewfinder

A viewfinder with a negative objective lens and a positive eyepiece.

Angle of View

The area of a scene that is included by a lense.

Aperture, maximum

The biggest of the holes in which light enters into the digital camera.

Aperture

Size of the hole that lets the light through the lens and in to the camera..

Aspect Ratio

The ratio of width to height of a picture.

ATA

A guide for storage devices that makes them usuable as if they were hard drive on the system.

Attachment

Any file such as a picture that is sent with an email and can viewed or saved on the receivers computer.

Automatic Exposure

An operation in which a camera automatically adjusts it's shutter speed, and aperture to provide for proper exposure.

Automatic Flash

A flash that is light sensitive and dertermines itself when a flash is needed for a picture.

Bit-mapped

Images that are formed from pixels and each pixel being a shade of gray or another color.

Burst Mode

Capability of a camera to shoot pictures one after the other as long as the shutter release button is held down.

Card

Pictures are stored on these, and then uploaded from this to your computer.

CCD

A sensor that reads the charges that are built up on a sensor's photosites, one row at a time.

Chromatic Aberration

The inability to bring light of all colors to the same plane of focus.

Color Balance

The accuracy in which colors in the photo are able to match those of the orignal scene.

Color Depth

The amount of bits that are assigned to each pixel in an image and also the amount of colors that are capable of being created from those bits.

CompactFlash

Flash storage for digital cameras.

Compression, lossless

File compression method that is capable of making a file smaller without losing quality of the image.

Compression, lossy

Method of file compression that causes an image to lose it's quality, and is not capable of returning it back to it's original quality.

Compression

Cutting down on the size of a file.

Depth of Field

This is the distance between the closest and farthest points that appear to be in good focus in a picture.

Exposure

The maneuver of permitting light to hit a light sensitive section.

Flash Card Reader

An accessory that is attached to your computer system . You insert a memory card into this and it transfers the information from the card to your computer.

Flash Memory

Card that is capable of storing images.

Focal Length

The distance from the surface of a lens or mirror to it's focal point.

Focus

The method of bringing the image into clear view on the image sensor.

Frame Rate

Number of pictures that it is capable of taking in a certain amount of time.

Gif

Image file that was designed to display line art.

Gray Scale

a Series of tones ranging from white to black.

Interpolation

This is done with some zoom lenses. It adds extra pixels to an image.

JPEG (JPG)

Image format that uses lossy compression to reduce the file size.

Landscape Mode

Taking a horizontal picture by holding the camera in it's normal position.

Macro Mode

Allows you the capability of getting very close to an item and making it look much enlarged.

Megapixel

An image that has over one million pixels.

MPEG

Digital video format.

Multi-megapixel

An image with over two million pixels.

Multiple Exposure Mode

Let's you lay one image over the other.

NiCad

Nickel cadmium battery.

Noise

Pixels that misread the light.

Term

Definition

Operating System

This is the program that controls the camera's hardware.

Overexposure

Allowing the image sensor more light then it needs, causing the pictures to be too light.

Panoramic Mode

Used to catch an image that is much wider then it is tall.

PC Card

A storage device that plugs in to a hand held computer or notebook.

Pixelization

Caused by enlarging an image too much. Makes the pixels large and very obvious.

Pixels

The elements that make up a digital image.

Port

Area on the computer where a cable can be plugged in to hook the camera to the computer in order to upload your pictures.

Portrait Mode

Vertical Photo.

Preview Screen

A small screen on the back of the camera used to display pictures.

Recycle Time

The amount of time it takes to process and then store and image.

Resolution

The fineness of detail that can be distinguished in an image.

RGB

Color system used in digital cameras.

Shutter Speed

The amount of time that it takes for a shutter to open and light to strike on it's image sensor.

Shutter

The part of the camera that opens and closes in order to let light from the scene strike the image sensor and expose the image.

Upload

Sending the images from your camera storage device to your computer.

VGA

640 x 480 resolution.

Zoom Lense

Capable of making the scene look closer on the picture than it actually was.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Cons

Ø · You'll never have to pay for film or processing again.

Ø · It's like a Polaroid on steroids: You can see your captured shot immediately.

Ø · From shooting the camera to posting on the Web to generating a print from your ink jet printer-the whole process takes only minutes.

Ø · If you don't like the shot you just took, you can instantly erase it and shoot it again.

Ø · Some digital cameras allow you to shoot videos or record and play MP3 sound clips, and some double as a Web camera.

Ø · Digital cameras cost a lot more than comparable film cameras.

Ø · Generally, image quality may not be as good and the size of the enlargements may be limited because of the digital camera's resolution.

Ø · There's always a time delay from when you turn the camera on until it's ready, as well as from the instant you press the shutter and the picture is actually captured.

Ø · Digital cameras eat batteries, so you'll always be buying or recharging them.

Ø · It's difficult to see anything in the LCD viewfinder in bright sunlight.

Top Ten Buying Tips

Select a digital camera with a maximum resolution that meets your largest typical output. If your images will primarily be used on the Web, you'll need a camera that supports a 640-by-480 resolution (VGA). For snapshots check out cameras that support 1,024-by-768 (XGA), and enlargements will require a 3-megapixel camera or better.
Make sure the camera has all the features you need, such as video, audio, and panorama.
When comparing costs, don't forget to calculate the extras that may or may not be included, such as rechargeable batteries, an AC adapter, and a larger memory card.