What camera should I buy?
August 15th, 2008One question Al and I get asked a lot during down time on a photo shoot, is “I’m thinking about buying a digital camera, what should I get?”
Buying a camera is like buying any other kind of electronic product. Do your homework. And answer yourself these questions:
What am I going to be photographing?
Are cameras with more megapixels better than those with less?
How does it handle?
What is the best value?
Subject matter. If you want a camera to take pictures of your family and friends you won’t need a telephoto lens. Most point-and-shoot cameras have moderate zoom lenses, in the 35mm equivalent to a 35 - 100mm. That’s great for scenics, groups and portraits. If you are planning on using the camera to take photos of your son or daughter who plays a sport, you might want to consider something with a telephoto option, such as a digital SLR (single lens reflex) that takes interchangeable lens.
Megapixels. Very confusing. All it means is the size of your sensor in the camera. But bigger is not necessarily better, unless you plan to make photos larger that 8 x 10. For most people, cameras in the 5 to 8 megapixel range will be all they will need. Professional models are usually in the 10 to 13 range, although some cameras are even more. But unless you work for a magazine, you just don’t need that much. And the more pixels, the large file size. And that means you are going to eventually need some storage space on your computer or external hard drive.
Feel. Don’t buy anything without actually handling it. Ask someone that has a similar model if you could hold it. Or, go to a camera store and look one over. I have large hands so small cameras are difficult for me to work with. Make sure it is comfortable when you are using it at eye-level. I had a relative once that bought a new film point-and-shoot camera, the kind where the lens does not extend from the body. Because of the way she was used to holding her camera, a fingertip more often than not partially covered the lens. Make sure the controls are easy to use and in a location that you can manage without changing your grip. Another consideration is what you will do with it when you are not actually taking a photo. Do you want it to fit in your pocket, a belt holster, your purse or will you carry a camera bag or backpack? Will you have a neck or wrist strap on it? Using a camera strap may look dorky and be inconvenient but you won’t drop as many.
Value. Read that as how much do you want to spend. If you want interchangeable lenses you are looking at $800 - $1,000 for a basic body and standard zoom lens. Professional SLRs start at about $1,500 for the body only and can easily go up to $5,000. But there are some great cameras in the $500 neighborhood and lower. It pretty much used to be Nikon and Canon, but in the consumer camera market there are at least a half dozen brands that make quality equipment. One thing to note. It seems the more you spend on a camera, the less shutter lag you will have. Shutter lag is the delay time between when you press the button and when the camera takes the picture. Very important for action subjects.
All cameras have pretty much the same features, until you get to the professional models. One thing you might want to look for if you are an advanced amateur or aspiring professional is a camera that can record in the RAW photo format. Most people are familiar with jpeg or jpg file. Jpeg is a compression format that helps you save space in storage. But jpeg is NOT a lossless format. That means that each time you open and re-save the file a little information gets thrown away. It will degrade over time.
RAW format is pure information, ones and zeroes. When you open a RAW file you can change it a number of ways, including changing the color balance and the original exposure. When you make changes, the original RAW file remains untouched, and changes are only applied when you open and save it. The down side is that these files tend to be very large, so think about storage. Also, you will need a computer program that can read the RAW file, either one supplied by the manufacturer or Photoshop, as long as the version you have is current or at least as new as the camera. Most consumer cameras don’t offer the RAW format, you have to spend a little more, although I note than some of the newer models coming out are including it.
Confusing. You bet. Do your homework. – Larry Kasperek
I have a Robert Rigby wooden pinhole camera that takes 4×5 film holders. Of the genre, it’s one of the more sophisticated ones. Most people use the traditional coffee or oatmeal canisters, or the new vogues, Pringles cans or a pinhole body cap on a digital SLR.
My daughter and I spent the afternoon hitting some area venues that I thought might yield results. We were extremely lucky to visit Whiskey Island at the same time a lake freighter was heading up the Cuyahoga River. Although rushed, I think I got some interesting images. Even better, I found some locations I want to return to for more photos. We were quite a pair, her shooting with her Nikon SLR digital camera and me with my wooden box.
And that got me to wondering how I had arrived at this point. It seems the more technology throws at us in photography advancements, the more I yearn for simplicity. So when I acquired the pinhole camera a couple of years ago it was a nice fit. My other large format field cameras are a 4×5 Crown Graphic and a Baby Speed Graphic. So retro is not new to me. And it’s nice to shoot film. I grew up in photography working in a darkroom. I built one in my basement when I was in high school and taught myself to process and print. My career has taken me through startling developments since then … desktop film scanners, Photoshop, digital cameras, auto focus lenses, inkjet printing, and on and on.