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what is most important when buying a camera
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hi all, im sure you must be well sick of this question but here goes. i have a 35mm and a 4mp digital camera, neither of which is much use (or maybe its just me;(. i want to get a decent digital, for around €300, but the choice is bewildering. what are the minimum requirements, zoom, pixels? just want to take snaps of family and scenery, maybe some detailed close ups of flowers etc. not into sports or action photography, so what do you recommend, and is my budget too small? need a camera i can just point, dont need to be carrying lots of extras around. i have read through lots of posts, but most of them are just too technical for me. after you heave a sigh, please give me your advice, it would be much appreciated.
Hi katiem,
Welcome to Photography Ireland.
There is a bewildering amount of digital cameras available and I can
understand why you might get confused.I would say that the most important thing with a camera is that it will
do what you want it to do.You say that you want to shoot family, scenery and flowers.
You have a budget of €300 and you don’t need to carry lots of extras.A new DSLR would probably cost twice that amount and you would need to be
very lucky to get a decent second hand one with a lens for €300.There are some very good compact cameras available in the €250 – €400 range.
Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Sony and Fuji to name but a few all make good compact cameras.
Most seem to have at least a 10MB sensor.
You could look for one with Macro facility if flower close ups are important to you.
Most have simple settings for different types of photography such as landscape or portraits if
you don’t want to think too much. :)If there is a decent trustworthy camera shop near you get down there and have a look at some of
the cameras.
See how they handle and ask the salesperson to explain the differences.10 – 12 MP.
A decent zoom range.
Simple settings to use.
A large LCD.
A decent sized memory card.
Stick to your budget. :?If of course you get the photography bug you may find a compact a little restricting.
Then the fun starts. :)
It can get very expensive.Best of luck with your search and I hope you find a model you are happy with.
Cheers.
John.
I’d personally go for a bridge camera if I were you, (almost an SLR, usually with some manual functions you can use if you ever feel like it, but most of the time just leave on auto).
A good one for the price you’re talking might be the Kodak Z1015 IS, image stabilisation so shaky hands won’t blur photos, huge 15xzoom, and pretty snazzy image quality. I used one for over a year, and only stopped because I wanted a true DSLR.
Put it in auto most of the time and just left it there.
That’s just my 2 cents from a newbie myself :)
As well as the above list I would look at
a good wide angle lens, 28 or better
adjustable lcd screen, very sneaky!
AA batteries, avalable almost everywhere,I’d agree with the lads. A good compact would suit your needs, but if you get the photography bug later, you might regret not going for a dslr. Look for a decent zoom, macro function for the flowers and about 10mp with manual, auto and programme settings & you should be fine.
I used a Canon SX110 IS myself last year, which would be perfect for your needs (only it’s successor model – the SX120 IS is sold now – almost the same, slightly higher 10.1 MP resolution) – Goes for about EUR200 or so in most places i think. 10x zoom, 2xAA batteries (a set of rechargeables, 2000mAh should last 400 shots without flash without any trouble, and you can carry a spare set, ready-charged, or buy some if you are travelling/outdoors). Solid camera, good image quality, nice zoom range, including Image stabilisation (to reduce the effect of camera shake in low light or zoom/telephoto shots). 3″ LCD screen also, and uses SD memory cards.
Allows you to have control over Aperture, Shutter & ISO also (Av, Tv and full Manual modes) – in addition to a wide range of scene presets as well as P & Full Auto modes. So it is aimed at the person who is coming from/uses full automatic point&shoot methods, who wants to also get a taste for or try out the more creative side of things by controlling the various different parameters as you choose.
At 10.1MP, pictures should look decent up to A4 print sizes in most situations.
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