Digital cameras -
a buying guide
v4.1 22 March 2010 © Eric Bakerwww.chericbaker.co.uk
Digital cameras -a buying guidev4.1 22 March 2010 © Eric Bakerwww.chericbaker.co.uk |
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ContentsWhat to look forCameras to check out Accessories |
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What to look forSizeSmaller is often dearer but it’s great to have the camera on you just in case. Bigger cameras tend to have better flash range and take better pictures. There are some quite reasonably priced cameras in jacket rather than shirt pocket sizes. Or why not have a little camera and a bigger one for special? |
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MegapixelsDoesn’t really matter nowadays. 4MP (impossible to buy) is more than enough up to 7x5” prints, even with cropping. No point in paying extra for 10MP+ unless you want to print big enlargements. In fact, more megapixels can often mean worse low light pictures with lots of noise on them (speckly) because they cram more pixels onto the same tiny-sized CCD sensor. Digital SLRs have bigger sensors, as do some bridge/prosumer models. |
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Sensor sizeThis is now probably more important than megapixels yet manufacturers try very hard to keep us confused with sensor size 1/2.5” or similar and never seem to state the sensor area - which is what matters. 1/2.5" actually means a 0.4” wide sensor package with a sensor area of 5.76 x 4.29mm or a minute 24.7 sq mm. No wonder low light performance is so poor! 1/2.3” means 28.5 sq mm and my Fuji S6500 has a sensor of 1/1.7” or 43.3 sq mm, nearly twice as big. Hence its much better picture quality. My new little Fuji F200 has an even bigger sensor - 1/1.6". See the dpreview article on sensor sizes.DSLRs have bigger sensors, eg APS-C sensors are over 350 sq mm and the expensive ones go up to to 35mm film size. That's why DSLRs have such good low light performance. |
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Low light performanceMost small digicams are not too good in really low light conditions, apparently because of their small sensor as well as their little lenses. Photoshop Elements has a filter which helps de-speckle low light pics. Small digicams generally have a weak flash and produce far more redeye. |
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Screen sizeResolution matters too as does sunlight and night time performance. 2.5” or bigger should be fine. 230,000 pixels or better makes it sharp. |
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ViewfinderLeft out on most small cameras. Can be useful in low/bright light and also saves hugely on battery consumption if optical. |
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Zoom lensIgnore digital zoom – that just crops the edges of the picture in the camera, which you can do later on the computer anyway.The wide angle end of the zoom is important. My Fuji S6500 has a lovely 28-300 zoom and I wouldn’t be happy with, say, a 36-400 range. DSLRs often come with very limited zooms, eg 28-80mm. I'm not sure they're worth getting unless you spend the extra on a decent long zoom lens. Even then you have the bother of changing lenses - I really like having a wide to long zoom always available. |
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Anti-shake (image stabilisation)Very useful in low light or for long zoom shots. Check it’s real (moving the sensor or lens elements, not merely stepping up the ISO setting and opening up the lens aperture - that just doesn't count). Anti shake doesn’t help, of course, with moving subjects. A tripod or monopod (like my hiking pole) can really help too. Bigger cameras are much easier to hold steady. |
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ControlsAutomatic mode is often fine but it’s much more fun and produces better results controlling aperture, shutter speed and ISO yourself. I generally use Aperture Priority mode on my big Fuji in good light. That gives you good control over depth of focus. I've never found the scene modes you get by the dozen on modern cameras very useful. |
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Movie modeMost digital cameras will take movies until the memory card is full. They are not going to be of camcorder quality but if it's important to you make sure a camera you are interested in takes reasonable movie clips. It helps if you can use the zoom mid clip but that is rare and may introduce electric motor noise. Some cameras now offer HD movie recording. |
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ReviewsDo check out any camera you’re thinking of. There are lots of sources, amazon uk and US plus, for example:imaging-resource.com dpreview.com (user ratings per camera and some excellent full reviews) steves-digicams.com trusted reviews One oddity is that some manufacturers, including Canon and Fuji, use different model numbers in North America for the same camera. Weird! Eg my big Fuji S6500 is the S6000 in the USA. |
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ManufacturersCanon, Fuji and Panasonic seem to have the best reputations overall but can still produce lemons at times. Pentax, Nikon, Kodak, Casio, Ricoh etc are often good. I avoid Sony because of their memory stick obsession. Canon's offerings sometimes seem a little pricey - but it is the market leader. |
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SuppliersAmazon are good but do look around. Some suppliers, such as Clifton Cameras and UK Digital Cameras (I've bought from both) tend to offer a 2 year warranty. If you put a supplier name into google with words such as 'problem' that should show who's unreliable. Beware too good to be true deals - they might involve a camera shipped from Hong Kong with you liable for the duty if Customs check it. |
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Cameras to check outDo research the options thoroughly – prices zoom up and down alarmingly and models are often replaced at a frantic pace. Good ones that have been around a while often seem the best choice. But do read the reviews before choosing. Here are a few cameras that may give you ideas, starting with smaller ones (images not to scale): |
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Samsung ES55
£70 (amazon, Mar 10). 10MP, 2.5” LCD. 35-105mm lens,
LiI battery. No anti shake (just some digital variant) or viewfinder, small and capable enough for its low price.
91x59x22mm. |
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Panasonic FX35£165 via amazon (Mar 10). 10MP, 2.5" LCD, 25-100mm ultra wide angle Leica lens, anti shake. No viewfinder. LiI battery. Slim at 95x52x22. Looks good if you want wide angle in a tiny package. |
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Fujifilm F70EXR£150 (clifton cameras, Mar 10). 10MP, 2.7" LCD. 99x60x23mm. 27-270mm lens, LiI battery. Anti shake. No viewfinder. An attractive zoom range and larger sensor than usual, 1/2". |
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Fujifilm F200EXR£150 at amazon (Mar 10). 12MP, 3” LCD. 97x55x23mm
with anti shake and a good 28-140mm lens. LiI battery. No viewfinder.
Not a long zoom but it has an unusually large 1/1.6" sensor (good for
low light) and can step down to produce 6MP images with more low light
clarity or extra dynamic range (for high contrast subjects). This is my
little camera (since I dropped the old Ricoh R7 in Vietnam). |
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Canon Powershot A1100c£100 amazon (Mar 10). 12MP, 2.5” LCD, 4x zoom 35-140mm, 95x62x31mm. Optical anti shake. No Aperture Priority. It has a real viewfinder. 2 AA batteries. Quite a bargain at this price. |
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Panasonic TZ6£186 at amazon (Mar 10). 25-300mm Leica zoom, anti shake, 10MP, LiI battery, 2.7” screen, 103x60x33mm (a bit chunky). No viewfinder. This camera has a seriously good (wide to long) zoom lens. But no Aperture Priority and a small sensor. |
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Fujifilm S200EXR£300 (amazon, Mar 10) It has a fast (f2.8)
28-400mm superzoom lens with anti shake. 12MP, 2.7” LCD, good
viewfinder.
133x94x150mm. LiI battery. This
is a big, serious 'prosumer' contender for those hankering after a DSLR
but
with a limited budget. It has the same double size sensor as my much
smaller F200. Canon and Panasonic are among the other suppliers
offering bigger non-SLR cameras - do the research! |
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DSLRsI wouldn't presume to suggest any models here - if you are considering a DSLR then you're going to do lots of research yourself before deciding. Canon, Nikon & Sony seem to be the main brands but there are plenty of others too. They are more expensive than prosumer cameras, especially with a good range of lenses, but they can take astonishingly good shots, especially in low light because of their larger sensors. But a cheapish DSLR with an “18-55” zoom lens (this really means something like 29-88mm) is pretty limiting if you’re used to much better, eg 28-140 on my pocket camera and 28-300 on my big one. So you really need to get two lenses – expensive and heavy to lug around. Beware the dust on sensor problem. |
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AccessoriesMemory cardsSD cards are the standard, used by most manufacturers. Weirdly Sony and Olympus have stuck to non standard cards, with Sony’s memory sticks offering a baffling range of incompatible types. Fuji are moving from xD to SD now.Suppliers? Check picstop, svp and play.com. I prefer to have a couple of medium capacity cards to one huge one. |
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BatteriesMany cameras now come with LiI (Lithium) batteries included, plus a charger, just like mobile phones.Otherwise just buy a charger and some NiMH AA batteries. Make sure it works in most countries. 2700 mAh or better batteries last well. |
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Other accessoriesA printer is essential. I've got an Epson that will print high quality images up to A4 borderless. Routine snaps I send down the wire to Bonusprint. Whatever you do, don't buy one of those silly "photo printer" things that only do little 6x4" prints at great expense.A USB 2 card reader might be useful, as it means you just slip the card out of the camera and copy or move the images across to the PC using Windows Explorer rather than needing any camera-specific software loaded. Some computers have built in card readers. But you are usually able just to connect the camera direct to the PC with the USB cable it came with and see its card as an external disk drive. Your camera may well come with software to upload the images etc but it’s not always necessary to install it. Some uploading software seriously gets in the way, hiding your images in secret places or even imprisoning them in a database. A case of some sort is useful but it could be just a cloth bag to guard against scratching the LCD. If you have a lens that will take one, put a UV filter on it - that protects the lens and improves sky shots. You'll also need software for processing your images - see my post processing guide. |
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