Greg Johnston, tech columnist
Here in Canada, we save our biggest shopping spree for the week after Christmas, but south of the 49th this week, especially the Friday after American Thanksgiving, is huge for shopping. Especially shopping for electronics. That said, lots of us are probably are thinking about some electronics that might find their way under the family Christmas tree. For many, that might mean a new digital camera. I’m going to try and give readers some tips on selecting one. I’m not a photography expert, but I am an experienced hobbyist.
Digital cameras have added a new dimension to photography, and I don’t mean the ease with which we can take loads of pictures and throw them in digital shoeboxes on our computers! I’m referring to the “megapixel wars” which see camera manufacturers making the megapixel number of their cameras the main marketing focus, which distracts from the fact the most important things in a camera are the same as they have always been – lens and body quality, as well as other features.
Much like computer processor speeds in the Pentium 4 era, megapixel numbers have become THE major feature in selling digital cameras, whether point-and-shoot varieties or more “serious” digital SLR (single-lens reflex, D-SLR) cameras.
A megapixel is one million pixels, or picture elements, each pixel being a dot of colour and brightness making up the picture image file created by the camera. Much like the image on my computer monitor is made of tiny dots of colour and light level. Most digital cameras are now eight megapixels and up, which potentially is enough picture data to create a poster-sized image, or allow a lot of cropping in smaller prints.
So why choose more expensive cameras over sub-$200 basic point-and-shoot models? The first reason is better lenses. Without getting into the physics of aperture, focal length and depth of focus, suffice to say a larger lens collects more light, allowing better image quality, especially in lower light, better chance of avoiding motion blur in action scenes, and greater focal depth for a given aperture.
If you want to shoot a lot of low light (indoors) or action shots (your kids soccer games, for example), you might be happier with either one of the superzoom point-and-shoots (which look a lot like a SLR camera, but don’t have interchangeable lenses) or an actual dSLR, the main trade-offs being bulk, weight, and expense.
dSLR’s are the choice for big zooms. Close-up and distance photography both tend to require the more sophisticated lenses possible with a dSLR, although the “kit” lens included with most dSLR’s usually has a zoom range roughly equivalent to the 3x or 4x optical zoom of point-and-shoots. Zoom lenses with wider ranges will be purchased separately, although some dSLR’s offer the option to buy the body only, without the standard kit lens, so you can put that money towards a lens you may really want instead of the basic one.
Regardless of the camera format, a lower F-stop or aperture number tends to be an indicator of better lens quality. An F-number of 2.0 vs 2.8, for example, means twice the light can be admitted at the lower number, meaning more potential for fast action or low light shots to be successful. Each descending F-number (numerically) represents admitting 2x the light of the setting above it, so like golf, a lower number is better.
Another reason for choosing a more expensive model is that cramming a lot of light sensors (pixels) onto a tiny target tends to mean increased “noise”, the graininess that especially tends to show up in pictures shot in less than ideal lighting. At the same megapixel rating, a physically larger sensor is less likely to suffer noise effects – but costs the manufacturer more to make. Sensor size and quality is not an easy thing to assess for shoppers, although again, point-and-shoot compacts will have smaller sensors than dSLR or superzoom models.
The ISO number is the sensitivity to light setting, with higher numbers meaning more sensitivity, allowing faster shutter speeds in low light to prevent blurring. However, at higher ISO settings noise typically becomes a problem.
The better point-and-shoots typically are capable of good quality images with ISO settings from 100-400, although they commonly boast of ISO settings of 800 to as high as 1600. Good basic dSLRs will allow good shots with ISO’s from 800 to as high as 3200, although until you crack the $1,000+ range that tends to define advanced dSLR’s, ISO capability beyond 800 while maintaining image quality is uncommon.
Image stabilization, size and brightness of the LCD display, face recognition capability, faster time-to-first-shot, frame rates, lower lag times (the delay between pressing the shutter button and actually getting your shot), are all features that differentiate cameras as well.
This article only scratches the surface of digital photography, so once you’ve decided which features or camera format is most likely to suit you, where can you go for actual camera ratings and more information and in-depth explanations?
There are lots of photography sites on the web, but it can be hard to differentiate between those that are reasonably unbiased and those that are essentially advertising. Look for an open discussion forum that allows people to ask questions and post answers. The quality of information may be variable, but at least if it’s open, it’s probably not set up to sell a particular brand. CNET reviews (reviews.cnet.com) and Digital Photography Review (www.dpreview.com) are a couple I’ve found useful.
I’m also a big fan of Consumer Reports, which is rigorously independent and scientific in evaluating products – if you don’t subscribe, they put out specialty guides periodically, such as an Electronics Buying Guide currently on newsstands.
Store staff can be very helpful, even though many people tend to assume they just want to sell you the most expensive item in-stock. The best expertise is most likely to come from specialty camera stores, but even in big-box electronics retailers, the staff are likely aware of particularly good values – ask what they’d buy at a given price point, or in a particular category.
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