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DIGITAL AND FILM CAMERA RECOMMENDATIONS
This camera guide has been prepared to assist you with purchasing a new
camera. It is built in association with amazon.com. I have owned
numerous cameras including digital compact (point and shoot) cameras, digital SLRs, 35mm
film cameras, and even medium and large format cameras. So this page is
put together to pass some of my knowledge on to you. I know that there are
numerous review sites on the web, but most of them do not really recommend a best
product. This page makes some recommendations based upon your specific
needs. While I have a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, I try not to get too technical. In most cases, I do not discuss common features that you find on comparable cameras, and instead I focus on features that I think are different between comparable cameras, and/or are of greater importance. You can use the links for each camera to get the super low prices from amazon.com. THANK YOU! |
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Digital Compact (Point and Shoot) Cameras 2 Megapixel Cameras HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION: Nikon Coolpix 2200 2MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom This Nikon is an excellent choice as a starter digital camera. It gives you all the quality of a Nikon, with a 3X optical zoom. With 2 MP, this is best for 5 inch by 7 inch prints and smaller, although decent photos up to 8x10 are possible (note I said decent, not good!). Of course 2 megapixels is more than sufficient for web posting and emailing photos. This camera is also an excellent choice for sending pictures via email and posting on the web. It has an excellent AUTO mode that makes it easy for the beginner to shoot excellent pictures and also has 15 scene modes when you are ready to start fine tuning your picture taking a bit. This camera also has a Quicktime video mode with resolutions up to 640x480 at 15 frames per second. Known for excellent color, this camera is also lightweight and small enough to carry around all of the time. Takes Secure Digital cards which is one of the better digital storage mediums (I like Compact Flash best, followed by Secure Digital second). I am thinking of buying one of these for me 9 year old for Christmas. Takes Secure Digital cards which is one of the better digital storage mediums (I like Compact Flash best, followed by Secure Digital second). Also Recommended:
3 Megapixel Cameras HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION: Canon PowerShot A75 3.2MP Digital Camera with 3X Optical Zoom This is a 3.2 megapixel offering that has a 3X optical zoom and 9 point autofocus. It also has a movie mode that can capture up to 3 minutes of video. With this size resolution you can print 8x10 prints at approximately 200 dpi It has 12 shooting modes and uses compact flash (type I) memory cards (which is one of the features that sets it slightly above the Nikon Coolpix 3200). As of this writing it sells at amazon for under $180, which considering that there is an ample amount of software included, is one of the best deals out there. Also Recommended:
4 Megapixel Cameras HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION: Nikon Coolpix 4800 4MP Digital Camera with 8.3x Optical Zoom This is not your ordinary 4 megapixel camera. For one thing, it has a 8.3X OPTICAL zoom, which is like a 36mm-300mm zoom in 35mm terminology. Digital zooms are pretty much worthless, but an 8.3X optical zoom is quite a valuable asset. Make 8-inch by 10-inch prints with over 200 dpi and make 11-inch by 17-inch prints at over 150 dpi (I consider 200 dpi sufficient for most applications; 150 dpi is passable for many shots). This baby even focuses to as close as 1/2 inch. Uses Secure Digital cards and has 15 scene modes (11 shooting; 4 assist) that help you change shooting style easily. Things like exposure compensation and white balance control are features that more advanced shooters will enjoy. It also has a QuickTime movie mode and comes with Nikon PictureProject software. Costs more than most 4 megapixel cameras but I believe it is well worth the extra expense. Also Recommended:
5 Megapixel Cameras HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION: Canon PowerShot A95 5MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom Now it is possible to stay under $325, and still have an excellent quality 5.0MP camera with the Canon PowerShot A95. You can make excellent 8x10 photos with this camera and it has a lot of features, uses Compact Flash type I memory, and also comes with some good software (ZoomBrowser EX for Windows, ImageBrowser for Macs, PhotoStitch, plus photo and movie manipulation software ArcSoft PhotoImpression and VideoImpression). The lens is pretty fast for a compact camera, changing from f2.8 to f4.9 with the zoom (the lower the f stop number the faster the lens is; note all those compact film cameras with f8 and f11 lenses!). Five megapixels is a nice amount, making this camera a great choice for many buyers. An really neat range of accessories are available for this camera, including a waterproof case submersible to 40 meters, a wide converter lens, and a 1.75X teleconverter to increase the zoom range. It also has an optional close-up lens for macro-photography. Note however, that if zoom range and focusing range are very important to you, then I think that the Nikon 5700 might be a better choice. This camera does lack a hot shoe flash (for adding an external flash) but has a pretty decent built in flash. It shoots movie clips of up to 3 minutes. All in all an excellent camera with excellent photo quality! Also Recommended:
6+ Megapixel Cameras HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION: Fujifilm FinePix S7000 6.3 MP Digital Camera w/ 6x Optical Zoom If you can afford to spend up to $495 on a camera, and need a lot of megapixels and an excellent zoom range, the FinePix S7000 fits the bill. With this many pixels, 8"x10" photos look great and 11"x14" pictures can look very nice (and I am speaking as a part-time professional). With the SuperCCD images of over 12MP can be generated. The S7000 uses Compact Flash (type II) or xD memory cards and AA batteries (nice when you are on the road and need batteries in a pinch), has a 1.8 inch LCD viewfinder, can store JPEG, RAW and movie files, has a built in flash with several modes, and even has a super macro picture taking mode for objects as close as 1/2 inch! The software for this camera has been improved; it is now packaged with FinePix View 4.1 imaging software, and Pixela VCD 2 Image Mixer for FinePix. If you want even more pixels then check out the other top choices below. But do not forget that this camera has a 6X optical zoom! Also Recommended: |
All information presented in this web page is the author's opinion only, and no warranties, guarantees, etc. are expressed herein. Descriptions are not warranted to be error free, complete, accurate, or reliable.
