Camera Selection Part II

Now that we’ve briefly talked about film and digital media, and the pros/cons of each, we need to focus on the different types of cameras within each group.

Film:
Point and shoot
-35mm
- APS format
Advanced 35mm
SLR 35mm (Consumer and Pro Body)
Medium Format
Twin Reflex
Stereo
Rangefinder
Bellows

Digital:
Point and Shoot
Advanced Digital
D-SLR (Consumer and Pro Body)
Medium Format w/digital backs
Rangefinder (in development)
Bellows with Digital back

We’ll focus this discussion on what the average person would consider when wanting to purchase a new camera; the Point and Shoot, Advanced, and SLR types. We’ll cover the others at a later date.

The next step in narrowing down you selection should involve these four questions:
1: What do I want to take pictures of ?
2: Do I want the camera to be fully automated, or do I want to control all of the settings manually ? Somewhere in between ?
3: Am I concerned about size, weight ?
4: Do I want the ability to change lenses ?

I. Point and shoot:
If your answer to #1 was anything except wildlife or something involving taking a photograph from a long distance, the point and shoot camera may be for you. These cameras typically have a 1 – 3x or 4x zoom lens. They are not suitable for taking pictures of something that’s in the distance. Some may have a “Macro” function that will allow extremely close up photographs.

Also, if you answered #2 as fully automated or somewhere in between, this camera could be a good choice for you. Most point and shoots are fully automatic, and some manufacturers allow partial or full control of your camera. Some also come with special exposure modes or even tell you how to compose your image.

If you answered #3 as yes, then this is might be the right camera for you. If you are looking for something small that can fit in your pocket or purse, and the first two questions indicated the point and shoot camera would be a good selection, then go no further. Now it’s time to settle on features/functions and quality. Now, if you’ve gotten this far, and want a pocket size, fully automatic to fully manual camera with the ability to take a picture of the eagle soaring 100 ft above you and get images like those in Outdoor Photography Magazine, I’m sorry to say that camera doesn’t exist. The same thing is true of you are expecting to get a close up of a son or daughter receiving their diploma at a graduation ceremony and you are setting on the top balcony row, ¼ of mile away. You need to either compromise on the size, buy a different camera for the long distance shots, or simply realize the amount of times you will need that capability is rather small and you just need to get yourself closer if you want a good picture. Someone may try to tell you that you can buy a magnification lens that snaps on to the end of your existing point and shoot camera that will magnify the zoom by a factor or 2x or maybe even 4x. Our experience with these has not been very good and we simply don’t recommend them. We’ve seen poor image quality.

Two last points and we’ll leave the point and shoot. First, the point and shoot does not require lens changes (unless you bought the sales person’s pitch and bought the magnification lens). Lastly, many point and shoot digital cameras, as well as the advanced digital cameras experience a “shutter lag”. We’ll discuss this more later, but basically shutter lag comes down to not getting the picture you expected when you pushed the shutter button when your subject is moving. For example, you press the shutter at the exact moment when your child or friend throws a water balloon at unsuspecting person (balloon has not left the person’s hand). When you review the image on the LCD, you find you have a picture of the balloon mid-way in flight. This delay is caused by the processing time of the camera to focus, determine the exposure, adjust the camera to meet the exposure, and capture the image. This time difference is called shutter lag, and it can be very frustrating at times….it’s not a problem for still images like when you have everyone is posing around Christmas tree.


II. Advanced
If you are still reading, then we’ll assume the point and shoot camera wasn’t for you or your not sure if want to compromise on size or zoom capability. It’s that, or you’re a glutton for punishment….

The primary advantage of the advanced camera over the point and shoot is that you often get larger zoom capability (12x-20x) without the need to change lenses. Most of the cameras in this type (group) allow fully automatic to fully manually operation, and some have the special exposure modes seen on the point and shoot cameras. The primary disadvantages are the size and price. Depending on the amount of zoom and manufacturer, some of the cameras in this group are as large as cameras in the SLR category. One benefit the advanced camera and point and shoot camera groups have over the SLR group is that they are sealed, and you don’t need to worry about dust getting on the sensor.

Another disadvantage, again depending on the features of the camera, could be blurry images when using the zoom at the higher range of the zoom. The blurry images are most likely coming from the camera shaking (from your hands shaking) and a slower shutter speed (to let in more light for the exposure). At this point in time, you either need a tripod, or an advanced camera with anti-shake feature. The last I knew, this feature was only available for the advanced digital cameras, and not the advanced film cameras. The advanced digital cameras also suffer from shutter lag.

The other consideration for cameras in this group is price. They can cost 2 to 4x as much as a point and shoot camera, although the prices have come down over the last year. Speaking from the digital perspective, an advanced camera could cost as much as a D-SLR (including a lens). If you want to compare the true cost of these two groups, you must determine the cost of the D-SLR body and the equivalent lens (say an 18 – 200mm). For example, the Sony Cybershot lists for about $1060. A Canon Digital Rebel with a Non-Canon 18-200mm lens is about $1100 (note: it will be 1.5 x the physical size and weight of the Sony with this lens). However, Fuji and Panasonic have advanced digital cameras for about $600. The bottom line on price is the advanced digital camera can be less expensive than a D-SLR, but it will most likely be more expensive than a point and shoot.

III. SLR

This is the last, and probably fastest growing group in the last year. As people start taking photos with their $200 point and shoot cameras, they quickly learn the limitations of cameras from that group. They want more control and zoom. They look at the price of the advanced cameras and often incorrectly determine that the SLR group is the more cost effective way to go. Often times, they purchase the camera body and lens in a kit, for less than the cost of advanced camera, but forget (or simply don’t know) the lens they get in the kit doesn’t have the same optical zoom as the advanced camera they passed over. They often end up spending more money for a 2nd lens to get the same focal length if they had purchased the advanced camera.

Folks, if you haven’t figured this out by now this how the salesperson gets you to trade up into a more expensive camera. They sell you the kit, knowing you’ll be back in 6-12 months for another lens. With the additional lens, you’ll need a new camera bag, lens filter, etc.. . If you don’t want to deal with changing lenses or cleaning dust off you sensor, don’t consider a SLR camera. (By the way, film SLRs also have a problem with dust…so it’s not just a digital problem !!) SLRs require maintenance. They require much more than the other two categories. They also require more care in handling and keeping dust of the body and lenses. For the average person, this camera is not a good fit.

Now, for the advanced amateur and professional photographer, this camera offers complete flexibility via lenses through focal lengths, F-Stops (size of the aperture (opening) which determines how much light enters the camera), and lens filters. The issue of shutter lag also disappears. There are some cool features that manufacturers add to make using the camera easier for the advanced amateur and professional. But when it comes down to the two basic controls of shutter speed and f-stop that control exposure, this camera is not really that different than a point and shoot or advanced camera that allow partial or full control of these settings. This is not totally true when it comes to auto-focus and metering and some of the mechanics on how the shutter and aperture function. Some of the higher end SLRs offer more focus points and better continuous focusing and metering algorithms/programs than low end SLRs, point and shoots, and advanced cameras. And the mechanics for which the aperture and shutter control light are different. However, the cost for these enhanced features are typically 2 – 4x more than a entry level SLR, which is 4-8x of that of a point and shoot, or 2-4x of that of a advanced camera. F2.8 at1/250 sec is still F2.8 at 1/250 s. I know there are advanced amateurs and professionals out there that will argue with me on this, but the basic function is the same. Unless you need these enhanced features for competition or a source of income or are shooting images where shutter lag will be a problem, there’s really no need to spend the extra money on a SLR if you can get what you need from a point and shoot or advanced camera. However, if you want to take the risk of dropping that cheap $350 lens (by the way . . . same price as a good point and shoot camera), and worry about dust, then feel free to spend more money than what you need to.

As a point of reference, we started in digital photography with an advanced digital camera (Nikon 5700). About 1 year later we bought our first D-SLR. We still use the Nikon 5700 quite a bit today for family parties, school events, and so on. Its size and flexibility are almost perfect (although it’s not pocket size), and the images we get are stunning. My only two complaints about it are the shutter lag and no ability to add a lens filters. When we were still considered amateurs a few years ago, we had a picture published using the Nikon 5700 in the Iowa 24/7 book (from the America 24/7 book series).

Next time, we’ll begin talking more about the basic functions of a camera (exposure, shutter speed). After that, some of the features that can be found on point and shoot cameras that relate to these primary functions (i.e. landscape exposure mode, night exposure mode, etc..).

When we wrap us this discussion in a few weeks, we are planning on presenting you our selections of cameras within each camera type, based on cost, features, and quality.