Camera Selection

Choosing a camera can be a difficult decision. There are so many makes, and models. To add to the confusion, many have the same functions, but call those functions by a different name in an attempt to try to persuade the buyer to purchase thier brand.

Today, we're going to start discussing the basic difference between film and digital cameras. In our next entry, we'll review the principle functions/features that you should be concerned with when purchasing a camera.

Lets start simple and build from there.

There are film and there's digital cameras, and within these two groups there are similiar models. The main difference between these is the media used to capture the image.

For film, many of the options have gone away over the last several years. There used to be 110 format, APS format, and 35mm format (to name the more popular formats). Let's not forget about the polaroids either. Today, 35 mm is the most common film platform for the amateur photographer. For Professionals, there are still some medium format films and plate films, but those too are starting to vanish. Nikon, Canon, Fuji, and Minolta used to be the predominant 35mm camera makers. About 6 months ago, Nikon announced they would stop production of all their film cameras, except for the high end pro camera (F6). The others, with the exception of Canon, are starting to follow. In the next few years, it may be increasingly difficult to find lower end amateur 35 mm cameras and purchase/process film cost effectively. However, today you can pick up a good film camera on e-bay for about half of what it cost just 5 years ago. The same is true with darkroom equipment. A buddy of mine picked up a $600 enlarger (in new condition) on e-bay for less than $60 + shipping. If you want to go with film, nows the time.

For digital, the good news is that over the last 5 years, prices have become more affordable, and the technology has improved significantly. While digital does have the benefit of allowing you to see your image almost immediately, since the boom of the digital camera the number of prints being made has gone done drastically. There was recently a story written about how the 1-5 year age group is one of the least documented generations since the early 1900's. With digital, comes more time (yours) is required to process and print images. What was once down at the film processor is now being done by at home on the PC using a image processing program, such as Photoshop. In today's world, many folks have busy schedules (working 46-50 hours weeks and rushing their kids to evening activities). As a result, many of these images are being stuffed onto hard drives or flash cards and are never printed.

While one may think that digital is cheaper, the initial investment is typically alot more. This is due to the additional cost of media cards, PC upgrades (or purchases), and image processing programs. Don't forget the cost of your time behind the PC trying to make your shots perfect.

Personally, we love the digital era. It has opened up so many creative outlets and opportunites that we could never do with film.

If you live in the Cedar Rapids IA area, shoot digital, and want quick, easy prints without the fuss of image processing program. Check out Photo Pro on Collins Rd. They are a little more expensive than Walmart/Walgreens/HyVee, but they do the work that you don't want to...the color balancing, exposure tweeks, etc.. You can also send your images to them online.
www.photoproonline.com

Have a great week.