DIGITAL Camera suggestions?

Question

I am shopping for my 1st Digital camera. This is my FIRST leap into the Digital picture "scene"..... I want a camera that will keep it's technological-edge so it will not be outdated w.i. 2 months or so.
I have an "older" 35-mm camera with more lenses than I know what to do with. I feel quite "skilled" using that camera. - I have a few BEAUTIFUL outdoor scenes I took w. it years ago.
For what "specifics" should I shop in a Digital camera? - I receive many suggestions from my local stores tauting "THIER cameras are best......."
Thanks for suggestions and advice.

Answer 1

You want to check into the quality of the brand and model that you are buying. Just because you have heard of the brand doesn't mean they make a quality digital camera. You can do a lot of research online and read customer's reviews who have purchased that camera. I would recommend Canon. They make a very good digital camera. I would stay away from Sony, HP and other brands that started out doing other things and have only recently(relatively) decided to jump into the camera arena. You also want a camera that has a rechargable lithium ion battery. These batteries will hold a charge much longer than a typical AA rechargable battery and you don't have to worry about buying replacement batteries all the time. It is also ideal to have a camera with the best optical zoom you can afford. Don't even pay attention to what the digital zoom is on a camera, it will only lower the quality of the picture.

Answer 2

Well the only brand that I recommend is Canon.
It is THE biggest seller and has a very good name for a reason. Their optics and build quality speak for themselves.

If you are familiar with an SLR, then make sure you get a camera
that has manual controls as well as the standard auto. That way you can use aperture and shutter priority and manual settings when you want to. (the settings will be AV, TV and M on the selector dial)

Don't look at anything with less than 6MP-8MP. Always look at the optical zoom size and NEVER the digital zoom. (you can get cameras with a zoom of 3X, 4X, 6X up to 12X with the lens range of approx 100mm-400mm+)
Always use the highest picture quality setting available in the camera.
You will need some fast cards (Sandisk Ultra II or Extreme III are excellent). Cards are so cheap now, so invest in at least a1GB card or one-two 512MB cards as a minimum.

You also need rechargeable batteries with a lot of cameras (NiMh, 2500+)and a charger. Some cameras however, use a supplied lithium battery.

And its always a good idea to have sound PC knowledge and good photo editing software (that needn't be too complex...Adobe Elements 4.0 or Paintshop Pro 9 or X are good) because to get best results with the images from a digital camera you will often have to 'tweak' them to get sharper photos and adjust them in many other ways... (straightening, cloning, cropping, contrast and brightness adjustments etc etc) Why, you ask? because you can!

You will never get a good wide angled shot with an ordinary digital camera...their lenses are just not wide enough. Thats what the SLR is for.
Of course, if you have cash to burn, then you could always buy a digital SLR with extra lenses (but that will cost you seriously big $) Its best to familiarise yourself with a prosumer type digital camera first to get the feel of a digital camera.

I have been using Canon digital cameras for years and I, (as well as thousands of others) have been very happy with the results they give me. Don't forget you might pay a few more dollars but its worth it in the long run.
Here's the range available as well as various review sites....

Answer 3

Digital technology has been improving everyday and in a very fast page. No matter how much you spent on digital camera, you will find yourself left behind very soon. Have you ever beaten yourself in the head and said...geez I should have waited for 2 more months to buy a brand new Canon EOS 30D, it's only $200.00 more than my new Canon EOS 20D...
Well, good news? It doesn't mean you will have to throw away your camera you just paid $1200.00 2 months ago. It might not have as much functions as the newer model but it's still new and works well.
Bad news? man! the newer model has just the function that you missed on your current one, and yes...it looks a lot better too.

what I'm trying to say is Do Not worry about being outdated, nobody can keep up with it unless you are a millionaire. Since you have a 35mm and a lot of lenses, I would suggest to buy a DSLR that works with your lenses. You can save money that way. Canon has 20D, 30D, 5D, EOS 1D mark II...Nikon has D50, D70s,D100,D200,D2Xs...Minolta has Maxxum 5D, 7D...It depends on how much you want to spend and you will find one easily in your price range. Good luck.

Answer 4

Looking pretty nifty should about the bottom of your list of plus points when buying a camera! Samsung are not really a competitive player in the world of good cameras'. Take a look at the Panasonic range, anything with the Leica lens (instead of the Lumix one which is a bit soft). They are very reliable. I have had 5 panasonics and had no trouble with any. My current Canon A720is is only a few months old and already giving problems.

Answer 5

Look for a camera from a well known maker, from Kodak to Nikon to Canon to Sony to Hewlett Packard to... You want a maker to be around for a while to supply support, drivers for new computer operating systems, etc....

Look for a camera with at least a decent zoom lens, though since you are familiar with film SLRs yo should consider spending the extra $ on a digital SLR for the same reasons the film versions are so useful.

Answer 6

Consumer Reports rated digital cameras two issues ago. Go to you local library and find the back issue.

Answer 7

You need to read my question about digital cameras. I paid 200 bucks for mine and it is very slow. Apparently, you cannot "point and shoot" with most digital cameras. And if you do, it's gonna cost you some money.

Answer 8

Look at Nikon D50