If resolution (megapixels) isnt everything, what else should you look for in a good camera?

Question

I am reading a book and its says "resoluton alone is not a measure of a camera's quality" So what else should i look at when buying a new camera? I always thought is was the higher the mega pixel the better the camera.

Answer 1

After about 4MP, resolution is not going to really be a factor unless you are looking at making large (8x10 and up) prints.

Lens quality and zoom are the big factors at this point:

A glass lens is better than a plastic one.

Choose something with a good optical zoom (at least 3x. 8x or 10x is better) Don't be fooled by a digital zoom. This is basically the same as cropping the photo in photoshop.

Answer 2

Lens quality, image processing, focusing engineering, blah, blah, blah, things you will not be able to evaluate at home or from reading advertisements.

To do this right, you have to either rely on the advice of friends or read reviews until you have learned something by reading them. I know that sounds "smart," but the more times you see the same terms used, the more you will understand what they mean.

Go to www.dpreview.com and click on "Cameras" on the left. Pick a brand and then pick a model that you have seen in a store or are interested in. Click on "In-depth review" and "Read Owner Opinions" for each camera. Be sure to note that the reviews are many pages long so you don't stop after page one. Check the sample images, also. You can enlarge these to full size images if you click on the link below the picture. You will have to then put your cursor in the white space to the right of the picture and click once. After that, you can pass your cursor over the image and it will turn into a magnifier. Click it as a magnifier once and the image will go to full size and you can really examine the detail or look for artifacts like fringing or noise.

Here are some popular review sites:

http://www.popphoto.com/buyingguide/

http://www.steves-digicams.com/best_cameras.html

http://www.dcresource.com/buyersguide/ (Jeff's Favorite)

http://www.dpreview.com/

Answer 3

5 and 6 megapixels is sufficient for most users even for cropping IF you're into cropping pictures. After MP there's zoom, most cameras are 3X and 4X optical zoom.
Excellent cameras in super zoom at 12X optical zoom are:
Sony CyberShot DSC-H2 which I own. Has image stabilizer. comes with batteries and charger. Very good on batteries. 1 sec delay between shots. Has 6 MP.
Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 5 MP, 2 sec delay between shots, image stabilizer
Fugi FinePix S5200. Has 5 MP, excellent on batteries, 10X optical zoom, 1 sec delay between shotsI paid $238 for my daughters camera. All 3 excellent when enlarging 8X10s.
Another camera with good reviews is Canon SD600 it's not a super zoom but has 6 MP.
Look for 4-6 MP, zoom as to your preference, maybe image stabilizer, how many sec it takes between shots. Look at Nov'06
Consumer Reports in your local library. Some cameras very good on batteries, some just eat them up quick.
A bunch of megapixels doesn,t insure great quality in a photo.A high quality lens goes hand in hand.

Answer 4

free batteries?????