Good new digital camera for producing wall prints, family etc. What do i look for?

Question

Any advice on buying new camera . i.e. Brands, 'must haves' and 'what to avoid' ect. Was looking towards digital camera.
Looking to take great pics of family, friends, occasions to start with and wall mount them (for my home or to give as great presents in frames so quality a must).
Any / all advice appreciated.

Answer 1

I'm about to upgrade to a Fuji S6500.

It's not as expensive and unweildly as a full digital-SLR but has enough user-definable things like focus and zoom rather than all this Auto-managed stuff which only restricts the type of pictures you can take.

Just remember, the number of megapixels counts for nothing, the ISO range is what matters. More megapixels just makes the picture bigger, it doesn't actually pick up any more detail than a camera with less.

The best way to do it is surf the net and look for sample image galleries taken with specific cameras, something Amazon has started doing with their camera range. That way you can honestly compare quality and range instead of having to take someone's word for it.

Answer 2

All of the major brands are good. Choose a brand that appeals to you. Then you have to think about getting a spare battery, what size memory card, if you want an extended warranty, how much you can afford, what size zoom, if you want manual controls, the size of the camera, finding a reliable place to purchase it, and the list goes on and on and on.......

The first thing to realize is that almost any digital camera will take good pictures. If more people would read the manual more than once, they would be able to take better pictures. Usually, the person assumes it is the camera when it could be them not knowing exactly what to do. Just give yourself more photographic knowledge by doing more reading on the internet.

I really believe buying a camera is an individual choice.
The person needs to read alot of reviews on cameras so they can decide on the features that they really want and need.
Go to the store and hold them so you can see if they feel comfortable in your hands. If possible, take some pictures in the store to check the quality of the pictures.
I can only give a suggestion of what to look for in a new digital camera.
Good Luck

my suggestion
go to yahoo shopping
digital cameras
digital camera GUIDE
be sure to check titles on the left side
the guide should answer your questions

Answer 3

Have to give a "Thumbs Down" to Bob J since megapixels do count. A 2 or 3 megapixel camera isn't going to give you acceptable sized prints for hanging on your wall - unless you'll be satisfied with 4x6. You'll want at least 6 to 8mp to successfully make large prints and even then you'll want to use the highest resolution your camera allows. Be leery of digicams with 10 or 12mp - visit shutterbug.com and search for the article "The Pros & Cons of Pixel Packing". It was in the Nov. 2007 issue of Shutterbug Magazine.

Another factor to consider is sensor size. A DSLR has a larger sensor than a digicam. The aforementioned article delves into why this matters.

All the ISO has to do with picture quality is image degradation at higher settings. ISO comes into play when you are shooting with available light and flash is not an option.
If you mounted your camera on a tripod and took the same photo at ISO 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 and 3200 and printed them out you'd see a tremendous difference in image quality from 400 up. Even with your camera's Noise Reduction circuitry turned on the difference will be easily seen.

Unfortunately you failed to state your experience level. That said, I'll still suggest you take a good look at the Pentax K100D. It has 6.1mp and Image Stabilization (IS) in the camera body. The price should be decreasing since Pentax has released the K100D Super and K10D. The 100 Super adds dust removal for the sensor; the 10 has 10mp and dust removal. All 3 accept every Pentax K-mount lens ever made and, although they would be manual focus, you'll still have IS with the older lenses.

Regardless of the type of camera you buy - digicam or DSLR - you'll still need to spend some time to READ & STUDY the Owner's Manual for it. IMO 90% of the problems people have with their cameras is due to Operator Error - they simply do not know how to use the camera. A few hours with the Owner's Manual will save many many hours of frustration and/or disappointment. If I had a dollar for every question in here and in the photography section that says "... I took pictures of my son's 1st birthday party and they all turned out blurry or too dark... " or "I took a once in a lifetime vacation and all my pictures turned out lousy..." I could retire early.

I suggest you visit a professional camera store and seek the advice of a trained salesperson. Then BUY your camera from that salesperson. Some camera stores even offer an hour or two of hands-on instruction with your purchase. Rather difficult to get that on-line or at BestBuy or Circuit City or Target or Wal-Mart.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Megapixels 8 or above. How big of wall prints, if you want poster size start looking at 10 and 12 MP.

Kodak makes 12 MP with a 5x Schinider Lense for $250. The 1275

Answer 5

Bob J's grabbed the wrong end of the stick regarding megapixels, but he's recommended a fantasic camera. All of his other points are very true, and the S6500 shares the CCD with the Fuji D30 DSLR. But it costs pennies, because it's "only" 6.3 MP.

Answer 6

All answers are very informative. I have to add this website just in case it may help you out. It helped me and I usually recommend it for people who are shopping for digital cameras
But the site works for other things too, although I haven't tried it for those things.
http://www.myproductadvisor.com/mpa/home.do

Answer 7

if unweildly is a concern get an expensive point and shoot, otherwise invest in a DSLR if quality is important to you

try dpreview.com and check out DSLR's

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