Q: Kim, I’m looking at digital cameras. I’m experienced with film-based SLRs. So I think I want to purchase a digital SLR. Can you offer some advice? I understand that there are important differences between film and digital SLRs.

A:There are more and more choices when it comes to digital SLRs. Prices have declined sharply in recent years, driving growth in this market.

SLR (single lens reflex) cameras differ from point-and-shoots in many ways. First, they provide advanced controls. They allow you to adjust shutter speed and aperture size. And that’s just the beginning. SLRs provide many options for getting the best photos possible.

SLR basics

There are a few types of digital SLRs, so let’s start with the basics. First, there are SLR-style cameras. They’re not true SLRs, but they provide many of the same options.

So what makes a true SLR? When you look through the viewfinder, you see exactly what the camera will capture. That’s thanks to a mirror inside the camera. When you press the shutter release, the mirror flips up. The sensor then captures the image.

A few digital SLRs have fixed lenses. The inability to change the lens is very limiting. Presumably, you’re buying an SLR because you’re serious. Why limit yourself with a fixed lens?

I’d put my money into an SLR that allows lens changes. Generally, the digital sensor is the only significant difference between these and traditional 35mm SLRs.

Megapixels

So, how do you go about choosing a camera? People tend to judge digital cameras by the number of megapixels. How many megapixels equal the quality of a 35mm camera? There are too many variables in camera bodies, film types and sensors to make that comparison. Besides, the number of megapixels doesn’t necessarily correlate to picture quality.

Megapixels refer to the size of image a camera will capture. The more megapixels you have, the more you can enlarge your pictures. So, if you want to print posters, you need a lot of megapixels. A two-megapixel camera might well make excellent 4×6 prints. It all depends on the quality of the camera.

Many consumer SLRs fall into the six-to-eight-megapixel range. They will give you large prints. But, if you find a camera with more megapixels at a good price, go for it. The extra megapixels will give you the flexibility to make really large prints!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 29th, 2006 at 12:41 pm and is filed under Digital Camera. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.