Digital Cameras & Reviews
Which Camera Should I Buy?
Thank you for your question about what
camera is best and which one should you buy. It’s kind of like asking “which
car should I buy?” To which I would graciously responding that I do not
know, because I do not know your requirements or what you want to do. Only
you do. You are better equipped at answering the question that I am.
The choice to buy a camera is an
important decision - it needs to be researched. It depends on a lot of
factors.
First:
How much money do you have? There is no
point buying a large format digital camera if you are only going to do small
format shooting. And, when it may be nice to want the latest Canon or Nikon
that cost 5 grand for the camera, it may or may not be feasible for your
budget. Only you know the answer to that.
Second:
What sort of photography do you want to do? Do you want to be able to change your lenses? If so, then look at a DSLR. If not, stick to the mid-range point and shoot digital cameras.
It is
advisable to go for a DSLR if you want interchangeable lenses and want to
get the maximum optic quality from your images. In other words if you want
landscapes to look big, wide and expansive, then the lens is what does it,
not the camera.
Third:
Things to look for from a camera are the capability for interchangeable lenses if you want more freedom and flexibility. Look for something that feels nice in your hand. I find that if a camera is uncomfortable or doesn’t fit well into my hands, I tend to not want to shoot all day long with it.
It’s important that it feels good to you. Your wrists and hands do a lot of work holding a camera and after a whole day of shooting, you don’t want to be worrying about aching arms or hands.
Fourth:
Is it user friendly? Camera companies are
highly competitive and making their manuals easier to understand now. Make
sure that if you do not understand something you can quite easily go to the
manufacturers website and find out the information you need.
Fifth:
Buying a camera overseas to save a few bucks? I’ve never been a fan of grey imports. But that’s just me. You don’t know if they’ve been tampered with, refurbished, used before, and travelled well or not…
I tend to spend thousands on gear and the last thing I want to worry about it whether the battery is going to give way on me or not, half way into a shoot because the battery was used by several different people before it got to me. No thanks. I want that “new-camera” smell when I take it out of the box for the first time.
That’s just me, do your own research.
Here’s a bit about Grey Imports from the Nikon site:
www.nikon.com.au
Sixth:
Don’t get too hung up on the camera. It’s your lenses that are more
important. I can’t stress this enough. The camera is really just a black box
with lots of excellent controls, but it is the lens that makes the
difference to the overall quality and sharpness of your image. You lens
controls the quality. Never forget that.
Seventh:
Do your own research and don’t be swayed by anyone. You know what you need
more than anybody. Trust that.
Article by...
Amy Renfrey
Digital Photographer, Digital Photography Teacher & Author
