Buying the digital camera can be difficult, lots of models and manufacturers to select from, each with its own characteristics so you may end up getting actually the one you didn’t really wanted to get at all. It can be a big problem especially for first time buyers because they are offered too many alternatives and they can’t know what to look for exactly.

So, what do I need to know about digital cameras?
If you think you are going to carry your digital camera everywhere and anywhere, you best bet is to pick out a handy and light one. It is also essential for you to feel good holding the digital camera while photographing. See if it’s adequate while holding and trying it before you buy it.

Take a few shoots first and determine the resolution of camera. Pick the model with higher resolution so you will be able to magnify your photograph without messing the picture quality. Digital cameras with higher resolution makes higher quality pictures so as you enlarge your pictures you won’t get out-of-focus images with blurry colors.

Select a digital camera with greater optical zoom. The bigger the better. Most digital cameras have both digital and optical zoom and a higher optical zoom is of course better than a higher digital zoom. Optical zoom makes the content closer by setting the elements inside the lens of the digital camera and digital zoom just enlarges that photo by digital processing.

Cameras consume battery power pretty fast. It is better to check if the digital camera comes with rechargeable batteries so you could recharge them. Rechargeable batteries are handy and more economical than purchasing every now and then disposable ones. Digital cameras with AC adapter are best choice so you can just plug it in and attach the digital camera while viewing the photos or while uploading them.

If you love to take pictures a lot, you need to be sure that you have plenty of memory in your digital camera to shot all the photographs. When you purchase a digital camera, it is best to see if it is capable of outside storage by having a memory card slot. This way you won’t have to care that you will take all of space on the camera while shooting pictures.

These are only the classic things you should be looking for in a camera when you want to buy one. There are some specific characteristics that you would like to consider in making your purchasing selection. Naturally the most important factor is how much many are you willing to spend. Your budget will play a huge part in deciding the type of digital camera you’ll buy.

But keep in mind that the greatest digital camera is the digital camera that best suits your lifestyle. Never purchase a camera only because it is the latest or the most modern model in the market. Get the digital camera you are certain you will enjoy and definitely use.

Digital cameras come in many sizes, colors, brands, zooms, resolutions, playbacks, etc. There are so many features and qualities that are being placed in the devices that buyers especially first timers become overwhelmed and dizzy with these outstanding arrays of gadgets. This is even without including the various advertisements and different ratings that are used to promote these products.

So what are the things to look for if you want to buy digital camera? To be able to answer these, there are 2 sets of information you have to know before you can decide. The first type of information is defining what YOU need and want in a digital camera. To do this, you can ask yourself the following questions:

- What do you want to take with your digital camera? Before you buy digital camera, it is important to determine what kind of pictures you want to take with it. If you are a digital photography enthusiast, any digital camera will not just do. You have to look for features that can support the zooming you need, the resolution, etc.

- How much is your budget? This is a very important question any person who intends to buy digital camera should ask. Because no matter what your needs and wants are for the device, your financial resource will play a huge part in dictating the type of digital camera you will buy.

- What are you resources? When you buy digital camera, sometimes the spending does not end there. You also have to consider the capacity and the power of the computer and the printer you will be hooking your camera with for your editing and printing needs. Editing software are already included when you buy digital camera but other devices aren’t. Aside from a printer, ink and paper for printing, you might also need additional memory cards for your camera and a more powerful computer to support image editing and image storage and retrieval.

After answering these 3 questions, the second set of information you need to know before you buy digital camera are the features that you need in the device. These are:

- Resolution. Before you buy digital camera, check first its capacity to produce high quality photo images. The number of pixels indicated determines resolution. The more number of pixels, the higher the resolution which can make photos to be enlarged without losing image quality.

- Built-in memory. Digital cameras need memory cards for picture storage. When you buy digital camera, make sure that the gadget that you buy does not only have a “built-in” memory but should also have a card slot for external and additional memory. This allows you to change full memory cards conveniently while shooting your pictures.

- Look and feel. It is essential for you to feel comfortable holding your digital camera while shooting. So, before you buy digital camera, it good to test and check if you are comfortable holding it and using it. Consider where the buttons are located and how they are spaced out and see also if you feel comfortable using the viewfinder.

- Battery life. Digital cameras use up batteries fast and batteries are expensive. Before you buy digital camera, consider if the camera’s batteries are rechargeable. This way you can recharge them. Take also into consideration an AC adapter when you buy digital camera. You can attach this to the camera when you are viewing your pictures or uploading them

- LCD. The LCD is a special consideration you have to look into when you buy a digital camera. This is a small screen located at the back of a digital camera that allows you to preview the pictures you took. This has to be considered when you buy digital camera because it uses up a lot of battery power.

- Special features. Special features that will suit your needs should be thought about, too before you buy digital camera. If you want your camera to have good zooming, you can opt for those with optical zoom lenses. A diopter adjustment on the digital camera’s viewfinder will also be beneficial to those who regularly wear glasses and wish to buy digital camera. Other features such as remote control, tripods, etc. can also be considered when you buy a digital camera.

With these information, you can now figure out what you really need and want before you buy digital camera. If you want to see ratings and rankings of these devices based on price, resolution or other features, check out various websites that have these in the Internet.

Today people are switching over from film cameras to digital models. The obvious reasons are the ease with which objects are framed and shot, pictures are stored, recorded, and displayed. To top it all you can download at the comfort of your home and print the pictures.

However if you are buying one for the first time, there are chances that you will be literally lost reviewing the specifications and features offered by the numerous brands out there in the market. Do you go by mega pixels or do you go by manufacturers or by price range or by?.well, there are many more classifications possible. The following guide is prepared with the intention to help you arrive at a practical model of your choice.

Various Features

Weight

This factor depends a lot on the usage of the digital camera. You want one to carry around in your pocket or purse, go for the light weight ones. No doubt they are convenient, but the have tiny buttons, controls and dials which may make the handling a little difficult. The bigger ones weigh more and have more features too.

Resolution

Cameras are categorized as mega pixels of resolution. It narrows down the range of cameras and helps you sort out beginners, intermediate and advanced groupings from these. The range is 0.1 mega pixel to 18 mega pixel and some even more. The key to choosing the right pixel camera depends on how close you wish to get to target.
2 mega pixels and less- you get reasonably sharp images and enough details for prints of 8×10s and smaller. Prints are not of very high quality but suitable enough to be posted on emails and web sites. These cameras are inexpensive.
2 to 6 mega pixels- As the resolution keeps increasing in this range, the picture quality keeps getting better. You get sharper images all at an escalated price.Eg Canon PowerShot S3, Fuji FinePix V10 etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?resolution=0.1-to-5.1
6 mega pixels and more- More aren?t always good. Keep in mind higher mega pixels mean larger image sizes, expensive memory cards, and take more space of your computer?s hard drive.Eg. Canon PowerShot Pro1, Canon PowerShot S80 etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?resolution=6.37-to-8.32

Zoom
Optical zoom lens- Image gets magnified by lens-3x, 4x, 10x and more, however keep in mind that very long zooms are prone to camera shake. Use a tripod to cover up for this problem. A 3x optical zoom means it can make a subject appear thrice as close. An optical zoom produces the best quality images. You can?t get too close to the object, but then a photo editing software can help you crop the image. It gives better result than using the digital zoom.

Digital zoom is a simulated optical zoom; it enlarges only the central portion of the image. The lens is not used in this case. The digital zooming effect is given by software inside. The result is most often a blurry and digitized picture. You can use both zooming effects in cameras that offer both these features.

Lens

A lousy lens can spoil all that extra resolution and image processing controls. So, before you buy one assess the final image on a computer based on these criteria:

check the lens for overall focus and sharpness, whether corners are as sharp as in the middle

check for flaring, i.e. colored circles and reflections when shooting towards light source

check if the lens offer attachments, you can add wide angle or telephoto attachments to extend the focal length range

whether manual or electronic zoom control, manual zoom offers more speed and flexibility
Memory

Unlike the film cameras the digital cameras store images in memory. Thus each time the memory is full, you can download them and the camera is ready to shoot again. Memory is of two main types: built-in and removable. Most low end cameras have the built-in memory. Removable memory cards have the advantage of upgrading the memory, particularly useful when you are taking lot of pictures in one trip.

Flash Types

It all started with photographers igniting a tray filled with gunpowder to illuminate a scene. Today digital cameras come with built in automatic flash unit combined with a sophisticated light measuring and exposure control system. They are so convenient and easy to use that we often fail to notice it.

Digital cameras are specified by a guide number which basically gives the flash power. Higher the guide number, greater the flash?s useful range. With changes in sensor speed and /or lens focal length, the guide number changes. So manufacturers instead specify the flash?s maximum range with the assumption that flashes is fully charged and the lens aperture is wide open.

Some of the common modes:

Auto mode is well known! Cameras with red eye reduction mode first fires a short burst to close the subject?s irises then the main flash and finally the picture is taken.

Fill flash modes to fill in shadows.

Flash off mode to capture the object in natural light.

Night scene mode exposes the foreground subject without underexposure of background. For maximum flash flexibility select a camera with an external hot shoe.

Some models come with just the external flash units.

Some varieties have both external and built-in flash units.

Some very compact digital Camera models come with no flash units.

Focus Type

Most digital cameras have a combination of different focus modes. In the automatic mode, when you press the shutter-release button half-way down, the focus is locked. It is also confirmed by a change of color of the focus indicator.

The Auto focus is achieved in different modes. The most common of them is the single area focus mode. The focus is on the central area of the image you find on the screen. In the spot focus mode, the focus is precisely on the center area of the screen. For shooting slow moving objects you can use the continuous auto focus mode. Be aware of the huge consumption of power in this mode.
Manual focus- This feature allows you to manually focus on the portion of a scene which may or may not be at the center of the screen. Select the area to be focused by using one of the several focus area indicators by toggling a cursor button to achieve close ups and macro shots. Some models have the focus rings for manual focus, turn it till the subject is in focus.
Fixed focus- This feature can be used to your advantage when there is pre-determined distance between the camera and the object.

The various combinations of the focus types are:

Auto focus and manual focus

Auto focus and fixed focus

Auto, manual and fixed focus

Camera Type

Standard Point and Shoot cameras- Point and shoot models are available with basic features to the ones with advanced controls and options and excellent macro capabilities. The flexibility with which these cameras can be used like in situations where it is hard to frame the subject or shooting at waist levels makes these models much sought after. It is a silent performer ideal for shooting in locations where a loud shutter clack is not appropriate.

SLR/Professional- More interesting features like interchangeable lenses, flashes, sophisticated controls and other accessories, these models are specifically designed for photographers and professionals. Eg. Nikon D40, Nikon D40x etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?cameraType=SLR%2FProfessional

Compact- The features are moderate, yet small enough in size to slip it in to your pocket before you go for the party. These models are comparatively higher priced than the similarly featured standard sized cameras. Eg. Canon PowerShot SD800, Kodak EasyShare V550 etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?cameraType=Compact

Ultra compact- With technology improving at a fast rate the size of the cameras is getting smaller and smaller. Cameras of the size of credit cards, slightly thicker shoot amazing pictures. No compromise on features like LCD screens (as small as 2 inch), optical viewfinder, good resolution (some with even 7 mega pixels), and good battery life too. Eg. Casio Exilim EX-S500, Samsung NV3 etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?cameraType=Ultra-Compact

Battery

There are two types: rechargeable ones and disposable ones. Since digital cameras consume power very fast, especially if you are using a LCD, it is best to invest in the rechargeable ones. Some digital cameras come with AC adapters, if yours doesn?t have one, purchase one separately.

Some batteries are:

NiMH batteries are the most sought after ones today. They are rechargeable, last long, and come in various compact designs and no memory problems.

Alkaline ones are not rechargeable and don?t last long.

Lithium ion batteries are small and recharge quickly.

NiCad batteries if not charged properly can have loss of memory.

AC adapters enable you to keep shooting long after your batteries are dead!
Price

Luckily you don?t have to spend huge amounts to own one.

Low range

Even a couple of hundred bucks can fetch you a very good camera with video capabilities and nice zoom. And they are not the sub-par models of yester years. Eg. Nikon COOLPIX S5,Canon PowerShot G7 etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?Price=0.01-to-237.49

Mid-range

A lot more features get added, more of mega pixels, and more powerful lenses are available in this range of cameras. Eg. Nikon D80, Nikon D200 etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?Price=237.49-to-599.84

High range

These ranges of cameras are mostly for professionals with superb image rendering capacity and produce excellent photos. Eg. Nikon D2Xs, Canon EOS-1D Mark III Body Only etc.

http://www.reviewgist.com/digital-camera-reviews?Price=1437.12-to-7999.99