Buying a Digital Camera

Thats right guys.some minute points that some people miss before buying a digicam.

Fillowing are the points you should always consider while buying a cam:

1. Always buy a cam with Carl Zieuss lens. Lense is the heart of any cam. Many good companies have launched some cheap model by using their own lens. But remember that Carl Zeiuss is world class and its resolution and pic quality is unmatchable.

   
   




2. Always look for a large LCD screen. You'll always going to look your last snap in the screen provided in the cam to know how pic came. Based on this you are going to decide whether to take another snap or not. In fact all the people wiil come around you to see the snap and they'll appreciate if you have a big screen. A matter of proud yeah.:)

   
   




3. Megapixel resolution you require. Those who wants a cam to shoot pics as hobbies and has nothing to do with professional photography, 6 MP would be more than suffice. If it is Carl Zeiuss lens then even 3 MP would be a gr8 choice.

   
   




4. Look for more optical zoom than digital zoom. Digital zoom has nothing to do with pic resolution. But optical zoom helps in positioning and capturing large distant objects. Usually 3x optical and 5x digital zoon would be suffice.

   
   




5. Shutter Speed and Aperture Size: Lets go into some basics. In photography, exposure is the total amount of light allowed to fall on the photographic medium(image sensor or CCD) during the process of taking a photograph. Exposure time is controlled in a camera by shutter speed and the illumination level by the lens aperture size. Shutter speed is the time for which the shutter is held open during the taking of a photograph to allow light to reach the image sensor. Slower(longer) shutter speeds and greater(bigger) lens apertures produce greater exposures and ultimaetly leads to a brighter, sharper, sensible image.

   
   

So aperture size of f/2.8-7.1 is the best one. Whilef/2.8-4.1 is OK.

And a shutter speed of 1/2000 sec is fine.

(All these parameters can be obtained from product specifications)

1. Video zoom. Most of the cams doesn’t provide this facility. If you are gonna use video capture frequently for long durations, then it might help you. Otherwise do not consider this feature as an requirement.

   
   




2. Ease of operation. You should be able to use most of the features provided to you at any point. Otherwise there is no use of loads of features and functionalities in your box remaining unutilized just because of you find it difficult to use them. Value for money depends on his point as well.

   
   




3. Before buying a cam, always go on the website of that company. Collect information on the produact and compare your needs with the specifications provided.

   
   

Rest you people are wise………….so happy shooting!

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U r reading this so I can take it for granted that u will browse through the net through all sites for the best product bec u pay u get it weather pob or trouble

it is the first best thing u should do.

here im going to talk about some basic requrements

1. battery life

2.screen

3.resolution

1. ease of operation

going from  bottom to top

ease of operation: if at all u ever had any experience with any digital camera and if ufeel it s ok then go for it or else if u want a better experience

go for menus: using menus is time taking but EASILY UNDERSTANDABLE by any one

using buttons is fast but u have to get used to it

i suggest go for the menu

resolution: this is the main thing that every one talks

the higher the resolution number printed on the camera the more the pricece the better the quality. I too agree with that

but what to do with so much clarity and resolution like 10mp

basically printing a 2mp camera print out is fine sufficient untill and unless u prepare to print large posters

or if u say clarity in ur pc the whole pictute cant be displayed on ur screen with is exact resolution size( im not talking abou those who use xtra large 21`` monitors)

so it has to be shrinkend and it looks nice and commin to mail they are lot more sufficient

so starting from 2mp people can choose any resolution they like

screen: many people feel that their screen on the cam I very small compared to the new ones, big is good , but I hope that u will not store the photo on the cam and look at it when u wanr u would rather print it or save in ur computer or in a cd to have a big view in tv

small is also ok, but big screeen looks like big B

battery life : now here comes the main part. what is agun with out bullets, I used the word bullets because to use my previous camera ie hp635 I used to carry 6 sets of batteries and replace them for every 20 shots or 20 minutes, where else other cameras use the same batteries for one comlplete day

so if at all u like any model then go into its official site in its manual search for the power consumption compare with other cameras in that range the less the power amps consumed the less it would be chance to reload with batteries.

most of u do not consider this untill we have any problem

here I faced the problem so im suggesting u to go through the manual

because once u buy u have to bear it

and for hp products they break or will get a prob after the waranty period is over, dont go for the brand name go after a popular product not a popular company

and one more thing auto adjustments are not ment for all comditions

the more u get familiar with the settings of each and every parameter the better ur pictute would be

choose according to ur usage, budget, & requirement

but not less than the basic or else u will regret

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Dear Friends,

Buying a Digital Camera although might look a bit tedious job.... it really isnt so...its just the illusions that are been created in our minds by a plethora of brands present today in the market. So just a few tips before you go buying

My Classification of Brands:

Premium: Canon, Sony

Good: Olympus, Kodak

Standard: Panasonic, HP

Few Tips for Buying a DigiCam:

1. Forget there is any such thing like Digital Zoom

   
   




2. A 4X Optical zoom is a pretty good amount of zoom although bigger it is the better, also most of the cameras in the compact class you would find with 3x or 4x optical zoom. Only the Canon A700 is the one that provides 6X zoom which is by far the largest in the compact categories of DigiCams.

   
   

Compact here means something which you can carry in your Jeans Pockets.

1. 4 Mega Pixels is what anyone will need unless he is a professional photgrapher

   
   




2. Dont go for properietary batteries, just imagine yourself at a tourist spot and your battery goes asleep... You cant use the normal AA batteries

   
   




3. Dont go by the printed price on the box..... Bargains happen Big Time....

   
   




4. Go for something compact, the bigger ones are the better ones but eventually after the initial excitement what would matter is the comfort to carry

   
   




5. Dont look to save some 1000 Rs and go for a lesser known brand like Panasonic and HP, the quality of images differ a lot.

   
   




6. Finally If you are in Hyderabad, I would refer you to Chimalgi Photo Optics in Secunderabad, the guys there are very knowledgable and would certainly help you a good buy.

   
   

Hope the experiences I had helps you make better decision in your buying.

Thanks... Happy Snapping

What did I purchase????

Canon PowerShot A700

Just got this fabulous piece from Canon 2 months back for 17,500.... And made optimal use of it during Diwali... The review is been written after testing the Digicam for over 400 Snaps and 7 Video Shoots.

The USP of this George Eastmann invention is its Zoom Capability... Although you get many higher Zoom cameras than this almost upto 24x Optical zoom from Panasonic and Kodak... but the best thing about A700 is its compactness and price... You can fit this and carry it all along in your Jeans Pocket....

Just to give a brief on its Specifications:

LCD: 2.5 Inch TFT display.... biggest in the league

Optical Zoom: 6x(Really good... I could even read the Numbers coded on Air Planes Flying at the Hyderabad Airport: And my house is located almost 500 Meters from the Air Strip)

Digital Zoom: 4x(As useless as a comb for a baldy)

MegaPixels: 6MP(Much much more than enough, just as much more as an 80 GB Hard Disk for DOS based system) I think 4MP is more than enuf for a good clear photograph.

Batteries: I think this is where Canon has an upperhand over Sony as no proprietary batteriesneed to be used for Canon. Just 2 AAsized standard batteries. (2 Duracell can get you atleast 70 Snaps, might be an understatement). Anyways best way is to go for Rechargeable batteries... I got 6 Rechargeable batteries and a charger for 1200 Rs (NiMH 2300 mA)... With two batteries I could shoot more than 300 Snaps...2300 mA decides how many snaps you can take with AA batteries. Higher the number the better. You can also get 2100 mA and lower ones. The cost goes down accordingly.

Also dont replace your rechargeable batteries until they are fully discharged, this helps in keeping the battery life intact.

OK enough on the batteries.....

Fully Auto....Fully Manual.... Not a paradox friends.... Its true with A700... You can make it absolutely automatic or you can exhibit full control over the images you take....

4 Types of Exposure Control, to keep a tab on those glary images.... Also available is the Red Eye Reductionfeature

18 different modesof shoots are available in this which includes Night Mode, Indoor, Landscape, Portrait (I liked this mode, it blurs the background and only focusses on the object to be pictured).

Also the image stitchfacility lets you take different shots of a wide picture and then you can stitch the images very easily with the software provided to make it one single image.

Two other modes Color Accent and Color Swapare useful utilities to have some fun with your images. You can make them Monochrome with the Color Accent.

ISO settings are available from 80 to 800 and Auto. It just decides how far your flash will go but I think most of the times its better to leave it on Auto. Level of 800 will cause the flash to go farthest but will create disturbance in the image, hence optimal ISO should be between 100 to 400.

Memory provided with the pack is peanuts, so be ready to put some money into an SD memory card. I got a Kingston 1 GB SD memory cardfor 1100 Rs. I think Kingston is the best in market.

1 GB memory can let you save minimum 800 Photographs at 4 MP setting.

It Can be conected directly to the printer.... and has a USB2.0 port with Cable provided... Also can be connected to any TV set be it NTSC or PALSystem.... so no worries even if you decide to settle outside India in future....

Yeah... Most important .....you can shoot videos with this at 30 Frames per secondand upto 1 GB limit.... so which I believe would come approximately to 10-12 Minutes @ 640 x 480 Resolution

What Else... Is there anything I didnt cover....

Yup.... compared to a Sony or Olympus.... I find the Canon really good.... although Sony are much more compact and good aesthetically.... But if we compare features I think Canon beats them Hands Down... Especially the A700...

Once Again I would reiterate.... Its Zoom Macha le with A700

Also Please do check this beautiful site https://steves-digicams.com/ , it would be certainly helpful

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When it comes to picking up a digicam, you are spoilt for choices as a pro. As an green-horn, you just try to make some sense out of the ads, ask about , or just do what your best pal did while choosing one.

A few basics: Do your homework. Try to break thru the technical jargon when buying a high value technical precision item. Believe me, its worth it! In the case of a digicam, first check out the lensmake. Carl Zeiss is the grand daddy of lens makers. The Lens is the first andlast word of QUALITY PHOTO—The rest is photographic skills.

Yes a zoom lenswould be very much advisable (Close+ Wide angle+ telephoto rolled into one iszoom) . You will end up snapping close-ups, and sceneries with wideangle and telephoto. So a Zoom lens gives you all three.

For a respectablezoom lens a focal length of around 40mm-115 mm would do fantastic—give or takesome.

Mega pixel—thatactually represents the dots of a snap in print. So you wanna have more megapixels only if you plan to printout bigger prints (I Doubt). But the way manufacturers usethis in ads will make one feel—okay so this is the muscle of a digicam! That’snot true.

A big 2-2.5inch LCD display, inbuilt flash, memory expansion slots, USB ports, at leastaround 50 Mb of internal memory to hold some of your photos are things you should look for.

A Camcorder/PC cam for…….Hey don’t start getting ideas!

You also don't really want your digicam to weigh like a TV cam do ya? Mobility, size and weight thus are some factors to look after.

These are just afew tips worth noting if you want to make a purchase. Just in a nutshell. Elsewe can be at this all night! Digicams areexpensive but worth investing if you are a shutterbug on the fly. However theSLR camera will always remain the Classic. There's something about you controlling each and everything while taking a shot. That requires loads of skills and hence the digicam-- point and shoot is popular these days.

Sony, Nikon andKodak are some of the leading brands with fireworks for pricing. I wouldrecommend the Cyber-shot Sony DSC-T9, which is an ultra-slim camera offeringboth Super Steady Shot optical image stabilization and high light sensitivity.

With a slim bodyonly 0.8 inches thick, this compact powerhouse not only takes great picturesbut also brings them to life with Sony's new Clear Photo Plus LCD screen andslide show function. The 2.5-inch LCD features astonishing vividness andgreatly improved color reproduction compared to previous models. It is theperfect screen to show off your pictures as a slide show, which the cameracreates for you -- without having to use a PC.

The six-megapixel DSC-T9 delivers more detailed images with significantly less blur andgraininess than typical point-and-shoot cameras. Optical image stabilizationreduces image blur from hand movement, while high light sensitivity helps tolessen blurriness resulting from low-light conditions. The end result isbetter-focused, expressive images that look more like the way you see them,with the human eye.

Sony is the firstmanufacturer to incorporate an advanced lens-shift optical image stabilizerinto a camera with an internal folded-path lens system. This is what allows fora compact form; the lens does not have to extend from the body of the camera.High light sensitivity (up to IS0 640) allows you to capture clearer picturesin available light, giving you the option to not use a flash, which sometimescreates unwanted glare or harsh highlights. As a result, images have greateratmosphere and more detail.

The DSC-T9 provides MPEG movie recording, and 58 megabytes of internal memoryfor storage. With the slide show feature, sharing your photos right on thecamera's LCD is more enjoyable. You can even connect directly to yourtelevision with supplied cables. If you have a wide-screen home theater thenyou'll love the new 16:9 image mode that creates HDTV proportional pictures .

I can say from my experience this is a real sleek meanmachine with loads of features & good software support.

It is costlythough. With a price of around 17-19 grand in India. For economic pricing(3.5-5k) yet good results ORITE, MERCURY, Logitech etc are good buys.

Ready to launch your own Tehelka operation?

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As many have pointed, it is'nt that easy to select your dream Digital Camera.

Well.. I recommend only one thing, 'Just find out the one that suits best your needs.'

Why would we need huge mega pix if we are not going to take out a printout of not more than a 'maxi' size?

Why would we need a lenghty optical zoom, when we are not going to capture, other than with family members and at functions?

Why would we bother too much over the image quality, while all we gotta do is post the pictures over our blogs?

etc...find the DC that is 'meant for you'.

Well... true that there are lots of things to think about right from the money we would spend on batterries (rechargeable batteries? alkalines?...God no! heaven's sake, no regular alkalines please), to the zoom lenses that are expensive than the camera itself...

I strongly recomment you to try https://cameras.co.uk........ just look around at all the models, read the points, compare them with others.... you will definitely make the smartest decision with your buy.

I only hoped this, my fav camera site could have been cameras.co.in :))))........ as sitting in Chennai I would have had the prices handy with the details... anyway, don't be surprised if same products are expensive in India. We should know that buying the same car in India is more expensive than buying it in the US :(((( weird & hard truth, isn't it???

All the best for your best buy!!!

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I faced all the miseries in the world together before buying a digital camera (Should I have said ‘Digital’? Who goes for the analog... Oops sorry the conventional film-negative-develop cameras? Btw, how do we call them? I forgot!). So many models and each boasting its own features, it is not easy to select a camera. Also when you know you will have to shell out thousands of rupees, there is a tendency to think doubly hard and in the process get confused. I had done my homework for about 2 months to select a model, got the advise of so many people, finalized a model and went to the shop to buy one; but bought a different model with an instinctive diplomacy, which saved me almost 10, 000 rupees!

Every person I had asked for a suggestion added more to my confusion; the confusions follow …

Confusion 1: The MEGA pixels

I got swayed away by the numbers 6.0, 7.1 and 8.3 and so on. Once I had decided my camera will not have anything less than 7 mega pixels, when one of my friends advised me to go only for high-end model. Agreed that higher the mega pixels, greater the clarity. But do we necessarily need such high reso cameras?

Last minute realization 1:

Not necessary unless you would want to print posters! My friend had a mobile phone with inbuilt 2.0 MP (stands for Mega pixel) camera. Even that had reasonable quality. I have used a 3 MP, featureless camera, even that served it purpose. So anything above 3, say 4 or 5 MP should do for normal use. With 5MP you can get high quality print on an A4 paper (the computer print out sheet). Do we need more?

Confusion 2: The ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

I knew there was concepts called Digital zoom and Optical zoom. Optical zoom is actual zoom where your lens gets the actual focus nearer to what you want to shoot. Digital zoom is just manipulation of the image obtained, i.e. like seeing an image and imagining it to be bigger. Obviously, optical zoom gives better images. One of my friends showed me a model of Nikon where we were on the third floor and we could see a small object on the street that was some 40 meters away. It had 24X optical zoom (that’s how they represent zoom in terms of X). I was stunned. I wanted at least a quarter of that capacity on my camera.

Last minute realization 2:

My conscious told me, ‘hey unless you would want to peep into the neighbors house you don’t need that much zoom’. It didn’t stop, ‘Still if you want to peep, buy a binocular, not a camera’. I immediately decided I will settle for 3X optical zoom. (But at least a 3X zoom is must)

 Confusion 3: The chemical composition called BATTERY

I had a misconception that only cameras with Lithium ion battery (like the ones we find in mobiles) are good cameras. My mind would never accept a camera with ordinary pen cell batteries. I don’t know why I had an affinity for this type of models. This confusion I added to myself.

Last minute realization 3:

If I have a camera that would have only Lithium Ion (or that type) of batteries, charging them might be difficult. I cannot afford to have a spare battery as well. When I am interestingly taking pictures, if the battery goes down, I can only shut the camera down and get on with rest. But If it was just an AA (pen cell regular batteries like Eveready and Duracell), I can throw it away and buy a new pair for just 40 rupees.

Confusion 4: The maya called LOOKS

The model I had chosen, before buying, was just so sleek. I was in love with it for a very long time. But sleeker the model becomes, greater is the cost.

Last minute realization 4:

The cost-benefit analysis that was running all the time on my mind told me that I am paying a huge amount extra just for looks. I decided to compromise that too.

Apart from these, I was very particular about few things:

• Video recording feature

  
  




• In built memory and a memory slot where I can add more memory

  
  




• Brand name

  
  




• Auto features like, Auto flash and auto focus

  
  




• A reasonably big LCD screen where I can happily see the image, instead of having to transfer

  
  

to the PC to enjoy the full effect

With all my confusions coming to an end, I ended up buying a camera at the cost of 11, 000 rupees. Before my realizations, I would have spent 21000 – 22000 rupees, for not-so-much difference in cameras’ abilities. Hope you too are now aware what to compromise and what not to compromise.

Coming soon at Mouthshut …

A review on Sony cybershot DSC W5 by envyram

-Vinayak

Please do leave your comments on my judgement!

(Updated: 10th July 2006

https://mouthshut.com/review/Sony_Cyber-Shot_DSC-W5-104827-1.html)

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Lately I decided to get myself a digital camera and you know what I came up with.. A whole lot of options to choose from. So I thought why not share some of the info that I stumbled upon with my fellow mouthshut folks.. So here it is..

First of all you have to understand what kind of photographer are you. The species can be broadly classified into 3

1) the anytime casual photographer who wants to carry around the camera all the time or the one who doesnt want the camera to be a liability when going for a picnic. ie he just wants to take pictures. you just know what you want to shoot but not how it should look

2)the trying to be a serious photographer who has a fair enough idea about what all things should be in a frame, where all it should be and how should it look. he is ready to take pains to carry around a heavier camera weighing around 0.5 Kg and the additional accesories like lenses, adaptors, filters etc along with him when he's out on the prowl. but this fellow isn't sure whether he wil be able to get a fair enough income from the photographs that he takes.

how u can make money using a camera? I guess u all know so leave it

3)the established photographer who goes to the extend of ignoring a chance to dine with a sweet lady so that he can capture the moment he has been waiting for 2 years now.

Now the question is who are you?.. The first 2 categories are the ones who usually fall into a dilemma and I just fall into the 2nd one. So I thought I might be of some help if I share some info that I picked up in the last few weeks.

Please refer to https://steves-digicams.com/digi_dictionary.html to get through the usual jargons associated with digicams.

If you are looking for a compact size camera you can chose from a range of cameras costing 5000 to 20000 Rs. It all depends on several factors like Brand, Zoom, Memory, Modes Available for shooting, Size among many others. One thing you can keep in mind is that it's best to go for brands like Nikkon, Canon or Kodak plain because they are the frontrunners in manufacturing digicams. Other makers like Sony and Olympus can also be considered with fair amount of conviction.

Try to get yourself a camera with around 5 Mega Pixels and Optical zoom of 3x. Do not waste your time over digital zoom.. it's not worth. Find if the camera has features like portrait mode, beach/snow, landscape mode, backlight mode, burst mode, night mode, timer etc. There might be settings like exposure control and whitebalance which might be useful for guys who like a little bit of manipulation of the image. A camera with most of the features above specified might cost anything around 15k as per this day. Make your choice

I had been looking for a prosumer digicam which is intended for people in the 2nd category. I made a lot of research and it seems there is an ever increasing array of cameras to chose from.

One of the criteria that I used to cut down the numbers was - how long has the particular camera series here.. Older the series was lesser I wanted to posses one. just because it runs the risk of being discontinued by the manufacturers which might lead to nonavailability of accesories and worse to find any replacement in case anything goes wrong. So 'Later the better' . Wait - don't pick up a camera just because it was premiered yesterday..

I finally shortlisted some cameras costing around 20k - 30 k and they were SONY CYBERSHOT DSC H1, NIKON COOLPIX 5400, CANON POWERSHOT S2 IS, Panasonic DMC-FZ20, Kodak EasyShare P850 and Konica minolta DIMAGE. All were 5 - 6 MP cameras with powerful optical zooms, options ranging from idiot proof mode(where all the required settings will be done by the camera's inbuilt processor) to complete manual controls to shoot the image exactly the way you want. All these models offer add on oaccesories like lens adaptor, telephoto lens,wide angle lens, lens hood, filters and tripod to be bought as separate units. Usualy the package consists of camera, case, batteries, battery charger.

I had to drop Konica and panasonic because of non availability of dealers in my town.

( - (( Bad because Panasonic was one worth a try . I dropped Nikon since it was here for some time and I dont know whether it is still in the production line or discontinued.

Comparing the remaining three ie SONY CYBERSHOT DSC H1, CANON POWERSHOT S2 IS and Kodak EasyShare P850 I found that dsc h1 offered almost all the functionalities offered by the canon powershot and that too at a lesser price a. . One of the most unfortunate thing with sony dsc h1 is that it doesnt offer a hotshoe to fit an external flash to be used in poor lighting conditions.

Now the most interesting thing is the new kid in town 'Kodak EasyShare P850' - since she have all the featuures along with RAW and TIFF support which are two uncompressed file formats used to represent images. This feature is one usually seen only in proffesional cameras costing more than 50k Rs. The normal file format JPG is a compressed format and it contains data manipulated by camera software built in by the company. The uncompressed format is the exact reproduction of the image that falls on the sensors. So Photoshop users may enjoy more while working with TIFF and RAW formats. But I have heard that these RAW and Tiff images coming out of Kodak is not that as powerful as one u find in proffesional cameas.

Another advantage - kodak p850 sports a hotshoe for holding external flash and moreover you can use any memory card available on the market. But sony has made it such a way that you have to buy the propreitary ones which right now costs 300 Rs more.

Kodak easyshare P850 has been released only january 2006 and is yet to hit the shops in our city.. It is bound to be here this week.

Let me check it out .

Now that I saw these cameras let me tell you - Sony kills you by looks.. Maybe hmm maybe I'll soon have her in my pocket.. (;-)).

PS: I have read in a review on P850 that this was the only camera that got it's software hung and needed to be restarted to get going again, among all of the cameras specified above. Maybe kodak is still working on it....

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In the past 2 years, digital cameras have been increasing there presence in the Indian market. Also there prices have also been falling steadily. Today if you desire to buy a camera for personal use, your obvious choice should be a digital camera for 2 reasons:

1. No recurring costs of film rolls.

   
   




2. You can review your photographs at the time of shooting it and can take a re-shot if the snap has not come out proper.

   
   

On the flip side, digi cams are still costlier than analog cameras.

Any way if you have decided on going for a digi cam, here are few of the things that you should keep in mind b4 you make your choice.

The Megapixel: Today digi cams are available in 2MP to 7 MP. The Megapixel(MP) of the camera tells you what size of the photo that can be printed without any distortion of the image. 3 MP is good enough for a normal postcard size print. 7 MP is good enough for a poster size print. In general if your usage is generally of normal postcard prints, opt for a cam that gives bet 3 and 5 mp.

CMOS or CCD: These are the type of buffer memory on which the image is stored when it is shot. Cheaper cameras (1k -2k) cameras use CMOS. All good quality cameras use CCD. Choose a camera that uses CCD.

Optical vs Digital Zoom: Digi cams generally come with 2 to 12x optical and 10 to 20x digital zoom. DO NOT GET FOOLED by the digital zoom figure. The effect of the digital zoom can be achieved on a computer also. Put your money on the camera that offers better optical zoom. Some sales persons/adds state the zoom as multiple of optical and digital zoom. For ex a camera with 3x optical zoom and 4x digital zoom can give a effective zoom of 3*4 = 12x. Stress on knowing the optical zoom.

If you can afford it go for a 10x optical zoom. If you are divided between a 5MP, 3x optical zoom and a 4MP, 10x optical zoom camera, go for the latter. You will probably never take prints more than A4 size, but will definitely feel the missing zoom.

Video Recording: Lots of cameras support video recording. Though nowhere near a dedicated video camera, it is good enough to record a few seconds long video. The cost difference between a camera that supports video recording and the one that doesn’t, is negligible, so go for the one that supports video recording. This comes handy.

Memory: This is the place where the images are generally stored. Some cameras have built in memory also. But generally this is very less(~32Mb). In general a good quality image takes approx 1mb of space. Go for at least 256Mb memory. This will allow you to store at least 200 images. If you plan to buy a bigger memory card. say 1Gb or so...instead buy 2 512 Mb cards. Simple reason, if the memory card goes bad, you wont loose the whole 1Gb. If your digi cam supports video recording, it is advisable to go for at least 512Mb card. Digi cams generally support either MMC or SD or CF card. All are good. All cost abt the same. If you have a mobile phone that supports SD/MMC card, give a little higher weightage to camera that has that type of card. This will give u a multipurpose mem card.

LCD Display: Always buy a camera with LCD display. Remember one of the reasons you are buying a digi cam is so that you can review your shots at real time. Tough LCD display eats up battery, but this is worth a compromise.

Battery: This is one place where a compromise is generally made. Some cameras use 2 and some use 4 AA type batteries. Some cameras may use a different kind of battery. Prefer to buy a camera that uses AA type battery...for ease of availability.

Always buy rechargeable batteries. Buy a set of spare batteries. Buy the batteries that have highest mAmp (milli amp) value. Higher this value, longer will the batteries last.

Size: Depending upon the usage, choose a camera that suits your size requirements. Generally smaller the size higher the cost.

Brand: Go for a known brand. My personal preferences wud be: Sony, Cannon, Kodak, Nikon, and Olyumpus.

In summary, a 5 MP, 10x optical zoom, 1Gb mem card, 4 rechargeable batteries with charger, digi cam will set you back by at least 10-15k.

Go-ahead and treat your self....unleash the photographer within.

Keep one thing in mind...once you have your gizmo, clicking is not going to cost you any thing. so don’t hesitate.

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There's a plethora of Digital Camera's on the market today. Most popular ones being Sony, JVC,Olympus, etc. The most basic considerations when you want one can be put under these headings. Firstly, the use for the camera( I mean - Real Practical Use, there's no point in saving money and getting a camera that you don't use!!). Secondly, the features you need ( and the features the camera offers), lastly, money.

As everyone knows Digital Cameras have their rating in MP(Mega Pixel). A pixel is the basic unit of a digital photograph. Thousands of such tiny dots make up your picture when you take one. The costs between camera's vary on this factor. Typically, you should be getting good photographs from 3 MP onwards. A 4.5 or 5 MP camera is perfect for a good shot. You can also use that for your normal photo print (if that's all you intend to do with a camera). Note one thing though. Though the camera will say 6MP or 8 MP, there's a hidden factor called Average Pixel count for all camera's. It's the same logic as bikes. When you say a 100cc bike you don't get 100cc ,but 95 or 98 cc. it's an approximation. Because out of 8 Million pixels, some pixels will be bad, etc. This is normal. The other issue to consider is whether the capturing device is a CCD (Charged Couple Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) chip. Normally CCD's are used by expensive camera's as their quality is good. but CMOS camera's also are there in market and they are economical, but quality varies. To be clear, CMOS chip cameras are the ones the cell phones use, they are .5 MP. Also check on the special features each model will give. Another thing that's in the news is the RAW format. This format applies no compression to the pictures (unlike all formats where a lot of compression is applied).The advantage is that you see the picture as the camera took it. No details are lost. Most camera's of today will support the RAW format. Lastly, check you budget,as that's where it all hits hard. I think you should ge t a decent one in the range of 8500 onwards. I think a Sony is a good option. Especially the DSC series, for people who are not that photo-savvy. Olympus is also a good alternative.

I would prefer a manual camera, that allows you to change your shot in your own way.

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Buying a Digital Camera?

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A few days ago, I was bitten by the bug of changing from a 'reel' camera to a digital one. With a price range considerably higher than the normal cameras, I resorted to a little bit of research to equip myself with all the information I needed before reaching any decision.

I needed a camera for my personal use and a shoot-and-trigger camera was just right for me; not for me the trouble of adjusting the focus, with terms like aperture, shutter speed etc. thrown in.

For the benefit of all, here's a list of do's which one should keep in mind before buying a digigal camera :-

THE PURPOSE OF A DIGITAL CAMERA

If you intend to post images on Website or just to email the latest pictures of yourself to friends and family members, then you do not need a high resolution camera. A 1.3 megapixel digital camera is more than adequate.

If you need to print out your images, you will have to match the resolution of your digital camera according to the size of your intended prints.

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Resolution of the Digital Camera Suggested photo size for the best quality

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2.0 megapixel digital camera Up to 4R (the maximum size you can

print your photos)

3.0 megapixel digital camera Up to 8R

4.0 megapixel digital camera Up to 10R

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A 2-megapixel camera is fine for snapshots, though models with that resolution are becoming less common. If you want to produce 8-by-10-inch prints, you'll need at least a 3-megapixel camera. Four- or 5-megapixel cameras will yield even larger prints and allow you to blow up a part of an image with less likelihood that the print will be blurry.

BATTERIES

The cost of disposable batteries adds up over the long run. In my view, one should go for a digital camera which uses the readily available batteries in the market, rather than some exclusive batteries earmarked by the company. At the time of buying, purchase a set of rechargeable batterty set.

ADDITIONAL MEMORY

Digital Cameras come with a ''pre-loaded'' memory of 16 MB/32 MB, which can hold very few photos. You can store only 4-6 'fine' quality photos in 16 MB. One need to buy additional memory (Secure Digital Cards) which come in the slots of 128 MB, 256 MB, 512 MB and 1 GB. One should invest in SD Cards of higher capacity as it will come handy in the long run.

DAMPNER

This is to confess that I haven't yet bought myself a digital camera at the time of writing this article but I'm in the process of buying one. The above mentioned views/comments are my own after the so-called 'research'.

Sony DigiCams are not user-friendly. Kodak has a good series. But the ones that caught my fancy are of Canon. They are quite user friendly, not bulky and batteries which are readily available in the market can be used with them. In fact, the model I intend to buy is Canon Powershot A520.

In the end, I hope that my article can be of some use to the discerning user who is planning to buy a digital camera for the first time.

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The myth about digcams needs to be broken first ; it is the simplest digital device to handle, for amateurs and professionals alike. Forget the hard specs on Mega pixels, CCDs and SD/xD cards, the device you hold is the same as the ‘Hotshot’ you received on your teenage birthday. What has changed is the basic way the cameras process the picture – which has nothing to do with your buying and operating one. More often that not, I face prospective buyers asking - how much Mega pixel is best ? Should I go for a digital or optical zoom ? Is it okay to have a 128 MB compact flash ? etc etc and the list goes on. What I address here is how to get over your dilemma when you visit a digcam shop and make your correct choice :

Mega pixels : The fundamental difference in the technologies of a classical camera and the digcam is that, the classical disposable film has been replaced by the Charged Couple Device (CCD) sensor. As light enters the camera through the lenses the photosensitive cells ( of the film or, in this case, the CCD ) react to incoming light entering the device to generate the image being shot. The quality of the picture generated therein would depend on how vividly the film/CCD copies the real-life object. Mega pixel is the measure of the CCDs quality – meaning millions of small dots or pixels which define the picture resolution. You would not get anything less that 3 Mega pixel in the market today, which is good enough for any situation. So if you are a leisure photographer, whatever you get more than 3 MP is a bonus. Practically speaking, a lot depends on the build of the CCD between different makes, so brand plays a more important role than pure numbers here. Infact between my 3.2 MP and 4 MP cameras, the quality of the lower one is better.

Zoom : This is one feature you should spend the least time in selecting. Digcams have brought with them the concept of digital zoom which, to my opinion is absolutely useless. Classical optical zoom is what you need for shooting, more of it the better - depending on how much you are willing to pay. Digital zooming effect results in significant deterioration of the image quality, and better avoided. So next time the salesperson harps too much on his value-proposition on digital zoom, cut him short.

Memory : Look for the internal memory capacity of the camera and format in which the image is saved . JPEG is what you should look out for , any more format viz TIFF, XIF, raw, etc are more than necessary. The type of the memory card supported also plays a crucial role once you start using the camera as these are the spares you would need to buy. SD/MMC/Compact flash are most commonly available memory card types in the market and cheaper than the other varieties. You would do good to have a spare memory card with you for long trips where downloading and clearing the memory is not possible. A typical 1GB SD card can hold more than 1000 3 MP pictures and costs between 3500-4000. Keep this in mind as your added investment.

Movies : Just like taking snaps using a Handycam does not give the best results, do not expect wonderful results out of shooting movies with digcams having a movie capture feature. The camera jerk while shooting in motion has a clear effect on the video quality and best results would elude you unless you are standstill or using a tripod. However digcams do double up as a handy camcorder and would be a good idea to have a large memory card to support movie storage. The movie frame size and capture format is something you should be careful about. Cameras supporting MOV format ( *.mov file, Quicktime) packs in a large movie length, cannot be burnt into a VCD unless converted to compatible format. Cameras taking AVI format does not have this problem ; the compromise you make here is the shorter length of the captured movie.

What else : Nothing else really, but look for how many scene modes are available. This is very useful to the casual photographer who does not want to go the details of the aperture, shutter speeds and exposure. Auto, Portrait, Sports, Night, Close-up, Landscape are modes generally available in most of the reputed ones. For the more serious wizards who would love to experiment and control the picture composition all by themselves a full manual setting mode is also available.

Accessories : The initial investment for a digital camera is high because it serves the best purpose with the complete set of accessories. While your camera would generally be packaged with the software CD and full set of connecting cables, you would still need to buy an additional memory card – the bigger the better and a high quality chargeable battery set. Digcams are power hungry and you are sure to feel ditched if your ordinary chargeable batteries conks off at the crucial moment. Nothing less than a 2500 mAH Lithium battery set would support you through the shots and the fun of reviewing them over and over again in the LCD screen. It is worth investing in a premium product here.

How much really : A decently featured digcam along with 1 GB memory and a good set of chargeable batteries would make you poorer by 15 grands. However you have good deals available everywhere which can scale down your investment needs. You may also decide to postpone your accessory buying ; in which case you may settle for a sub 10K deal. One piece of advice though, online deals be better avoided in India as rates in the market can be highly negotiated. Reputed vendors like J J Mehta offers special rates on a number of models. It would also make sense to scout through the Christmas deals on BestBuy, Wal-Mart, Buy Dig and get one for yourself from the US.

Deficiency : Digcams suffer from a serious problem with the flash specially, in the compact range. The flash itself is not strong enough , the image gets darkened the moment you exceed the flashing distance. Moreover closer images with flash either gets roasted or unevenly illuminated when flash is used. Flash is therefore best avoided to the extent possible and in dimly lit situations, use the night mode or a slow shutter-big aperture combo only.

Which Brand : There are plenty of choices here, but I would suggest you to stick to the classical camera vendors. Kodak is a good option to buy as your first camera. Kodak retailing and support in India has also improved. Advanced buyers can consider Canon , though I have never used one. Besides, Fuji, Nikon, Sony all have models to suit your budget needs.

I would buy : Kodak DX7590-5MP, 10X optical zoom

Accessories : 1 GB SD card and Camelion batteries.

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Knowledge required can be acquired atleast to an extent that you can make a wise decision for investments on buying your gadgets. I am listing below the most useful features that should be taken care of before you decide on buying a particular digital camera.

1. Resolution: the game of Megapixels

A “pixel” is simply a tiny dot of colored light. The more dots of light a camera can capture when you click the button, the larger and more finely detailed a photograph can be displayed or printed without distortions.

To put it in familiar terms, a 3 megapixel camera will produce an 8 x 10 inch sized photograph with good clarity. Printed on any larger format and the print will be grainy at 3 MP resolution.

The greater the number of megapixels, the finer the resolution and the greater the files size used to store the captured image on the flash memory card and hard drive in your computer.

2. Lens - the eye of camera

As megapixels are important for resolution and size of an image, the quality of lens decides about the quality of the image. Lens alone is the costliest factor of the camera. The difference in the quality of picture in two same megapixels cameras is due to the lens only. Normally these lenses are not interchangeable.

3. Zoom – In and Out

There are two zooms which normally we are not aware of, these are – Optical Zoom and digital Zoom

a. Optical Zoom- Optical zoom lenses are expressed by a number and the letter “X”. It refers to the number of times closer the lens brings you to the scene. Most digital cameras start at 3 times or 3X optical zoom. It is the feature of the camera that allows you to capture a scene and show close up detail without physically having to stand close to it.

b. Digital Zoom- While using digital zoom, we normally reduce the quality of the image from the original resolution. This may be a problem if your camera is a low resolution camera say only 3MP a 3X digital zoom will reduce the image quality by three times to 1MP, which will not be good at print and only could be shared on web.

4. Flash Memory Sticks or Cards

One of the nicest features of digital cameras is that no film is required for taking snaps. Because a digicam captures light with a chip the image is stored in digital form as a data file, just like we store data in our computer.

These data cards also known as flash memory that are postage stamp sizes are detachable and reusable. XD Memory Cards and Memory Sticks are most common data cards.

The type of memory used in the camera will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer based on which format / strength memory cards they provide with the camera. All formats would not be compatible with all cameras. So be careful while finalizing about your camera, understand clearly the memory card format of that camera. You can buy higher memory cards as add-ons alongwith your camera or later on.

5. Battery – the power behind the pix

Earlier we used to buy enough number of films before starting for a long journey. This is replaced by batteries now a days. And if you are using rechargeable batteries don’t forget to take extra batteries and the plug adapter as per the country you are visiting.

6. Aesthetics, Look, Feel, Comfort Factors

Take care of these small but very important factors that not become the irritation points later.

a. Size of the camera

b. LCD required or not (LCD cameras consume batteries at a very fast rate but assist you to see what you are capturing) and the size of LCD

c.

7. Price: set your budget

Once you decide on features, visit different good brand stores and do a survey to get the price range. Then set your budget, fix on to a brand and buy it.

8. Where to Buy – Online or Local Dealer –

You have two options – either go to an internet store and buy it, else buy from a local dealer near to you house or office. I will prefer to buy it from a store near to my area of work or house. But I will ensure that I buy from an authorized dealer only.

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There is much more to buying a digital camera than the camera itself. I myself brought one and broke the LCD and I dropped it and then realized the beautiful world behind when things go wrong!!!

I have a canon and just realized that they have a very good support network across country for your camera issues. So first thing you should also think about before you buy is.. how is the support available in your locality ? Do they service cameras brought abroad ? How much is the service charges ? Is it third party repair shop or company service centre ?

Next another major part of digital camera is the memory. What type of memory card you want with your camera ? The cost and availability are all different be it a memory stick, SD memory card, MMC card what every be it, what is the memory card size that the camera ships with ? I know most of canon ship with 16MB SD card but there are offers of starters kit which have 246MB plus rechargeable batteries. Even with this, you need to know can a memory card manufactured by any other company works with your camera ? Should you have to buy from the same company which may be costlier for accessories.

Next is rechargeable batteries ? Every camera manufacturer has his own standard batteries... many have proprietary batteries which can be replaced only from the manufacturer others use standard AA rechargeable batteries.

With rechargeable batteries it is NiMH is considered the latest standard and 2500mAh NiMH are the in thing for digital cameras but they cost a lot in India and in US some 25 USD while in India varies between 1500-3000 rupees.

Last but not the least is Video feature. Many of today’s top rated digital cameras have very good video capability including 35mm VGA at 30fps, but with video comes your memory card size bottleneck. It’s not just the size of memory card but even the speed of memory card, the y come is various speed (10x/60x/80x.. like sandisk/sandisk ultra II).

Once you look beyond the camera and research other things, you will definitely get maximum bang for your bucks. Also consider steve’s digital camera, it is considered as a very good place for digital camera reviews and latest news on this, just make sure you stop by this web site before you buy one.

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PART 1

Word of Advice: Only for those readers who are looking ahead to buy a Digicam.

This article is going to be a big one. So for the convenience of the readers I am dividing it into parts. Part – I will be posted with this message and Part – II will follow in few days time.

Here is something which I always wondered if it can be true! Will the phone cameras finally spell the end of digital cam culture, as did the latter spelled the end of analog cameras? Will there be any thing which can help the good ol’ digi cam from stop evolving itself….!!!!????

Here’s your answer. Digi cam says “ We are here to stay you stupid little Phone cam. Infact, you are helping us grow.” Wonder how? Read on…..

There is originally a difference between a Digi cam and a Phone cam. Maahhnnn!!!, digi cam is the big daddy of phone cams…. How will the kid come without a dad (ahem! Mom rather?)

One of the leading Image surveys found that people are infact using the phone cameras as an easiest gateway to purchase a digital camera at a later date. Most of the phone cameras purchased all around the world were not status symbols for the first place, but really a more humble beginning by people to check if they can really work with one and find a taste for it. Y Indeed the parameters included were the image capacity, image quality, usability, image capture, image printing, deleting and archiving functions. The results even baffled the mobile manufacturers.

Multiple results indicated that the most of the users who used digital cameras used phone cams as a milestone to check on various function mentioned above. Another similar survey have had a result that Digicam’ s are indeed used by customers more, who have had a phone cam earlier or still are using it. Majority said the main activity why they used a phone cam was to store images and archive them for future use in emails, profiles or sharing. Over 65% phone cam users plan to purchase a Digi cam in next 12 months. What’s more!! Digicam users can breathe peacefully, because non of the phone cam producers are looking for more upgrades. Finally all are going towards integrating your Ipod into the cell.

More over the new technological change is shifting towards streaming section a.k.a Streaming TV, Streaming Audio, Streaming Video call and Streaming what not. Dual cam cells are enabling users to do what they have never thought of… Giving the free access to shoot pics and use them for their references. I am planning to give you a second part (Part-2) of this review by basically comparing 3 brands, 2 of which will be cell phones and one will be a Digicam Pioneer company. Wait or that too. Till then I hope this works for you in a little way…

Wait for my next hit on this topic…

Sri

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When you buy a digital camera check for three things

1)How manyMegaPixels does the camera have?

2)If Optical Zoom present? If yes then how many Xs?

3)How many cells does it need and what kind of cells?

Normally like all digital equipment, the camera needs to convert an analog signal (light) into a series of 1's and 0's. The Megapixel parameter is a measure of how faithful the resulting series of 1's adn 0's is to the original picture. For normal purposes 2-3 Megapixels are enough. It is nice to go beyond that but it is not necessary. Thing to be kept in mind is that higher the Megapixel rating, greater will be the picture size, resulting in fewer number of pictures being stored in the memory card. Even among professionals it is a common practice to save pictures at 2 or 3 MP (Megapixels) even if the camera allows 6 MP to be recorded. For comparison's sake, most webcams have a 330Kpixels resolution and the normal (not high end) phones have 1 or 1.3 MP resolution.

The higher the MP, greater is the cost of the camera. As a rule of thumb, you can consider 1 MP to be equivalent to Rs. 3,000. So approx. if all other things remain equal a 4 MP camera will cost Rs. 12, 000 and a 3 MP should cost Rs. 9,000. Remember, this is indicative....it is possible that you might find a 3 MP one costs Rs. 15,000 and a somewhere else a 5 MP one may cost Rs. 10,000.

Optical Zoom is a characteristic of the lens system of the camera. It is measured in Xs...like 3X or 5X. Roughly it is the amount by which the lens brings the subject closer to the camera. So a 3X zoom means that the subject will appear thrice closer when the maximum zoom is selected in the camera. Some camera's proudly display that they have digital zoom. For all practical purposes, it is useless. It is simply the magnification of the normal picture, not a zoom in the true sense. The price of a camera goes up if Optical Zoom is present. The greater the Optical Zoom, the greater the price of the camera.

For non-professional use an optical Zoom of 3 X is perfect. If you go for greater zoom, no doubt it is good, but when you are shooting at the limits of the zoom, then at that time, there is visible shaking of the subject, so it becomes necessary to use a tripod then.

Not all digital cameras accept normal AA cells. There are a few ones that only take in proprietary Li cells like mobile phones. this results in problems as if you need urgently replacements, then you cna't do anything..other then wait for the cells to recharge. In case of AA cells, you can straightaway purchase Duracells and continue.

One thing to be kept in mind is that the camera's dont' take in the Rs. 5 or Rs. 7 Nippo/Novino etc cells. As they are high drain devices (full power current load is greater than 1 Amp) they take in only high capacity cells like Duracell. You should look for a camera that requires two numbers of AA cells.

Hope this is helpful to you.

EG(1st Nov, 2005)

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Here are some tips, There are digital camera's out there with lot of electronic jargons...Here are tips to keep the matter simple for people who just wish to have a good digital camera...go to a shop ask for a camera which has a lot of optical zoom and some digital zoom...then ask for a camera which has over 3 Mega Pixels of resolution ''non interpolated''...if the sales man is good he will not ask a single question and lay down many...many camera's for you and you can pick one as per you budjet...for added tips that you can look for while buying one...a digital camera with more than 3 Mega pixels gives you a clear and distinct photograph when printed ''of course these are better''....optical zoom is where the lens itself pops out and pulls/zooms the picture nearer even before clicking on the shutter and taking the picture...this makes for a better, clearer and sharper picture. while as the digital zoom does not give you that high a resolution and is not so good. Let me tell you about interpolation,,,, in simple terms it means that somehow the camera overclocks itself for more resolution and gets you that resolution mentioned....which is a no no since the camera life is put at the users fate when using the maximum resolution....we want a long life from a camera which is not a consumer elec good which we would not want to spend time on to get one everyday ''not to mention the money spent of course''. then there are the other features for example the in built memory....the more the merrier!!!!!! also next comes the connectivity. Some camera's have direct connectivity to your computer via a USB port and sometimes a TV too ( ofcourse the TV should be a flicker free and then you can see good pictures). these are options for the camera...also make sure that when you purchase a camera you get maximum goodies...a leather pouch to keep the camera in it is a standard and a must give away from the dealer. Take care and happy clicking.......anytime you have questions you can give me a holler...I live next door....LOL..take care..... Also to add to the above information of which I have stumbled lately...are such..the lens also counts (CMOS lens) the best one yet is a Carl Zeuss (or something/someone) one...also when you look into a camera lens around the lens, somewhere around the ring of the optics there are numbers...for example 4-43 or 3-33...the lesser these numbers the wider the image the camera lens can capture, if you still donot understand then take an example of a normal TV and then look at the same image in a wide screen TV...that would help...keep on reading through this section which will be updated very often....I LUV CAMERAZZZ

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Choosing a digital camera

BUDGET

Before choosing a Digital Camera decide your budget as cameras are revising there price downwards so it is not a problem if you are keeping your budget as low as Rs. 4,000/-

USE

Now decide

1. What are you going to use it for?

a. Be a NatGeo photographer (wrong choice let the film cameras' do some work);

b. Show Off (You too have it); Family friends Birthday Parties, marriages (not professional work), tours, trips, etc.

if your choice is any one in ''b'' then a 2 mp to 3 mp camera will suffice (mp = Mega Pixel)

1 mp is too blurred & 4+ mp (Jitni cheeni utna meetha ;) )

1. Do you need it?

Yes you really do as one roll of film costs more than Rs.350 (Roll, Developing, and Printing)

SEARCH

Ok now you have two reasons & a budget (80% of work done) to buy a digital camera now comes the search.

Google baba ki jai!

Yahoo bhaiya jinda bad!

ebay (you get support in India)

Sify mall

India times shopping

Ask friends

What do I search for in the camera.

1. first and foremost an optical zoom (you can zoom digitally when you are downloading the photo to your pc) digital zoom is just an eyewash and you will never use it if u have an optical zoom the bigger the optical zoom the better.

   
   




2. then the mega pixel you have decided.

   
   




3. Battery AA type battery (pencil cell) is the best (Eveready 2100 rechargeable) (if no charging point available ''Duracell'')

   
   




4. support for external memory (the bigger the better I have 512 MB MMC) (MMC= Multi Media Card the ones used in mobiles)

   
   




5. extras, freebies, software’s, etc.

   
   




6. Digital Movie support (Mine supports 2 hrs of digital video with audio with MMC & 2 minutes on my 16 MB internal mem).

   
   




7. Flash (which can be switched off and on).

   
   




8. Red eye reduction.

   
   




9. Photography in different lighting conditions.

   
   




10. LCD Size you are comfortable with.

    
    




11. Optical view finder (to conserve battery by switching off the LCD)

    
    

there are many more please use your discretion

Buy IT

You found your dream camera now how to buy it.

Find a dealer or go to the websites mentioned above and pay using there secured channel do not deposit the cheque directly in the sellers' account.

Payment

Pay for it using your credit card (if you have one) credit card people can get it insured for free for you if you request them.

Octroi

If you want to get it saved get it delivered to your friends’ house outside city limits. (I paid rs. 800/-)

well now you have you camera in your hand happy shooting...

please see my first review as to how to maintain your camera at https://mouthshut.com/review/Maintaining_a_Digital_Camera-81185-1.html

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Hi frenz,

Recently I bought the Olympus FE5500 DigiCam & I think its the coolest one on earth.

This is the latest (launched I think in April-2005) by Olympus.

First i'll just its features & then go on to say what are the significant points worth noting.

Olympus FE-5500 Features :-

Resolution 5.1 Megapixel

Focal Length (Eqv 35mm). 3 x Optical, 4 x Digital (35-105mm)

LCD 2.0'', 115,000 pixels

Power Lithium Ion Battery (Li40B)

Dimensions 91mm x 60.5mm x 24.3mm

Memory Card xD Picture Card (xD)

The following things also come packed within a single box :-

1 x Li-40B Lithium Ion Battery + Li40C charger, USB cable, AV cable, 16mb Internal Memory, Olympus software CD (USB Driver/ Utilities), Pouch, English Manuals.

The number of modes available for taking pictures are :-

1>Program Auto(for general situations)

2>Potrait

3>Indoor

4>Landscape

3>Landscape + Potrait

4>Sport

5>Night + Potrait

6>Night Scene

7>Self Potrait(timer enabled)

6>Movie Mode(3gp format with sound)

You can save your clips in 4 modes No of pics stored in internal memory

SQ1(640*480) 78

SQ2(1600*1200) 21

HQ(2560*1920) 11

HQ(2560*1920) 03

Notable features :-

1>The digital zoom facility can be obtained at the touch of a button & you can zoom in or out by using an up-down button.

2>There is a special ISO mode for shooting in low light conditions when you don't want to use the flash. Also you have the METERING mode where the lighiting conditions of the subject in focus varies with its background.

3> There is another mode in which automatic red eye correction can be enabled.

4>You can combine two separately taken pictures and then combine & store them as a single picture.

5>The length of the movie recorded will depend upon the memory stick loaded. It is not as good as a handycam, but the 3gp movie clips have excellent sound and fairly well pixel quality.

5>Dimension wise this cam is so slim that it'll fit inside ur T-shirt pocket without bulging out.

6>We get the above attribute due to the fact that uses a rechargeable Li-ion battery. This battery & its charges comes with the Cam package(no xtra cost).

4>The movie clips can be played in ur TV using the AV cable supplied@no xtra cost.

5>U have an USB cable for transferring the photos & clips to a PC. The s/w supplies is easy 2 use & powerful(If ur PC has XP OS then there's no need 2 install the Olympus s/w).

6>International warranty.

This cam cost me S$459 (INR-11,800/- bucks) & I had bought it from Singapore. The best part is that the dealer gave me a 256MB memory card(Olympus XD picture card)

at no xtra cost. So it was a damn good deal within my budget.

Well frenz, that's it. There's lot more to say....but I think these are the most imp. facts. Hope it'll be useful to all.

If u r going to get a digicam I'll advise you all to go for Olympus, Nikon, Cannon or Kodak.

Cheers

Debayan

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• I Have been looking to buy a digital camera for the past 2-3 months. My requirements are pretty high and with the options available in the current market, needless to say, I was completely lost. I wanted to know if I would get my money’s worth and got in touch with lots of people and came across different websites for the same. There were 2 websites which I found extremely useful. **https://pcreview.co.uk &

https://steves-digicams.com **. This review might be more appropriate to appear in Websites category, but Thought maybe I am not doing something terribly out of place by reviewing so here.

preview.co.uk

I found this site extremely useful. I could not find too many reviews of digital cameras, but discussion threads where very informative. I was able to get a lot of significant information with respect to Megapixels, Optical and Digital zooms, Photographic terms and meaning and quite a few plus points and negative points of different digital cameras.

Digital Cameras is just a small part of the site. There are lots of exciting info for computer and electronic gizmo lovers.

Steves-digicams.com

This is a dedicated Digital Camera review and information site. I will give a brief outline of this exhaustive site in this review.

Homepage and Web site design

The homepage is pretty uncomplicated. There is a main menu which straightaway takes you into any of the following

Camera Reviews , Printer Reviews , Accessory Reviews , Dictionary , Other Digicam Sites , Manufacturer’s web sites , Sample Pictures taken from Digital Cameras , Best Cameras, Camcorders etc

I have ventured only into Camera Reviews and Best Cameras Sections and will get into the details of the same

Camera Reviews

This is categorized into Categories based on resolution and Type. You can select Based on what kind of  camera you are looking for. It ranges from 1MP to 8MP and SLR, Weatherproof / Underwater Type.

Once you get into say 5-8 MP Category, the page lists out a complete list of cameras sorted alphabetically in the 5-8MP Range with a basic comparison.

Now comes the best part. Select a camera and click it to enter its review page. This review page is extremely exhaustive.

1. The first page gives you full technical specifications. There are also 6-9 Photographs of the selected model which displays the camera from all 6 views. There is one photograph of the camera compared in size with a standard CD or a floppy disk.

   
   




2. The next 1 or 2 pages is dedicated to features and controls where each and every feature is analysed threadbare.

   
   




3. The next couple of pages or so is dedicated to Record Mode Menu and playback screen menus which is also ripped apart. The explanation and review with screen capture is amazing

   
   




4. The next set of 2 or 3 pages details the software bundled with the camera which is also extremely informative.

   
   




5. The next page gives you sample photographs taken with the camera. Some of them are same photographs with different setting to let us view the subtle and the not so subtle changes.

   
   




6. The last page is Steve’s Conclusion. This gives a complete objective view of all the + and – Points of the camera and scope for improvement

   
   

Best Camera Section

I have not ventured too much into this, but this section list best cameras available in each of the brands depending upon the category. * Professional Digital SLR , Enthusiast Digital SLR , Amateur Digital SLR , 8MP Prosumer , 5-7 MP Enthusiast , 10-12X Optical super zoom and lots more….

I recommend , this is one of the best place to learn and buy a digital camera after exhaustive analysis. I would give a 5/5 for this site.

I have described very briefly only about 5-10% of the site. Check it out.

I am considering getting a Nikon Coolpix 8700 after reading all this and some info fro pcreview.co.uk.

Pls let me know of your comments and my choice.

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I have come across many reviews here at MS on digital cameras where the member invariably has very high praise on the capability of the Digital Zoom range the camera has. Digital Zoom is certainly a misunderstood feature on Digital Cameras and as a matter of fact also on a Video Camera.

This is not a normal review that I wrote but after seeing a few reviews, I thought why not clarify it in a short and simple way for the benefit of all those who are considering purchase of a digital camera.

Many digital cameras have zoom lens capability or digital zoom capability, and some have both. So, what is the difference between optical zoom and digital zoom?

Optical zoom - zooming in using a longer lens setting - provides the best image quality, because the picture is being enlarged optically, by the lens. Digital zooming is actually an enlargement of the center part of the image (similar to cropping), which means that less pixels are used to record the scene, and therefore the image will be of lower quality.

Digital zoom is a marketing trick that is used by camera manufacturers to make it look as if you get something extra. All digital zoom does is to crop your picture, and then resizing it to fit the frame, without adding any extra detail. So basically it just inserts the pixels it thinks would be best for the ones missing. You can do EXACTLY the same to any extent (6x, 10x, 100x) with ANY digital camera by downloading your picture from camera to a computer and cropping/resizing it with your favorite picture editor (Photoshop, PaintShop, and even Microsoft paint). You don't want digital zoom for taking photos, you want optical.

Example:

Optical zoom (3x): Start zoom range at wide angle gives you a 3mp image for say a (4x5) picture end the zoom range at telephoto end and you have a 3mp image for the same (4x5) but a telephoto picture instead of wide angle.

Digital zoom (3x): starting at wide end of zoom range gives 3mp picture (4x5) at telephoto end gives telephoto picture but only 1mp (4x5).

Optical zoom is a mechanical adjustment of the camera's lens. Optical zoom is true zoom in that the telephoto image and the wide-angle image have the same number of pixels in an image the same size.

Conclusion

Turn off that digital zoom permanently, (hopefully your camera can do that) and use your PC to crop out/resize. In some cameras digital zoom is engaged once optical zoom reaches its mechanical limits. The point I am making here is - avoid using the digital zoom. With the right software (which you obviously have) you'll be much better off.

Digital zoom may be a little convenience, so that you don't have to resize on your computer...Optical zoom is really the way to go.

I hope this explanation will help you make a more informed decision when next you are in the market to buy the new toy for yourself!

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