How to Choose the Right Digital Camera

Although very easy to use, digital cameras are packed with technological innovation. You’re not supposed to understand how they work – they’re there to make taking pictures easier and to give better, sharper results. They can detect faces and sort out the focus all on their own, compensate for any shaking and adjust colors according to light conditions.

But it’s never an easy task to choose a digital camera. There are countless models with a range of megapixels and a range of features. Get help isolating which digital camera is right for you (or your gift recipient) with the following.

The quality of a digital camera is mainly defined by four quantities: resolution, lens aperture, lens zoom range, lens quality, and software. CCD sensitivity also varies somewhat.

1. Resolution

Nearly all digital cameras use CCD's as the sensing element. This is what takes the place of film. The resolution is the number of pixels in the captured image. Computer images are divided into little dots called pixels. The more pixels, the more detailed the image can be.

2. Lens aperture

The aperture of a lens is its maximum opening. The bigger the aperture, the more light is gathered, and the less light you need to take a good photo. This is the most overlooked lens specification, but it very important, especially if you like to take photos indoors without flash or from a reasonable distance.

3. Lens zoom range

A zoom lens has a variable focal length. The focal length determines the magnification of the lens. A short focal length is a wide-angle lens, great for taking in large vistas. A long focal length is a telephoto lens, allowing you to get a tight photo of a distant object or person. A zoom lens lets you combine both of these and everything in between into a single adjustable lens.

4. Lens qualityLenses with the same focal length and aperture can differ substantially in quality. A poor lens is not as sharp, and it may exhibit chromatic aberration, which means that all colors are not brought to the same focus. This usually shows up as colored fringes at high contrast edges.

5. In-camera Software

Here I am not talking about photo software that comes with your computer, but rather the software built into the camera. Taking a digital photo means a fair amount of computation. When you snap a digital photo, the camera first grabs a "pre-photo" to determine the brightness and color balance of the scene. It then shoots the real picture, based on the earlier information

6. Media type

Most digital cameras use Compact Flash or Secure Digital. The difference is not worth worrying about unless you already have a good supply of one type. Many Sony cameras use their own proprietary "memory sticks". I prefer to avoid proprietary solutions, as it restricts your future choices considerably. The trend is toward Secure Digital.

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