Your Ideal Digital Camera - Strategies to Make the Best Purchase

If you propose to acquire a camera, whether it’s a digital single lens reflex (DSLR) or a point-and-shoot, evaluate your desires before your options.

Do you want a camera that basically allows you to turn it on, press a button and present you with an image for a social networking site, family scrapbook, etc.?

Are you seeking to record your youngster’s or acquaintance’s football or hockey games?

Have you ever heard of a “megapixel” or could explain it to someone else?

It’s the longstanding photography argument: Did the camera take the awesome photo or was it because the photographer knew what he was doing?

A recreational user or hobbyist will depend on the camera more since he doesn’t have as much knowledge or experience as a pro, who conveys his aptitude through his equipment.

However, having a superior camera sure goes a long way.

In more than 20 years in photojournalism, there were many instances when I yearned for the band to stop lagging behind. Spontaneous moments were the ultimate test; like covering sports. I needed quick focusing and instantaneous capture as soon as I tripped the shutter.

And it took a while to build to that position of owning credible machinery. Just because the camera says it has “auto” focusing doesn’t translate into that immediately.

Basically, if you want “the shot”, you have to open “the wallet.” It also wouldn’t hurt if you do your research. You can’t just blindly barge into a camera shop and pull out the plastic cash.

I’ve been a Canon guy all along…well, except for my first purchase, the Pentax K1000, which was inexpensive and simplistic yet widely popular among newbies. I wore out a few Canon film cameras and followed their models as they entered the digital era.

It’s interesting watching the evolution of the digital SLR’s in the span of a decade. High prices and low megapixels in the beginning quickly transformed into low prices and high megapixels.

In 2000, I threw down $5,000 for the company’s first “pro-sumer” SLR camera, the D30, with its three megapixels and three frames per second. At that time, the pros were shooting with products well into the five-digit range.

The pro-sumer idea (high quality, yet lower price tags) worked and we still see it today as it offers a good middle-ground route for photographers. The daily newspapers buy the top pro models, but many weeklies are opting for the pro-sumers.

Serious photographers will talk of “glass.” Early on, it soon became apparent I needed glass/lens that went as bright as f2.8, especially if I were to shoot indoor sports in poorly lit gymnasiums and rinks. A 200mm lens was the workhorse for these venues while a 400mm Canon at f5.6 was good enough (without draining the bank account) for field events. A 400 at f5.6 could be had for less than $2,000, but a 400 at 2.8? …. Well, gulp, faint.

With the D30, the autofocus still wasn’t instantaneous. Often, I had to shoot manually and hoped I was quick enough. Luckily, I was raised on manual film cameras so I used to the ol’ quick draw technique.

About three years later, I upgraded to a Canon 10D SLR … $2,500 and 6 mp. This was half the cost of the D30 and twice as many megapixels.

My quest for faster glass continued and I settled on a lens that is commonplace at the dailies - the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L USM. It was a fine investment at around $1,700.

As bodies and technology progressed, the 10D went the way of the 20D up to the 50D. Early in 2009, I bought the latter, which was rated at 15 mp and six shots per second. The cost this time was only about $1,200.

Time flies when you’re evolving!

Jamie Roach is a professional photographer and graphic designer in Sussex, New Brunswick, Canada, with more than 20 years experience in the business. He is the author of http://www.hdr-photo.org — a Website born out of his passion. It gives you an inside look at High Dynamic Range imaging with valuable tips and tutorials.

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