digital cameras

[winterbadger]

Anyone have experience in researching and buying digital cameras? What resources did you find most helpful? Dr. B wants to get a new camera to take to Scotland with us, and any advice woudl be greatly appreciated.

Comments

[curiousangel.livejournal.com]

I found this article helpful when I was looking recently. You will have to do some thinking beforehand about what you're wanting to do with the camera, what your photographic skill level is, what your budget can handle, how tolerant you are of lugging around assorted gadgets, and what sort of nifty features you want to have. CNet did a nice "picking a digital camera" piece, too, and I always found it helpful to read other people's opinions about a camera or a printer before I actually bought it. CNet has opinions, as does Epinions.

There are lots of digital photography sites that provide extensive reviews of equipment (I liked Steve's Digicams and Digital Photography Review), but there's no substitute for going down to BestBuy or a camera store and actually trying out any model you're considering buying. You want something that will feel right in your hands, and you want to make sure that the controls are something you can get your mind around. That's not to say that I'd buy the actual camera there -- you'll be amazed at how much you can save online if you buy from a reputable source. Be wary of folks who try to lowball you at first and then bait-and-switch you into buying something you don't want or don't need, though.

Be prepared to spend a fair chunk of change on accessories, like high-quality rechargeable batteries, high-capacity media, carrying cases, cables and readers, and so forth. If you're planning to print out the pictures, you may want to invest in a good photo-printer, but you can also find good services online that will handle making prints for you at reasonable prices -- Snapfish does a good job, as do many others, and you don't have to screw with buying printer cartridges if you use them.

You may also want to look into some affordable software for processing the images, unless you've already got Photoshop or something like it. I've heard good things about The GIMP, and you can't beat the price.

We bought the Kodak DX7440, and have been very happy with it. We liked the 4x zoom, the low price, the large LCD, and the capability to record 640x480 VGA video with the only time limit being what our SD card would hold -- some other cameras restrict you to 30 seconds. Then again, we were mostly wanting something to send pictures and video clips of a new baby to Grandma and Grandpa, and your needs may differ. ;)

[winterbadger]

Cool! Thanks for all the input!