Camera Shopping Part 2

How about shopping online for a camera? Places like Amazon are chocked full of user reviews. Beware of some of the reviews at times though. Sometimes a reviewer will punish a product's rating out of anger because there was a problem with shipping or something that really had nothing to do with the actual product itself.

They can also go the other way too. 5 star reviews based on the simple fact the user wants to feel the product they bought is superior simply because THEY bought it.

Try to find a balance when it comes to reviews. Some people will dedicate a fair amount of time to giving it a good fair review.

So what model should you get?

Well the answer would vary with each person and their needs and wants.

Are you upgrading?

If so have you taken the time to learn existing features on your old camera? You may want to consider sticking with the same brand as the menu/functions would likely be similar and easier to adapt to on a new one.

Point and shoot

or DSLR?

A point and shoot is what most people have. It refers to the simplicity of simply turning it on and clicking the shutter release button when ready to snap your shot.

A DSLR(Digital Single Lens Reflex)

These are the cameras with interchangable lenses and typically cost way more and have advanced features.

A few things to consider:

What would you like to do with your camera?

Do you just want something small and compact you can carry in a pocket or purse? You may want to consider a Point and shoot.

Are you looking to take it a bit more seriously? High quality indoor photos, adjustable exposure, a multitude of lense options, something you can grow into? A DSLR may be for you.

Price:

A decent point and shoot will start out around the $100 price point, closer to $200 if you want higher resolution video and more features.

DSLR's start around $500 with a kit lens(a cheaper lens included with your package)

To take full advantage of your new DSLR you may also want to budget in money for additional lenses. a nice cheaper 50mm(like a 35mm on older film cameras) runs around $100

A nice wide angle lens(landscapes, etc.) $500

You could easily stick over $1000 getting into a nice starter set-up.

So for most, the point and shoot fits most peoples price range and needs.

Where else can I go?

How about a local camera store? I think local camera shops are wonderful. I paid my first visit to one last year. I found the staff to be very knowledgeable about their products.. And passionate. The staff I encountered were also photographers on the side and use the equipment in the field so their advice is based on actual experience rather then a sales pitch. Yes they will likely cost a bit more(they do have more overhead then internet stores) But like the old saying goes "You get what you pay for" in the case of an actual camera store you are getting a well trained staff that actually seem to care about your needs. A lot of them offer beginner classes too. Even if you think "Oh I just want the camera to take pictures of my butt for Facebook." You may as well learn to take good shots of your butt for Facebook. $25 now will likely benefit the photos you take for the rest of your life. If you want pictures to preserve memories you may as well ensure they will be the best pictures you can take.

HDR

    In my previous post I mentioned HDR. To save future wondering about it when I post other pictures or mention it again. Here is a brief explanation written in a way that a drunken chimp would understand... So I don't bore you.
    Wikipedia describes it as:
In image processing, computer graphics, and photography, high-dynamic-range imaging (HDRI or just HDR) is a set of techniques that allow a greater dynamic range of luminance between the lightest and darkest areas of an image than current standard digital imaging techniques or photographic methods. This wide dynamic range allows HDR images to more accurately represent the range of intensity levels found in real scenes, ranging from direct sunlight to faint starlight.^[1]
The two main sources of HDR imagery are computer renderings and merging of multiple photographs, the latter of which in turn are individually referred to as low-dynamic-range (LDR)^[2] or standard-dynamic-range (SDR)^[3] photographs.
Tone-mapping techniques, which reduce overall contrast to facilitate display of HDR images on devices with lower dynamic range, can be applied to produce images with preserved or exaggerated local contrast for artistic effect.

What does all of that mean?  In short, images presented to you in HDR pretty much give you robot eyes...Yay!

Well.... No Geordi, try again.

Getting warmer....

Okay, so maybe it is literally nothing like the above pictures. What can I say? I'd use almost any excuse to bring Star Trek into this.

Nice try Morbidly Obese Cat... The only person you are fooling is yourself.. And you aren't even a person. You are just an obese cat!

Here is what the initial 3 shots I took looked like straight out of the camera:

Then I process those 3 in Photomatix Pro (and adjust to my preferences)
Then I end up with this:

From this point there are 83,654 more options available as to what you can do with Photoshop and plug-ins... That was just a rough estimate.