Harmann Camera has been servicing Northeastern Wisconsin for more than 20 years. With the great knowledge base we thought it would be great to extent this to our web customers by posting blogs regarding customer inquiries that we receive at our store on a day to day basis. We thought sharing this information might answer some of your questions and provide you with our knowledge that will make you a better photographer with the right equipment and accessories.
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Harmann Camera Store is located in Green Bay, WI and is an authorized dealer in Nikon, Canon, and Panasonic digital cameras and accessories. We also have a large inventory of camera bags featuring LowePro, Domke, National Geographic, and M-Rock. We have Bogen tripods, darkroom supplies, and several accessories for every photographer. We also have our Creative Photo Lounge on site to assist customers in printing their own photos from just about any digital media.
A CLEAR FOCUS
Making the Switch to Digital Cameras
By Lori Kaye Lodes
Reprinted with permission from YOU Magazine, March, 2005
Saying “cheese” is increasingly going the way of the Jetsons. Whether they’re taking pictures of the kids, items to sell on eBay or their family vacations, people are increasingly going digital to capture their Kodak moments.
In 2004, digital cameras were the top-selling consumer electronic devices worldwide, according to InfoTrends/CAP Ventures, a leading worldwide market research and strategic consulting firm. And as sales of digital cameras increase, prices are dropping, making digital cameras accessible to more and more people.
Yet for all their appeal, choosing – and using – digital cameras can be a bit intimidating. But they don’t have to be.
“Digital cameras are more user-friendly than ever – people shouldn’t be afraid of the technology today,” says Drake Senn, store manager at Harmann Camera Store on West Mason Street in Green Bay. “There are so many advantages to using digital cameras, including becoming more efficient in your picture-taking because you only save and print the pictures you choose.”
The appeal of digital cameras has grown so much that some camera manufacturers, such as Nikon, are discontinuing small point-and-shoot cameras. “Digital is the wave of the future [for picture-taking],” says Senn. “New digital cameras and camera features are being introduced all the time.”
But with so many options, where should you begin? Senn recommends determining how you’d use a digital camera. “A lot of people choose a camera because of its features without looking at how suitable it is for their lifestyle,” says Senn. “We spend a good deal of our time determining how our customers will use the camera and then matching them with the right one.”
Zooming in on the basics
Digital cameras offer a mind-boggling array of features. Here are some of the most important ones to research when shopping for a digital camera, as well as other factors to consider.
• Camera company quality. Senn recommends narrowing digital camera selection to those produced by bigger, more established companies such as Nikon and Canon. These companies have a history with digital cameras as well as helpful Web sites, including live manuals sections.
• Megapixels/resolution. Determine how many megapixels you need. To take pictures of household items to sell in online auctions, a two-megapixel camera should suffice. However, if you’ll be making larger prints from the digital images, you’ll need at least a four-megapixel camera, says Senn.
Generally, the more megapixels a camera has, the more expensive it will be. Its files will also be larger and will take up more space on a computer’s hard drive and on memory cards, so choose a camera that meets their needs – and nothing more. For the average consumer, a four-megapixel camera is usually sufficient, Senn says. Even Harmann Studios’ professional portrait studio uses a six-megapixel digital camera for almost half of its work. “Higher megapixels are favorable, but it’s important to realize that it isn’t the only determiner of a camera’s quality,” says Senn.
• The camera lens. Without the right camera lens, it can be difficult to get the best pictures. Senn recommends choosing a camera with a glass lens and selecting one with (ED) glass extra-low dispersion, which indicates a higher-quality glass lens.
• Your budget. While budget is always a consideration, a camera’s price should not be the main determining factor in choosing a camera, cautions Senn. Instead, carefully consider what you’ll be photographing (Family pictures? Landscapes? Action shots?) and your experience level. For example, if you’re a beginner, it makes sense to choose a digital camera that offers automated flash and zoom, for example. The good news is that while digital cameras can cost anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, they are more affordable than ever. You can plan to spend at least $300 to $400 for a camera with popular features such as higher megapixels and quality optical zoom.
• Optical zoom. When it comes to getting up close and personal, what’s important is a digital camera’s optical zoom – not digital zoom. The optical lens (the part of the glass lens that increases image quality) should be the focus. If very crisp detail is important, buyers should consider a high optical zoom number. In contrast, digital zoom is something you can adjust outside the camera.
“Optical zoom is always going to give you the best image quality,” says Senn. “Digital zoom magnifies pixel, so it reduces picture quality. And on a two-, three- or four-megapixel camera, that’s a big issue.”
• Memory and storage formats. All cameras provide expandable memory; in most cases, if you fill up a memory card, you can pop in another and keep shooting. In the early days of digital photography, cameras used SmartMedia or CompactFlash cards. Today, you’ll see everything from CDs to Secure Digital – the small cards used in palm devices. It’s likely that the card included in your camera won’t give you all the storage capacity you’ll need. “You’ll want to buy an additional/larger memory card for those times you’re on vacation or are unable to download pictures frequently,” Senn says.
• Batteries. Digital cameras may use standard alkaline, nickel metal hydride (noted with NiMH) or lithium ion batteries. Some digital cameras come with their own rechargeable batteries, including some that provide long-lasting lithium ion batteries. These are favorable because digital cameras tend to “eat” batteries quickly. “Lithium ion batteries give the best performance. They last longer, are more durable and are rechargeable,” says Senn.
• Image-editing software. The camera itself isn’t all you should look at – it’s also crucial to find out what software it comes with. Nikon, for example offers a software suite called PictureProject that allows the user to upload, rename, edit and manage digital pictures. “It’s such an excellent and user-friendly program that we use it in our portrait studio for professional photography,” says Senn.
The good news is that you’re in love with a camera – but not the accompanying software – software packages are available that are compatible with numerous digital cameras.
• Computer access. The general assumption is that if you’re considering buying a digital camera, you need a computer. Although a computer is not an absolute essential for digital camera ownership, Senn says that the people who don’t have one always face the issue of long-term photo storage: where to store pictures when their memory card is full. “Paying a photo finisher to transfer the pictures to a CD takes the user back to the pay-for-pictures-as-you-go mentality, which erases the efficiency that makes digital cameras so attractive,” he says. “You wipe out that advantage without computer access.”
• Hands-on testing and ongoing technical support. You can do all the research in the world, but there’s no substitute for holding a camera and trying out its features for yourself. This will allow you to determine how easy the camera is to use, if it’s a comfortable size, if the buttons are in user-friendly locations, etc. “Nothing can replace going to the store and handling the cameras you’re considering buying,” says Senn.
To learn more, call Harmann Camera Store at 497-1222.
Reprinted with permission from YOU Magazine, March, 2005