Cameras: Big & Expensive Vs. Compact & Cheap

Earlier this year, while still in school, I took a photography class: Photography for the Graphic Designer II. Within the first week of class I found myself with a huge, bulky, black Nikon D70 on my desk. Sitting back I looked at the thing somewhat bewildered for about half an hour. I figured out how to take a picture easily, but that seemed like just the tip of the iceberg – and it was. Thank God it came with a user manual and I have steady access to the Internet. Otherwise that camera would have been my worst enemy rather than my new best friend. At the time I knew very little about photography and couldn’t tell you anything about aperture or shutter speed.

Jessea Takes a Shot

I am sure I can’t be the only one who is (or at least was) intimidated by such a huge camera. At first I thought it was a little uncool. I mean how many people do see carrying around a camera as big as a melon? And when you do they’re usually striking some type of acrobatic pose – right foot back, left foot forward extended past the left hip, body twisted to the right, hand and head pointed upward, mouth open as they look through the eye hole. Who would want to look like that!? I WOULD!! No, not really, but it’s a price to be paid. After my learning experience with the beloved Nikon D70 I have a new found respect for these crazed camera park walkers. I could never go back to my old point-and-shoot again.

Now, for the details. I just mentioned my point-and-shoot. To anyone who doesn’t know what I mean, that is my “old camera”. Most all inexpensive ($100-300) cameras are point-and-shoot. I bought a Canon Powershot when they first came out for a little over $300. 4x Optical zoom, 3.2 megapixels. Ouch! It was way to early in the game to be purchasing that camera,  however, I needed it for a certain event and made the investment. In all reality it was served me well, but I was spoiled with the D70 and had trouble going back to the Powershot after I had to turn the D70 back in to the school. 

Basically a P&S (point and shoot) camera is supposed to do all the work for you. Unfortunately, the results may not always be great because the camera is not as smart as a good photographer. Most issues lie around lighting, shutter speed, and white balance. This biggest dislike I have with P&S cameras is the lag time that occurs before the shutter goes off and the viewfinder. On P&S’s you have the view finder and the LCD panel – the screen that shows you the image. How many times have you been in a situation when you could not use the LCD to compose your picture because of glares and poor lighting? To combat the issue you tried using the view finder to compose. Afterwards you were dissatisfied because the picture does not look like what you saw. Don’t worry, it’s not your fault, it is the camera. With P&S cameras the view finder does not actually see what the lens sees and if pictures are taken using the view finder they will look a little off. SLR or DSLR (Single Lens Reflex or Digital Single Lens Reflex) cameras, like my Nikon D70 and most “professional” cameras, do not operate this way. DSLR’s use a mirror to show you the image you’re about to shoot through the view finder. When you take the picture the mirror flips up allowing the image sensor to capture the image. To help you understand, I found this site which has great illustrations on the difference between SLR’s and P&S…. http://www.ted.photographer.org.uk/camera_types.htm

"Mittens" (DSLR)

My favorite feature about SLR’s is being in control! I can make the shutter go as fast or as slow as I want it to, virtually eliminating any lag time. For the average camera user, it may be overkill. If you’re just interested in preserving memories, a simple point and shoot would be just what you need. However, if you are more concerned with the picture itself you might consider looking at a professional SLR camera.

Oh and P.S… this post was brought on because I just purchased my very own Nikon D70! Bye bye P&S. Yay!