Advice and Deals on Digital Cameras

There are some great digital camera deals and digital camera rebates out there right now on brands from Sony, Canon, Olympus, Fuji, Nikon, Kodak and more. But before we get into them, here are some facts and advice that you should know to get the best digital camera that is right for you:

• Megapixel

  Megapixel is a word you will see a lot with digital cameras. It refers to the picture resolution which is measured in pixels. The higher the megapixel rating, the higher the detail. If you have no plans on printing your digital pictures or only need small prints, then a 1.0, 1.3, or 1.5 megapixel camera will suite you fine. This level of detail is good for making web pictures or for displaying merchandise you are selling online. Even at this level of megapixel, up to 5x7 prints are of acceptable quality. However, if you plan on blowing up your prints any larger, my advice is to go the next step up to a 2 megapixel or higher digital camera. Note that the megapixel rating on digital cameras indicates the maximum resolution it is capable of doing, but most digital camera have the ability to select a lower megapixel rating for lower quality and a smaller picture size.

• Digital Camera Memory

  Digital camera pictures are usually stored on some flash memory card such as compactflash or secure digital. It is unfortunate that most digital cameras come with only an 8MB or 16MB memory card. This is really not enough memory to have when going on long trips. My advice is to get yourself an extra 64MB or 128MB memory card.

• Optical Zoom vs Digital Zoom

  Optical zooming involves movement of the lens to get a closer picture without deteriorating the image quality. Digital zooming is done through software and does not add true detail. Optical zoom capability is more important than digital zoom.

  Beware of high megapixel cameras with no optical zoom. Digital cameras with only digital zoom will seem suprisingly cheap, but you are missing out on a great feature. It is worth paying extra for optical zoom.

• Batteries

  A digital camera can use a lot of power. Alkaline batteries do not last very long in a digital camera. The unfortunate thing is most cameras come packaged with alkaline batteries. Although battery life has improved in the newer digital cameras, my advice is to get rechargeable batteries and a charger.