The camera
Compact cameras
Easy to carry and more likely to be there when you need it, a good
quality compact camera is fine for general shots around Luxor.
Low-cost film compact cameras can have rather poor lenses,
so the quality of the photo is unlikely to satisfy the discerning.
These cameras also generally have very limited, if any, zoom (magnification)
so many subjects will appear rather small in the overall photo. See
also the other page for more discussion about film v digital.
Many people would only choose a film compact camera if budget was
a major consideration.
Compact digital camera
Compact digital cameras have come a long way in recent years. Once, they
were extremely expensive and the results were poor. By contrast,
most newer compact digital cameras have a respectable zoom range
and high resolution. A resolution of 4 megapixels or more will be
fine and will give you a good image on the computer as well as a
good print up to about 12 inches by 10 inches. Nowadays, cameras that take pictures much bigger than 4 megapixels are common.
Cheaper digital compact cameras, just like
film compact cameras, can have poor lenses and some of them do not
handle colours very well. Independent comparisons in the photographic
media are usually able to demonstrate the shortcomings of cameras
that appear to offer high resolutions (a lot of megapixels) for a
'bargain' price.
In summary, it is best to look out for a brand name that is respected,
the highest resolution (number of megapixels) and the widest zoom
range that is reasonable, bearing in mind the other pressures on
your budget.
Comparing
prices |
There are
several web sites that offer discounts on cameras and deliver
very quickly. We suggest you compare prices for your chosen
camera at
Currys,
Cameras2u, and
Jessops.
(Click
on any name to go to their web site) |
|
SLR Cameras
 SLR camera SLR stands for Single Lens Reflex. The light that comes through the lens
is diverted to the eyepiece until the instant a picture is taken.
When you press the shutter, the light is diverted to the film
or sensor. You therefore see exactly the same picture as the one
that gets taken. So there is only one lens, unlike a
compact camera, where there are two lenses (one that you see through
and one that takes the picture).
An SLR camera is bulkier to carry
and heavier, so is less likely to be on hand when the
opportunity shot arises out of the blue.
Film and digital SLR cameras are usually of comparable quality.
Indeed, many digital cameras are variations of film SLR cameras.
Increasingly, however, the manufacturers are curtailing their development
of film cameras and concentrating exclusively on digital, so many
innovations and quality improvements are to be found only in digital
cameras.
The prices of digital SLR cameras has plummeted in recent years.
The economy models are now very close to the price of the better
compact digital cameras.
The advantage with a SLR camera is that the lens
is bigger, is likely to be better, and is changeable. This means
that, not only can you zoom (increase magnification), but also you
can change the lens for one that magnifies even more. Magnifications
of up to 10 times are not uncommon. You can also change the lens
for one that does the opposite, and takes a wider picture than you
could normally fit in, without having to go too far back from the
subject. This is useful in restricted spaces. For more on this, see photo
taking tips.
|
