- In this report
- Overview
- Features
- Take better baby pictures
- Digital camcorders for new parents
ELECTRONICS FORUMS  Get real-world advice from others about choosing a new TV, digital camera, computer or cell phone. |
December 2007
Digital cameras for parents
Lights! Camera! Action! From your baby’s birth to all of those firsts--first smile, first tooth, first step--each day is a
photo opportunity that can make you run for your camera. Now’s the time to get ready to capture the memories you’ll enjoy
for years to come. Still shooting with that trusty old film camera? The arrival of your new baby may be the perfect time to
switch to digital technology. Prices have dropped as digital cameras have become an everyday product for millions.
Digital cameras are perfect for shooting tiny, squirmy, uncooperative subjects because snapping away costs nothing--instead of paying a photo processor to print everything on a roll of film, you choose which images you want to print. You can e-mail photos to Grandma and Grandpa and the rest of the family, and let them print what they want to tack on their fridges.
Plus, digital cameras give you extraordinary control over the images you choose to print. You can transfer images to your computer, then crop, adjust color and contrast, and add textures and other special effects. You can make prints at home on a color inkjet or snapshot printer; drop off the memory card at one of a growing number of photofinishers; use a self-service kiosk at your local drugstore to select, edit, and print pictures instantly; or upload images to an online photofinisher. Final results can be e-mailed, made into cards or T-shirts, or uploaded to a photo-sharing Web site for storage, viewing, and sharing with others. Or you can display copies of digital photos on your desk using a single “digital picture frame.” Like camcorders, digital cameras have liquid-crystal-display monitors for composing shots or viewing ones already taken. Many digital cameras can also shoot video with sound. Some camcorders can shoot still photos, but a typical camcorder’s resolution is no match for a good still camera’s.
WHAT’S AVAILABLE
The leading manufacturers of digital cameras include, in alphabetical order: Canon (www.usa.canon.com), Fujifilm (www.fujifilmusa.com), HP (www.hp.com), Kodak (www.kodak.com), Nikon (www.nikonusa.com), Olympus (www.olympusamerica.com), and Sony (www.sony.com).
Digital cameras come in various sizes. Subcompacts, which weigh 5 to 8 ounces, can fit in a pocket. Price: $130 to $400. Too big to pocket, but small enough for most handbags and glove boxes, are compacts. They typically weigh 7 to 14 ounces. Price: $130 to $470. Subcompacts and compacts are often equipped with scene modes to make shooting easier and large LCD monitors for composing and reviewing shots. Many now have a 7-megapixel or greater resolution. They’re suitable for making 5x7 or larger prints, as well as snapshots.
Super-zoom cameras have a very long zoom range--10x or greater. They’re usually larger and heavier than compacts, but a few new models are designed to be smaller and lighter than older models. Price: $200 to $850. SLR, or single-lens reflex cameras, the largest and heaviest, have the most versatility and power and interchangeable lenses. Price: $400 to $1,800. These bigger, serious cameras provide more zoom, better image control, and greater speed than compacts and subcompacts. But if you’re just looking to get good shots of your family, they’re probably overkill. They’re best suited for challenging lighting, nature, sports, or artistic photography. One drawback: SLRs don't shoot video.
SHOPPING SECRETS
Choose your time and place. Digital camera prices don’t fluctuate seasonally, but most new models reach the market during two periods--March through May and September through November. During those times, many older models are replaced by more capable ones that often cost about the same. Buy between May and August or November and February. During these periods, older models may be discounted before they disappear. (You can tell that a camera isn’t long for this world if the manufacturer offers a limited-time rebate.) Scrutinize too-good-to-be-true offers. Some dealers use them to unload refurbished cameras. If you’re comfortable with refurbished and the price is right, fine. But keep in mind that the latest model, even without a steep discount, may be as good a value because it has more capabilities.
Go online to find the best price. Compare prices by using an Internet shopping “bot,” which gathers prices from a number of retailers, such as www.MySimon.com, www.BizRate.com, www.shopping.com, www.nextag.com, www.pricescan.com, and www.shopper.com. Another source is the Shop Online feature for subscribers to www.ConsumerReports.org. If models you’re researching are available from a walk-in retailer near you, visit the store to try out the camera. In the latest subscriber survey conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center, online retailers fared well, but if you want personal service, shop in brick-and-mortar stores.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Going digital makes it easy to take photos of your baby and share them with friends and relatives who are computer users. When choosing a digital camera, take our Quick Picks and Ratings (both available to subscribers) into consideration, weighing all the factors we mentioned. The Ratings list models by overall performance. Quick Picks are the choices our experts recommend, after balancing more than a dozen factors.
Based on our judgments of uncropped 8x10-inch prints, most cameras produced images that were very good. But if we had used only a small portion of the original image and enlarged it to 8x10, the higher-megapixel cameras would have produced better results than the others. The superzoom models as well as select high-end compacts have features demanding photographers will appreciate, such as manual controls, especially long battery life, and a next-shot delay no longer than two seconds.
Digital cameras are perfect for shooting tiny, squirmy, uncooperative subjects because snapping away costs nothing--instead of paying a photo processor to print everything on a roll of film, you choose which images you want to print. You can e-mail photos to Grandma and Grandpa and the rest of the family, and let them print what they want to tack on their fridges.
Plus, digital cameras give you extraordinary control over the images you choose to print. You can transfer images to your computer, then crop, adjust color and contrast, and add textures and other special effects. You can make prints at home on a color inkjet or snapshot printer; drop off the memory card at one of a growing number of photofinishers; use a self-service kiosk at your local drugstore to select, edit, and print pictures instantly; or upload images to an online photofinisher. Final results can be e-mailed, made into cards or T-shirts, or uploaded to a photo-sharing Web site for storage, viewing, and sharing with others. Or you can display copies of digital photos on your desk using a single “digital picture frame.” Like camcorders, digital cameras have liquid-crystal-display monitors for composing shots or viewing ones already taken. Many digital cameras can also shoot video with sound. Some camcorders can shoot still photos, but a typical camcorder’s resolution is no match for a good still camera’s.
WHAT’S AVAILABLE
The leading manufacturers of digital cameras include, in alphabetical order: Canon (www.usa.canon.com), Fujifilm (www.fujifilmusa.com), HP (www.hp.com), Kodak (www.kodak.com), Nikon (www.nikonusa.com), Olympus (www.olympusamerica.com), and Sony (www.sony.com).
Digital cameras come in various sizes. Subcompacts, which weigh 5 to 8 ounces, can fit in a pocket. Price: $130 to $400. Too big to pocket, but small enough for most handbags and glove boxes, are compacts. They typically weigh 7 to 14 ounces. Price: $130 to $470. Subcompacts and compacts are often equipped with scene modes to make shooting easier and large LCD monitors for composing and reviewing shots. Many now have a 7-megapixel or greater resolution. They’re suitable for making 5x7 or larger prints, as well as snapshots.
Super-zoom cameras have a very long zoom range--10x or greater. They’re usually larger and heavier than compacts, but a few new models are designed to be smaller and lighter than older models. Price: $200 to $850. SLR, or single-lens reflex cameras, the largest and heaviest, have the most versatility and power and interchangeable lenses. Price: $400 to $1,800. These bigger, serious cameras provide more zoom, better image control, and greater speed than compacts and subcompacts. But if you’re just looking to get good shots of your family, they’re probably overkill. They’re best suited for challenging lighting, nature, sports, or artistic photography. One drawback: SLRs don't shoot video.
SHOPPING SECRETS
Choose your time and place. Digital camera prices don’t fluctuate seasonally, but most new models reach the market during two periods--March through May and September through November. During those times, many older models are replaced by more capable ones that often cost about the same. Buy between May and August or November and February. During these periods, older models may be discounted before they disappear. (You can tell that a camera isn’t long for this world if the manufacturer offers a limited-time rebate.) Scrutinize too-good-to-be-true offers. Some dealers use them to unload refurbished cameras. If you’re comfortable with refurbished and the price is right, fine. But keep in mind that the latest model, even without a steep discount, may be as good a value because it has more capabilities.
Go online to find the best price. Compare prices by using an Internet shopping “bot,” which gathers prices from a number of retailers, such as www.MySimon.com, www.BizRate.com, www.shopping.com, www.nextag.com, www.pricescan.com, and www.shopper.com. Another source is the Shop Online feature for subscribers to www.ConsumerReports.org. If models you’re researching are available from a walk-in retailer near you, visit the store to try out the camera. In the latest subscriber survey conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center, online retailers fared well, but if you want personal service, shop in brick-and-mortar stores.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Going digital makes it easy to take photos of your baby and share them with friends and relatives who are computer users. When choosing a digital camera, take our Quick Picks and Ratings (both available to subscribers) into consideration, weighing all the factors we mentioned. The Ratings list models by overall performance. Quick Picks are the choices our experts recommend, after balancing more than a dozen factors.
Based on our judgments of uncropped 8x10-inch prints, most cameras produced images that were very good. But if we had used only a small portion of the original image and enlarged it to 8x10, the higher-megapixel cameras would have produced better results than the others. The superzoom models as well as select high-end compacts have features demanding photographers will appreciate, such as manual controls, especially long battery life, and a next-shot delay no longer than two seconds.
