Friday, June 27, 2008

Purchasing Your First Digital Slr Camera

The title, Purchasing Your First Digital SLR Camera, really should be
titled, how to loose your mind in just a few easy steps. With the skyrocketing of the Digital age in the mid 80's to early 90's and most of us feverishly trying to either catch up or grasp the basics in this new Digital world, it’s hard, if not impossible, to make a sound decision when it comes to purchasing your first Digital SLR Camera.

A little background on the Technology Digital Slr Cameras use is in order.
Unlike film cameras that use a mechanical/chemical process to capture an image, Digital Slr’s use an electronic process combined with an Image Sensor. Image Sensors come in two basic flavors, CCD,
[charged coupled device] and CMOS, {complimentary metal-oxide semiconductor]. Both were designed in the mid 60's to early 70's. The CCD image sensor at that point in time was the benchmark for image sensors used in digital cameras. The CMOS image sensor lagged behind because of its inability to offer the resolution needed for the high end cameras of that time. This is not the case now. CMOS image sensors have come of age and now you find Quality Digital SLR Cameras using both, and the technology driving them is ever growing.

Another very worthwhile option that should make most anyone want to jump into the Digital SLR Camera pool is the ease for a complete novice,
with no prior photographic experience, to take first rate pictures. All Digital Slr Cameras have an automatic mode that controls the aperture setting and shutter speed. In essence, this function makes them a high end Point and Shoot Camera. Every Digital SLR Camera has a number of pre-sets
built in for photographing in different situations, such as landscape,
portrait, hi-key, low-key, fireworks, documents, macro and the list goes on and on. But being true Digital SLR Cameras they can be used in the fully manual mode and many combinations of auto/manual mode. I’d have to say that anyone with a background in film SLR Cameras would have an advantage over the novice but the Digital SLR Camera is a great learning tool in that one does not have to worry as much over their mistakes. You can simply delete them. This is not the case with film cameras. One could spend a fortune learning to be proficient on a film Camera. I sure did!!
The Digital SLR Camera technology has even went so far as to allow us to edit the photos we take while they’re in the camera.
All Digital SLR Cameras basically work the same. The specifications of each camera are near the same. The buttons that control the functions vary somewhat and some Digital SLR Cameras weigh a little more than others. Digital SLR Cameras have been around for twenty plus years. Considering the overwhelming technology involved, none of them are perfect. They all have shortcomings. That’s where Firmware comes into play. Firmware helps corrects these weaknesses. A Firmware update is simple to do. Most Firmware updates require only a USB cable and a computer. The Manufacturer of your particular Camera has these Firmware updates and offers them for free. Update your Firmware and in essence you have a new Camera.
One has to think, is there a foreseeable end to the technology driving the
Digital SLR Camera industry. Not on your life!!! Even as we speak, new technology is emerging and later this month the CMOS image sensor will draw on that Digital gene pool once again to better itself.

So, now the groundwork is set. The rest is up to you. You’re all frugal shoppers and spend your hard earned bucks wisely. Follow the information here and the purchase of your first Digital SlR Camera could be your last.

Happy Shopping


Author- Michael F. Major
To see where this new technology has taken us, check out “What’s Hot”
at The F-Stop Shop. You’ll Find that “One Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words”

http://www.thef-stopshop.com