Can someone tell me the difference is a digital camera and a digital SLR camera?
Are they the same kind of camera? I have a digital 5 mega-pixel point & shoot now, but I am wanting something a little more advance but not to complicated to work either. Mainly for taking pictures of kids. (That won’t sit still long enough to get a good picture.) Someone recommended getting a Cannon Any other suggestions any thing in the $300-$400 range. Something that gives me a professional looking pic without the cost.Thanks!!
I should have put a Canon Power-shot.
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Nikon D40. It will be a little more than $400, but its about as cheap as you will get with D-SLR.
An SLR is a single lens reflex camera (the “D” I have above just means digital). SLR cameras generally have much higher quality sensors and processing programs in camera. The glass in the lens also makes for sharp, clear pictures. And since the iso sensitivity has a broader range in most SLRs (iso is how sensitive the sensor is to light) you will be able to have higher shutter speeds and still capture quality pictures
There are two types of digital cameras.
Point and Shoot (P&S) cameras which are nearly fully automatic, so the user cannot control the aperture or shutter speed. They are also cameras that can usually fit in your pocket. They are limited by small sensors and lenses that cannot be exchanged for others. Price range; $100 ~ $400.
Digital Single Lens Reflexes (DSLR) are the digital version of 35 mm SLR cameras and in fact use the same lenses. While they do have some automatic features, they are fully adjustable cameras and allow the user to control their lenses apertures to produce selective depth of filed, shutter speeds from 1/4000th second to 30 seconds and Bulb so the user can photograph and capture action as well as things like “star trails” or popular “light writing”. Price range; $450 to $12,000 with lens
SLR means:
SL = Single Lens. There is no separate viewfinder; you compose the shot through the same lens that takes the picture.
This distinction was more important in the film days than it is today.
R = Reflex. A moving mirror. The mirror directs the light coming in from the lens to the viewfinder. When you press the shutter, the mirror pivots up to allow the light coming in from the lens to go directly to the film or sensor. Then, after the shot is taken, the mirror moves back to reflect the light to the viewfinder again.
Most of today’s non-SLR digital cameras allow you to compose through the same lens that takes the picture. There are pros and cons though:
– The view is not as detailed as through a good SLR.
– The view is slightly delayed. So if you’re trying to capture the moment with a fast-moving subject, you “see” the moment you want to capture shortly after that moment has actually passed. With an SLR, you “see” the moment real-time; no delay (except for the speed of light, which even it it was enough to matter would still be cancelled out by the fact that the film or sensor has exactly the same delay anyway).
– The big disadvantage of SLR is the space required by the moving mirror. The lens can’t be very close to the film or sensor, because it then would smash against the mirror. The requirement that the lens can’t be close to the film or sensor makes lenses bigger. Non-SLRs can have smaller lenses, all else being equal.
– There is a small vibration caused by the moving mirror. It doesn’t really affect hand-held shots, but if you use a tripod to get slower shutter speeds than are possible with hand-held, it can factor in (blurry shot due to camera vibration). But the photographer can also work around it.
Another important difference: most SLRs have large, high-quality sensors, while most non-SLRs (but not all) have small, lower quality sensors. Those small sensors do pretty well under ideal circumstances, but very quickly fall flat on their faces when the going gets tough, mainly in dim light and and when a shot contains a mix of very bright and very dark areas.
All DSLRs on the market are excellent cameras. All entry-level DSLRs have easy point & shoot settings available if you want to shoot that way, though they also offer more control if you want that. You won’t go wrong by price-shopping for the cheapest one.
You could spend less money by starting with a used one, and if you don’t trust eBay, http://keh.com has an excellent reputation and I’ve always had very good experiences buying from them. In fact I’ve never heard of a bad experience with them.
Do note that you need to buy a lens for (or with) your DSLR. Most have kits available with starter lenses.
I see that keh.com currently has:
– A Nikon D50 with lens for $349
– A Canon Rebel XT with lens for $449
– An Olympus E-500 with lens for $310
– A Pentax DS (no lens) for $199, and a good starter Pentax lens (18-55) for $45.
Any of those would be an great start, for as little as $244.
Regarding the advice you say you were given to buy Canon — that’s like someone saying that you should only buy Chevy and not Ford, or vice versa. You know the type. I suggest politely thanking them and then ignoring them. All current DSLR brands make great cameras.
BTW, I mostly take pictures of my kids, too. Ages 4, 2, and a third on the way. The real-time SLR viewfinder is a big advantage when shooting kids, because their cutest expressions etc. can be so fleeting. Of the four models at keh.com I mentioned, the Pentax DS has the biggest and brightest viewfinder. It uses a “pentaprism”, where the others use a cheaper “pentamirror” which doesn’t pass as much light through to the viewfinder as a pentaprism.
Good luck!
Greg