Digital Cameras by Manufacturer
Here is our list of the best digital cameras,
alphabetically by manufacturer. In our
view, these are currently some of the
best digital cameras (see caveat below)
money can buy. If there is a camera you
think should make the list, tell
us why.
To come up with our list of best digital
cameras, we were guided by the following
simple question: what are the digital
cameras most suited to beginner and advanced
amateur photographers?
When we read 'best' we are usually quick
to jump to a faulty conclusion: "If
these digital cameras are the 'best' then
they must be able to give excellent image
quality in all exposure situations."
Of course, those of you who have already
dived into the digital world know this
is not quite the case. Not yet.
As we write this, only the most expensive
professional digital Single Lens Reflex
(dSLR) cameras give excellent image quality
in (almost) all exposure situations. As
far as prosumer and compact digital cameras
are concerned, they are still beset by
the following various deficiencies:
Lack of a good low-light focus-assist
auto focus. Most digital cameras is
auto focus (AF) and lacks manual focus.
This means that you rely on the digital
camera to achieve proper focus for you.
Typically auto focus is achieved by
the digital camera detecting high contrast
changes in your scene. In low-light
(e.g. indoors or in sports arenas),
the digital camera might be unable to
detect these contrast changes, and you
might find your camera unable to lock
focus. There are some techniques that
a photographer can use, such as focusing
on a more brightly lighted high contrast
object which is at the same focus distance
than your main subject; briefly shining
a penlight on your subject (please,
don't try this on a person) long enough
for the camera to establish focus lock;
and, of course, increasing the light
level, if at all possible. More and
more digital cameras now come equipped
with a low-light focus assist AF. Typically
the camera sends out a beam of infrared,
green, blue, or orange light (depending
on the type of AF used), or intermittent
bursts of powered down flash to permit
focus lock. Some low-light focus-assist
AF are better than others, but every
bit helps. Remember, even though the
AF Illuminator light is supposed to
be safe, never point it into
someone's eyes.
Noise. This is most apparent when
high ISOs are used and when slow shutter
speeds are used (as in night photography).
In fact, noise makes high ISOs in consumer
digital cameras almost unusable. There
are various software that can be run
after the picture has been taken to
remove the noise. In general, larger
image sensors suffer less from noise
than smaller sensors. As manufacturers
improve their image sensors, the issue
of noise will diminish, though we really
need to start seeing manufacturers use
larger image sensors in consumer digital
cameras (especially those targeting
the serious and advanced amateur categories).
Slow operation. The dreaded shutter
lag and shot-to-shot elapsed time
can be frustratingly long, but many
consumer digital cameras are now offering
very short shutter lags (around 1/2
sec. or less). If you purchase a digital
camera with a long shutter lag (around
1 sec. or more) and are hoping to take
a lot of candid snapshots or action
shots, it will be challenging to capture
the picture at the right moment you
desired. There are various techniques
a photographer can use to minimize these
lags, such as pre-focusing, anticipating
the action, etc. but the bottom line
is that you should shop for one with
a short shutter lag.
As more and more point-and-shoot photographers
migrate from film camera to digital camera,
these are easily the three areas that
will frustrate and disappoint them the
most. But, if you carefully select your
digital camera for what it does best (as
opposed to what it cannot do well for
now), then you can look forward to many
hours (and years) of satisfied use. It
is a wonderful new world and we encourage
you to dive into it -- with eyes wide
open.
Selection Criteria
First of all, the resolution of the digital
cameras must be 3.0 effective megapixels,
and above. Of course, high megapixels
by themselves are useless if the lens
of the digital camera is not of enough
high quality and the electronics cannot
process the images to that high standard.
Today, anybody it seems can just drop
a 5 megapixels image sensor into an otherwise
disappointing box. That is why we do not
feature all manufacturers.
Secondly, the digital cameras should
preferably provide "scene modes"
that automate the selection of shutter
speed/aperture combinations for common
photographic situations. We are talking
here about portrait, landscape, sports,
night scenes, etc. A digital camera that
provides only Auto mode will almost always
be geared to point-and-shoot photographers
only. For those who desire to learn more,
a camera with flexible exposure control
(i.e. Programmed Auto, Shutter-Priority,
Aperture-Priority, and full Manual modes)
is the best way to progress to serious
photography.
Thirdly, we feature only the best digital
cameras from the best manufacturers. So,
when you read that we are a bit disappointed
with some feature of a digital camera,
take it in the proper context. For all
practical picture-taking purposes, our
objections are probably trivial. We are
comparing the best with the best.
Keep in mind that traditional electronics
manufacturers are now producing digital
cameras that rival those from traditional
camera manufacturers. The lines are therefore
blurring, and the best manufacturers are
those that leverage their strengths and
seek outside help to eliminate their weaknesses.
We have therefore seen some very interesting
alliances such as, Sony and Carl Zeiss,
and Panasonic and Leica. So, do not limit
yourself to the traditional camera manufacturers
when looking for your next digital camera.
Disclaimers
Though we try our best here at Photoxels
to faithfully reproduce the technical
specifications, the manufacturers can
change them at any time, and so ours could
become out of date. By using the fact
sheets at Photoxels, you agree not to
hold us responsible in any way for any
discrepancies that may arise. That is
one reason we always try to provide a
link back to the manufacturer's site (click
on the digital camera picture on the top
left of the QuickFact™
Sheet) so you can verify for yourself.
Also, bear in mind that the price listed
is MSRP (Manufacturer Suggested Retail
MSRP) only, and street prices are usually,
depending on models and price, anywhere
from $25 to $100 lower. A price is listed
to give an idea of how much a camera costs
and is not meant to be a price offer from
Photoxels.
Last, but not least, before you buy,
verify a reseller's reputation at Resellerratings.com.
Photoxels
brings you fact sheets on the best digital cameras.
