Types of Digital Cameras

Before choosing a camera many people will ask, what is the best camera to buy?,While those
are logical questions to ask, it is more important to first know what types of digital
cameras are on the market. Take a look at each of the categories below and you should be able
 to determine which is the best type of camera for you.

This tutorial will give you general information about the different  types of digital cameras on the
market  for  consumers. If you need a little more detailed information about each type of camera,
check the tutorial for that  specific camera category.

Digital Slr Cameras: (aka  Digital Single Lens Reflex Cameras or DSLR cameras):
 Digital SLR cameras are the most versatile and advanced type cameras available on the
consumer market.

The first thing you will notice about a Digital Single Lens Reflex camera is
that it is larger than any compact consumer camera and putting one in your
pocket is out of the question. The Canon EOS Rebel T5i  or the  Nikon D3300   are examples of
good quality affordable Digital Slr cameras.

When using a Digital Slr camera you can set the camera to the
automatic mode and just start taking pictures. However, you also have
the option of taking pictures in the full manual mode, Aperture Priority,
 Shutter Priority, orprogram modes.

The most important thing to remember about using a Digital Single
Lens Reflex camera is that you have more control over the way the
 picture will be taken as far as exposure settings.

Another important feature of Digital Slr cameras is that you can change
 the  camera lens to fit different situations.  For instance you can use a fixed focal length 28mm lens for wide angle scenes, then remove that
 lens and put on a 200mm fixed focal length telephoto lens to pull the scene in closer. You also
have the  option to use a variety of  zoom lenses with different zoom ranges.

The lenses for Digital Slr cameras will generally be of a better quality than those found on compact
 cameras which will result in better image quality. Read the tutorial, Camera Lens Types for more
 details about the importance of the camera lens.

Another big difference between Digital Slr cameras and compact cameras is the image sensor size
. Digital SLR cameras have larger image sensors which will generally produce better quality images.
 If you are not familiar with camera sensors, please read the Digital Camera Image Sensors tutorial.

Don't forget to check the tutorial, Digital Single Lens Reflex cameras for more detailed information
about Digital  SLR type cameras.

Compact Digital Cameras:Digital compact cameras, which are
 also known
as Point and Shoot cameras, vary  in features, price, and styles. Their smaller size and ease of use
is the main appeal of  these types of digital cameras.

Most basic compact cameras will fit in a pocket or small purse. All of the current  compact cameras
 have a minimum three time (3X) zoom lens and at least 12 megapixels. With that many megapixe,
ls, great looking, quality images can be enlarged to 16 X 20 inch print size.

Today's digital compact cameras are equipped with a fully automatic mode which is great for
 beginners or those who just want to "point and shoot" when taking pictures.

In addition to the automatic mode, digital compact cameras come equipped with a number of scene
modes  such  as landscape, portrait, sports and fireworks among others. Those scene modes
make it easy to adapt to different types of picture taking situations.

Manual adjustments to camera settings like the shutter speed or lens aperture setting can't be
done on  a basic  digital compact camera. Those functions are set automatically when you take the
picture. So  once again,  compact cameras are made for ease of use rather than giving the
photographer full control over every camera  setting.

However, the average casual photographer can get great pictures from a basic compact camera
an there  usually won't be a need for manual adjustments.

The Canon Powershot Elph 150 pictured above is a great affordable digital compact camera.
Another great  compact camera choice is the Nikon CoolPix 6300                                   .    

Check the tutorial, Compact Digital Cameras for more detailed information about the features of
some of the  basic compact cameras on the market.

Bridge Compact Digital Cameras/Super Zoom Cameras: Bridge cameras, also known
 as Advanced  Compact cameras are a step up from the Basic Compact camera.

The  main difference between Bridge cameras and Basic Compact cameras is that  they allow the
photographer to have more control over the camera's exposure