Selecting Your First Digital Camera

Purchasing a digital camera is a wise decision, particularly if you take a lot of pictures and you want to control how they are developed. Camera prices continue to plummet and Americans are exchanging their 35mm cameras for digital devices at a record pace. The choices for you can seem endless, but with careful comparison shopping you can bring home a bargain! The following online sites provide visitors with helpful information to make an informed decision:

BizRate.Com ? Visitors to this site will find out all the information they need as the site offers excellent price comparison of the various camera models available. In addition, visitors submit their own product comments which can be a huge help as you decide which model to purchase. Detailed information about the various products available is also online to make your visit rich and informative. Finally, visitors rank the stores too!

PriceGrabber.Com ? What was said of BizRate.Com can be said of Price Grabber. Plenty of site reviews for you to read too!

MySimon.Com ? Another in a series of online comparison stores. You might not find it as user friendly since you may have to dig for some of the information. Still, they offer the same information as Biz Rate and Price Grabber. Certainly, My Simon is worth a closer look!

Maybe online purchasing is not your desire. Perhaps you would prefer to purchase your camera at a local store? If so, use the three sites above to do all your research and then go to your local Best Buy, Circuit City, or other digital camera retailer and see what they have to offer. Each of the big retailers has nice web sites and they run weekly specials that may or may not be picked up by the comparison sites. A big plus: you get to go to the store and get a "hands on" feel for the camera and talk to a knowledgeable salesperson. Returns are easier too if purchased at a local retailer.

Still, not sure you should purchase a digital camera? Let's look at three important advantages of owning a digital camera:

1. Pictures are available to you instantly. You can preview your picture; if you don't like the picture you took, you can erase it and take another picture.

2. Good resolution. If you are taking 3x5 or 4x6 pictures, your pictures will turn out to be sharp. If you are a photographer, you will still need the 35mm camera for 8x10 shots. Digital is improving, but the resolution isn't quite on par with 35mm cameras when it comes to larger pictures.

3. Eliminate development costs. No more running down to the local drugstore for picture development. You can do it all from your computer; there are now some excellent photo printing machines you can purchase that will print out crisp photos at a low cost to you.

All in all, the digital camera revolution is exploding. Join in by shopping the web for great bargains!

Matt Keegan is The Article Writer who writes on a variety of topics including aviation, business, customer service, product review, sales, and more. Visit http://www.thearticlewriter.com for additional samples of his work.

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The word 'exposure' is a very important word in the lexicon of both amateur and professional photographers and is based on the understanding of light in creating good photographs. --If there is too much light, the photo will look overly bright and over exposed. --A happy group of people will not look as vibrant if there was inadequate light when you took the picture. --Bright sunlight can create shadows under the eyes. --Poor lighting may not bring out the colors in the scene to maximum effect There are a few basics that you can apply to circumvent poor picture quality due to unfavorable light conditions: --Change the position from which you take the shot --Change the light if clicking indoors --Use the flash The use of the flash can be a boon when you operate in different light conditions. If you have an overcast sky, the flash in your camera will serve the purpose of letting some light into the image that you are trying to capture and brightening it up. The flash also works to your advantage when your subject is not too close but slightly away from you. But you have to check the 'flash range' of your camera in your manual. The flash works best when your subject is within a recommended range that is usually at least 4 ft and generally not more than 10 ft. Most simple cameras have an automatic flash. Slightly better models will have settings for fill-flash. The concept of fill flash revolves around filling light in areas of a picture that may turn out dark or shadowed. Fill-flash has the ability to balance the amount of light on different parts of a subject to ensure that the exposure is adequately bright. For instance, a portion of a person's face may appear shadowed and the fill-flash setting can help iron out this problem. The angle of light is another important consideration. 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The following factors have to borne in mind in creating an aesthetically appealing photograph: Background --Periphery --Distance from subject --Changing the direction of your camera based on picture dimensions --Objects impinging on the picture --Avoiding too many elements Each of these factors that go into aesthetics are described and explained below- -->Background The background in a photograph requires much consideration. It influences the manner in which your subject is portrayed in the photograph. Depending on your choice of background, your subject will be shown to effect or may be overshadowed. The background also makes the difference between a boring and an interesting photograph. The colors, the type of background and the context add to the vibrancy of the photo. -->Perphery A common problem among beginners in photography is not paying attention to whether the image is being captured fully. 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To take close up pictures of flowers or crystal or any decorative item, you have to move into close range and use suitable lenses to achieve the right magnification. -->Changing the Direction of Your Camera Based on the Picture Many a time you may not be able to capture the subject in it's entirety in the conventional horizontal position in which the camera is usually held. You can easily change the direction. Hold the camera vertically and then view your subject. You will be able to capture more of a longish subject like a tall monument, a full-length picture of a child, and so on. -->Objects Impinging on the Picture At times there are certain objects in a scene that seem to almost invade into the picture. For instance, if you take a picture of a group of your friends on a street, chances are that a street sign may gain prominence in the photograph unbidden and may seem to sprout out of the head of one of your friends in the photograph. Or the light fixtures in your living room may find a place in the picture and appear in the form an unseemly blob in your photo. And the tough part is, when you take the shot you may not be aware of this because the eye is focused on the people in the picture. -->Avoiding Too Many Elements A picture cluttered with too many objects may detract from the actual subject. For instance, a wide view of a room in which your subject is sitting may create a photo in which too many objects vie for attention. If the person in the picture is your main target then narrow down and concentrate mostly on clicking the subject. While a good background adds value to a picture, too much paraphernalia could take the attention away from the main subject. Your picture may be focused and the lighting may be good but there is so much going on in the picture that it becomes aesthetically lacking and maybe even a little jarring. 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