Which Is The Best Digital Camera?

How do you know if the camera you want is the best digital camera? If you’ve gone looking lately, you know how many different types of cameras there are out there. Feeling overwhelmed with choices? Then you need to narrow down the choices so that you are confident that you’ve bought the right digital camera for your needs - which is all that really matters.

So, what do you need to know about digital camera technology?  This short digital camera buyers guide will help you compare features and prices, and choose the best digital camera for your needs, whether you are simply looking for a reliable disposable digital camera, or are shopping for a high quality, professional digital camera.  When you're done educating yourself here, you may also want to look at our reference material on digital camera reviews.

Digital cameras use an image sensor to capture the image. These silicon chips contain millions of photosensitive pixels. Each pixel captures a single part of your picture, and the more pixels used, the better the eventual photograph. A mega pixel captures 1 million pixels, and the resolution of your image depends on the number of mega pixels in your camera.

The best digital cameras have many millions of mega pixels. The higher the mega pixel resolution, the better pictures your camera will take, and the clearer your picture details if you enlarge the photo.  For snapshot quality, and conservation of memory, some people choose as few as 2 or 3 megapixel resolution, but the highest quality images require at least 5 megapixels, which is what is found in the best digital cameras. 

Megapixel density is also a consideration if you want to capture fine detail, intend to enlarge your photographs - the higher the density, the better the image quality.  An 8 x 10 enlargement won't look very good unless the original is at least 5 to 6 megapixels; high quality digital SLRs used by serious amateur and professional photographers who want the best resolution for super fine detail and enlargement capability usually use 8 megapixel or higher resolution.

Ultimately, the best digital camera for you is one that meets your requirements for detail and clarity. Snap-shots need fewer pixels than photos that are going to be enlarged and displayed. Professional photographers will always use higher resolution so that the image is very sharp and clear. The less money you have to spend, the fewer mega pixels in the camera you can buy.

Megapixel Definition: A measure of resolution that reflects the ability of digital cameras to record detail. The more megapixels that the camera uses, the more detail its images contain and the more that they can be enlarged without losing clarity.  More megapixels aren't always necessary, however.  How much resolution you need depends upon whether you just want "snapshots" or intend to enlarge your photos later.

Digital cameras don’t use film. They store the pictures in the camera on a storage device. All digital cameras have this feature. However, the most basic digital cameras do not provide means for you to increase this storage capacity. Unless you are only going to take a few photos this won’t be the best digital camera for you! So, you need to make sure that the camera has the facilities for you to use some form of removable memory storage, such as a flash memory card. This allows you to increase the number of images your camera can take. Your best digital camera will allow you to take as many images as you need to when you need to. You may need to buy a number of removable storage cards or devices if you are unable to download from and reuse the card, for example if you are travelling, or taking hundreds of photos as a professional.

LCD - although they drain the batteries, the LCD screen allows you to preview the images before you snap, and review the ones you’ve already taken. The best digital camera will have a screen that is large enough for you to see your pictures clearly.  Small LCD screens are probably the biggest drawback to the less expensive models.  For ease of use, you need a large, bright LCD display, at least 2 inches or greater.