Points to keep in mind before purchasing a Digital Camera

An important aspect of any successful travel blogger is the art of capturing and posting beautiful photographs. As all well written posts need actual photographs to enable the readers to relate to the post. So I decided to invest in a good quality digital camera and searched for options online –

Just a quick initial search threw up more than 2000 options and the sheer variety and number of options available were mind-boggling. Reading up more on this topic confused me further and a chat with a couple of camera enthusiasts just killed the purchase process as all the individual views, physics and mechanics of camera parts threw me into further indecision. And the more I researched the more the word “digital camera” became a monster from my school physics classes that I never got the hang of. Things reached such an epic proportion that I decided to give up this entire process and continue photographing with my iPhone camera.

However before I gave up the search, I decided to speak with a friend who is self-trained in photography and is pursuing a career in this space. A chat with him really helped me clarify this whole process so much so that I was finally able to purchase my own fabulous digital camera and also create a kind of questionnaire that has been helpful in simplifying this process for a lot of other people I know. While I am no authority on this subject, I felt that there are a lot of practical aspects (apart from the actual camera features) that one should consider before investing in a camera. Hence I decided to write this post and share the same with you today in case you are in the same boat that I was in then.

• First and foremost – Decide what do you need a camera for / what is the purpose? Is this just for a hobby or a possible profession? Is this just a hobby that you have and want to indulge in or there is a possibility of taking this up as a profession? If it is just a hobby then you don’t necessarily need to buy a DSLR but can buy a high-end point to shoot (with manual settings) and slowly graduate to a DSLR if you really get good at this art and want to continue. If you want to take this up as a serious profession then you can invest in a high-end DSLR and the various lenses.

• How are you normally in continuing with hobbies / latest fads – If photography is just a latest fad and you are normally not that good in continuing with your hobbies, then don’t buy a DSLR. Invest in a good point and shoot camera and stick to it till the novelty wears off. I have seen loads of people pick up really expensive cameras especially before an international trip but it’s soon forgotten after they are back.  And it’s so much of money invested for nothing.

• How much do you travel – If you are a very frequent traveler / photographer then you can consider investing in a good quality camera but if you do not travel / photograph frequently then stick to a good quality point and shoot camera.

• Budget – Digital cameras come in a wide range of prices. You will find cameras for as low as Rs. 10,000/-  to as high as Rs. 2 lakhs. So decide on a reasonable budget before hand and then research for possible options within that price range. In case you are considering purchasing a DSLR be sure to budget for additional lenses, which are at times more expensive than the actual cameras.

• Size and Weight – One thing that a lot of us don’t take into account before purchasing a camera is its size and weight. Just imagine you are hiking atop a hill and apart from water (which is anyways heavy) you now have to carry an even heavier camera and all its accessories with it. How would you feel? Believe me at that time all the features of the camera are of no help. So be sure of what you are able to carry around for long periods of time and even for long walks. Hence always check the weight of the camera in your hands before the actual purchase.

• Debate of Canon vs Nikkon – This is a never-ending debate and has no solution in sight. No matter who you ask, you will never get an answer to which camera is better. Well, both are equally good camera companies though some people say that Nikkon is better as its only business is making cameras. But I have seen pics of both cameras and they are equally good. The only differentiation that you can make between them is the features and price in the same bands /competing products. Pick up a camera that has the features that you like and is in your budget.

And once you have decided on a camera always go to a shop and pick it and feel it in your hands. I am not joking but I have felt this with my own camera, that it talks to you and somehow just feels right. 🙂