So you think you ought to get yourself a spanking new beginner digital camera that you have always fancied, but are worried about how much it might cost you? If that is so, then there is good news for you. The price of any beginner digital camera you might want has probably dipped to never before levels, and better, their quality has literally skyrocketed over the past year or so! Now is the time to make your move and grab a good beginner digital camera.

The situation is such that you can get a 5 to 6 MP point-and-shoot or compact beginner digital camera at the last year’s price of a 4 MP model, maybe even less!  Don’t believe me? I know; I didn’t believe it myself. Not until I checked. Because there was the 7-MP stunner, the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P150, selling for $370(online)!  It had entered the market at $500, and that’s a huge price drop – by more than a quarter! And it’s not alone.  Prices have really nosedived across price bands. As I was saying, it’s time to make a beeline for the store and get yourself a neat little beginner digital camera!  

So what’s a beginner digital camera going to cost you these days?

Best Buy

Experts in digital camera markets point out that the best buys in the beginner digital camera segment invariably pop up in the $200 - $300 range. That’s because this price bracket can support a good beginner digital camera – something with good optics, high image quality, and sufficient zoom range. I am talking about an image resolution of 5 to 7 megapixels, and a 3X + optical zoom.

So let me take a look at the bargain I am supposed to be getting for that $200-$300 I’m supposed to spend, and see what it has to offer in terms of specs and features:

1.  Good Optics:

Nice zoom lenses with an optical range of at least 3.5X. That would be the same as a 35 – 120 lens on a 35mm film camera – with enough wide angle for the indoors and landscapes, ideal telephoto for portraits with a beginner digital camera.

 

2. Large Exposure Range:

Lens apertures from F2.8 to F4.8 and shutter speeds from 4 seconds till 1/2000^th part of a second. That should give your beginner digital camera sufficient exposure range to shoot in almost all photographic situations.

 

3. Built in flash, usually pop-up

 

4. Optical viewfinder and moderate to large LCD display.

Incidentally, LCDs like monitors are measured in diagonal length.

 

5. The facility of shooting video clips with audio at lo-res (320X240 upwards).

 

6. At least 10 or more specific scene modes.

 

7. Continuous shooting at 1.3 or more frames per second.

 

8. Included and dedicated rechargeable batteries.

 

9. Robust body:

Made of tough polycarbonates or metal or hybrid, sturdy enough to take a few knocks and still keep going.

A word of caution won’t be amiss here. High megapixels are not the be-all and end-all of a good beginner digital camera. A bunch of specific scene modes are a much more useful facility to have. Sometimes the auto mode cannot handle difficult photographic situations too well, and you need manual exposure controls to tackle scenes like fireworks, moonlit nights, children playing, and snow-covered landscapes. A beginner digital camera worth its salt will have scene modes for just such situations.  

Camera size is yet another issue. You can carry around most beginner digital camera models in this segment comfortably in your jacket pocket. However, there are two types you can choose from – a slightly bulkier, miniature SLR type, and the dainty and charming kind. You might have to pay a bit more for the latter, though.   

Here are some examples of some nice beginner digital camera models under $300:  

You can get a 7.1 MP Fujifilm FinePix S700 for around $300. It boasts of a high 10X optical zoom similar to a 38-380mm lens in 35mm film camera, electronic viewfinder, and a 2.5” LCD.  It has the bulk and feel of a small digital SLR – something many people prefer to an ultra-compact with tiny controls that are difficult to reach.

Also selling just under $300 is the Olympus FE-240 with its 7.1 MP resolution and 3X zoom.

Among the ultra-compacts, you have Kodak EasyShare V550, with a weight of less than 6 oz. and a length under 4”.  It offers a resolution of 5 megapixels and a 3X optical zoom, but over twenty scene and color modes.

Another choice could be the HP Photosmart R727 with its tough, all stainless steel body, 6.4 MP, 3X optical zoom, 640X480 video, and ten scene modes.

Saving Options under $200

A beginner digital camera in this price range will be an older model.

1. Megapixels:

At this price, you will get less than 4 MP. A 3 – 3.5 MP camera can shoot images good enough for a 5X7 but no higher. An 8X10 print is likely to pixelate.

2. Optics:

A beginner digital camera under $200 will economize by substituting the optical zoom range with digital zoom. But optical zooms are the real thing; what digital zoom does on the camera, you can easily do on your computer with basic photo-editing software or even some image viewing ones.

However, a below-$200 digital camera will give you an inbuilt flash, a smallish LCD, autofocus lens, and while there will be few scene modes, red-eye reduction and auto-exposure are likely to be present.

The Canon PowerShot A75 (3.2 MP, 1.8” LCD, 12 scene modes) and the Canon PowerShot A400 (3.3 MP, 2.2X optical zoom, 8 scene modes) are two such beginner digital camera models in this price bracket.

The Dirt Cheap: Cheapest Digital Camera

In the price segment $20 to $100 for beginner digital camera models, you get very few features. Usual specs are a fixed focus (rather than an autofocus) lens with poor image quality, a small LCD and inbuilt flash (or none at all), and at best a 2 MP resolution that’ll give you only tolerable postcard prints.

A good example of this less-than-economy price segment for a beginner digital camera is the Kodak EasyShare CX6200 (about $80 online), which has a 2 MP resolution, 1.6” LCD, and no optical zoom.  Shop our online store for a digital camera for beginners.