Mesmerizing!

Vivid Sydney

Somewhere down the memory line!

Trek to Kedarkanth.

More photographs with few helpful techniques that would help you click beautiful ones coming soon.

Portrait Photography

Portrait are best shoot when the subject is comfortable with the lens. In order to ensure this, one simple rule is to play it natural. Here are few excerpts of the work I have done in this regards.

Selecting a "Point and Shoot" Camera

It’s a very important step to select a camera which suits your requirement. Thanks to the technological advancement and cut-throat competition in this arena, consumer is facilitated with many camera options these days. Although all the cameras in the Point & Shoot Category provides fine images to meet ones daily requirement, it is very much essential to know your camera before making a buy. With the market thriving with camera giants like Nikon, Canon Sony, etc. few new comers such as Samsung, Panasonic have also penetrated well into the market. Here are few tips while making a purchase for your “Point and Shoot” camera.

1.     Selecting a Camera

1.1  Which Camera Make to prefer?

With lots of options available these days, one might wonder which camera to go for. Here an easiest way to answer. Most of the Camera Giants like Nikon, Canon, Sony etc. has got a good hold on the digital photography market, there are few unsung heroes like Pentax, Olympus who also provide cameras with almost the same features but has lost the luster due to some reason. However, in general opinion it won’t matter much which camera you purchase for a budget of below Rs. 11K. There might be difference in opinions like “Canon is the best” or “I Love Nikon” or “Sony gives fine quality pictures” but in general it’s the sole discretion of the buyer to go for a particular make.

1.2  Lenses on Digital Camera

Here comes the technical part which one should not neglect if you are thinking of some serious photography. As a beginner, one should know that Lens are one of the prime factors which could make your photography very interesting. Details of the Lens parameters won’t be discussed during this session, however, one should look into these specified aspects before finalizing your camera.

Check the focal length of the lens provided….most of the budget cameras provide a range of 18mm-55mm lens which is considered as the most basic of all lens. However, few Bridge Cameras (i.e. Cameras having High Optical Zoom) provide a wider scope. One can easily figure out the approximate Optical Zoom which the Lens could provide. Just divide the later with the preceding number….i.e. 55/18 which is approx. 3. Thus, the terminology of 3x optical zoom.

Sony W series provides with Carl Zeis Lens which is considered one of the best lenses for Point and Shoot Cameras. Nonetheless, other camera manufacturers are not left behind due to Sony’s utilization of high grade lenses. One could notice hardly any difference in the picture quality.

1.3  Megapixels comes Third

Here’s another aspect one should look into before making a decision. In today’s market, one can easily get a camera with a Sensor capacity greater than 7.1 megapixels. Please do not fall prey to the myth that higher megapixel are better. Higher megapixels only come to a play when one is looking for huge size photograph printouts. There won’t be any noticeable change with a 10.0 megapixel and a 12.0 megapixel Point and Shoot camera. However it’s smart to buy a camera with a capacity greater than 7.0 megapixels

1.4  Modes Available

Modes play an important role while capturing moments. It can make the scene look much better to be kept in memories. This is an interesting feature which camera manufactures are providing their costumers these days. While most of the cameras provide the basic modes like Macro, Portrait, Landscape, Night, etc. there are few cameras which provides Panorama, Aperture/Shutter priority which enhances the users photography experience.

1.5  Optical and Digital Zoom

Though use of Digital Zoom wont be preferred but during the time of crisis it’s a very good tool. Hence, always see that the camera provides the digital zoom feature along with the optical zoom. In my opinion, if you are planning to purchase a camera with 3x to 5x optical zoom, please do check whether it has the facility for Digital Zoom. Who knows when this feature might come handy.

1.6  The Built

Now here’s the most tricky part, the camera built quality/design. Point and Shoot cameras are meant to be handy and agile. While Nikon Sony and Canon are best in this class, one could also look for Panasonic/Samsung if they are looking for something different. There are no drawbacks in these manufacturers either, its just the market trend people follow which forces them to purchase the “Most Famous”. Check the Flash properties along with the battery stamina (Don’t prefer cameras with AA size batteries-of course it’s my personal opinion). These two parameters would be suffice to finalize your camera.

Few Budget Cameras- My Preferred List

1.       Canon Power Shot SX140 IS/SX150 IS/SX 160 IS

2.       Nikon Coolpix S6300

3.       Sony W690/W730

Canon Powershot SX160 IS

Nikon S6300

Sony W730

I hope this article was of some value to the readers. In case of any clarification or suggestions please feel free to contact. Hope you enjoyed reading. Stay glued to this section for more interesting “know- How” about photography. See you next week.