Digital Cameras - What Are Some of the Newer Features You Should Know About?

So, what's been happening in the digital camera world?

If you are in the market for a new digital camera and haven't looked at them for awhile, you will be in for a surprise. It's another world out there.

Super Zoom Digital Cameras

First of all, the super zoom digital cameras have become so much more powerful. Many will have a 24 optical zoom and some even go higher. Wow...what fun. The higher the zoom level the closer you can zoom in for sports, nature photography or anything else you want a closeup shot of.

Wide Angle Cameras

Wide angles have become wider also. While 35mm used to be the norm, you'll now found 28mm to be pretty common. Some will go even wider than that. I am talking about regular point and shoot cameras, not digital SLR cameras with their own specialized lenses.

Noise Free High ISO Cameras

ISO settings have gone a lot higher too. 3200 ISO/ No problem. You can easily find cameras with this setting. The trick, however, is to choose one that will not create a lot of noise at the higher settings and now there are some that will do that.

Mega pixels

It's so easy now to find both inexpensive and expensive cameras with a minimum of 10 megapixels and often 12. This is advantageous if you do a lot of cropping of your pictures, since many megapixels still remain for good detail and resolution.

Face Detection

Face Detection is something that many digital cameras offer. With this feature, a camera can detect a face, focus on it, and choose the best exposure. This comes in handy if you are photographing groups of people in particular.

Automatic Scene Settings

First there was just automatic mode. Then camera manufacturers created Scene modes, where you could choose which scene best matched what you were taking. For example, if you were shooting a landscape, you would choose landscape mode, and the camera automatically adjusted all the settings

Now there is Automatic Scene Mode. You don't even have to choose the scene...the camera does it depending on what you are photographing!

Maybe next, we can just sit on our porch with a drink, look at something, and by voice command tell the camera to shoot!

Image Stabilization

To eliminate or reduce the effects of hand shake, look for a camera with image stabilization. It works to decrease or eliminate picture blur.

Video Recording

Being able to shoot video in still cameras has been around. However, now you can do so in high definition and play it on a big screen tv.

Many of these features have become run of the mill. You can find them in most of the newer cameras. In addition....

Digital SLR camera prices have come way down in price. You now get so much more in a camera for the same price that you used to pay. Hybrid cameras have appeared. These cameras are in between point and shoot cameras and DSLR cameras. They have interchangeable lenses but are much smaller and light weight.

Choose a camera based on the features you will be using most, or decide on one that has most of all the options above. This type of camera will not be hard to find and will not be too expensive either.