Top 10 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Buying A Digital Camera

Hi Everyone,

So, you may know... Millions of digital cameras have been purchased over the years ranging from $30 to well over $10,000. Most people only suggest that some of these purchases led to satisfied consumers while others led to frustrated users. How can you be sure to be a satisfied digital camera consumer and avoid the frustrations felt by many?

Start by asking yourself these important questions before you go into a store or start shopping at your favorite website. Doing so will provide you with a confident starting point and help you to more quickly identify products that best suit your needs or desires.


1. Who is going to use this camera?

2. What kind(s) of photographs are going to be taken?

3. Where will the photographs be taken?

4. Where will the user be in relation to the subject of the photograph?

5. Is the size of the camera important to the user and, if it is, HOW important is it?

6. What is your maximum budget and target budget for this purchase?

7. What will the pictures be used for after they are taken?

8. What is the user's current level of photography experience?

9. Does the user want to increase their photography knowledge and be able to do more with cameras in the future?

10. What technology does the intended user of the camera already own?



1. Who is going to use this camera?

It's a straight forward question, but important to answer as a starting point. Is this camera going to be given to a child as a gift? Is this a camera for a grandfather who is still catching onto the concept of email? Is this a camera that will be used by a student in college who is taking classes in photography or photojournalism? Is this going to be used by ... YOU? Answering this simple question is a surprisingly easy way to get you started on the right path.


2. What kind(s) of photographs are going to be taken?

A critical question to answer that will likely determine a significant portion of the outcome of your buying decision - what kinds of pictures are going to be taken most often with the camera? Will you be taking a lot of action shots of kids participating in school sports or that new pet you've adopted? Will you be taking shots of scenic vacation vistas? What about low-light shots or night shots? Portraits? Close-up photography for appraisals of collectibles? It’s important to identify this because no all cameras, even when advertising similar sounding features, perform at the same level. Some cameras have a very fast shutter and are great for action shots, while others do not have a great shutter speed and try to mask it by offering a similar sounding 'action' or 'sports' mode that artificially enhances the cameras performance while you are shooting. That difference can be quite obvious when you are looking at the pictures you've taken. Further, while most cameras offer a 'macro' mode or a 'close-up' mode, few cameras truly deliver here. So this question and answer is critical to pointing you to the right options.


3. Where will the photographs be taken?

Here's a question that most people think about at least at some level - where will I be using this camera when I am taking my pictures? If you have a pool outside your house and find that the pool is where you end up taking the majority of your pictures, you are going to want to make sure your camera is at least water resistant (if not water-proof) and/or shock resistant - trust me. If you never take your camera outside, you can probably buy anything you want without much fear of it finding moisture, sand or concrete - three of the most deadly substances known to digital camera bodies. With everything available, from completely waterproof cameras that you can go diving with in the Caribbean to very sensitive equipment you would never want to allow a rain drop to find, this is just another question that helps you refine down your options.


4. Where will the user be in relation to the subject of the photograph?

We're talking zoom and image stabilization, here. How much zoom a user needs in a camera is extremely important. And, to be clear here, we're talking optical zoom only. Do not take any value in "digital zoom" - digital zoom is simply a software enabled enhancement where pixels are enlarged to make it appear that you are closer to the subject than you really are. You lose resolution and clarity when you use digital zoom, so don't even think about it.

If the user is going to be shooting sports scenes of their kids playing school sports, you must remember that you will consistently be a fair distance away from the action and so the need for zoom is high. If the user will be taking mostly macro photography of collectibles for appraisal, you can safely assume that the macro feature is the most important and so getting a bigger optical zoom doesn't have much importance. Generally speaking, everyone could use all the optical zoom they can find, but some need it even more so than others.

Secondly, is the subject being photographed moving? Or is the user taking the picture moving while shooting? If the answer to either of those questions is 'yes' you should consider the value in a camera having image stabilization and if you answer the question in a manner such as "always", you should consider it nearly mandatory. Also, on another level, if the user of this camera has unsteady hands you should definitely consider this feature. It will greatly enhance the number of clear shots taken.


5. Is the size of the camera important and, if it is, HOW important is it?

For some people, a digital camera must be able to fit in a purse or a pocket. Some people even have a specific pocket that they want their camera to be able to fit into. For others, the size of the camera does not matter at all; they simply want the Digital SLR because it allows them to use a specific lens that they own which gets them zoomed into the action. Nobody can tell you or recommend to you a camera that suits this need best - only the user can define this. From experience, I can tell you that for years people wanted the smaller camera. Small cameras sold like hotcakes and people looked down upon cameras in the showcase that looked bulky compared to the small, slim, sleek model. In the last year or so, I've noticed more people looking for a camera that they have an easier time holding onto, while still respectably small and modern looking. You'll find that if it is very important for the user to have a small camera, this feature will tend to override most other features available. Simply put, if a user wants a smaller camera they will focus on the size aspect at the obvious expense of both features and price.


6. What is your maximum budget and target budget for this purchase?

I always suggest people make two budgets for this type of purchase. Come up with your maximum budget for the camera purchase and stick to it. If you don't want to spend over $300, fine. If you aren't sure, but know you definitely don't want to spend over $1,000, okay. Identify this, and I encourage you to stick with it. Find a target budget, too. Identify that level where you really want to be in. Maybe you want to be in the $400 range but you are willing to go up to $550 as your max. That's good as it will give you a little flexibility and probably prevent you from getting stuck on just one or two models. If you can get yourself to be able to identify 3 or 4 cameras in two typical "retail" sounding price brackets (e.g. the $399.99 and $499.99 levels) you will find you have good options to choose from.

Last piece on budget: I recommend that your budget include roughly 15% - 25% worth of extras - it's these extras that enable you to use the camera either properly or to it's fullest. These extras will include memory cards, cases, tripods, batteries... or maybe portable external storage for those of you taking a high volume of pictures. So if your max budget is $500 keep in mind that really means you're looking at a $400 - $450 camera and $50 - $100 worth of accessories. Going without these accessories is not like going without window dressings or the perfect tool to add to your toolbox - these are accessories you will use and will enable to you be satisfied with your purchase. In some cases, accessories like a tripod or a big enough memory card could make the difference in being able to take the picture you want to take or not being able to do so.


7. What will happen to the pictures after they are taken?

This used to be a much more important question in the buying process and one that every salesperson should have asked their potential customer back when cameras were 1, 2, and 3 megapixels maximum. Now that almost every camera produced is capturing 5 megapixel shots and up, you can pretty much rest assured that anything you buy now will be capable of taking photographs that you can print with solid results. Still, if you intend to print a lot, or especially if you intend to print larger sized prints or something for a more special occasion or purpose – something suitable for framing perhaps – you should invest in a camera that gets you the as much detail as possible. There is a fairly significant difference in the details of pictures printed that were taken on a 5MP camera vs. those taken on a 9 MP camera. Conversely, if all you are going to do is store these photos or e-mail them to friends and family who are also unlikely to print them, you could find that the ultra-large size photos taken by a 9MP camera may appear as an inconvenience because of how much space they take up on memory cards, hard drives or e-mail attachments – not to mention that higher resolution cameras are more expensive, and why pay extra for something you’re not going to get any value from.


8. What is the user's current level of photography experience?

If the person using the camera is a barely-into-technology beginner, it is not wise to get them a digital SLR or other digital camera that has lots of manual creative control capability. For starters that will drive the price up and you will be paying for features that the user may never understand, let alone use. Further, the camera will tend to be bigger and more bulky, the user manual more difficult to get through. Some of these advanced cameras will also contain features that appear during even the most basic of tasks and that can frustrate a novice user. Conversely, it does little good to purchase an inexpensive, entry-level camera for someone who wants to do a lot more than leave the thing in automatic mode and shoot.


9. Does the user want to increase their photography knowledge and be able to do more with cameras in the future?

This question may get an answer that trumps that of the previous question. If the user of this camera is looking to grow with the camera, maybe it makes sense to spend a little extra to get some creative control so that the user is then ready for a bigger step at a later time. Or, maybe the user won't want to get into another camera for a while and so needs this one to give them a lot of room to grow. It's a fact that most users power on their cameras out of the box to use them and never take them off of the automatic mode in subsequent events. Some users go a step further, using the pre-programmed shooting modes the cameras come with (night shot, sports, scenery, etc) or learn how to turn the flash off and on and then stop there. But if the user of the camera wants to learn how to change the exposure settings, shoot in RAW or TIFF format, or just otherwise shoot more advanced photography, it might be best to get that user a camera that gets them started well and gives them room to grow.


10. What technology does the intended user of the camera already own?

The last important thing to consider is if the user of the camera already owns technology that they want to use with the camera, or that would help save some money during the purchase. On a simple level, if someone already owns a digital camera that uses Secure Digital memory cards, you should think twice before purchasing a camera that takes xD memory cards. Why purchase new memory cards unless you have to? But on a more complex level, if a user wants to connect the camera to a device or wants to transfer the photos in a certain manner the camera must be able to provide for this. You can also save yourself some money if you have the connectivity figured out as well.

Examples of this: Say the user of a digital camera just wants to take the memory card out of the digital camera and use a reader that is built into their laptop to transfer the pictures they've taken. This is a pretty easy concept and something all cameras can do. At the same time, it would not make much sense to purchase a camera that has Wi-Fi capability if a user wishes to only transfer photos in this manner. Of course, if a user wants to use a Wi-Fi network to transfer photos to their PC or laptop, you better make sure that the camera purchased can handle the task.

Also, find out what printer(s) will be used. Some printers have convenient dock-type connectors built into them that allow users of cameras made by the same company to do some common tasks a bit more intuitively (such as Kodak's offerings). If a printer like this is already owned it would make a lot of sense to consider working within that same brand. If the printer doesn't have an interface like that, then this considerations doesn't apply - A person does not get a lot of extra value when using a Canon camera with a Canon printer, for example.




So there you have it. A solid list of questions to ask that will allow you to identify some options that will help lead towards a more satisfying digital camera purchase. After going through these questions you should not have a difficult time drilling down from hundreds of camera options to 3-6 that really make a lot of sense for you or the person you are shopping for.

Check back later for more digital camera shopping tips to learn how to pick that perfect camera.

Cheers!