Lab

Digital cameras

Digital cameras have hit the mainstream in the past 12 months. Both business and home users have been attracted by a winning combination of falling prices and ever-increasing photo quality. You can now buy a camera that produces stunning results for under £200, but there are reasons to pay more, as we discover.

In fact, digital cameras have a natural split at the £300 mark. Entry-level cameras - those in the sub-£300 group - are best suited to anyone without a camera or people converting from APS or 35mm compact cameras. They have fully automatic modes to make 'point and shoot' photography possible, while the best offer extra controls if you need them.

The more expensive cameras are best purchased as replacements for complex 35mm cameras or even SLRs. With manual adjustment available for settings such as focus, aperture and shutter speed, these allow more demanding photographers to achieve the best images. They boast huge resolutions, with up to 4.9-megapixel CCDs.

Generally, the more you pay, the higher a camera's megapixel rating. Not that this is a solid rule, as we seen two 4-megapixel cameras for under £300, and recommend a 2-megapixel camera over one with twice its resolution. Why? Because megapixels are only part of the quality story. The lens and other controls play an equally important role in creating good images. David Bailey gives more insight into this with his special one-off guide to getting the most out of digital photography on p98.

The overall image quality of digital cameras has markedly improved from when we did this group test last year (see Labs, issue 86), and the price of well-specified and simple-to-use cameras has tumbled. There's no better time to make the swap from film to digital and, with prices ranging from £112 to £739, this Labs is bound to offer the right camera for you.

Bailey on digital photography
Digital dilemmas
* How and when do you use digital photography? - One reason we use digital at the moment is because of X-rays. It's basically a backup in case the film gets X-rayed at the airport and ruined. It's a drag, as you've always got to take a laptop with you whenever you go on location, but it's a good backup.

* How do you store your digital images?
We burn them onto either CD or DVD when we're on location because the hard disk probably wouldn't be large enough for a location shoot with a lot of professional-quality images. We don't do any editing while we're shooting - we just save the images and don't usually use them unless there's something wrong with the film. Touch wood, nothing's ever been wrong with the film, even with X-rays, but it's good to have the backup, just in case.

* Do you think digital will replace film in the future?
i don't think it's a foregone conclusion, although it's going to keep growing. Most amateurs use digital because it's so convenient. On the other hand, as long as there's Kodak, Ilford and Agfa there will still be film. Film and digital photography offer different qualities and have different advantages. There's still something nice about getting pictures back from the chemist.

* People are always comparing the quality of film and digital images. What are your thoughts?
One isn't better than the other - one's just a better quality, but they both have a place. If I were a catalogue or a food photographer, I'd shoot in digital all the time. I've been using digital since it first came out, just not for all my work.

* What's holding the digital scene back?
I think the price is stopping a lot of people. The new Canon with 11 million pixels is expected to be £8,000 or so, which is a lot for someone who doesn't do photography for a living. I think the low-end cameras have got to be quicker at taking the image. At the moment, they're like when auto-focus first came out on film cameras. They muck about before they actually take the image and then the moment's gone. As soon as they get that right - which I guess will be in the next generation - there'll be no point in not using digital if you're an amateur.
* How much emphasis should people put on lens quality and what should they look for in determining how good a lens might be?
It's very important. You can tell simply by the price. If two lenses say they have the same specification and one is £1,500 and the other's £400, the first one's going to be a lot better.

* To what extent should a digital zoom influence a purchase?
I never use a digital zoom. When you try and make the image larger than it actually is, you're going to lose quality. It depends what you want, but digital zoom is nowhere near the same quality as optical.

* How many megapixels would you recommend as a minimum?
I'd be looking at around 10 million pixels, but that's what I'd need for professional work. I haven't really used the lower-resolution cameras aimed at amateurs.

* What aperture range and shutter speed range should people be looking for? Is it important that these can be set manually?
An aperture range of between f2 and f22 is ideal and you need from Bulb (open) to 1/10,000th of a second shutter speed.

* How does digital ISO compare with film ISO?
There doesn't seem to be much difference between 100 and 800 on digital, at least on the high-end cameras. Again, I don't know about the 'toy' cameras. They're certainly getting closer to being on an equal footing.

* How can digital photographers counter digital 'noise'?
The only real way around it is to use the best quality equipment.

* What creative controls should you be looking for when buying a digital camera and why/how would you need them?
I'd never use automatic settings, so I think as many controls as possible are a must. There are ways of altering the image with curves and levels that give you more control and better quality. But all that creative stuff is rubbish - if it looks good it's okay, and if it doesn't look good it's not okay.

* How do you get a narrow depth of field on CCD?
There's the option of shooting wide open using as wide an aperture setting as possible. But you can always create the effect afterwards with layers using editing software. You can make the background blurred and bring out what you want. But it's best not to mess about with the original image. Always save the original image and then work on a copy.

* To what extent would you encourage image editing with computer software and how does this affect the end image quality?
Editing is editing. What's most important is the quality of the original image. I wouldn't be worried about how I'm going to print or edit - more what I'm going to print. As long as you save a copy of the original image before you start mucking around with editing there shouldn't be a problem.

* Are there any differences in lighting techniques that people should consider when moving to digital?
In a way, digital is more forgiving than film on lighting because it's easier to play with it afterwards.

* What are the most common mistakes you see as people make the transition from film to digital photography?
Because so much of photography is really about the picture, digital is just another paintbrush and you tend to see the same mistake of poor composition, subject and lighting.

* How much impact would the use of a tripod make when using a digital camera?
It depends on the subject, but it's just as important in digital photography as it is with film.

* What are the pros and cons of using the LCD instead of the viewfinder?
I never use them - I always look through the viewfinder as I find it easier. The LCD does, however, help to show you that things are working okay.

* How do you deal with monochrome photography in digital?
Shoot in colour and then change it in Photoshop. That's really the only way.

Printing photos
* What attributes would you be looking for in a printer for digital photography?
Obviously, you want good quality, but the most important thing to professionals is often speed. Some printers can take more than 16 minutes to knock out a quality image, while others can print in four minutes. That makes a big difference.

* What are the printing differences between film and digital?
There's not too much difference. It's all got to go through the computer.

* What resolution is best for printing and for email?
You want the highest resolution possible, but email can restrict the size of files you can send so you might have to compromise.