Choosing, Buying and Using a Digital Camera

Please allow me to share some of my experiences with buying and using a digital camera. I will let you know up front that I am not a real left-brained kinda guy, so if you are looking for lots of technical jargon, you will not find it here.

It also would be helpful for you to know that I recently turned 64, so I am sure that my writing reflects the bias of my age. Along with Paul McCartney, you can let me know if you will still love me after you read this article:)

Just choosing a digital camera can be a daunting task. The marketplace is so full; there are so many choices. Do some research in your favorite places and pick some cameras that are within your budget. Since I usually have champagne tastes and a beer pocketbook I decided early in the game to find something used where I could get more bang for my buck.

I went to the library and looked at Consumers Reports, which is always helpful and also looked at reviews in old photography magazines. Finally I checked out various review sites online; www.epinions.com has been around a long time.

I got some idea of what to look for and price ranges and then went to my favorite default shopping place, craigslist. (www.craigslist.org) Of course you could also go to ebay; there are lots of choices here too. I am a little old fashioned and prefer to see and touch something before I buy it, so craigslist works for me.

I found this Sony for sale from a guy fairly close by; I was living in Chicago at the time. I went over to his very cool old Victorian house in Wicker Park and we closed the deal.

I got the camera in a very nice little padded case with a few of the necessary connecting cords. As I recall I paid $125 for a camera that would have been much more expensive new. He did say that the only thing that didn't work on the camera was the movie function.

The guy I bought it from was one of these anal types so I felt pretty confident that he had taken good care of the camera. And he was honest enough to tell me what wasn't working so that was good. Now, several years later, I know I got a good deal.

The camera did not have a manual but I knew this was not a problem since most companies let you download and print out manuals from their website. This proved to be the case. It was a little daunting to discover that the manual was 102 pages. My first thought was this thing was way to complicated for my needs. It probably is but after plowing in and studying the manual I got a handle on the basics pretty quickly.

Although there are many, many settings for this camera, the basic ones are enough for the majority of people to take outstanding pictures. The cool thing about this camera is that it is so intelligent and forgiving that if you follow the basic procedures for taking pictures you are assured great results. I have been astounded and pleased with my results from this camera. If you can really see it with the eyes of a child, the device is amazing and magical.

The shutter button has two stages. You push it half way down, and the camera focuses the lens and adjusts for the light conditions. Then you squeeze it the rest of the way and the camera records the image. If you have low light conditions, the flash automatically activates, assuming you have set it to do so. Having spent years buying flash bulbs, this is another wonder that I really appreciate.

It has a USB cable connection for your computer so once you have taken your pictures it is a simple process to download them to your computer. You make the connection, turn the camera on, go to My computer, and look for the Sony memory icon. Click on that and all your pics come up for viewing and editing.

For us old timers whose association with photography is expensive film and time consuming processes, digital photography is truly amazing. I especially love having the freedom to take as many pictures as I want without thinking about cost. Discarding unwanted images is as easy as hitting the delete button. Gotta love it!

The other lovely thing is that you can just recharge the camera by plugging it in with the AC adapter so you don't even have to worry about replacing endless batteries.

If I want to edit images, I use Adobe Photo Deluxe home Edition, which is no doubt way outdated by now. But in this youth oriented culture so am I so it is all in the eye of the beholder:)

Since buying this camera, I have not only taken thousands of pictures of friends and family, arty pictures of landscapes and found art, but I have even moved into the realm of professional photography to some small degree.

I have been paid to have pics published on yelp.com, I have used the camera to do paid field inspections and mystery shopping, so it has easily paid for itself, not to mention the pleasure derived.

So go get a digital camera, it's a great tool!