The Search for the Best Digital SLR Camera

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Digital SLR cameras are becoming very popular. According to a 2007 IDC report, there were about 7.5 million digital cameras sold. Canon and Nikon cameras dominated the digital SLR market, with Olympus and Sony taking up a large portion of the leftover market-share. In fact, Canon and Nikon accounted for approximately 80% of the total digital SLR camera sales, Sony and Olympus accounted for about 12%, with Panasonic and Pentax also having significant digital SLR camera sales.

Further in the IDC report, Nikon emerged as a strong competition to Canon, thanks to Nikon introducing digital SLR cameras like the Nikon D40x and the Nikon D300. In fact, the IDC report states that Nikon replaced Canon as the number one digital SLR camera brand in Japan in 2007. “Nikon has always been a strong preference among professional photographers” says Minneapolis photographer Bob Dale.

Digital SLR, also known as dSLR, describes a camera with a digital single lens reflex. Single lens reflex describes the path light that travels through the lens to a mirror, which forwards the light to a viewfinder.

In more complex terms, the light gets to a pentaprism by coming through the lens and bouncing off a mirror that is at a 90-degree angle. As complex as it sounds, there is simply a mirror in front of the shutter. When you take a picture, the mirror lifts up so that the same light can then go through the shutter as it opens.

These intriguing cameras come from a variety of companies. In addition to Canon, Nikon, Olympus, and Sony, you can also choose from some other popular brands such as Panasonic and Pentax. These brands were once the same brands that were known as powerhouses of the 35mm film SLR camera marketplace.

Canon has long been known for the quality of its cameras. Currently, the Canon EOS line of cameras is among the best lines of digital SLR cameras on the market. It consistently earns high praise from consumers for being simple, having plenty of options, and providing great pictures.

The Canon EOS digital SLR cameras take high resolution pictures of up to 10.1 megapixels. In fact, the Canon 30D and Canon Digital Rebel camera series also provide you with 10.1 megapixels.

You will generally find Canons at the top of digital SLR camera review lists. Whether these reviews are compiled by Canon owners or by product testers, the results tend to favor Canon digital SLR cameras.

Nikon is another respected manufacturer of digital SLR cameras. The recent Nikon D series of digital SLR cameras has carried on the strong reputation for Nikon cameras as being among the best in the world.

At the top of the Nikon D series is the Nikon D300 digital SLR. It features a large LCD screen to show you what your picture will look like before you take it and what your picture looks like after you take it. But the price of the Nikon D300 is currently running at about $1,700. If you are looking for professional quality digital photography, this digital SLR camera is a good choice.

If you’re a novice digital photographer or you want a less expensive Nikon digital camera, there’s the Nikon D40, which has a 6.1 megapixel that is just perfect for most users. It has a compact design too, making it ideal for those who don’t want to carry a clunky camera around. You can get this digital SLR anywhere from $450 to $650. “It’s a great choice for doing travel photography” says professional digital photographer Bob Dale.

Still there’s the Nikon Coolpix P5100, one of the top rated digital SLR cameras in the point-and-shoot category. This camera has both automatic and manual control (zoom, focus and exposure), making it ideal for casual photographers. It has a 2.5-inch LCD display that you can use when setting up your shots instead of the viewfinder. This digital SLR camera retails between $200 and $300.

If you want an affordable digital zoom camera, go with any of the Panasonic Lumix DMC cameras. Panasonic introduced the first in its Lumix DMC series in 2001 and since then has come out with over 60 models with 1.9 to 10.1 megapixels and zoom capabilities between 10x to 12.5x.

Panasonic digital cameras in general tend to be portable and reliable for taking pictures on the go. With most new models being in the $400 range, the Panasonic Lumix DMC cameras provide good pictures without requiring a big photography budget.

Just as Pentax was once a respected name in 35mm film SLR photography, it is gaining respect as a manufacturer of digital SLR cameras. Pentax cameras have a reputation for quality at fair prices. Pentax still remains competitive in these areas.

Pentax makes lines of digital SLR cameras for both professional photographers and amateur photographers. Two of the most popular Pentax digital SLR product lines are the Pentax K series and the Pentax optio series. These digital SLR camera consistently get good reviews for both photo quality and camera features.

As you can see, there are a lot of fine digital SLR cameras on the market. There are good digital SLR options for just about any serious amateur or professional photographer’s budget. Basically, it comes down to a trade off between what features you need and how much you want to pay.

A few of the other things you’ll want to keep in mind when comparing digital SLR options are battery life, battery cost, camera warranty, and storage media options. But mainly, you will want to get a memory card that can hold 1,000 or more high resolution photos. After you invest a great deal of money in a camera, you will want to be sure you won’t run out of storage space when you’re out shooting photos and you visualize that perfect picture.