Choosing Your First Digital Camera
Those megapixel numbers you see in the product description represent, in simple terms, the image quality you can expect to achieve at the camera’s highest setting. A megapixel is one million pixels, calculated as an area. If you think back to high school geometry, this means width times hight, and it’s the same formula used to calculate camera resolution. A pixel is the smallest unit of a digital picture, one dot of color and brightness information. When millions of these pixels are added up, you get the image you’re used to seeing on digital pictures or on computer screens. The difference between pixel numbers and that old high school equation, though, is that, in digital photography, the width and height are variable. So if you take a picture with the Olumpus Stylus 500 MP and print it on a standard 4″ x 6″ sheet of photo paper, you will, in theoery, see all 5 million of those pixels in the picture. In reality, this isn’t quite so, since it’s rarely physically possible to print images at that density or to display images of that density on a computer screen. So the primary advantage of purchasing a high-resolution digital camera comes when you’re looking to print your photos on bigger-sized paper, or when you’re looking to crop an image, highlight a certain segment of it, and enlarge that segment to the size of a normal photograph. With the higher-resolution cameras, even if you print your shots on larger media, you’ll still be able to view the majority of those five million pixels, thus rendering your pictures sharper, clearer, and more accurate.
The Olumpus Stylus 500 5MP boasts that its higher quality prints can be printed at sizes of up to 11″ x 14″ without any loss of quality. After taking a few pictures at the 5MP setting, a couple of portraits and a landscape, I uploaded the pictures to my PC by way of the super-fast USB 2.0 cable that came with the camera, then I burned the pictures onto a CD and took them to a local department store with a photo center for printing. After uploading the photos and enlarging them to 11″ x 14″, I printed them and received flawless prints, crisp and without the graininess you see in some lower-quality digital cameras. Since this is the basic requirement for a decent digital camera, it was good to be at least assured of the picture quality from the beginning. Other features are important too, though, especially as you get more familiar with photography and with your camera, so let’s take a look at some of the specifics of the Olympus.
The Olympus line of cameras uses the xD-Picture Card type of media. Pretty much every camera out there uses a different sort of storage media, from Flash to Memory Sticks, etc.. The xD-Picture Card is manufactured by both Olympus and FujiFilm, and 512mb card is available from Amazon.com for about $65. If you invest in one of these, you’ll probably have all the memory you need so that you’ll never run out of camera room. Even at the camera’s highest resolution, the 512mb card will provide space for about 100 shots. At lower resolutions, it can store even more. If you’re on vacation, for example, and you’re taking snapshots that you’re unlikely to have enlarged to bigger prints, it might be a good idea to scale down to the camera’s 4MP or even 3MP modes; the Olympus will still deliver amazing quality at standard print sizes, and you’ll clear up room on your memory card for a couple hundred more shots.
For picture-taking, the Olympus does everything it can to make the user experience as easy as possible. With 23 preset shooting modes, the camera comes pre-programmed with settings for shooting landscapes, portraits, night shots, and even fireworks. Some other cameras available provide as few as five or six shooting modes, so the Olympus definitely outpaces the conversation when it comes to high resolution cameras at the under-$200 price range. Furthermore, the Olympus boasts a 3x optical zoom for close-ups and more clear shots, and the oversized LCD display panel on the back is quite a bit larger than the standard display, 2.5″ versus 1.5″, which makes it much easier to review your shots after you’ve taken them to see if they came out alright. The display panel also offers visible viewing from 160 degrees, so you don’t have that pesky problem of having to stare right at it to see your picture. At about a pound and pretty slim, the Olympus Stylus 500 5MP is easy to slip into your purse or bookbag, and it can travel just about anywhere, as it’s protected from the elements by its all-weather casing.
Overall, it’s hard to find a better deal in this price range for a high-resolution, entry-level digital camera. But make no mistake; though this camera may be “entry-level”, it’s certainly capable of delivering the kind of quality photographs you’d expect from a professional. The only drawback: it could have a bigger zoom lens. But then again, you’re not going to find a sharper, better 3x optical zoom in the price range, so the Stylus still delivers. Whatever the reason, whether you’re looking to get started in photography, looking to upgrade from your analog point-and-shoot, or if you’re looking to inspire a friend or relative to start shooting photos, you won’t go wrong by making the Olympus Stylus 500 5MP your first foray into the world of digital photography.
