Cameras

For the Elctronic Researcher on a budget (aren't we all?), we will be looking at cameras at the lower price ranges that are suitable for use in electronic research with the minimum of add-ons such as special lenses or other often-expensive accessories. There are a number of digital camera characteristics important to us as electronic researchers:

Image-size: This capability is measured in mega-pixels (an expression of how many bits of information are contained in the maximum image size the camera is capable of acquiring). For our purposes the minimum useful rating for a digital camera is 3 mega-pixels.

Lens: The critical element is the lens ‘speed’ – a feature that is expressed in terms of f-stops. The typical digital camera has a lens a lens range from f/2 to f/16 with f/2 being the ‘faster’ setting. Any digital camera with a lens speed slower than f/4 will not be suitable for the low light situations typically encountered in libraries and archives.

Zoom: Digital cameras advertise their lenses in terms of their zoom capability – 3x or more is typical. Make sure that this zoom capability is optical not digital – optical zoom capability refers to the quality/complexity of the lens and it is better to have higher numbers. Digital zoom refers to what the camera’s software can do to a picture after it is taken by enlarging the image pixels – similar to what image software does on a computer, except worse – you want to avoid using the camera’s digital zoom function if you can help it.

Controls: The next important feature to look at in a digital camera is the imaging control available and whether or not it has user settings for specific lighting and camera positioning situations and/or a manual-imaging mode.

Tripod capable: Another important requirement for the electronic researcher is the ability of the camera to be mounted on a tripod or copy-stand – this is particularly important as lighting conditions in many facilities will make hand-held photography impractical, if not impossible. A tripod capable camera has a special threaded hole in the bottom where the tripod (or copy stand) screw mount can be attached.

Batteries: The camera should also have readily available rechargeable batteries with charger and an A/C power adapter. Always carry a fully charged spare!

Storage media: The form of the storage media used by the camera is important. It is critical to ensure that your storage media is upgradeable, easy to use, and that you can download your images to a computer either directly from the camera or via its storage medium.

There are also a number of basic accessories that you should purchase with your camera – at least one extra rechargeable battery so that you always have a fully charged back-up, a spare storage medium should also be carried with the camera (there is nothing so frustrating as running out of image space without the ability to download images and clear your digital storage), and a camera bag capable of carrying the camera and its accessories (battery charger, spare batteries, spare storage media, cables). For those with more generous budgets a digital remote cable release is a very useful accessory for capturing images in low-light conditions – make sure your camera is capable of using it before acquiring one.

There are a number of websites where you can directly compare digital cameras by manufacturer and model, often including use reviews – for purposes of this article the Digital Photography Review site was used, as was Dave’s Picks List on the Imaging Resource website. For price comparisons the Biz Rate shopping search site is very useful, as well as providing good details of the camera features. A number of cameras were investigated – the results that follow are for those found to be the most suitable for the Electronic Researcher.

 

Camera	Image size	Minimum Focus Range	Memory media	Optical zoom	Weight	Price
Nikon Coolpix 5700	5 megapixels	1.2 inches	Compact Flash	8x	1.1 lbs	$400.00
Canon Powershot G5	5 megapixels	2 inches	Compact Flash	4x	0.9 lbs	$409.95
Canon Powershot S400	4 megapixels	2 inches	Compact Flash	3x	0.4 lbs	$280.00
Canon Powershot G2	4 megapixels	2 inches	Microdrive Compatible, Compact Flash	3x	1.12 lbs	$310.00
Nikon Coolpix 4300	4 megapixels	1.6 inches	Compact Flash Card	3x	0.49 lbs	$204.00
Nikon Coolpix 995	3.34 megapixels	0.827 inches	Compact Flash Card	4x	0.9 lbs	$379.95
Nikon Coolpix 880	3.3 megapixels	1.6 inches	Compact Flash Card	2x	0.8 lbs	$270.00
Fuji FinePix 3800	3.3 megapixels	3.4 inches	xD-Picture Card	6x	0.63 lbs	$189.00
Sony Mavica MVC-CD352	3.2 megapixels	3.9 inches	CD-RW	3x	1.15 lbs	$279.00
Fuji FinePix S3000	3.2 megapixels	3.6 inches	xD-Picture Card	6x	0.62 lbs	$198.00
Canon Powershot a70	3.2 megapixels	2 inches	Compact Flash Card	3x	0.5 lbs	$168.00
Nikon Coolpix 3200	3.14 megapixels	1.6 inches	Compact Flash Card	3x	0.5 lbs	$250.00

 

The Digital Photography Review site is at http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare.asp. Dave’s Picks List on the Imaging Resource is at http://www.imaging-resource.com/WB/WB.HTM. The Biz Rate shopping search site is very useful at http://shop.bizrate.com/buy/browse__cat_id--402.html. The information used in this table was gathered from the web on 3/31/2004.