The best thing about digital SLR cameras are their speed and responsiveness. You won’t miss out on great shots because your camera is too slow.
This scenario might be familiar to compact camera users.
You want to take a quick shot at an event. Your digital compact camera is unable to focus.
The camera locks the focus. Now you press the button. BUT, there is a DELAY. After a second, the camera takes the shot.
It’s gone, you’ve lost it.
You will be as frustrated as I was by this, but digital SLRs won’t suffer from delays. They respond instantly and can take multiple shots, one after another.
Built for speed
Why is it that some compact cameras are so slow while 相機鏡頭 are so fast? It’s electronic vs. mechanics.
The shutter blocks light from the digital SLR camera by sitting in front of it.
When you take photos, the shutter (made of two curtains), opens and closes.
This is different to a compact camcorder, which has no shutter mechanism. The electronic activation of the sensor in compact cameras is done every time you take an image.
The mechanical solution offers the advantage of being instantaneous. You simply press the shutter button and it opens instantly.
When you want to take the photo of your life, there is no time limit.
If this were the only benefit of digital SLR camera, it would be enough for anyone frustrated by a slow compact camera.
These are some additional resources for anyone still skeptical.
A Lens for Every Occasion
I am indecisive.
I didn’t declare a major in college for months. I struggled to decide what I wanted to do with my life almost a full year after graduation.
This is why a digital camera with a built-in lens is so perfect for me.
If I am looking to photograph landscapes, I use a wide-angle lens. I use a macro lens to photograph bugs and plants. I use a Telephoto Lens to take photos of my Labrador. It can be used even when I am halfway across the field.
One camera can take many lenses.
Yes, I know, but what about those compact cameras that have mega-zooms and are now available in small, lightweight models? There is only one lens that can do everything.
It comes down again to speed.
Because the zoom motor is driving the compact camera, zoom lenses can take some time to zoom in or out. Digital SLRs can be controlled manually by the user. You can zoom in and out as fast as you want.
High Quality with Low Light
Digital SLR cameras offer a distinct advantage: they can take photos even in dimly lit areas.
But what’s the point? It doesn’t matter if there’s not much light, any camera can still take photos. All you have to do is turn on the flash.
This is the secret: Digital SLR cameras can do it without a flash.
Digital SLRs can take photos in low light conditions thanks to a feature called ISO. It makes the digital sensor more sensitive.
Many compact digital cameras can also change the ISO setting. However, there is one crucial difference. The ISO setting can be increased to increase the camera’s light sensitivity. This will add grain or noise to the image.
When it comes to ISO, the advantage of digital SLR camera is that they produce very little noise even at high ISO settings. The same is true for compact cameras.
Digital SLRs are great for taking photos in dark conditions.
You have control
This is my favorite feature of digital SLR camera.
I don’t like machines making decisions for me. Although it may be right most of time, it doesn’t always work. The human brain is better at judging scenes than a camera set up to automatically.
You have full control over every shot you take with a digital SLR and can’t rely on the camera for your choices.
Do not be intimidated if you aren’t ready to move to a fully-manual camera.
You can use the automatic setting on every digital SLR camera. The intermediate steps allow you to have greater control over your images.