Capturing a photo has never been easier, yet more confusing with the variety of cameras available. The family holiday point and shoot vs the more technical DSLR cameras. Do you need easy operation in a compact little model or will you need the more advanced DSLR that produce a high quality image. A point and shoot camera does exactly what the name suggests. These cameras are pocket sized which makes them easy to whip out when that perfect pose pitches up.
Most point and shoot cameras are extremely light weight and it’s not necessary to lug around extra equipment such as tripods and camera bags. All point and shoot cameras come with fixed lenses which brings a new meaning to flash photography. This type of camera is much cheaper than a DSLR and a lot easier to maintain. On the down side, point and shoot cameras are not upgradeable which means you are stuck with what you have.
They are also not designed for night photography and they are limited in how fast they can capture an image making them a poor choice when considering action or sport photographs. DSLR cameras have a much bigger sensor than your average point and shoot cameras which mean a higher quality picture. They have a better sensitivity in dark or dim environments which makes them perfect for night photography.
All professional action and sport photographs are done with DSLR cameras because of their ability to catch up to 10 frames per second. DSLR cameras have reflex mirrors through which you look through instead of a physical see-through hole in the camera itself. This type of camera has a lot of buttons and twice as many settings as a point and shoot camera and once you have mastered them, you can easily flip back and forth between the settings if necessary.
These cameras have a wide variety of lenses ranging from super wide to telephoto. This is one of the things that make a DSLR camera not only pricier but also an excellent professional investment which will launch your photography hobby to a whole new level.
What is the Point and Shoot camera?
A point and shoot camera is the simplest still camera available. It can be used with little instruction and is easy to operate. The basic point and shoot camera consists of a compact housing, this is achieved by eliminating all the internal mechanisms, and accessory mounts associated with a DSLR camera. A DSLR camera has to accommodate al the mechanisms for adjustment of its optical performance.
To simplify, you need a whole lot of gizmos inside the camera to work in harmony, simply to take one picture. The view finder of a DSLR peeks through the lens itself, via a mirror mechanism. Point and shoot camera has a view finder built in, with some optics to get a better idea of what the picture will look like. Some have a digital screen on the back that doubles as a view finder.
The compact size of the point and shoot models can be attributed to the lack of internal mechanisms that do the finer adjustments. The lens, focus and aperture are fixed. There are no mounts to enable the swopping of lenses. Accessory mounts are sometimes limited to a threaded socket to mount the point and shoot camera on a tripod. The operation of the point and shoot camera is simple.
Line up your shot with the aid of the view finder, at the chosen moment presses the button. And in fractions of a second light will enter the lens, reflect onto a processor in the camera, the processor will process the light reflected by the image, into pixels and store it in a compatible format. Hook up the camera or the memory card, to a computer and enjoy browsing through the photos you captured by simply pointing the camera in the right direction and flicking the button.
Point and Shoot Camera vs Mirrorless
When comparing a point and shoot camera to a Mirrorless camera it might seem like you are comparing it to a DSLR. The obvious difference is usually the sheer size of the Mirrorless camera. More room means more features can be squeezed into the unit. Accessory mounts and lens mounts the interchange lenses and a wider variety of settings is possible with a Mirrorless camera. These features are usually not available on the compact point and shoot cameras.
The Mirrorless camera has more space to accommodate a larger processor and internal electronics to provide a better picture. The larger lens size means it is possible to focus more light on the processor creating a better image. As the technology of point and shoot cameras that improved, technology fitted into Mirrorless cameras also improved.
The Mirrorless camera still gives the field of view entering the processor via a large LCD screen or a smaller LCD viewfinder. Mirrorless cameras are still capable of automatic settings which make them easy to operate. A growing number of professionals are choosing mirror less cameras over their bulkier DLSR options.
Point and shoot cameras are a great option if you are looking for a low maintenance approach to photography. You will have to think of another type of camera if you want to add things like telephoto lenses to your collection because it’s not necessary with a point and shoot camera although they can zoom in a total of 200 times.
