1. Shoot in continuous mode – If you’ve ever had trouble taking crisp, clear photos of a constantly moving subject, a child or pet for example, try changing your camera settings to a continuous burst mode. Several frames per second will increase your chances of catching your subject just the way you want. If you have Subject Tracking, you’ll have an even greater array of features to help you capture that perfect shot.

2. Flash forward – Using a flash ensures all your photos are crisp and clear, especially in darker lit settings such as a dinner or dance party. And don’t stop there – be sure to use flash outdoors as well to help balance any dark contrasts.

3. Work with what you’ve got – Take advantage of your camera’s settings whether it’s a low-light sensitive capability such as a broad ISO range, or automatic setting selections for taking pictures in various environments. Learn the features your camera offers and use them to create impressive images you’ll be proud to put on display.

4. Shutter finger – The beauty of digital is the ability to review any photographs you take instantly and decide which you would like to keep or re-shoot. With this in mind, don’t hold back. Take more pictures rather than fewer and sort through them later. This will help you focus on the photo opportunities at hand, giving you a better chance of capturing that perfect shot.

5. Exposure is key – Any good photo has an intended balance to the amount of light used when the picture was taken. Experiment with your camera’s exposure settings, bracketing the brightness levels for different effects. Sometimes an over or underexposed photo can be a creative expression of an otherwise normal photograph. Just remember, when in doubt, underexpose – these images can be brightened later on, whereas an overexposed image won’t pick up all the details and not much can be done to correct it.

6. Get to know, be a pro – Take into account who or what your subject is. If you are photographing a person, learn what their personality is like and what they are comfortable with; if you are taking photos of an animal, you will need to know what its temperament is; and taking pictures of an object requires you to identify the best features to highlight. The more you learn and understand, the better you will be able to model your photograph in its best light.

7. Wherever you will go – Take your camera with you so you never miss a moment. When selecting a new camera, consider how you will transport it. If you select a smaller unit, this will be less of a concern, but if you purchase a larger, heavier camera with additional lenses and flash attachments, consider investing in a good camera bag to protect your equipment and make it more portable. When on foot, take advantage of a camera strap around your neck – many of today’s digital SLR cameras feature rapid start-up times, so you’ll always be ready if a picture opportunity arises.

8. The more the merrier – Challenge your skill level. Investing in a few accessories can make photography easier and help to produce better photos. A tripod can help to steady a shot, while additional lenses provide various zoom options, macro options, wide-angle, and more. Adding an external flash can make a photo more dynamic. Digital SLRs are great because they are customizable to every photographer’s needs.

9. Don’t forget to touch up – Make life easier by performing simple image corrections right on the camera before uploading them to your computer. This makes picture development a snap.

10. Have fun! Be creative – Get up high or down real low to capture that perfect shot, creating dimension, angles and a personal flare to all your photos. Develop your own style of photography to set yourself apart from the crowd.

--

Gregory Flasch is Advertising & Communications Manager in the Consumer Products Division of Nikon Canada Inc.

The key to choosing a camera is to consider it a tool. Your challenge is not to find the perfect camera because it doesn't exist. Instead, we're looking for the best tool for the job. So to begin, we'll divide the digital camera marketing into three categories: Pocket, Compact and SLR.

Pocket cameras are ideal for those who want a small camera they can carry anywhere, anytime. This category of camera fits in a shirt pocket or a small purse. Due to their popularity, almost every camera manufacturer has at least one model in this category. Camera design involves sacrifice, and in a small camera this usually results in a short zoom range, a weak flash, and limited manual controls. Pocket cameras are therefore best for those seeking an automatic, "point and shoot" style camera. However, they are also a popular second camera amongst SLR owners for those outings where taking an SLR isn't practical.

If you're looking for a pocket camera, the best place to start is your local camera store. Prices and features vary, and the more expensive camera is not necessarily your best choice. While I generally refrain from recommending one brand over another, Olympus products really stand out in this category due to their water and impact resistant designs - both common causes of death in small cameras.

SLRs

On the other end of the spectrum are Single Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras. Buying an SLR is different than buying a pocket or compact camera primarily because of the interchangeable lenses. Many models are offered as a body (camera only, no lens) or as a bundle (body plus a lens). For beginners, purchasing a bundle is sometimes attractive, but in the long run it can be more expensive if one ends up upgrading the lens for a higher quality or larger zoom range. Of course your budget may be the deciding factor, but my general advice to the first-time SLR buyer is to put your money into the lens, not the camera body. A good lens will last you a lifetime, while the camera body, no matter how fantastic, will be outdated next year.

It is also important to understand that with an SLR, you're not buying a camera. You're buying a system. Over time you will probably acquire additional lenses and you'll quickly reach a point where changing brands becomes prohibitively expensive. For that reason, it is important to consider the range of products that the SLR manufacturer offers. Canon and Nikon dominate the professional SLR market and offer a very wide selection of consumer products. Olympus also produce some great products, although their lens selection is not as extensive as Nikon and Canon. It also pays to consider what other members of your family shoot. For example, if your spouse has invested a number of Nikon lenses, buying a Canon might not make sense, and vice versa. As usual, your best bet is to begin at a local camera store that has knowledgeable staff.

SLRs are generally the best choice for those seeking high quality images, the flexibility offered by interchangeable lenses, and the speed required to photograph sports. They are also usually best if your goal is to take up photography as a part-time or full-time career. However, they're also more expensive, heavier, and larger than cameras in the other categories. So before you purchase, make sure that the intended user is willing to carry it.

Compact Cameras

Between the pocket camera and the SLR lie a vast range of what I call compacts. Some are just slightly too large to fit a shirt pocket, yet are perfectly wearable on your belt, while others approach the size of a small SLR. There are so many cameras in this category that choosing one can be overwhelming. So to help you along, I spent several weeks testing the latest cameras, and here's what I found.

The Canon PowerShot SX200 IS, at 103.0 x 60.5 x 37.6mm, is by far the smallest camera in the group I tested, and some might argue that it fits in the pocket category. The SX200's retracting lens includes a built-in cover so no lens cap is required to keep out dust. However, the shutter-like lens protector could easily be damaged by objects such as keys, so I'd still recommend a small protective case. Unlike many other cameras this size, the SX200 has a pop-up flash. The extra distance this creates between the lens and the flash helps to eliminate red-eye, and I found the flash quite impressive while testing in my living room considering its small size. Presumably to keep the cost and size down, the SX200's LCD screen does not move and there is no optical viewfinder. Overall this camera handles well, produces nice 12 megapixel images on an SD or SDHC card, and includes full manual controls. I also enjoyed shooting video clips of the kids at 1280x720, 30 fps. My only complaint is that the tiny dimples on the back of an otherwise smooth case aren't enough to get firm one-handed grip. You'll definitely want a wrist strap on this camera to avoid dropping it.

I also test drove the Nikon Coolpix P90, Panasonic DMC-FZ35, Pentax X70 and Sony DSCHX1 -- in alphabetical order if you're wondering. Overall these four cameras have much more in common than they do differences. All four are approximately 2/3 the size of an average SLR, provide full manual controls, a pop-up flash, both an LCD display and viewfinder, and a 20x give-or-take optical zoom range putting them all solidly into the "super zoom" class. All were capable of producing good quality images under good conditions. Not quite SLR quality, but good enough that most people won't notice the difference if you use the camera properly. And while I love my SLR, these relatively light weight cameras made them a joy to carry. So what are the differences?

The Nikon Coolpix P90 ($450 street price) features a gorgeous 3" LCD that can be tilted as much as 90 degrees upward or 45 degrees downward. Being able to shoot from waist level or over your head increases the versatility of the P90. It also shoots video at up to 640x480 30fps. My single -- admittedly minor -- annoyance with the P90 is that Nikon has yet again providing a battery charger with a bulky AC cable. The charger and cable combined require much more space in a suitcase or backpack than do chargers by vendors that use a fold-out plug design.

The Panasonic DMC-FZ35 ($500 street price) features a fixed LCD display and 1280 x 720 AVCHD Lite format (MPEG-4/H.264) movie capability. It includes a compact battery charger with fold-out blades that takes up far less space in your bag. Unlike most cameras that use a rotating selector or a playback button, the FZ35 has a small switch close to your right thumb that takes some getting used to, especially the first time you flip it by accident. However, overall this is a solid camera and the only real downside as compared to others in this class is the lack of a tilting screen.

The Pentax X70 ($400 street price) was the least expensive of the group and didn't have some of the features found in the more expensive models. The LCD display is fixed in place and the movie capability is more limited: 1280x720at 15fps or 84x640 at 30 fps. However, I found the zoom seemed faster than the others and strategically placed rubber pads result in a camera upon which you can get a solid grip. In many was the X70 reminded me of the old days with my K1000. A solid camera with few frills that does the job it was made to do, and not much more. Like Nikon, Pentax also needs to build a smaller charger with fold-out prongs.

Sony DSCHX1 ($530 street price) was the most expensive of the four cameras. However, it offers a great tilting screen and movie recording up to 1440 x 1080 at 30fps. While the zoom speed did seem a bit slow, overall it was within what I'd consider a normal range for this type of cameras. The battery charger is small with fold-out blades, proving that Panasonic isn't the only company who gets it. I really liked the Sony despite it being the most expensive of the bunch, but I found it annoying that the camera uses Sony's MemoryStick format rather than the SD or SDHC cards that have become the defacto standard for consumer electronics. Both my netbook and notebook computers have SD card slots, meaning that I have to either plug the camera into the computer (and waste camera battery power when on the road) or carry an external card reader.

And now for something different...

Over the past year a new class of camera has evolved to fill the gap between compact digitals and SLRs. Back in the film days, these were rangefinders, highly capable cameras that produced SLR quality images, but without the space-consuming mirror and prism.

There are currently two cameras in this class, the Olympus E-P1 and the newly-announced Panasonic Lumix GF1. (The GF1 was not available at the time of writing). Both cameras use the new "four thirds" format sensor and offer interchangeable lenses.

The Olympus E-P1 is a solid camera with a metal case and a retro rangefinder look that just begs you to pick it up. There's no optical viewfinder and no built-in flash, but the back-mounted LCD display gives you a live, through-the-lens view. The E-P1 offers automatic and manual exposure modes and also shoots video at up to 1280x720 at 30 fps. Olympus, known for using xD memory, wisely used standard SD/SDHC memory for this model, allowing high capacity cards.

I had the pleasure of testing the Olympus E-P1 with the bundled Olympus 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 lens (35mm equivalent zoom range of 28-84mm) and took it on a hot air balloon ride over Ottawa. Due to the relatively small body and neat lens design (the front of the lens retracts into the main lens housing when not in use), I was able to put the camera in a large jacket pocket for takeoff and landing.

I shot in RAW and the results were impressive. Olympus is known for their accurate colours, and the E-P1 is no exception. While I had no regrets about leaving my SLR at home, I did occasionally find the screen difficult to view in bright sunlight. Back on the ground I tried the camera's continuous auto-focus mode, and I was a bit disappointed to find that it continuously hunts even when pointed at a stationary object like a tree. Hopefully Olympus will address that issue in an upcoming firmware release.

Overall, the E-P1 is a great option for those seeking high quality images without SLR size and weight. However, using the E-P1 requires more skill than an entry-level SLR, and the lack of an onboard flash will be an issue for some. So while I was very happy with my results, this camera is not the best choice for a beginner or as a general purpose family camera. However, if you're an experienced photographer who understands the compromises involved, you should check this camera out.

Final words

No matter what kind of camera you're looking for, the best place to start is a local camera store where experienced photographers can answer your questions. Other great sources of information include dpreview.com and you're more than welcome to ask any questions you have at my photo site, MyPhotoSucks.com.

All of the cameras that I tested for this article were on loan from their respective manufacturer and were returned at the end of the review period. The Canon G11 was not available for testing at the time this article was written.

"I'm using a Canon S3. It's a simple SLR so and I'm a beginner. Is it a good camera for me?"

I haven't tried that camera, but from the specs it certainly appears to have all the features you'll need to learn photography.  As I often say, "It's not the camera, it's how you use it." If you haven't signed up already, please consider joining 12 Weeks to Better Photography!

I get the impression from what I have read so far about digital photography that all pictures have been somewhat modified in a photo editing program before being displayed in magazines. I would have thought that a picture taken by professional photographers would not need photo editing.

It depends upon how we define "modified". Technically, you are quite correct. At minimum, basic adjustments such as white and black levels, contrast, saturation, etc. are usually required to produce a good magazine print. But that's not really any different than what we had to do with film. it is also normal to crop images, especially if the camera aspect ratio is different than that magazine page or other space in which the print is required.

I took a bunch of photos at a party over the weekend. They looked fine on the back of my camera, but when I posted them to the web I noticed that a lot of them were blurry. Why doesn't my camera do well with quick movement?

As we love to say at MyPhotoSucks, the problem isn't your camera, it's how you use it. The simple answer is that you should have used your flash.

As a general rule, any time your shutter speed is less than the reciprocal of the lens' focal length, you need to use a tripod and/or a flash. If you're shooting with a 100mm focal lenth, you should try for a shutter speed of 1/100 or faster. As a general rule, you should avoid shooting handheld slower than 1/60 unless you have a very stead hand or your camera has image stablization. But remember that both image stabilization and your tripod only help with small camera movement. Neither stop the subject from moving!

Lightroom takes a workflow approach that is quite different from traditional image editing software. Once you have imported your images into Lightroom, you can use it to select and/or rate your images, perform adjustments like cropping, levels, and minor retouching, and output the images to various file formats, a printer, or web galleries. While Lightroom has many great features, I love it because it is easy to use, very flexible and completely non-destructive.  It also cut my postprocessing time by more than half.

Adobe added a number of great new features to Lightroom 2 and recently released 2.1 (a free update for owners of version 2.0), so for this article I'm not going to draw a distinction between 2.0 and 2.1, making the assumption that 2.0 owners have already upgraded.

Personally, Adobe had me at "dual monitor support" and "64-bit". Those two features are enough to justify the $99 upgrade. While Lightroom 1 did work across dual monitors by stretching the main window, Lightroom 2 adds buttons to bring up images on the second monitor. Once activated, the user can select different views on the second monitor ranging from thumbnails to a full-screen version of the currently selected image. The fact that Lightroom now includes a 64-bit version means that it can now take advantage of much more memory on computers with 64-bit operating systems.

Other changes for version 2 include better local adjustments like dodging and burning, enhanced batch processing, enhanced output sharpening, and the addition of "volume management" to help manage, organize, and work with high-resolution previews even when originals are offline.

I tested Lightroom 2.1 on both my 64-bit Vista desktop and a 32-bit Vista notebook, and the performance was flawless. I tested the new volume management feature on the notebook by importing (but not copying) several folders of images from my desktop computer across the network. I clicked on a few to see the image, and then quickly disconnected from the network while the application was still running. Lightroom handled the situation much more gracefully than I expected and continued to display thumbnails for all the images. While offline images could be viewed, edit controls were grayed out and Lightroom indicated that the image was either offline or missing.

Overall, Lightroom continues to be my favourite photo software and the new version is definitely worth the money. But don't take my word for it, Adobe offers a free 30 day downloadable trial so you can check it out for yourself.

For most users, the best way to make image adjustments in Photoshop is to use layers so that the adjustments are non-destructive. Photoshop CS4 makes that process faster and easier with an "Adjustments" panel containing tools like Curves, Levels, Hue/Saturation, black & white conversion, and the new Vibrance adjustment. Adobe claims that the new Adjustments panel helps eliminate up to 90% of the mouse movements required to make nondestructive image adjustments and I certainly agree that it is a much more efficient way to work.

The new Vibrance adjustment is also a nice addition. Adjusting saturation can be difficult, especially when skin tones are present. I found the Vibrance control allowed me to tweak overall image saturation with a much less impact on skin tones than the traditional saturation control, making it great for portrait work.

Another new feature introduced in CS4 is "Content Aware Scaling." At some point, most of us have fussed with an image that simply isn't the right ratio - you know, that tightly cropped 2:3 ratio image from your SLR that looks great at 8x12, but now needs to fit an 8x10 matte. Even if you're really good at extracting objects from the background, maintaining the aspect ratio of a foreground object while stretching or compressing the background to fit is very difficult. According to Adobe, this new feature analyzes the image while you adjust it and intelligently recomposes the scene to preserve the most visually interesting areas. In practice, when used within reason (for example going from 8x10 to 8x12), I found that it works quite well. However, it's not magic, and scaling some images will require that you manually mask critical objects.

CS4 also introduces "extended depth of field", which allows photographers to "shoot the scene with a series of focal points, and use the enhanced Auto-Blend Layers feature to automatically create a new, single image with a depth of field encompassing the entire series." Other new features include enhancements to aligning and blending features for panoramas, better dodge/burn tools, and improve masking.

But perhaps my favourite change to Photoshop CS4 is tighter integration with Photoshop Lightroom 2. I'm a huge fan of Lightroom, and I'm glad to see them play better together. For example, you can select multiple images in Lightroom and with a single command send them to Photoshop as separate layers, components of a panorama, or to be merged into an HDR image. Photoshop and Lightroom now share the same underlying technology for dealing with RAW images, so adjustments made in either application are now recognized by the other. 64-bit Vista users will also be pleased to know that Photoshop CS4 includes a 64-bit version and it installs automatically on 64-bit systems.

"I'm thinking of entering [an image in a competition]. The rules state that I can send jpg images on a CD but that they must be in RGB format and not CMYK format. When I capture images on my Canon S2IS what colour format does the camera use? If I use Picasa as my photo program does it use CMYK (I know most printers use these colours)? If I have a jpg image, can I use something like Photoshop to convert from CMYK to RGB?"

Virtually every digital camera on the market produces image in the RGB colour space, so the good news is that you don't have to do any conversion.  People are often confused by the fact that their inkjet printer uses a CMYK process.  However, the printer appears to your computer as a RGB device, as does your monitor, so you should continue to work in the RGB colour space unless there is a specific reason for you to convert to a different colour space.