May 26, 2008 12:49 PM
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These days there is a mad rush amongst digital camera manufacturers to come up with higher and higher megapixels(MP). Accordingly the buyers also strive to get a camera with the highest possible megapixels in their quest to get the best camera. A couple of years back 3MP was the norm, today it is 8MP! But this is the wrong approach! Do not run after megapixels.
Higher MP is just one of the aspects of buying a digicam. What matters more is the quality of the lens, the processing system and the other features being offered. MP comes into play only if you are interested in printing large size images. The higher the MP, the bigger you can print. But then how many of us print bigger than 4x6 inches size? Also how many photos do we print from our digicams? Most are sent as emails or on CDs to people. Also, the higher the MP you shoot at, the bigger is the file size, the slower it is and the more space it needs on your memory card.
A rough guide to MP and print size is given below.
Print size - 4" x 6" - You need a 2MP camera - Resolution - 1600x1200
Print size - 5" x 7" - You need a 3MP camera - Resolution - 2048 x 1536
Print size - 8" x 10" - You need a 5MP camera - Resolution - 2560 x 1920
Print size - 11" x 14" - You need a 6MP camera - Resolution - 2816 x 2112
Print size - 16" x 20" - You need a 8MP camera - Resolution - 3264 x 2468
So as you can see, for normal day to day use, a 3MP camera is what you need but the marketing campaigns of the camera manufacturers will drive you towards higher MP. Don't fall for it. Instead focus on other things like optical zoom, shooting modes, lens quality, battery life etc. These are more important. It will also save you substantial amount of money. Go for a high MP camera like 8MP or 10MP only if you have large size printing requirements or if you have lots of money to splurge.
Go fro branded cameras to be on the safe side regarding lens quality, processor etc. Canon, Sony, Nikon, Panasonic, Olympus, Fuji etc. are what you should aim at. Kodak is also decent and would probably be the cheapest.
