Digital Photography Tips and Techniques

Ben Long, the author of many well known digital photography books such as Complete Digital Photography and Real World Nikon Capture NX 2, is also a senior contributor to MacWorld. Just recently, he reviewed the new Canon PowerShot A1100 IS.

As a testament on how far digital imaging technology has advanced over the years, Ben was surprised by the noise performance of the $200 12 megapixel compact digital camera.

One of the most surprising things about the A1100 is its low noise. Shooting up to ISO 400 is surprisingly clean, and even higher speeds, such as 800 and 1600, are very usable, even in low light. Certainly there are cameras that perform better at these speeds, but they’re also much more expensive.

To be certain, different people may have different standards on what are acceptable or usable. One of the users reviews on Amazon for the camera complained about grainy pictures even in bright sunny situations. The Canon PowerShot A1100IS only received two user reviews so far that are not all that glorious. However, its older sibling Canon Powershot A1000IS (10MP, released last year) have received overall very positive acceptance from users.

When it comes to buying digital camera, or anything, people are paying attention to reviews. There are reviews by professionals, which tend to be more objective, accurate and trust worthy. However these are typically not the people who are going to use them as often as the typical consumers will do. They may not have covered all aspects of the product or every possible ways people will be using it. So it is equally important to seek consumer reviews or experiences. Consumer reviews tends to be a little less accurate, incomplete, more subjective, and more noisy. Use good judgment and examine what is said against fact and common sense.