Thinking about buying a camera but don't have a clue where to start? We're here to help. And even if you know it all, you may find some alternatives you hadn't considered.
If you're standing in the middle of a store wondering what to buy, start with our current top picks:
There is no spec that tells you which camera is best. And few specs can be taken at face value.
Resolution ("megapixels") doesn't matter unless you're a pro or already understand why. Sensor size, autofocus system and image-stabilization system are among the features that do.
Don't get hung up on making sure you've got the "best" or newest in a particular class. The truth is, one camera rarely beats the rest on all four major criteria -- photo quality, performance, features and design. And last-year's (or even the year before's) models tend to be perfectly fine as well as a lot cheaper.
Try before you buy. Make sure it fits comfortably in your hand and that it's not so big or heavy that you'll prefer to leave it at home. It should provide quick access to the most commonly used functions, and menus should be simply structured, logical and easy to learn. Touchscreen models can allow for greater functionality, but can also be frustrating if the controls and menus are poorly organized.
Top considerations
Interchangeable or fixed lens?
Interchangeable-lens cameras (ILCs) are dSLRs or mirrorless models. The advantages of an ILC over a fixed lens model is:
You can always buy a better lens to improve photo quality and performance.
If you need a wider or narrower angle of view, you can always get another lens to cover it.
You can get a faster (i.e., wider maximum aperture) lens if you need better low-light performance.
Fixed-lens cameras come in two flavors: bridge cameras (the ones that look like dSLRs and have really long lenses) and compacts (formerly point-and-shoots, which for the most part have been replaced by phones). The advantages of afixed-lens camera over an ILC:
The compacts tend to be much smaller.
The bridge cameras tend to cover a zoom range that would be prohibitively expensive and/or heavy in a standalone lens.
Swapping lenses on an ILC can be a pain.
Frequently, the kit lenses that ship with ILCs frequently aren't as high quality or wide-aperture as the fixed lenses.
Many people never buy a second lens, anyway.
If you decide to go for an ILC, you then have to choose between a dSLR vs. a mirrorless. Sadly, many people have it fixed in their heads that dSLRs are the be-all and end-all of high-quality, high-speed photography. Not true. The image quality for mirrorless models is extremely similar to that of a dSLR with the same size sensor and an equivalent lens, and the performance of the midrange and higher-end mirrorless models has gotten really competitive, with sophisticated autofocus systems and fast continuous-shooting speeds. Keep in mind that you're usually better off spending more money on a better lens than on a more expensive body. The advantages of a dSLR over mirrorless are:
DSLR's use optical viewfinders, and a cheap dSLR's optical viewfinder is usually better than the electronic viewfinder (EVF) on an inexpensive mirrorless for shooting action where the EVF may not refresh quickly enough. That gap is narrowing, though.
The battery life of a dSLR -- any dSLR -- is better than that of most mirrorless cameras.
You can use old lenses from film cameras without an adapter, and because dSLRs have been around so long there's a huge selection to choose from.
Current-model cheap dSLRs tend to be cheaper than current entry-level mirrorless cameras.
The advantages of a mirrorless over a dSLR:
Most of them are smaller, and their lenses concomitantly smaller, than a dSLR's. Micro Four Thirds lenses (Olympus, Panasonic) are smaller than those for APS-C cameras (everybody else).
Shooting video with a good mirrorless is a much better experience than shooting with a dSLR because the view through the LCD and autofocus performance makes it easier and requires less rigging out.
The lack of a mirror makes a lot of features with real-time preview possible, like watching a long exposure build and mixing and matching filters.
The newer, midrange to expensive mirrorless models have better image stabilization (IS) than dSLRs because the latest IS technologies intelligently combine sensor shift and optical IS, while (at best) dSLRs use optical combined with less powerful digital IS (but usually just optical).
Top considerations
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