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Canon
Ixus i7 Zoom £249 6/10 |
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About this test
This
month we’re looking at digital cameras and we’ve specially chosen Anna
Baria, amateur photographer and mum of three to test six of the latest
models on the market. Anna is an active member of the babyworld community
and was ‘recruited’ after we discovered her wonderful camera tips in babyworld’s
Product
Talk forum!
Like many mums who visit babyworld, we knew she was the perfect person
to help with this month’s reviews and we think you’ll find her knowledge
of digital cameras a real help – especially if you’re thinking of buying
one this Christmas. Read on for Anna’s top buying tips and find out more
about the six cameras on test in the Test Overview.
Testing Criteria
- Style
- Ease of Use
- Features
- Picture Quality
- Value for Money
Buying tips
Camera size: What are you going to use the camera for? Carrying
around with you all day so you never miss one of those great moments your
child always provides you with? If so, a compact camera is just what you
need.
You can keep it permanently in your handbag, nappy bag, coat pocket etc,
ready to whip out at the drop of a hat. Compact cameras are so advanced
now that they have everything you could need in a camera and unless you
were a professional or a serious enthusiast you’re unlikely to need any
additional features.
Megapixels: On the whole the more megapixels a camera has the
better the picture quality, but anything around the 6-8 mp range is a
good size. The main feature of a bigger megapixel size is the ability
to enlarge the photo, so anything 6mp and above should provide you with
great poster sized prints with no loss of picture quality.
Zoom: You need to look out for cameras equipped with an ‘optical
zoom’ – this uses the lens of the camera to bring images closer without
sacrificing picture quality and resolution.Digital zooms are as good as
useless, the picture is manipulated digitally to look as though it is
bigger resulting in appalling picture quality, I don’t know why manufacturers
insist on putting digital zooms on cameras!
Manual Control: Sometimes it’s nice to call the shots yourself
by learning about exposure and changing the settings to achieve the effect
you are after. Other times it’s great just to pick up the camera, set
it to ‘Action’ and snap away at little Johnny leaping down the track in
his sack race, safe in the knowledge that every picture will turn out
perfectly in focus.
It’s up to you how much or how little you want to control your photographs
and there are cameras out there that give lots or very little manual control.
The choice is yours and worth checking up on when deciding which camera
to go for.
Awards – which products won?
Anna felt that the Samsung NV7 OPS was the best camera overall and awarded
it ‘Best Buy’ for it’s ‘amazing design, superior photo quality and high
class features that allow you to create some amazing shots. The ‘Best
Value’ award went to the less expensive Fuji Finepix F20, which Anna described
as ‘a wonderful, compact camera with a multitude of features usually found
in more expensive models’.
To find out more about each of the cameras on test, make sure you read
the Full results
Where to next?
- Full test results
- Add
a review and you could win a prize - About
our Product Tests - Visit the babyworld shop
