Are you looking for a SLR and do not know what to catch? I wrote a guide on purpose, a PDF ebook that you find on this page: know and choose SLRs and objectives.
How many, after discovering photography with a compact digital camera (a so-called point and shoot), do they consider it automatic to progress by buying a camera?
And how many, stunned by the opulent shelves of shops, can not decide whether to invest the hard-earned savings on a compact or a camera?
Well, the doubt is legitimate, because a digital SLR, even if it costs more and seems more professional, is not necessarily always better than a compact one. There are many factors that need to be evaluated based on your priorities.
In this article we try to clarify this dilemma by analyzing the advantages of both categories.
SLR cameras: the advantages
SLR cameras are actually technically more advanced cameras, especially with regard to the categories a little higher than the basic one (called entry level). But let us see precisely what are the most tangible advantages.
Image quality
The sensors on the SLR are larger than those on the compact, sometimes much larger. This does not imply that all SLRs have higher resolutions than compact cameras, but that the area on which the image is stored is larger.
There are many positive effects, including less noise when increasing ISO and the ability to more easily get blurred. You could go a long way with the technician, but the fact remains that larger sensors produce higher quality images.
Versatility
SLR cameras are such, among other things, because they have interchangeable lenses. As everyone knows, this does not apply to the compact.
With a SLR you will always be able to buy a new lens, for example if you want to experiment with a new photographic genre, without having to change the camera. Money permitting, of course.
In addition you can take advantage of external flashes, filters and multiple accessories that the compact do not have, to open up any creative possibility.
Quality optics
Many modern compact cameras produce beautiful images, but the level achievable with quality objectives has not yet been matched by any compact.
Among other things, this does not necessarily mean purchasing extremely expensive optics. Already the 50mm fixed focal length available for major brands produces photos with amazing clarity.
Better performance with poor light
How often do you find yourself taking pictures indoors with a weak light, in a bar, for example? When the light is not enough, the pictures taken with a compact will probably turn out to be too loud and noisy.
This also happens with SLR cameras, but the ISO values you can get at before the noise becomes unacceptable are higher than those of a compact (as I mentioned above). Furthermore, the maximum openings that can be reached with many optics are wider than those available on many compact ones. This allows you to capture more light and therefore reduce the ISO.
Speed
All the compact ones have a more or less long delay, but still evident, between the pressing of the shutter button and the actual recording of the image. When the subject moves quickly, for example during a sporting event, this means losing the decisive moment and making a picture a little wrong.
Digital SLRs, although they too are a little late, are much quicker to shoot, thus proving more appropriate to capture action agitated.
Manual checks
If you want to be serious about photography, you CAN NOT continue to use automatic modes forever. You will sooner or later learn to use semi-automatic modes or manual mode.
Some compacts do not have these modes, so they preclude you from learning. You can then turn to the compact with manual controls, or a SLR, in which these will never fail.
Value maintenance
I imagine you will have noticed how many new camera and tip camera models are presented each year. This means that the old models drop in value very quickly.
The value of the SLR instead falls much slower, especially in the mid-range and high-end categories. With a camera you will at least seem to have spent your money better and you can get something from the used market, possibly.
Compact cameras: the advantages
With all these advantages, SLRs may seem unbeatable. But let's see what arrows have compact arches.
Weight and reduced dimensions
Even the most advanced compact have weight and dimensions much smaller than any SLR. A compact will always stay in your pocket or badly go in your bag or backpack.
Moreover, the weight you will carry around, for example if you are traveling photographers, will be much smaller and you will get tired less.
In some situations, transporting the SLR is prohibitive and thus risks losing opportunities for good photos. With a compact this does not happen, you can always have it with you.
Price
The highest-level compacts are almost like a reflex base, but the average price of a compact is much lower than that of a SLR.
Furthermore, the impossibility of adding lenses and multiple accessories to the set, which is a disadvantage, becomes an advantage when it comes to money. Once you have purchased a compact, you will probably have stopped spending on your photographic passion.
Automatic ways
It's okay to play the professional photographer, but today I do not really want to think: where is the shooting mode "children's birthday party at the water park", so I imposed and shot?
Sometimes we just need to shoot, without thinking about the settings. The compact provide a plethora of automatic ways for all occasions that serve just that.
Silent
Of the SLR you can disable all the possible sounds, but the noises of the mirror that rises and the shutter that closes you will never be able to silence them.
The compact instead have no mechanical parts in motion, so they can shoot in an absolutely silent. Very useful if you want to go unnoticed or if you can not disturb those close (for example during a celebration or theater).
So, what to choose?
These are the advantages. Obviously overturning them you get the disadvantages of both types of cameras. There are other small differences, but they are less relevant or are not necessarily advantages of one or the other category.
In my opinion, the best option is to have both a reflex and a compact one. Of course, you will say.
Actually, at the moment I do not have a compact, but I would gladly buy one with manual controls, like the Nikon P7100. I would use it to always keep it with me and take photographic opportunities that would otherwise be wasted.
If you can not decide between the two, consider which advantages weigh more for you. Do not you want to commit yourself to spending money in the future for new goals? Go for a compact. Do you want the highest quality of photos possible? Buy a SLR. Do you want maximum portability? So a compact is better.
The final choice always depends on you. The important thing is that you decide what is more important to you and do not start from absolute rules that in your case probably will never apply.