Choosing a New Camera

With so many camera models to choose from where do you start? Well, the way I choose any new toy these days is to start at the end. What do you want it to do? Err . . . take pictures. Yes but what kind of pictures and what are you going to do with them? The other burning question is how much are you prepared to learn?

As you are reading this and have actually made it to paragraph two, I think we can assume that you are prepared to learn at least a little. So what do you want to do? Do you want something that you can keep in your pocket at all times so you can snap the kids? Do you want a camera that will allow you to take pictures in any lighting conditions from any distance (with the right gadget screwed on the front of course)? Is this going to be a hobby or just some quick snaps?

The Learning Curve

I haven't seen any cameras on sale in recent years that do not have a fully automatic 'point and shoot' mode, most will automatically switch on the flash for you when it is needed so you may wonder why we need all the other manual and semi automatic modes and an instruction book to make your head spin. The answer is that, although the camera can produce good exposures most of the time, there are times when, to get the results we want, we have to apply a little knowhow and select more appropriate settings than the camera would automatically choose.

Before choosing a camera with lots of knobs and dials it is a good idea to consider whether you are ever going to bother to learn what they are all for. I've been around cameras for many years now, and I'm still learning what all the settings on my latest camera actually do. I never bother to learn how to do something until I need to. So there are certain obscure settings that I have yet to find a use for. Of course it would be nice if we could choose just the buttons we need and have each camera custom made for us but in the real world all we can do is choose the level of control based on how much we think we might want to get involved. Generally speaking an SLR will have more knobs, dials and menus than a compact camera which will give you more control over your pictures but will have a much steeper learning curve.

SLR or Compact?

All the cameras on the market can be categorised into a few simple groups. The most important two groups are fixed lens and interchangeable lens. The fixed lens cameras tend, with a few exceptions, to be smaller, lighter and more pocketable, therefore you are more likely to have it with you when you need it. Well that's the theory anyway but I think we can say that you are more likely to be bothered to take it with you on that outing to the beach or the zoo.

However even with today's zoom lenses, which are pretty wonderful, you will often find that you are too far away or too close to get the picture you want so you need to be able to change the lens for a longer telephoto or a wider angle. The other major advantage of these single lens reflex (SLR) cameras is that you are actually looking through the lens instead of a separate viewfinder so what you see is what you get, although this is less of an issue now that we can review our photos on the screen of the digital camera. The down side of these SLR cameras is that you very soon end up with quite a heavy bag of gadgets and are less likely to carry it everywhere with you. However much I yearn for a compact camera for it's handyness I know I would be frustrated by it's shortcomings so for me the choice is SLR every time.

Digital or Film?

Do they still make film cameras? Oh yes they do and I wouldn't mind betting that they continue to do so for many years and I wouldn't mind betting that at some time in the future there will be a retro backlash and a large number of 'serious' photographers will return to the darkroom. Some will probably claim that they have never used digital at all, ever.

You might think from the remarks above that I am a diehard supporter of film. Nothing could be further from the truth actually I am now fully converted to digital and loving it. I am going to make the pros and cons a separate discussion that will be posted soon but, for now, I'll just say that I am completely sold on digital and do not feel that I have lost anything significant by changing.

Which brand?

This, of course, is the big question that you really want an answer to and you know that nobody is going to give you one. If you ask anyone who already has a camera most will support the brand of the camera they have unless they have had some trouble with it, even then people are very forgiving. I think the reason for this is that people think that, if they have made the wrong choice it is because they have somehow failed, and they are not going to admit their failure. Back in the 1980s I had a camera shop in England and at the time a lot of people, who already owned an SLR, were buying compact cameras 'for the wife'. They would ask me which brand was the best and, if I didn't already know, I would discreetly try to find out which brand of SLR they owned, then I would recommend the same brand of compact camera.

Trying to sell them another brand was like telling them they had made a wrong choice when buying their old camera and was likely to lose me a sale. So I'd better have a really good reason for not recommending the Canon, Olympus, Nikon, Pentax or whatever and I didn't have one. All of the well known brands produce similar cameras at similar prices and, by and large, you get what you pay for.

I will stick my neck out a little bit here and say that in my humble opinion the manufacturers who make the best film cameras the Japanese Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Pentax, Minolta and the German Contax and Leica seem to make the best digital cameras. I would not be too happy to put my trust in brands whose traditional expertise is in other fields when there are such good cameras available from the traditional sources. I will probably get a lot of hate mail from people who have bought Sony cameras or Hewlett Packard and are perfectly happy with them. If I wanted a printer Hewlett Packard would be top of my list and I am a huge fan of Sony video and TV equipment but my first choice for a digital SLR would be one of the names mentioned above.

How Many Pixels?

Until recently the quality of digital cameras was measured by how many pixels they boasted. Now we have cameras that can produce tens of millions and it has ceased to be the only test of quality. In the real world the number of pixels you need depends on how big you want to print your pictures. If you mainly want postcard size or A5 then I would consider 4 million pixels to be perfectly adequate. Even at A4 size I would be hard pushed to tell the difference between my 4 million pixel camera and my 6.5 million pixel camera. Don't forget though that your cropping in the camera may not always be perfect so you may be enlarging only a portion of the image and so only using a portion of the available pixels.

Although an adequate number of pixels is important, the quality of your picture will be greatly affected by the quality of the lens. When Canon recently updated the EOS 300D (digital rebel) with 6.5 million pixels to the EOS 350D with 8 million pixels, the general consensus amongst reviewers seemed to be that the money you needed to spend on an upgrade would be better spent on a better quality lens. So the answer to the pixel question is that we seem to have now reached a point where enough is enough.

There is also a school of thought that we have reached the limit of the number of photo sensors that we can fit on a chip and that a greater number will cause the individual cells to be too small compared to the space in between them. Usually though, when someone says something like that, the following week the boffins announce a breakthrough which makes it all nonsense. You may have seen adverts for cameras, costing many thousands, that have 16 or 20 million pixels. These have sensors that are twice the size of those in the consumer cameras, hence the price. To me, the resolution of a 6 or 8 million pixel camera with a decent lens seems good enough for most purposes and on a par with the quality I used to get from a 35mm film camera.

In the past I have spent a lot of time and money in the pursuit of ultimate quality, I have owned a 5x4inch plate camera, a Hassleblad and two Mamiya medium format cameras, every major brand of 35mm camera and in the end, I would be hard pushed to tell you which photo on the wall was taken with which camera. A fellow photographer once observed that photographers tend to smell pictures rather than look at them, by which he meant that they were more interested in the graininess and sharpness of the image than the actual image itself.

Digital Camera Tips For Choosing the Best Camera

Digital cameras have been around a long time now, but there are still some diehard 35mm fans out there who have resisted the switch. While 35mm is still perfectly acceptable, it is hard to argue with some of the advantages of digital. Digital cameras allow you to immediately review the pictures you capture, and with the software programs available on most computers, the possibilities for correction and digital manipulation of photographs is practically limitless. There is a lot of confounding information, however, about which digitals are best.

When thinking about a digital camera, you have to be up front with yourself about how you will be using the camera. If you are a professional or a keen photographer, you definitely want to go with Digital Single Lens Reflexes (DSLR). If you currently own a 35mm SLR you will be able to make the switch quite smoothly, and you will probably even be able to use your current lenses with a digital camera body.

The advantages of DSLR include lens interchangeability, high speed facility to photograph sports and other fast action, and a viewfinder that is through the lens. If, however, none of these things matter very much to you, and you just want a simple camera to carry around in your pocket on vacation or at family get-togethers, then what is normally called a "point-and-shoot" will probably satisfy your needs. Be warned. though, that a point and shoot camera with an electronic viewfinder is your best bet. Those with optical viewfinders are frustrating at times in that it is hard to tell exactly what you are photographing, and if you are in bright light the glare will make it hard to see the viewfinder at all!

No matter which kind you choose, going digital is smart. You can take all the pictures you want, dumping any rejects to make room for more, and you can see that same instant what kind of shots you are getting!

Of course, you also have some digital fans who are ready to invest in a newer or more sophisticated digital, but are having a hard time choosing the perfect model for their needs. When it comes to obtaining a new camera, then, it seems most everybody could use a few digital camera tips.

Choosing Canon Camera Zoom Lenses

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If you are planning to buy a digital camera, we wish you good luck choosing, considering the fact that the array of choice is overwhelming. There a literally hundreds of brands and thousands of models available on the market today, it is not too much to say that it is easier to navigate through the jungle of Amazon than to know each camera in details and make comparisons. As for the task of finding the most suitable Canon zoom lenses for your camera, it is even more daunting, but yet possible and fun.

The idea behind choosing Canon zoom lenses is, you own or you want to own a camera with interchangeable lenses, each with its own unique capabilities. People who are not much into photography would tend to shunt away from cameras that require changeable Canon Zoom Lenses, meaning simple point and shoot cameras that are equipped with fixed lens which you are not able to change.

Now this brings us to the questions we need to ask ourselves if we are to choose a Canon Zoom lens. First, from the above mentioned point, are you content with fixed cameras lenses or you want more powerful distance and angular capture ability? Second, consider your budget. Usually at the initial purchase of a camera with changeable lenses, extra lens pieces are not immediately purchased, and latter as financial capability allows, more lenses with different capabilities are added to the arsenal. Third, let's say you are not satisfied with the camera that you purchased and you decide to change. Then will the same set of lenses you purchased fits the new camera?

To make things simple for you, Canon zoom lenses can generally be divided into 3 categories, they are classified according to how big the field of vision they can include into a picture and how much details they can capture, and the field of vision they capture of each lens is defined mathematically by an optic physic property called focal length of the lens.

So, let's say you want to refer to a lens as "normal", this means it must roughly able to capture the view that one normal human eye can. Speaking in technical language a "normal" lens has a focal length of 50mm or so (if your camera is one of Canon EOS models, SLRs, or Cameras that capture images using 35mm films). Now, just as your eye sight, "normal lenses" are only good if you plan to take pictures in a normal close range, NOT good if you want to further zoom in into details, NOT good also if you try to take a picture of an object from a distance, and so, normal 50mm lenses are good when you are taking a waist-up portrait of a person in an ordinary room. To do more than that, it seems you need more "powerful lenses".

Let's get down into more details, Canon zoom lenses that are known as "wide-angle" are those that are designed for the purpose of capturing a larger area field of vision. Wide-angel lenses have 2 most common uses - first, it allows a photographer to rotate 180 degrees to capture panoramic landscape scenes, and second, it allows photographers to capture details of larger areas. Let's assume that you would like to take a photo with a group of friends at a party, in this case surely you need to get everyone into your picture, and for this purpose a wide angle lens is therefore suitable, unless you can climb high or move back up far enough to put everyone into view. On a Camera that records pictures in 35mm film, a wide angle lens would have a focal length of 35mm or less.

On the other end of the spectrum is telephoto Canon zoom lens, the concept of this lens is similar to using a telescope, which means it can put a selected scene into focus and capture more details out of that scene. The final result of picture taken is, the subject or a scene that is being focused on seems much closer than it really is, and finer details can be seen. Telephoto lenses have a focal length up to70mm or more on a 35mm film camera.

We suspect that up until this point you still haven't a single clue as which Canon zoom lenses you need. The categories and description given above are merely just a rough overview and brief introduction to get you acquainted. The decision of which Canon zoom lenses to purchase depends on the kinds of picture you want to take and your experience.

Choosing a Consumer Digital SLR Camera

So you're in the market for a new camera and don't know where to start? Let's start with the basics of DSLRs and modern photography. If you're upgrading from a point and shoot or moving away from film you will approach the buying decision from different viewpoints. I will cover them separately.

Coming from a digital point and shoot you will probably first notice the much larger size and weight. There are some models available on a standard called 4/3s (four thirds) that are very compact but still give you all the features of a SLR system, but even these are larger than most point and shoots. Don't think of this as a disadvantage, it's the larger optics and image sensor that give you a better picture.

If you are converting from film to a DSLR you will probably first notice the smaller size and weight. Most consumer DSLRs are based on a "crop" or DX sensor, it's about 60% of the size of 35mm film. This will be most noticeable with your lens; the focal length in proportion to the sense makes them appear longer then what you may be expecting. For example a 200mm will look more like a 300mm on the crop sensor digital, 200mm x 1.6 (60% sensor size) = 320mm. Keep this in mind when looking for lens, most digital users carry a 35mm in place of the trusted 55mm (35 x 1.6 = 56mm)

In common to both new buyers are megapixels, the sales people will be all over this one. Camera manufactures are constantly looking for ways to differentiate themselves and for a long time it has been megapixels. Don't get caught in that trap, 6.1mp cameras were producing professional images for years before 8, 10, and 12mp cameras.

Given the same size sensor any increase in the number pixels will result in more pixels fighting over the same amount of light. Think about that for a minute. Many new cameras have a lowest ISO setting of 200. Without going into all the details of ISO (i.e. ASA or film speed) this means that more digital noise introduced into you images.

One of the major advantages to a DSLR camera is the interchangeable lenses. These are specific to the manufacture and it's why we often say you are buying a "system" and not just a camera. If you stay in the hobby long enough you will end up with lenses, flashes, meters, and all sorts of accessories for your system. These will outlast you new camera body by a long shot, I have some Pentax K mount lens that are over 20 years old. Don't let that scare you off, you don't have to stick to one system forever - I don't really shoot Pentax much anymore, but remember to look at all the other parts and accessories when you shopping around.

This article isn't going to go into the details of all the brands and their entry level cameras. I will cover some of the major distinguishing differences. If you are coming from a point and shoot camera and want to continue to use the view screen to compose your shots, commonly called live view, you will notice a big difference in the brands. Currently in the beginning of 2010 each manufacture has taken a different approach to this, and if this is your main selection criteria you will notice right away. I really encourage you to use the viewfinder and consider live view an nice extra feature as it will really open up your options for choosing a camera.

The major brands in the US as of this writing are Canon, Nikon, Sony (Minolta), Olympus, and Pentax. Canon and Nikon are the leaders with Sony coming on strong. Each manufacture tries to distinguish itself in different ways:

Canon - Pushing HD video recording and still image quality, the default setting produce bright and colorful images. This can be adjusted if it doesn't fit your tastes but is closest to the output of point and shoot models.

Nikon - Sports and action focused. Their default images are a bit more neutral, but again can be configured to you preferences.

Sony - Strong focus on Live View at generally lower prices. They are making a push for a better market share but go to a store and hold one; many people find the ergonomics difficult.

Olympus - The only major manufacturer focused on the 4/3 format, making for some very portable DSLRs. Their lens selection is as great as Canon or Nikon but what they do offer is very good and in the most common focal lengths.

Pentax - Focused on digital crop sensor cameras and a previous leader, they were a little late to digital and have been playing catch up for the past few years. Oddly enough they also offer a medium format professional system, but not a full frame 35mm digital. They also have some of the best prime lenses and by far the largest selection of lenses from the past 40+ years.

Any of these can produce great images; it's all a matter of deciding what features are important to you. If you're unsure or still new to photography you may find you needs are different then what you expected. The major manufactures offer room for growth, so don't worry too much about it. Try not to over spend until you are sure it's the system for you.

Choosing the Film Scanner That Best Suits Your Film Negative Scanning Needs

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Using a film negative scanner has several advantages over a traditional flatbed scanner and is a sound investment for anyone who does even a small amount of this kind of work. Before upgrading to a film scanner, it helps to first understand the different kinds of scanners available.

For those who only scan from 35mm film strips, a low-end film scanner is adequate. These are cheaper in price and generally smaller than their more robust counterparts. Medium and high-end scanners are more expensive, however, it's necessary to purchase one of these models if the type of film scanning you do involves the use of either 120 film or individual slides. Some very high-end scanners even interchangeable film loaders that allow for the use of different kinds of slides. Verify that the model you're purchasing is clearly marked as processing these types of film or you may be left with a scanner that doesn't fully accommodate your needs. If you're concerned about your ability to choose the correct scanner, websites can serve as a great source of information.

Once you decide on the sophistication level of the film scanner you'd like to purchase, you need to understand how to best equip your scanner to resolve any issues you have with the film negatives you're working with. If your negatives have any level of damage, particularly dust, it's important you understand photo restoration techniques that can adequately resolve these issues. Dust is a challenging issue for those who use a film negative scanner as the resolution is much higher than that of a regular flatbed scanner. The advantages of the film negative scanner over the flatbed are numerous, however, the same features that make them a more attractive option are the same ones that can hinder the process.

When attempting to restore negatives damaged by dust, be sure to research fully the options available. The simplest technique involves "despeckling", which is sometimes offered in the software package that comes with the film negative scanner. For simple dust particle issues, this should resolve the issue. However, for anything more complex, the user may need to do an infrared cleaning. This shouldn't be done without first consulting a professional or doing careful research on this restoration technique.

Ink Printers - Choosing the Right One for your Needs

Introduction

This article has been written to help buyers to identify the various choices available and to make a sensible selection of ink printer. It is aimed at users who may not have a lot of technical expertise but who can, with a little help from articles like this, get the best equipment for their needs.

It is written in New Zealand, for NZers, and while the information may be useful in other countries, it is not intended for use outside New Zealand.

If you already have an ink printer see the related article "Printer Ink - Choosing the right cartridge for your needs".

Material Covered

This article covers the broad range of general purpose document/photo printers and multifunction devices available as at January 2006. It does not consider specialised printers such as dye sublimation photo printers or A3 machines.

This article does not go into the detail of various printer makes and models. Rather it gives general information and broad price bands for you to consider. When buying, you need to talk specifics with a person experienced in the field.

What do you do?

The first thing you need to decide is how much printing you will do. If you only print off a few emails and occasional photos your printer will be less sophisticated than if you print a lot of text and photos.

If you have a special project, such as a family history with a lot of photos and text, or if you are developing digital photography as a hobby then your needs may be different again.

You may need a printer for business, need colour but can't afford a colour laser printer. There are options.

Thinking about these issues at this stage is really important. Current prices range from $105 up to $899 and there is no point in spending more than you need to get the printer that suits you.

Printer or Multifunction?

A multifunction device - print/scan/photocopy and sometimes fax can be a good investment. My advice generally is to leave the fax function out of your consideration unless you really need it.

The print scan copy option can really suit those people who want to scan in photos, archival material, and specialist items such as patterns or designs for a particular purpose. These machines can also really suit someone who needs a photocopier but can not justify the expense of a stand alone machine.

Generally, if you are a single user and you have a need for the scanner or copier then a multifunction can be a good choice.

In a network environment with two or more users you may find conflicts between users and functions. In these cases it is often handy to have another printer so that, if the multifunction is tied up doing (say) photocopying, other users can still print.

What's Available

The price bands below are an approximate guide only. Occasionally a very good machine will fall into the lower price range and, not as often, a poor machine will be higher priced.

Around $200 and under

Both printers and multifunction devices in this class tend to have two ink cartridges - 1 black - 1 tri colour - slower print speeds and lower resolution. One manufacturer offers a line of multifunction devices which include a fax and have separate ink tanks for each colour but they are the exception in this part of the market.

This class of machine is good for people who print a few emails a week, the occasional page off the internet and a few photos. You probably won't get direct photo printing from your camera and/or phone but you will get printers that will take a camera card. In general terms do not expect to get a long life from these machines. If you buy an extended warranty make sure that the whole machine is covered, including the print head.

Around $200 to $450

Some real choices and features emerge in this class. Most machines have separate ink tanks so that you only change the colour you run out of, higher speeds, high resolution, automatic double sided printing, printing direct to printable DVDs and CDs and multiple paper input options are all common. Also, printing direct from cameras and mobile phones without going through the computer.

This is the most popular price band as you can get excellent machines for most purposes without spending a fortune.

$450 and up

Generally there are no more features than in the preceding class. Machines in this area get faster, with higher resolution and, in particular, photo printing speeds can go up markedly.

At the top end you have multifunction devices which will scan from negatives and 35mm slides and these features appeal those who wish to preserve photos and/or to use old photos in publications.

As in most markets you get what you pay for and, except when you are buying at the most basic level, it pays to do your homework and talk to experienced people about what you may really need.

If you have never owned a printer before start somewhere near the bottom and learn what it is you want to do. It's better to start with something you can move up from than to spend hundreds of dollars on the wrong machine.

Computer Bundles

If you are buying a new computer and it has a printer or multifunction bundled with it, be careful. Most bundled machines are at the lower end and may not suit your needs. If you don't want what's in the bundle see if you can either break it or get an upgrade. Remember, if you are not happy with the bundle you don't have to buy it. If you really like the computer and/or other aspects of the bundle just put the printer, unopened, on an internet auction site, get what you can for it, and buy the printer you really want separately.

Choosing a Digital Camera For Perfect Clarity and Color

A digital camera produces excellent photographs. For many years however, professional photographers have discussed the drawbacks to the digital camera from the perspective of image quality which does not always match that available through a traditional 35mm film camera. The convenience afforded by going digital however far outweighs the minor loss in perceptible quality for most consumers.

For millions of potential camera shoppers, choosing the smallest, lightest camera is most important while others may wish to hold down costs or only share photos online where image quality is limited anyway. For these and other shoppers, finding and paying for a more costly camera may be unnecessary. But for those who strive to capture images that record the most accurate and color correct images, there are choices they can make during the shopping process that can help to assure they end up with equipment that will be capable of producing outstanding images.

The primary decision is not about megapixels; or at least not entirely. A digital camera with 10 megapixels does not necessarily produce a better image than a camera with only 6 megapixels. Megapixels are important and a camera must have enough of them to provide adequate image information for the size print being produced so that there is less noise and better clarity in the resulting image. Unless a consumer plans on producing very large images, 5 megapixels is generally sufficient and 3-4 may be enough if prints will be 5x7 or smaller.

The sensor which captures the light entering the camera lens is even more critical however. The sensor stores and displays data, converting the light into electrons. The sensor can be either CCD (charge-coupled device) or CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor). CCD is the more mature technology and produces images with less noise. They also tend to be more expensive and consume more power but for those seeking the highest quality images, a CCD is the better choice at this time.

An important aspect of the CCD is the actual size of the sensor. Larger sensors provide higher resolution and less noise. Understanding how the size of the CCD sensor influences the quality of images and knowing what size sensor is adequate requires a bit more study. There are several articles available on line which could prove valuable for those wishing to learn more about this topic. Articles at http://www.photo.net/equipment/digital/sensorsize/ and http://www.photo.net/equipment/digital/basics/ are well written and knowledgeable.

A final consideration regarding the sensor in a digital camera is the availability of 1 CCD and 3 CCD models. As one might suspect more is often better. A camera with 1 CCD picks up image and color information through a single sensor. A model with 3 CCD has a sensor that picks up each of the different colors (Red, Green, and Blue) resulting in superior color reproduction.

Certainly the selection of a CCD sensor over a CMOS sensor, a larger sensor, or more sensors is not required in order to own a high quality digital camera capable of producing very good images. However, these features certainly do significantly enhance image quality and are the focus of attention for those seeking to produce the sharpest and most vivid images.

The author, Christine Peppler, encourages readers to visit her website for more information about purchasing a camera or other home electronics device.

Choosing a Digital SLR

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If you are serious about your digital photography, sooner or later you will consider purchasing a digital SLR. 

SLR stands for single lens reflex, which refers to the reflection of the mirror which allows you to see through the lens while composing your picture.

One of the biggest reasons photographers  choose a SLR, is the ability to use different lenses. One can choose from wide angle, zoom, portrait, macro and many other types of specialty lens. This of course means more creative photography and more interesting photos.

The digital Single Lens Reflex also offers more creative control than point and shoot cameras, although point and shoot cameras as of late are adding more SLR like controls. In general a SLR is usually faster and more responsive than a point and shoot. This combination of responsiveness, elaborate control over the capture, and the ability to change lens, makes the digital SLR a perfect choice for more creativity.It is  is usually at the top of the ladder in resolution and offers many settings and options. Most of these cameras offer a "raw" mode. This has been likened to a digital negative. Instead of the cameras software automatically adjusting the white balance, the saturation and sharpness of the image, the photographer makes all these adjustments. The sensors of these cameras are generally more advanced. Some camera manufacturers use a CMOS sensor which gives greater dynamic range. Full frame sensors are available that are equal to a full frame of 35mm film.

The DSLR usually has greater control over the aperture and shutter. They offer very fast shutter speeds and continuous shooting as well as a bulb setting which lets the photographer hold the aperture open until he releases the shutter. This type of camera  is not for everyone though. It is usually much heavier and bulkier than a point and shoot. It can become very tiring after carrying it around for awhile. It cannot be tucked into a shirt pocket. In fact, if you are using different lens and attachments, you will probably need a fairly large case to carry your equipment.

Because of the higher resolution and raw formats (if you choose raw), the size of your images is much larger. This means you will need more portable memory, and later when downloading to your computer, much more hard drive space.

Another possible disadvantage for some is that a digital slr usually does not offer a movie mode. If you take a lot of movies with your digital camera, you may be disappointed that the SLR does not offer a movie mode.

Most SLR's require that you view through the viewfinder instead of the lcd monitor. Newer model SLR's do offer a "live view" option that does allow you to compose using the lcd.

A digital SLR is the choice for creative control and quality. If you want to take more impressive photos, you will eventually want a digital SLR. In the end however it is the skill and creativity of the photographer that is most important.