October 25, 2009 Archive

What do you get for your money with megapixels?
5 megapixels
This will produce beautiful 8×10s, and even a nice 11×14. You may even be able to get even larger to a 16 x 20.
With this camera, you are getting closer to professional photographer levels, and the quality shows it.
And you’ll pay the price, around $350 to $450.

6 megapixels and up
Wonderful image quality, but high price tags. You can print large photos, even 11×14 or perhaps more, with satisfying results.
There are some high-megapixel cameras coming out with lower price tags than most, but they usually have very few features.
Unless megapixels are the only thing you care about (it shouldn’t be), don’t get a camera that sounds outrageously inexpensive for its megapixel range.
In this category, expect to pay $450 and up, up, up.

People get nuts about megapixels, but more isn’t always better. Higher megapixels means larger image sizes, which in turn means more expensive memory cards and more space devoured on your computer’s hard drive. It all depends on what you need and intend to use your photography for.