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Buyer's Guide Plus: Digital Cameras , Michael Antoniak, May 2001.
For More Info: To learn more about selecting and using digital cameras, visit the “Digital Camera” section of the Hardware Advisor at RealtorMag Online. | | Say cheese!
A Picture Perfect Guide to Digital Cameras
A site's in-depth reviews and user comments will help you research your digital camera purchase.
BY CHRIS LEPORINI
In the market for a digital camera, but not sure which model to choose? Digital Photography Review, a comprehensive Web site devoted to digital camera news and reviews, can you bring your search into focus. Whether you need a basic, point-and-shoot model to snap photos for your Web site or require a more sophisticated model to capture images for print brochures, you can use the site’s resources to make an educated purchase. The site also provides comments from other users, so you can read first-hand accounts of how products function in the field.
If you have some idea about the price range and features that you need, but aren’t familiar with specific models, then you’ll find the “Buying Guide: Features” search especially valuable. It allows users to make side-by side feature comparisons, selecting from a list of over two dozen criteria, such as pricing, battery, storage space, image resolution, and ISO ratings, and manual focus options. The site then pulls up side-by-side comparison of models that meet your criteria. Each entry includes an image of the camera, as well as its technical specifications. You can also select camera models by name, by choosing “side-by-side” from the Buying Guide menu. For instance, you can instantly compare features for the Ricoh Caplio RR1 and the Pentax Optio 330 and see that although the two cameras are comparably priced, the latter offers additional features, including voice annotations and greater flexibility in lighting.
The guide also features user comments and ratings, based on a five-star system that averages scores in the following categories: construction, features, image quality, and value for cost. This is a great way to get insights into each model’s quirks and capabilities, from owners who have used the product. And fortunately for photography newbies, the guide has links to the site’s glossary section, which helps you understand unfamiliar terms.
Users looking for more advanced descriptions of specific camera models can turn to the site’s meticulously detailed product reviews. The reviews are written by Digital Photography Review’s editor Phil Askey, who puts digital cameras through their paces via a series of quality tests. His reviews typically span 15 pages, or more, in length and cover overall design, controls, features, and specifications. This might equal information overload for casual users, but if your interest in digital photos goes beyond just getting a clear picture to post on the MLS, you’ll be in nirvana. If the detail is too much for you, reviews also include a conclusion page, where you can find a bottom-line evaluation of the camera’s pros and cons. You can also click to the “Galleries” section to see sample photographs by Askey using different camera types.
The site contains several other features that you can use to build your digital photography knowledge. It maintains 24 discussion forums, dealing with everything from camera techniques to tips on using familiar brand names such as Minolta, Fuji, and Canon. Users can also subscribe to an e-newsletter to stay current on the latest news, events, and product reviews. Finally, the “Learn” section contains articles on camera techniques, photo printing, and lighting.
Digital cameras have become an essential tool for many real estate professionals, allowing them to capture images for Web sites, e-mail updates, and online MLS listings. Digital Photography Review can help ensure that you make an informed choice, based on the reviews of experts and the opinions of other users.
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Suggest a Site For Review
Every week, REALTOR® Magazine Online's Web review editor surfs the Internet to find sites useful to your business and off-hours lives. Have a favorite real estate Web site that you would like to see reviewed? Send your suggestions to Chris Leporini at mediatech@realtors.org. All decisions on which sites will be reviewed are completely at the discretion of REALTOR® Magazine Online's editorial staff. Please note: this column does not review individual practitioner or brokerage sites.
The column's focus includes free sites, as well as sites that charge for goods and services, but which still offer a free component of practical, sustained value to real estate practitioners, such as a free newsletter or regular news information.
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REALTOR® Magazine Online's "Web Review" summarizes the content of Web sites that may be of interest to members. NAR and REALTOR® Magazine Online are not responsible for, and nothing in the Web site profile shall constitute NAR's or REALTOR® Magazine Online's endorsement of, the web site, its content, products and services, or its provider. NAR and REALTOR® Magazine Online believe the information contained in this profile was correct and accurate as of the time it was prepared, but do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy or completeness of that information and are not responsible for changes in the Web site. Members should conduct their own independent review of the Web site prior to any use of Web site, its content, products, or services to determine their suitability for the member's intended purpose. | |
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