How to take better photos

If you want to take better photographs then it’s time to upgrade your camera…

Compact cameras and camera phones are brilliantly convenient for taking everyday snaps, but there’s still no getting away from the fact that the best shots are taken by an SLR, or Single Lens Reflex camera.

Traditionally, SLRs have been the big, bulky cameras with large lenses, which can be taken off and swapped depending on the conditions you’re shooting in. In this age of digital photography, the lenses still come off but the cameras themselves don’t have to be much bigger than a compact.

Why are SLRs the best choice for those who want to take their photography a bit further?

For a start, the image sensors tend to be larger than those in compact cameras. This means they produce less noise, and ‘cleaner’ pictures in low light. Then there’s the fact that the lenses are higher quality than those found in compacts – again because they tend to be bigger and let more light through.

Also, you’ll find SLR lenses tend to be more specialised, so they have powerful zoom ranges or excellent wide-angle quality. They don’t try to do everything – like a compact does.

Finally, SLR users get more creative options for framing, focusing and controlling the exposure of their shot manually.

What types of SLR are there to choose from?

There are two types of SLR currently available, which you should look at.

The first is the traditional type – large, with lots of room for extra controls and a big screen around the back. These range from the highly portable but simple Nikon D3100, for example, up to the professional, magnesium alloy bodied Canon EOS 7D.

You’ll find these cameras are all about putting the photographer in control, with lots of buttons for accessing settings like white balance and ISO speed without taking your eye off the lens.

You’ll also get a glass viewfinder on top for looking straight down the barrel of the lens to frame your shot and fix the focus.

A second type of interchangeable lens camera is also becoming popular, though.

These ‘mirrorless SLRs’ – known as Compact System Cameras (CSC) – are smaller than traditional SLRs on account of the fact that they don’t have a glass viewfinder. Like a compact, you frame the shot on the LCD screen around the back, which does mean slightly less focussing control. Other than that, they’re every bit as powerful and flexible as traditional SLRs, but often cheaper and always smaller.

This class of cameras includes models like Olympus’ PEN range, and Panasonic’s G series. Nikon announced its J1 and V1mirrorless SLRs last month and claims that they’re the fastest cameras they have ever produced – capable of shooting at 60 frames per second with an autofocus system that’s speedier and more sophisticated than its professional models.

We have plenty of other models to help you to unlock your photographic potential and when you’ve created your masterpieces don’t forget to visit Tesco Photo Centre for your prints and photographic gifts.