Choosing a Camera for Bird Photography

Professional versus amateur labels are often used to distinguish between SLR and the long lens, point and shoot cameras. Both produce nice pictures, with price gap between the high end digital SLRs and point and shoot cameras accounting for most of the photographer's choice.

Technological advances in the high end point and shoot cameras have made bird photography affordable for the serious amateur. More specifically, serious amateur bird photographers around the world are using cameras with image stabilization technology and extended focal length capability built into the lens system.

Image stabilization (IS) technology on a lens allows it to adapt to hand movement and still produce clear pictures.

It's importance can not be stressed enough. Think for a minute about your excitement level upon meeting up with any bird not yet on the traditional life list.

The thrill often translates into the photographer experiencing a slight trembling of the hands or weakening at the knees. In those situations, a camera lens with IS technology helps insure that the picture comes out sharp enough to share with friends back home.

The length of the camera's telephoto lens also influences the picture outcome. Assuming a distance of ten to fifteen feet between you and your subjects, the birds, suggests a need for a telephoto lens in the 200 mm to 300 mm range.

In everyday language, these lenses will make the birds four to six time larger than you see them with the unaided eye, resulting in larger bird pictures.

Well known camera brands, such as Panasonic with their Leica lenses, Sony with their Zeiss lenses, Nikon with their Coolpix models and Canon with their PowerShot models, incorporate both IS technology along with zoom lenses with a ranges exceeding 400mm range.

Bird photography enthusiasts report generally high levels of satisfaction with these models and competing models on photography forums around the Internet.

One final lens point concludes the memo. Digital camera lenses are commonly divided into optical and digital zooms. Optical zoom settings instruct the camera lens to magnify the image in question. Most digital cameras translate their optical settings into traditional 35 mm language. For example, a 3x optical zoom commonly translates into an approximately 100 mm focal length.

Digital zoom settings, on the other hand, instruct the camera to enhance the image in question, that is, enlarge it. Because the camera rather than the lens, does the work, the image loses some clarity during the enlargement process.

© 2002-2007. Patricia A. Michaels. All rights reserved.