Best Selling DSLRCameras

DSLR stands for “digital single-lens reflex.” The term refers to a type of viewfinder on a camera. A standard viewfinder is placed beside or above the camera lens and focuses separately from the lens. The image you see in the viewfinder is never precisely what the camera sees or what will appear in your photo, although with a well-designed viewfinder it can come very close.

A single-lens reflex camera has no viewfinder technically so called. Instead, it uses a mirror to bend and redirect some of the light from the lens through an eyepiece so that the photographer is looking right through the lens itself. What you see is exactly what you get. There are enormous advantages to SLR photography.

The biggest advantage is that an SLR allows you to change lenses in the camera. You can use a close-up lens, a telephoto lens, and various lenses with different aperture settings to capture just the image you want. With a viewfinder, this isn’t easy to do, because the viewfinder is made to match a particular lens and will present a much more distorted image if you change the lens. With an SLR camera, because the image you see is always coming from the lens, it’s always true to the lens, no matter which lens you’re using.

SLR cameras are always equipped with a removable lens that can be replaced with other lenses at will. Sensors are normally built into the viewing display in an SLR camera, too. They tell you whether there’s enough light at the present aperture setting and shutter speed, and how well the image is focused. Focusing is much easier with an SLR than with a viewfinder, as you can see the image as it’s presented by the camera lens and see whether it’s in focus or not.

All of these are reasons why single-lens reflex cameras have become the standard for serious photography. That was true long before digital photography became practical (the first SLR cameras were analog). But today, many of the famous names in manufacturers of analog SLR cameras have come out with excellent digital SLR cameras, too. These include Nikon, Canon, Pentax, and others. The advantage of craftsmanship in a digital camera doesn’t go to the “digital” part (the electronic sensor array and storage routines), but to the part of the camera that remains analog, with the lens being the single most important feature.

A single-lens reflex camera of top quality costs more than most other digital cameras. (That was also true about analog cameras; the SLR cameras were usually more expensive than the viewfinder versions.) You can expect to pay $400 – $1,000 for a decent DSLR camera, with the priciest, such as Nikon’s D3X, running as high as $8,000. Specialized lenses cost money, too. A DSLR is not really needed for casual snapshots. But if you want to take your photography to a higher, more serious level, it’s definitely the way to go. In that case, you should expect to spend some money, unfortunately. Digital photography has shaved some of the cost from the art, but quality is still fairly expensive.

Best Selling DSLRCameras

• Black, Brian. DSLR Photography for Beginners: Take 10 Times Better Pictures in 48 Hours or Less! Best Way to Learn Digital Photography, Master Your DSLR Camera & Improve Your Digital SLR Photography Skills