The problem some are beginning to discover is that these cameras that look okay on small TV screens don’t look good at all on big screens. Grainy shots, mismatched colors, insufficient lenses for the distance and lighting – all these factors contribute to the problem. That’s why churches that are looking for excellence in their media ministry are beginning to look at professional cameras today the way they looked at projectors a decade ago. With prices on higher-quality cameras inching down every year, good cameras are not just for the largest churches anymore. It won’t be long before cameras are as common as projectors in churches.

If you’re beginning to consider cameras for your church, where do you start? The camera itself is actually the last thing to investigate. Just like with projectors, you have to understand your purpose and how your room conditions affect your needs before you try to meet these needs.

The very first thing that you have got to do is ask the question “why?” Is the camera strictly for recording? Is the recording for distribution to church members or just shut-ins? Do we want the camera images on the screen in the main sanctuary? Do we want to stream our services on the web or by podcast? Are we looking for all of the above? One particular camera or camera type can be the right choice or a very wrong choice depending on the answers to these questions.

Of all your room conditions, light is the most important one to take into account. The camera “sees” differently than the human eye. The greatest camera/lens combination in the world is still going to be limited by the available lighting. For example, the best possible lighting scenario for IMAG should have a variety of light fixtures (using different colored “gels”) covering the stage so that they combine to give the closest approximation of true white light. You need different colors to get skin tones that are accurate and pleasant, as well as true color reproduction of the scene.

Next, camera placement is an issue that a lot of churches struggle with. “Can we put cameras where they are not going to be a distraction to worship?” There are basically three options to address this dilemma, each with definite pros and cons:

Option 1: The choice that gives you the best performance for the lowest price is to place manned camera stations in the midst of the room. The downside is that the camera equipment and operators are going to be visible to the congregation. It’s often a major distraction at first, but we typically find that after a few weeks no one seems to notice anymore. Each church will have to decide for themselves if this is a good option.

Option 2: The second option is to place the cameras at the back of the room. How far away will the camera be from the scene it is trying to capture? Perhaps more appropriately, how close can the camera be to the scene? To place cameras 100′ away from the stage and capture a tight head and shoulders shot is not possible without spending a great deal of money. You’ll need a large lens capable of reaching that far, which requires a camera that can work with that lens. Not every church will have a budget for the kind of camera equipment necessary to pull this off.

Option 3: Robotic cameras are the third option. These cameras don’t need a person standing next to it to control its movement. These cameras were originally used strictly for high-tech security, but recent advances in technology and function make them a viable option for some churches who need to get closer to the stage without a huge camera. To find out more about robotic options, check out this month’s VISUAL AIDS.

An exciting development in video recently is the advent of High-Definition or HD video cameras. Up till now the cost of HD cameras has been prohibitive, to say the least. However, new cameras on the market bring the visual quality of HD at least within sight of, if not within, the budgets of many ministries. So, when looking at a camera system for a church, Standard Definition vs. High Definition is a topic that definitely needs to be addressed. It is important to note that just going with HD cameras does not make the system HD. Every component along the way has to be capable of dealing with the high-def signal for the system to be considered truly HD. However, it can be a good idea to start with HD cameras and upgrade the rest of your system over time.

It will save you a lot of time and trouble in re-budgeting and re-convincing people if you prepare your decision makers for these issues before you even begin to shop for a camera. When you’ve done this part of the work, now it’s time to decide which cameras are right for you and how many you will need. That’s where Fowler comes in. We’ve already done research on a number of cameras, some of which are designed for the needs of churches. If you need help sifting through some of the initial issues, we can do that, too.

Call Fowler at 800-729-0163 or email us at info@fowlerinc.com.

If you’ve been using a compact digital camera all your life and you’re planning on getting an SLR camera, you might need a quick refresher course on the basics of SLR photography. Knowing the basics will not only help you find the best SLR cameras on the market but also teach you how to make the most out of your digital SLR camera.

Digital SLR cameras only became widely popular around 2005. Before that, SLRs were mostly only used by professionals. Because of this development, SLR camera manufacturers are now dropping the prices of their SLRs to stay competitive in the market as more and more people are getting into SLR photography. If you’re also unfamiliar with how digital SLR cameras work, here’s a quick primer.

SLR 101

SLR stands for Single Lens Reflex. SLR cameras are known for their almost-zero lag time and fast shutter speed, making them ideal for action and sports photography and taking spontaneous shots. SLR cameras are also versatile in terms of how you capture images because these cameras have changeable lenses.

Aside from versatility and speed, the best SLR cameras are also known to produce top-notch quality shots because of their large image sensors. If you use an SLR camera, what you see on your viewfinder or LCD screen is exactly what your lens also sees. This allows you to have better aim and focus when taking pictures. However, if you read through SLR camera reviews, you’ll encounter terms and phrases like Live View and Auto-focus. The latter is pretty much self-explanatory; it’s a camera feature that automatically focuses on the subject. Live View, on the other hand, is a feature that allows you to view on your LCD screen the image and range that the camera’s lens is picking up.

However, what you see in the camera’s Live View LCD screen or viewfinder isn’t always 100% accurate. Meaning, there are still certain factors such as coverage and brightness in using the viewfinder. Coverage refers to the percentage of the image that the camera’s sensor will capture once you take the photo. Most viewfinders are only able to provide a preview of 95% of what the sensor will capture.

The brightness of the viewfinder also varies from camera to camera. In this case, brightness refers to the clarity of the image that you see. A digital SLR camera with a bright viewfinder lets you see details clearly and thus make it easier to do manual focusing on your subject. If you want to know in detail how an SLR camera works and its advantages over compact digital cameras, you can browse through online tutorials, or ask your photographer friends for advice and recommendations before you get an SLR camera of your own.

Have you decided to buy a digital camera, but the confusion over which one to pick has you overwhelmed? In order to make the right choice to suit your photography needs, consider these five different features before you hand over your credit card.

1. Camera Lens Quality

It costs an arm and a leg to build a superior lens with the best glass. Cheap digital cameras tend to use cheaper lens. Even if a camera has 36 megapixels, the image quality with a cheap lens will be mediocre. Camera manufacturers can’t afford to put superior glass in a cheap camera. If you use a digital SLR that has interchangeable lenses the quality difference between pro level lenses and entry lenses is immense, and measured in hundred or even thousands of dollars.

2. Manufacturer Quality

The materials that go into manufacturing good quality digital cameras cost a good deal of money; consequently the camera price will be higher. The cost difference between the aluminum, plastic or first-rate magnesium alloy is significant. This is even more so with a digital SLR. How a shutter button feels or the chassis strength on a pro level camera, compared to an entry SLR, you will find big differences which are again reflected in the price.

3. Sensor Quality

How a camera sensor handles light intensity and the resulting digital noise is affected by the design, the quality of the CMOS or CCD sensor, and the ISO rating. Try taking a picture with dimmed light and you will notice that in darker areas there will be flecks of color and grains. This is digital noise. Better quality cameras will have better light sensor and far less noise, or even no noise at all unlike cheaper compact digital cameras. Poor sensor quality degrades the image quality even when using an excellent lens.

4. Processor Quality

Each digital camera has a computer chip known as the processor, which receives digital information from the sensor and uses it to construct a picture. The way light is processed affects the general image quality. The more complex and powerful the processor is, the better pictures you’ll get and surely the higher the camera cost. High megapixel pictures processed by simpler and less powerful processor will yield lower quality image.

5. Higher Megapixels

10.1 megapixels on an expensive digital SLR and 10.1 megapixels on a cheap compact camera are poles apart. High megapixels mean nothing if you have a poor lens, sensor and processor. On the other hand, you need to use high megapixels to take advantage of a high quality lens, sensor and processor. Just like many things in life, a good balance is essential.

The problem some are beginning to discover is that these cameras that look okay on small TV screens don’t look good at all on big screens. Grainy shots, mismatched colors, insufficient lenses for the distance and lighting – all these factors contribute to the problem. That’s why churches that are looking for excellence in their media ministry are beginning to look at professional cameras today the way they looked at projectors a decade ago. With prices on higher-quality cameras inching down every year, good cameras are not just for the largest churches anymore. It won’t be long before cameras are as common as projectors in churches.

If you’re beginning to consider cameras for your church, where do you start? The camera itself is actually the last thing to investigate. Just like with projectors, you have to understand your purpose and how your room conditions affect your needs before you try to meet these needs.

The very first thing that you have got to do is ask the question “why?” Is the camera strictly for recording? Is the recording for distribution to church members or just shut-ins? Do we want the camera images on the screen in the main sanctuary? Do we want to stream our services on the web or by podcast? Are we looking for all of the above? One particular camera or camera type can be the right choice or a very wrong choice depending on the answers to these questions.

Of all your room conditions, light is the most important one to take into account. The camera “sees” differently than the human eye. The greatest camera/lens combination in the world is still going to be limited by the available lighting. For example, the best possible lighting scenario for IMAG should have a variety of light fixtures (using different colored “gels”) covering the stage so that they combine to give the closest approximation of true white light. You need different colors to get skin tones that are accurate and pleasant, as well as true color reproduction of the scene.

Next, camera placement is an issue that a lot of churches struggle with. “Can we put cameras where they are not going to be a distraction to worship?” There are basically three options to address this dilemma, each with definite pros and cons:

Option 1: The choice that gives you the best performance for the lowest price is to place manned camera stations in the midst of the room. The downside is that the camera equipment and operators are going to be visible to the congregation. It’s often a major distraction at first, but we typically find that after a few weeks no one seems to notice anymore. Each church will have to decide for themselves if this is a good option.

Option 2: The second option is to place the cameras at the back of the room. How far away will the camera be from the scene it is trying to capture? Perhaps more appropriately, how close can the camera be to the scene? To place cameras 100′ away from the stage and capture a tight head and shoulders shot is not possible without spending a great deal of money. You’ll need a large lens capable of reaching that far, which requires a camera that can work with that lens. Not every church will have a budget for the kind of camera equipment necessary to pull this off.

Option 3: Robotic cameras are the third option. These cameras don’t need a person standing next to it to control its movement. These cameras were originally used strictly for high-tech security, but recent advances in technology and function make them a viable option for some churches who need to get closer to the stage without a huge camera. To find out more about robotic options, check out this month’s VISUAL AIDS.

An exciting development in video recently is the advent of High-Definition or HD video cameras. Up till now the cost of HD cameras has been prohibitive, to say the least. However, new cameras on the market bring the visual quality of HD at least within sight of, if not within, the budgets of many ministries. So, when looking at a camera system for a church, Standard Definition vs. High Definition is a topic that definitely needs to be addressed. It is important to note that just going with HD cameras does not make the system HD. Every component along the way has to be capable of dealing with the high-def signal for the system to be considered truly HD. However, it can be a good idea to start with HD cameras and upgrade the rest of your system over time.

It will save you a lot of time and trouble in re-budgeting and re-convincing people if you prepare your decision makers for these issues before you even begin to shop for a camera. When you’ve done this part of the work, now it’s time to decide which cameras are right for you and how many you will need. That’s where Fowler comes in. We’ve already done research on a number of cameras, some of which are designed for the needs of churches. If you need help sifting through some of the initial issues, we can do that, too.

Call Fowler at 800-729-0163 or email us at info@fowlerinc.com.

Brand: Accessory Power    List Price : $77.99    Sale Price : $38.99    Availibility : Usually ships in 1-2 business days Check Price at Amazon.com

BLAZING 16GB SDHC Class 6 ( Secure Digital High Capacity ) Memory Card for Digital Cameras / Camcorders ***Includes 4 in 1 Memory Card Reader*** Feature

• 16 GB storage capacity -Class 6 – Guaranteed fast data transfer minimun rate 6 MB/ seconds for reliable copy/download/backup.
• Usable with an extremely wide range of devices that have Secure Digital compatible w/ media slots.
• Low battery consumption to maximize battery life in small portable devices.
• User-selectable mechanical write protect switch on the exterior card casing. ** 10 YEAR WARRANTY **
• Includes Card Reader that supports SD / SDHC / MMC / MiniSD / MicroSD with adapter

BLAZING 16GB SDHC Class 6 ( Secure Digital High Capacity ) Memory Card for Digital Cameras / Camcorders ***Includes 4 in 1 Memory Card Reader*** Overviews

Store 16GB in a card the size of a postage stamp!
The Secure Digital High Capacity 16GB memory card offers incredible storage power in the smallest of packages.

Compatible with Panasonic DMC GH1K GF1K-K GF1C-K FZ35K FP8S FP8K FP8R ZR1R ZR1A ZR1S ZR1K GH1K FZ50S FX150K FX150S TZ4S TZ5A TZ5K TZ5S FZ28K FZ28S FS20K FS20P FS20S FS3A FS3P FS3S FS5K FS5R FS5S FX35A FX35K FX35S FX37A FX37K FX37S FX37W G1A G1K G1R LZ10K LZ10S ZS3K ZS3A ZS3R ZS3S ZS3 ZS1 ZS1K ZS1S Nikon CoolPix S230 S630 S3000 S220 S640 S570 S550 S1000 S51 S70 P5100 P90 L100 L90 L18 L19 L20 L10 L100 L11 L12 L14 L15Digital SLR D300S D90 D5000 D60 D3000 D40 Casio ExilimEX-F1 FC100BK FC100WE FH20 FS10BE FS10GY FS10RD H10 S10BE S10BK S10RD S10SR S12BK S12GN S12PK S12SR S5BE S5BK S5PE S5PK S5SR S770BE S770RD S880BK S880RD S880SR V8SR Z100BE Z100BN Z100PK Z100SR Z1050BE Z1050BK Z1050PK Z1050SR Z1080BE Z1080BK Z1080GY Z1080PK Z200BK Z200RD Z200SR Z29BE Z29BK Z29PE Z29PK Z300 EZ300BK Z300PK Z300SR Z75BE Z75BK Z75PK Z75SR Z77BE Z77BK Z77PK Z77SR Z80BE Z80BK Z80GN Z80PK Z80SR Z80VP Z85 Z85BN Z85EO Z9BK Z9EO Z9PK Z9SR Z1050 S770 Canon: EOS-1D Mark III EOS-1D Mark II EOS-1D Mark II N EOS-1Ds PowerShot TX1 A460 A450 A550 A560 A570 A630 A640 A710 IS A720 IS G7 IXUS 70 IXUS 75 SD40 SD750 SD800 IS SD900 SD1000 SD780 IS SD890 IS SD940 SD980 SD990 IS A1100 IS SD 1200 IS Digital Rebel XSi SX20 IS SX120 SX200 IS G10 G11 Fuji FinePix- A150 A170 A220 A820 A825 F100fd F50fd F60fd F70EXR J150 J20 J250 J38 J50 S100FS S100fd S1000fd S1500 S1500FD 200EXR S2000HD S8100fd Z10fd Z100fd Z20fd Z200fd Z30 Z33WP Z37 Samsung: GX-10 GX-20 HZ10W HZ15W HZ25W i85 L200 L210 L73 L74 NV24 NV24 HD NV30 NV40 S630 S860 SL102 SL201 SL202 SL30 SL420 SL620 SL720 SL820 TL9 Kodak: EasyShare- M1063 C1013 C180 C613 C913 M1033 M1063 M1073 M1093 M340 M380 M763 M863 M873 M883 M893 IS V1073 V1233 V1253 V1273 Z1012 Z1015 Z1085 Z1275 Z1285 Z1485 Z885 Z980 Zi6 Zx1

*** Product Information and Prices Stored:Jul 18, 2010 06:12:11

Brand: Accessory Power    List Price : $43.99    Sale Price : $21.99    Availibility : Usually ships in 1-2 business days Check Price at Amazon.com

BLAZING 8GB SDHC Class 6 ( Secure Digital High Capacity ) Memory Card for Canon PowerShot SD780 IS / PowerShot SX20 IS / Digital Rebel Xsi and More Digital Cameras ***Includes Beatifully Rendered Stellar Nebula MousePad*** Feature

• 8 GB storage capacity -Class 4 / 6 – Guaranteed fast data transfer minimun rate 4 MB/ seconds for reliable copy/download/backup.
• Usable with an extremely wide range of devices that have Secure Digital compatible w/ media slots.
• Low battery consumption to maximize battery life in small portable devices.
• User-selectable mechanical write protect switch on the exterior card casing.
• ** 10 YEAR WARRANTY **

BLAZING 8GB SDHC Class 6 ( Secure Digital High Capacity ) Memory Card for Canon PowerShot SD780 IS / PowerShot SX20 IS / Digital Rebel Xsi and More Digital Cameras ***Includes Beatifully Rendered Stellar Nebula MousePad*** Overviews

Store 8GB in a card the size of a postage stamp!
The Secure Digital High Capacity 8GB memory card offers incredible storage power in the smallest of packages.

Compatible with Canon: EOS-1D Mark III EOS-1D Mark II EOS-1D Mark II N EOS-1Ds PowerShot A1000 IS PowerShot A1100 IS PowerShot A2000 IS PowerShot A2100 IS PowerShot A460 PowerShot A470 PowerShot A480 PowerShot A550 PowerShot A560 PowerShot A570 IS PowerShot A580 PowerShot A590 IS PowerShot A630 PowerShot A640 PowerShot A650 IS PowerShot A710 IS PowerShot A720 IS PowerShot D10 PowerShot E1 PowerShot G10 PowerShot G11 PowerShot G7 PowerShot G9 PowerShot S5 IS PowerShot S90 PowerShot SD1000 PowerShot SD1100 IS PowerShot SD1200 IS PowerShot SD40 PowerShot SD750 PowerShot SD770 IS PowerShot SD780 IS PowerShot SD790 IS PowerShot SD800 IS PowerShot SD850 IS PowerShot SD870 IS PowerShot SD880 IS PowerShot SD890 IS PowerShot SD900 PowerShot SD940 IS PowerShot SD950 IS PowerShot SD960 IS PowerShot SD970 IS PowerShot SD980 IS PowerShot SD990 IS PowerShot SX1 IS PowerShot SX10 IS PowerShot SX100 IS PowerShot SX110 IS PowerShot SX120 IS PowerShot SX20 IS PowerShot SX200 IS PowerShot TX1 VIXIA HF S10 VIXIA HF S100 VIXIA HF S11 VIXIA HF10 VIXIA HF100 VIXIA HF11 VIXIA HF20 VIXIA HF200 VIXIA HG20 VIXIA HG21

BLAZING 8GB SDHC Class 6 ( Secure Digital High Capacity ) Memory Card for Canon PowerShot SD780 IS / PowerShot SX20 IS / Digital Rebel Xsi and More Digital Cameras ***Includes Beatifully Rendered Stellar Nebula MousePad*** CustomerReview

I bought this when I found my new Pentax Camera battery did not last as long as I thought it would. It is a true camera saver.

Pros:

High Speed Card up to 15MB/sesc.
High performance card and is most useful when I transfer photos from camera to my PC.
Lifetime limited warranty.
Captures more photos and longer videos.
Maximizes storage.

Cons:

None, worth the money.

Highly Recommended. prisrob 09-05-09

*** Product Information and Prices Stored:Jul 17, 2010 03:25:09

Brand: Canon    Model : 6254A003AA    List Price : $16.00    Sale Price : $0.01    Availibility : Usually ships in 1-2 business days Check Price at Amazon.com

Canon Metal Neck Strap 1 for All Elph Cameras, 34″ Length Feature

• Lets you easily carry your Canon Digital Elph around your neck
• Lightweight and easy to connect
• Compatible with all Canon Powershot Digital Elph models
• Also fits most compact cameras

Canon Metal Neck Strap 1 for All Elph Cameras, 34″ Length Overviews

Canon is a leader in professional business and consumer imaging equipment and information systems. The company’s extensive product line and digital solutions enable businesses and consumers worldwide to capture, store, and distribute information. Canon products include full-color as well as black-and-white copiers, printers, micrographics and image-filing systems, facsimile machines, calculators, cameras and lenses, camcorders, semiconductor, broadcast and optical equipment, flatbed scanners, and other specialized industrial products. Canon offers all kind of accessories for its products to make them even more functional and attractive.

Canon Metal Neck Strap 1 for All Elph Cameras, 34″ Length CustomerReview

Surely you’ve been walking around snapping photos of people and places and found yourself wondering:”Where should I put my camera so that I can buy a soda” or “I’ve got to pick up my kid so that he/she doesn’t run into the street.”

Well, Canon has a genius solution to these questions. The metal neck strap is the best camera accessory since…a wrist strap. At first glance you might think that a metal strap would be uncomfortable for you and risky for your camera’s finish. But the folks at Canon have the metal strap snugly encased in plastic.

I love walking around with my camera around my neck, hands free and ready to take a photo at a moment’s notice. Kinda like a ‘Flava flav’ version of camera as jewelry. (OK, you can skip the Viking helmet with the horns if you want to)

However, you will enjoy this little accessory a lot for just a little bit of money. You won’t be sorry!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored:Jun 15, 2010 19:59:46

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

I’m using this lens on a Nikon D200. After destroying my 18-200mm Nikon VR I wanted a cheap “walkabout lens” that I could risk destroying as I do a lot of industrial shooting where it’s easy to whack a lens.

I bought this lens despite some less than glowing reviews. I really liked the self-contained design where nothing changes length when zooming or focusing. I also liked the idea of it being f/2.8 at the wide end.

This lens has a boatload of chromatic aberration at wider settings which is it’s chief drawback. I use Lightroom 2.6 and it’s perfectly correctable which enhances its wide end sharpness as well. This lens is sharp enough at all zooms stopped down just a little. It’s really quite a surprise. I wouldn’t try to make billboards with it, but it should print up to 12×18 with a little care in shooting. The optical stabilization on mine is really very good and I’m impressed with how far it allows me to push the shutter speed on still life shots.

Like most inexpensive wide lenses, it shows corner softness and vignetting at wide settings but this can actually be used to push the viewer into the center of the shot, or vignetting can be corrected in post. Wide open at 50mm (it’s full zoom limit) it’s soft all over but sharpens up by even F/5.6 on my copy. Not bad since most lenses in this price range are already F/5.6 at this zoom and have to be closed further to get any sharpness at all.

I have a number of Nikon and Sigma lenses and this one sits on my camera almost all the time. I’ve grown to know and trust it in just the short time I’ve had it. The autofocus has been very good in low light — contrary to some reviews I’ve read elsewhere — and I have to say this lens is easy to like once you understand its limitations.

For the very low price this lens sells for and the features it has (non-rotating filter mount, internal zoom and focus) it’s a very attractive lens for a shooter like myself.

Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 SLD Aspherical DC Optical Stabilized (OS) Lens with Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) for Canon Digital SLR Cameras Feature

• Optical Stabilizer: Sigma’s own OS System
• Large Aperture/Wide Angle: Superior low light photos
• High Image Quality: Two SLD glass elements and three Aspherical lenses corrects all aberrations
• Includes: Petal-Type Hood
• Mounts: Sigma, Nikon, Canon, Sony and Pentax

Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 SLD Aspherical DC Optical Stabilized (OS) Lens with Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) for Canon Digital SLR Cameras Overview

An upgrade to its predecessor, the 18-50mm F2.8-4.5 DC OS HSM is a lens dedicated to digital SLR cameras with APS-C size image sensors offering a large aperture and Sigma’s Optical Stabilization. Once again, Sigma has also engineered the built-in OS function, an anti-shake system, for Sony and Pentax mount allowing the photographer to see a stabilized image in the viewfinder. The combination of the large aperture of F2.8 and anti-shake function makes capturing exceptional photos in low light achievable, and the wide angle is well suited for indoor photography. Two SLD (Special Low Dispersion) glass elements and three Aspherical lenses provide excellent correction for all types of aberrations. The Super Multi-Layer Coating reduces flare and ghosting. Designed with inner focusing and inner zooming systems, high image quality is assured throughout the entire zoom range. The overall length of the lens does not change during focusing and zooming ensuring convenient handling. This lens has a minimum focusing distance of 11.8 inches (30cm) throughout the entire zoom range and a maximum magnification ratio of 1:4.1. The incorporation of HSM (Hyper Sonic Motor) ensures a quiet and high speed auto focus.

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: May 31, 2010 05:33:38

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

I had this lens for one week, and it is perfect for travel,
and when you don t know what where you are going to take pictures,

the built quality is excellent (as sigma does usual)
and it is very compact and light for a large range lens.

just not very sharp pictures at 18mm,
but with this kind of lens it is well known
and it is still better than the kit-lenses 18-55mm that I have.

if you see the concurrence : bigger, more bulky,
sometime the telephoto-lens increase by itself if you chose the wrong position…
and it can resist if you want to change focal between 18 and 200mmm,
with this one: you have NOT these problems !!!
of course there you can find more rage (18-270 for example),
but for me 18-200 is enough and also it is more compact,
there is no stabilization and ultra-sonic focus but,
first, the stab is not needed if you have a Pentax SLR,
and second, the ultrasonic-focus is more expensive
and not always needed and increase the size of the lens.

for me this lens is excellent with my Pentax K10D and my Pentax k-x
…. and by the way, this lens is not expensive at all.

Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras Feature

• High zoom ratio (11:1) lens designed for Canon digital SLR cameras
• 18 to 200 mm focal length
• 2 Special Low Dispersion glass elements; 2 hybrid aspherical lenses
• Compact, lightweight construction
• Lens coating reduces flare and ghosting

Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras Overview

This high zoom ratio lens is exclusively designed for digital SLR cameras and capable of covering a wide range of focal lengths from wide-angle to telephoto. Two Special Low Dispersion (SLD) glass elements and two hybrid aspherical lenses offer the utmost correction for all types of aberrations, and enables this extended range super zoom lens to be housed in a compact and lightweight construction of 70mm (2.8″) diameter, and 78.1mm (3.1″) in length, and weighing just 405g/14.3oz. The lens coating reduces flare and ghost, which is a common problem of digital cameras and also creates an optimum color balance. This lens has a minimum focusing distance of 45cm (17.7″) at all focal lengths and has maximum magnification of 1:4.4.The lens design incorporates an inner focusing system, which prevents the front of the lens from rotating, making it particularly suitable for using circular polarizing filters and petal shaped lens hoods. The overall length of the lens does not change during focusing, ensuring convenient handling and ease of use. A zoom lock switch eliminates “zoom creep” during transportation, a convenient addition when traveling.

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: May 31, 2010 05:32:21

If you want to buy the digital camera and looking out for some good features like good pixel camera quality, large LCD scenes, large inbuilt memory at reasonable price, then you can think for Polaroid Digital Camera. With the introduction of digital camera by Polaroid, ordinary man having no photography background can also click good pictures as that of a professional one.

Some interesting features of Polaroid Digital Camera is that of their high resolution picture quality that is 7. 0 MP camera with zoom out facility and image features. Hence this distinguishes them from ordinary camera. And also new anti -shake videos added in the camera are the most interesting features in this camera. They are useful when one shakes hand while clicking the photo. This option is readjusted automatically to get clear and steady photo every time you click. A picture taken from large LCD scenes takes you to the real world with high quality def. In built memory is large and you can expand it till 2 GB.

Other features like contrast and other setting parameters before taking the pictures are the added advantage. In this camera, the most interesting feature is that of Red eye reduction which gives fine quality to the pictures. Flash feature is also available so that you can enjoy good quality pictures at night too. This feature is not present in all digital camera. Many digital camera has option called as Night mode which you can on while clicking the pictures at night. But the picture quality is not good and poor resolution ends with poor picture.

Many digital cameras have short battery life. Same with this also. A short battery life is the disadvantage of this camera as they use two AA rechargeable batteries. They are easy to handle, lightweight hence are more portable. But you need to always carry rechargeable batteries with you.

Printing option is also present in them, if you have PictBridge printer with you. The camera’s comes with colors like silver, blue, black, pink etc. Hence you can select which color you want and they usually comes with different designs and price range. Also Face Tracking, Blink and Smile Detection features are present. They are useful when some people blinks their eyes often. This camera will wait to capture the image unless and until the photo captured by you are good, with smiling faces and eye open. The contrast enhancer also is featured in this digital camera which produces the true color images. Panoramic Stitching option is also present in this cameras. As the name suggest, you can aligned the snapshots taken by you instead of taking separate one individually. This is very useful when you are shooting the images of some skyscrapers or some tall buildings.

Burst mode is the again interesting and highlighted feature of this camera. You can set the frequency of the cameras and can automatically take 12 images per shot and also you can combine those images to make flipbook.