Digital Camera Advice

I have rather randomly decided to have a whack at photography as a hobby (actually, I watched a professional photographer explaining the basics of composition etc to some students, and I found it so interesting that I’d like to give it a go.)

So, I need a camera. My last major toy, an electric guitar, was bought largely on advice from the teeming millions, so I thought I’d have another go at prevailing upon the kindness of you nice folks.

I know pretty much nothing about cameras, but I’d quite like a fairly decent model. I probably won’t print many of them. I don’t really know what else I need to think about! I’m willing to spend about £300 (is that about US$500?) but I am notoriously spend-thrifty and could probably go higher for something VERY shiny.

Any advice, because clearly, I haven’t got a clue what I’m doing!

Go to DPReview and DCResource and read the reviews and figure out what you are looking for in a camera. There are dozens of great models out on the market right now and you haven’t given enough information to make a good recommendation.

What are you going to do with the images? How big are you going to print them? What features are you looking for? Video? Batteries - AA or LiIon? How much zoom is important to you? Many low light shots? Do you want manual controls? Fold out LCD?