Need help about Digital Cameras.

[SimonMK]

I never used a camera before but now that I have money, I thought of buying a camera to take photos of my cat, to have a memory of him and maybe take a picture of my collection and post it here.

Since I never used one before that mean I know nothing about if its a good one or bad one. Those 2 are the one I thought of buying because they are in sale.

This one is cheaper but is limited and currently, the store near my house is sold out, I have to go far for the store that still have one.
Canon PowerShot 10MP Digital Camera (SD1200IS) - Silver
http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...10120686&catid=

This one is 50$ more but they have plenty of it.
Canon PowerShot 12.1MP Digital Camera (SD780IS) - Gold
http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...10120676&catid=#

The only difference I see is the cheaper one is 10MP while the other is 12.1MP... which I don't even know what this it.

I was also wondering...

1. When I take a photo of let say my cat and I want to keep it in my wallet or stick it to the wall, do I need to bring my Digital Camera to a shop or the photo can come out of my camera after taking the picture?

2. Do I need to buy additional stuff with my camera? Like films (not sure if they still use those).

3. Can I connect my camera to my PC so I can keep copies of my photos as back up or put them in my Facebook album?

[Benzo]

MP means mega pixels. the more the MP for more high res the photo will be.

1. you can but you can also print them out on your printer with photo paper.
2. not film but you may want to buy an SD card to add more memory to the camera which will allow you to take more pictures. SD cards are pretty cheap these days.
3. yes and yes.

[SimonMK]

About the SD Cards, when it almost full, can't I just connect to my computer and transfer the photos that were inside and have my SD Cards empty?

[GMfan]

I'd say pass on both since Canon camera's are horrible, go for a Nikon or Pentax

[JLvatron]

Originally Posted by SimonMK

About the SD Cards, when it almost full, can't I just connect to my computer and transfer the photos that were inside and have my SD Cards empty?

Yups!
And no need to wait till their completely full, I suggest doing it on a regular basis for a few reasons:

1- Since digital cams use a re-writable card (and not film you constantly buy again and again), you will likely take tons of pictures, and more and more, for no extra cost.
So regular transfers will be easier for you to handle all the pictures and decide which 1's to keep and delete.

2- Since SD cards can unfortunately fail (it's rare, but it happened to me) it's safe to transfer the pics frequently enough so that in a few years if your SD card does fail you won't say,
"Oh no! I was just about to transfer 600 pictures, but I lost them all!"

[SimonMK]

Are Canon's Digital Camera really that horrible? I am not seeking the best stuff and a camera relatively cheap (in price).

I don't plan on taking hundred of photos, just a few of my cats to have a memory of them and maybe some photos of my TF collection but I don't know if there a thread for that.

[Team Jetfire]

I had a point and shoot Cannon. Only lasted a few years before it gave up...

That being said, it was used a lot, so it maybe ok for taking pics of Mr Snuggles and the collection.

[Phalanx]

No, Canon's are not that bad. I've owned three Canon digital cameras and I've been very happy with them. Nikon and Pentax are also very good (mostly by reputation, I've only owned a traditional film Pentax, so can't speak from experience). All camera producers will have some cameras that are hit and miss.

Kodak camera's are supposedly the most user friendly for people new to digital cameras, but the picture quality usually isn't so good.

Sony, HP and Fuji camera's are usually pretty hit and miss.

All in all, I'd recommend checking a good review site or three to see what the pros and cons of each model are. Pay particular attention to how the cameras handle different lighting conditions. Also, make sure that whatever you buy has some sort of stabilization (most if not all good cameras will these days, but...)

Oh, and personally I prefer a camera that has a traditional viewfinder in addition to the LCD. You can turn the LCD of when taking pictures and save a bit of battery power.

...Also, don't buy anything that takes a proprietary battery. Just added expense if you want a spare, and you're chained to a recharger. If you get something that takes AAs (most do these days, but there are still a few with proprietary batteries out there) then you can get good quality rechargeables or buy batteries in a pinch.

[Phalanx]

Oh, and my original Canon digital is about 5 years old and still going strong (though it has a proprietary battery which is dieing a slow death and is not easily replaced... see above). It's currently loaned out to someone who had a Sony (I think) that died about a year after it was bought. It's only 3.4 megapixels, but that wasn't so bad when it was new.

[SimonMK]

Another question. When I check the website posted previously, they have 3 section for Digital Camera.

Sleek & Thin
Extended Zoom
Point & Shoot

Sleek & Thin, I assume its just a very small camera easy to bring everywhere.

Extended Zoom, I assume its just so I can take photos from very far away?

Point & Shoot, is it the same as Sleek & Thin but bigger?