Who doesn't love a good picture?
Of course, you love taking them. At the beach, at the wedding, at the party - you take your camera anywhere and everywhere. You want a camera that's compact, fast, and easy to use. Look for a camera with zoom capabilities; different flash modes, including automatic and red-eye reduction; and a fair memory capacity, whether it be internal or SD cards.

Forget frivolously snapping shots and using perfectly good memory, all of your photos are perfection and you need a camera that helps you get just that. You want to experiment with different effects and be able to manipulate your images with professional-level control. Check out cameras with interchange-able lenses or zoom with the widest focal range possible. Make sure it has a slot for SD cards for the best memory. Get better control with multiple exposure and focus controls.

Don't know if you're ready to start a photo-filled life? Your camera is easy to use, but has enough specs so that you can have some fun if you want. Be sure to grab one with zoom and multiple storage options, like internal and SD cards, just in case. Get curious with multiple focus controls. You can even search for one with video-clip recording.

You've heard the word, but what exactly does it mean when it comes to cameras? In laymen's terms, a megapixel is a way to measure the quality of your images. On your computer, if you want to make an image smaller or larger, that image will become more or less clear depending on the number of pixels (short for "picture elements"). One megapixel = 1000 pixels wide x 1000 pixels tall. Think of a pixel as the number of dots in your image. The more dots, the better the quality. So how do you decide? It depends on what you plan on doing with the image. If you want to print or retouch the image, get a 7MP or higher resolution. For the Net or e-mail, a lower resolution is fine.

Camera megapixels	Good quality images	Best quality images
4 - 5MP	11"x14"	5"x 7"
6 - 7MP	16"x20"	8"x10"
8MP	17"x22"	8"x10"
10MP	20"x30"	11"x14"

If you have a computer or memory stick, you know that more bytes equal more storage space. The same goes for cameras. However, with a higher resolution (measured by MP) the amount of space one image takes up is greater than with a lower resolution. For example, with an 8MP camera and a 64MB memory card, you can store about 20 - 23 images. However, with a 4MP camera and that same 64MB memory card, you can store about 40 - 50 images.

Camera megapixels	Images on 64MB	Images on 1GB
4MP	40 - 50	724 - 800
5MP	35 - 40	565 - 625
6MP	27 - 32	452 - 500
8MP	20 - 23	301 - 333

Camera lingo can be confusing sometimes. Here are a few tips on what those techies are talking about.

Optical Zoom: This is when the lens physically extends to get a closer image. Press "W" or "T" on your camera and the lens will move in for a wide view or out for a close view.

Digital Zoom: This zoom picks up where the optical zoom left off. It crops your picture by stretching the pixels to make that section larger.

LCD Viewfinder: On digital cameras, you'll most often find an LCD viewfinder. This is the display on the camera that shows you the image.

Aperture: The opening through which light enters a camera's lens. A larger aperture means greater photosensitivity. A smaller one means greater depth of field.

Depth of Field: How much scene will be in focus. A narrow depth of field means the camera concentrates its focus within a small range, based on the subject's distance. The background will appear blurry.

Shutter Speed: How long a camera allows light to fall on the image sensor.