I have written this guide to assist those looking to buy a new digital camera. Digital photography can be a minefield of jargon, so making an informed decision is difficult. I hope that this guide will prove to be a useful tool, as I explain a few of the factors a new consumer should concern themselves with when they look to buy a new camera.

I will focus on two main topics. Firstly, megapixels, where I'll outline what they are and how many of them your camera should have. Secondly, I will discuss zoom, and the different kinds that are used in photography. At the end of this guide I will then mention any other additional features that one may find on a digital camera and explain why they may be a useful extra or an unnecessary expense.

A digital photograph is made up by collecting a group of dots (pixels) together to make an image. A one mega pixel image consists of 1 million dots. The more megapixels an image is composed of, the higher its resolution. Higher resolution leads to more detailed images, which can sometimes offer greater quality. However, we cannot simply say that 12 mega pixels is better than 10 mega pixels. All it means is that the picture produced has a higher resolution. It doesn't mean that the picture quality will be better. Also, the higher the mega pixel quantity, the longer it usually takes for the camera to take the photo and save it to memory. This may affect its ability to shoot spontaneously as you may have to wait longer for an image to be processed.

In most situations, 10 megapixels is enough. Some manufacturers have even said that they will never produce a camera with more than 14 megapixels because 14 megapixels is sufficient. What high resolution images does mean is that you may be able to zoom into an image a little closer without so much loss of detail. So, sometimes a high level of megapixels can compensate slightly for a lack of zoom.

Optical zoom is created by the movement of the lens resulting in an image which appears larger without a loss of detail. Digital zoom is created by taking an image, cropping it and increasing the size of what is left to give the impression of it being closer. Optical zoom is best because it doesn't negatively affect image quality in the same way that digital zoom can. When there's more than around 12x optical zoom however, it usually requires a large deep lens which can only be accommodated by having a larger camera. Sometimes it is also a bit pricier too. So, if you are looking for a very small camera to take with you everywhere, you may have to settle for a smaller amount of optical zoom.

Finally I will talk of additional features you often find on modern digital cameras. Many are now able to record sound and video so that the camera can be used as a dictaphone or to record videos when there is too much movement in the frame for one photo to capture.

So, in summary, think about megapixels and zoom when looking to buy your next digital camera. Also think about what else you might be able to use it for. The final thing is to make sure you get the best deal. When visiting http://uk.best-price.com you can be sure to get the best price as best-price scour all the top retailers for all the top name camera brands such as Canon, Sony, Panasonic and Fujifilm.

To compare prices on digital cameras please visit: http://www.uk.best-price.com/category/digital-cameras/7185/1/1/