Last week, a cruise ship sailed by the wild and beautiful Napali Coast of the Hawaiian island of Kauai.
On the observation decks, hundreds of people jockeyed for position to snap photos, trying to capture the majestic volcanic views.
My wife and I were among them.
It was like being in a large huddle of Wimbledon photographers: lots of people balancing really big lenses.
More than half the people clicking at the coastline had digital single lens reflex cameras–the high-end digital cameras that let you switch lenses and add flashes.
Digital SLRs have far bigger bodies and lenses than their point-and-shoot cousins.
There were more zoom lenses than buffet choices on this ship.
At one point, as I was trying to focus in on a particularly beautiful waterfall with my own digital SLR, somebody’s long lens rudely brushed my cheek. I turned, nearly knocking out the offending operator with my zoom lens.
This lack of SLR etiquette is not surprising, of course, since most people who own one have purchased it relatively recently. Which means that, like me, they’re also still learning how to use it.
Digital SLRs are the fastest growing segment in the digital camera market. Even though they represent just 6 percent of all digital cameras currently sold, total units sold in May were up 40 percent over last year, according to the Port Washington, N.Y.-based NPD Group. By contrast, sales of point-and-shoot digital cameras increased by 15 percent in the same period.
SLR purchases are on the rise because of falling prices across the digital photography spectrum.
Three years ago, Canon debuted the first SLR (the Digital Rebel) for $1,000. Today, SLRs can be had for less than $600. This makes the SLR market attractive to consumers.
More Top Picks Best Cooling Sheets
Also, prices of point-and-shoot digital cameras have reached a point of low return for manufacturers. Which makes the SLR market, with its higher profit margins, more interesting to them.
This is one of the reasons why Sony recently announced it is entering the digital SLR category. Panasonic will join the fray soon.
And it’s the reason why I was able to buy UV filters, once the domain of specialty camera retailers, at Circuit City for $10 each. Zoom lenses and flash units were also available.
My new camera is a Nikon D50, an “entry level” digital SLR, if such a thing is possible. It sells for about $600 with a basic “kit lens.” I bought mine last month at Costco (in time for the Hawaii trip), which packaged a 300-millimeter zoom lens for an extra $100.
When it comes to actually snapping photos with an SLR, the experience is significantly different from using a point-and-shoot digital camera.
For one, you better play with the manual settings–mostly aperture and shutter speed–because you may be disappointed with the results in automatic mode.
I was.
In automatic mode, my digital SLR actually took photos that were inferior to my 3-year-old 5-megapixel Sony point-and-shoot. For me, the photos weren’t crisp enough. But this was easily adjusted in the camera’s various manual modes.
Also, these babies aren’t light. Be prepared to lug a full-size camera bag weighted down not just by the camera but the additional lenses, flashes and tripods you might have.
Another big difference: Most of us are used to taking pictures by aiming with the color LCD screen on the back of our digital cameras. Digital SLRs don’t work this way. With an SLR, you have to aim by holding the camera close to your face to look through the small viewfinder with one eye.
You know, just like a real camera.
The LCD screen on the back of the camera is used to review photos, delete them and work through menu settings.
Finally: dust. It’s not an issue with point-and-shoot cameras, but it’s a real problem with digital SLRs. Every time you switch lenses, dust can and often does settle on the camera sensor. This affects your photos. So you have to carry one of those plastic air blowers with you.
Worse, dust can actually get inside your lens if you don’t use the lens cap religiously. These specks can only be removed by professionals, who must take the lens apart to do it.
But I bought my Nikon in part to learn more about photography.
For example, I’ve learned that aperture affects how much of the picture is going to be in focus. Increasing your aperture, which is accomplished by decreasing the f-stop, focuses in on one subject in the foreground while blurring the background.
And shutter speed is the other biggie. Want to see the water actually move as it makes its way down the cliff-side fall? Slow down your shutter speed. That’s how the sports photographers get the motion of the tennis racket or the baseball bat.
Overall, I’m very pleased with the photos my new SLR captured in Hawaii. If you want to get more serious about photography, you’ll be pleased too.
Just remember your SLR etiquette: Watch where you put that zoom lens.
———-
Alex L. Goldfayn is host of “The Technology Tailor Show” on WGN-AM 720 on Saturdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.