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Photography Question 

KEV REDDECLIFFE
 

How Many Megapixels?


Could anyone advise me on the minimum amount of megapixels I would need in a digital camera to get crystal clear photos?
Thanks.


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March 19, 2005

 

BetterPhoto Member
  If you want to blow them up, 3.2 or more. If you want a 20x24, then the mark2 is perfect.


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March 19, 2005

 

Karma Wilson
  In the point and shoot digital (not single lens reflex), an 8-10 MP camera can't produce as clear of an image in a 5-6 MP SLR camera. The sensor and lens quality just aren't as good. So if you go SLR, you can get excellent prints in a 5-6 MP camera up to quite a large size. In a P&S, you can get acceptable prints up to 8x10 with as low as 3.2 mp - but it won't really compare to a 3.2 MP SLR. It's all a little confusing. Bottom line: megapixels are the least of your worries. You need to consider the quality of your camera overall. There are some very decent P&S cameras out there, but if you're really picky you may want to go with an SLR. Without knowing your specific needs, it's hard to make specific recommendations.
Karma


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March 19, 2005

 

Peter K. Burian
  Kev: Yeah, it depends ...
A 1 megapixel camera can produce a crystal clear photo on your computer monitor. But even a 4x6" print will not be excellent.
For superb 4x6" prints, get a 3 or more megapixel (compact) camera. For superb 8.5x11" prints, a 5 megapixel (compact) camera.
(You can make decent prints with lower resolution cameras, but if you want really superb print quality, high resolution is useful.)
And yes, as Karma says, the digital SLR cameras (like the 6 megapixel EOS Digital Rebel) produce higher image quality than the small digicams. But the SLR cameras are larger and more expensive.
See my article on that topic at:
http://www.edigitalphoto.com/cameras/0407edp_digitalslr/


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March 19, 2005

 
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