Point and Shoot Cameras – Don’t Discount these Out

Pentax Optio M20 (Image courtesy of digitalcameratracker.com). This is the P&S I use. One nifty, camera.

I got a call early this morning from a friend of mine, and I mean an early call (5:00am). I’m usually awake by that time so I took the call. What was the call about? He was asking me (from 5,000 miles away) if he should discard his P&S and jump on the DSLR bandwagon. Jeez.

Don’t discard your P&S or don’t discount its capabilities. Sure, it’s big brother DLSR looks all fancy and stuff but P&S have as much value as DSLRs. Most serious photography hobbyists and even a number of professional photographers have a P&S inside their gear bag. P&S are small, compared to DSLRs or those large pro-sumer/bridge cameras. Small P&S are useful in situations where you need to shoot like you’re just a “fly on the wall”. There could be instances wherein grabbing a DSLR  can draw unwanted attention or raise suspicion that you’re a reporter of some kind. DLSRs may also cost you life or limb – as I found out in the Middle East more than I year ago: my camera bag got snatched while I was walking back to our transport after spending a day on the ghettos doing field work. I lost a Nikon FM-10, 3 lenses, a flash unit, rolls of film (exposed and unexposed), filters and some US greenbacks (not much).

P&S are unobtrusive and what I like about these mighty mites is that ordinary people on the street feel more comfortable with a person with a P&S compared to a guy wielding a DSLR with all the bells and whistles (batt grip, flash gun, etc.) Why? Simple: it’s because the ordinary Joe – rich or poor – identifies more with a P&S rather than a fancy, expensive DSLR. I found out in my on-again, off-again romance with photography that ordinary folks that I meet during my travel warm up and open up to me more when I use my P&S compared to some of the times I was using my film SLR with all the bells and whistles.

I’ve met a lot of people that out the world “only” when I ask them what camera they use. “I use a P&S only”. If your this type of person, do yourself a favor and remove “only”. P&S shooters can produce impressive results and in the hands of a person that has a good eye for composition and knows the camera settings by heart, he or she can take fabulous photos compared to a person who has a fancy DSLR but knows nothing about composition and only uses the manual to pass the time away.  P&S cameras are also a quick grab – get them out of the purse or shirt pocket, power on then shoot. We can’t do this with a DSLR. If the issue is clarity, sharpness, depth of field or some other issue, don’t fret it – the newest crop of P&S today offer amazing colors, DOF, sharpness and clarity.

How many of us missed an important shot or a one in a life-time image because we didn’t have our big, spanking, fancy D/SLR with us and we only had a “puny” P&S inside our bag? I bet there are a few out there. Let’s face it, we don’t lug around our D/SLR camera all the time. It’s just not logical. Well, if you’re a photojournalist or professional photographer by trade then it would be logical but for ordinary schlubs like me, it’s not.

So before you discount – or discard – your P&S or trade-it up for a fancy DSLR, think about it first. P&S are easy to carry around, allows you to shoot inconspicuously and is relatively cheap compared to a DSLR that is fully packed with all the bells, whistles, lenses and what-have-yous. As a buddy of mine in one of the forums I frequent said “You get no complaints from them about riding inside a pocket or purse”.

If you want excellent tips on how to maximize your P&S to take great photos, go visit this site of a friend of mine, David Lee Tong: Point and Shoot Camera Tips