Image Quality
Image quality refers specifically to the camera's abilities in the areas of image sharpness, color, contrast, white balance and noise. Despite what you've heard in the way of camera marketing, no one feature results in -quality images; it's the whole system of hardware and software inside the machine. The best way to judge these attributes is to look at sample images and compare a camera's wide-angle shots with its telephoto shots. Also, compare pictures made at low ISO settings with those made at the highest ISO settings. Keep in mind, however, that there are no technically perfect cameras, and only you can decide how much is "good enough" for your interests.

Convenience and Physical Design
Convenience is directly related to design. Consider the size of the camera, its shape, its bulk, its weight, and its build quality. How about where the control buttons are placed; do your fingers easily find them? Can you quickly navigate through the control menus? How does a given model fit (or not fit) in your hand? Can you mostly hold and operate the camera with one hand, or do you often need to use both hands? Can you see the LCD screen clearly from an angle or in bright sunlight? The list goes on . . .

Point-and-shoot vs. DSLR
The first decision for which it is really important to know your style is the choice between a point-and-shoot and a digital single-lens-reflex (DSLR) camera. The former offers convenience and portability with good picture quality and other niceties such as video. However, if you aspire to art and/or want maximum quality, control, and flexibility, you will more likely be satisfied with a DSLR than any point-and-shoot camera. The choice is not trivial, as DSLRs are more complicated camera systems than all-in-one point-and-shoot camera designs and commensurately more expensive. Even the "prosumer," all-in-one, cameras do not offer the overall flexibility and quality of a DSLR. On the other hand, DSLRs are bulky and don't fit in your pocket!

Image Sensor Size: Megapixels
More megapixels are desirable not only for general quality, but also for making large prints, for cropping your photos significantly, or for any other uses that require a large amount of data. When you crop a picture on your computer, for example, a higher number of pixels ensures that the cropped picture still contains enough data that it won't have unacceptably low resolution. For general snapshots, however, 4 MP or 5 MP is enough for most purposes, including enlargements. If you're on a budget, there are many good choices in this range. Also note that a larger sensor requires larger memory cards. Large sensors can also result in shorter battery life. Finally, more megapixels do not necessarily mean higher quality pictures.

Lens Zoom (Wide Angle to Telephoto) and Aperture
Another feature that requires some thought is lens zoom, particularly for point-and-shoot buyers. Camera marketing is slightly misleading when it labels a lens as having 3x, 5x, or 10x zoom range. This figure denotes the range of a zoom lens, but it does not tell you the zoom's wide-angle capability. To determine this, you need to find a camera with a wide-angle focal length specification (in 35mm equivalent) of 28mm or less. Such wide-angle zoom lenses are relatively expensive. On the telephoto end, any zoom beyond 105mm (35mm equivalent) is considered long telephoto. Therefore, the most common zoom lens found on digital cameras is the 35mm-105mm zoom ("3x" and neither wide nor really long).

ISO Sensitivity Range and High ISO Performance
Most cameras now produce decent images at their lowest settings (ISO 50 or ISO 100), but going up to ISO 200, ISO 400, and beyond separates the clean from the noisy. Read camera reviews for comments about noise performance at higher ISO speeds. Look at dark color regions or skin tones in sample images made at higher ISO speeds; note how spotty or clumpy the image appears. Better cameras will produce images without such artifacts.

Battery Life and Battery Type
There is debate as to whether or not standard battery sizes are preferable to proprietary rechargeable batteries. For my money, I'll take the more expensive proprietary ones. They last longer and work in cold conditions that cause standard batteries to fail. Others prefer the flexibility of being able to buy batteries just about anywhere. If your photographic interests lie far away from electrical sources, consider buying extra batteries or chargers.

Shutter Response/Autofocus Speed
"Shutter lag" refers to the time between the moment you press the shutter-release button and the moment the camera actually records the subject. The lag is due to the camera autofocusing the subject. Autofocus systems are especially challenged by dim light, flat (low-contrast) light, and moving subjects. Sometimes you can pre-focus by holding the shutter-release button down halfway until you want to capture the image (whereupon you fully depress the button). Anyone who has tried to photograph kids knows the frustration of missing the shot due to slow or inconsistent autofocus. Look for a camera that has a responsive shutter and fast, accurate, consistent autofocus.

Metering Consistency and White Balance
All cameras have autoexposure systems, and what you want is consistent exposures in various lighting situations with pleasing color. White balance refers to the color of the light source(s) and is also related to exposure. What you want to see in pictures is a "natural" balance with clean whites (think of a photo with a wedding dress or clouds in daytime in it). Most cameras have no problem with exposures in the sun on sunny days. Move to the shade, however, and see how blue the pictures turn out. Move inside and the real test for a camera's exposure-metering and white balance happens under tungsten light sources (e.g., typical incandescent bulbs or halogen lamps). Ideally, the camera produces slightly warm-looking (lightly amber) skin tones and colors, but most render such scenes with a strong yellow to yellow-orange cast.

Unique Features
One of the most useful features today is known as anti-shake or image stabilization. This technology allows the camera to compensate for slow shutter speeds (required in low light or with long telephoto settings) and can help eliminate blurry shots in certain situations. Another common feature is video recording with sound. Who needs a big video camera when you can capture decent video for home use with your still camera? Some models now even sport stereo microphones.

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