David answers:

Sorry to tell you this, but generally speaking it is rarely the camera that is to blame for bad images.

You can put a fantastic professional camera in the wrong hands, and it will take lousy photos. A good photographer can coax great photos out of even the simplest cameras.

If you borrow a few books on photography and watch a bunch of tutorials, you will learn a lot.
With some knowledge, you WILL take much better photos and you will learn to overcome (or at least realize) whatever limitations your camera has.

Then there is the issue of using special effects in camera…. The short answer is:

DON’T DO IT !

Imagine if you just happen to take the best photo you ever took – surely you would want to have it in all its glory, right?

Always set your camera to biggest size, best quality (and to color).

That way, you start with the best possible photo as your original.

Then you make a copy and edit it to your heart’s content.
You have much better control over any editing on your computer, even something as simple as b&w will look MUCH better when it was processed properly instead of in camera.
You can do all sorts of things to it PLUS you get to keep your original.

David answers:

Hi ɐɔıssǝ,

First of all both of the cameras you are looking at appear to be new models that are just becoming available. As a general rule I suggest NOT getting brand new models of cameras. It is much better to select a model that is enjoying some popularity with consumers so you can get an idea of how well the camera does what you want it to.

It would be helpful to know what you mean by “large” prints. If you want to make poster sized prints or larger you will probably need to increase your budget by $150~$300 because you will want to find a camera with a larger sensor (NOT more Megapixels).

Good brands to look at include Canon, Fuji (fujifilm), Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax and Sony.

Some of the most important features to look for (especially for shooting kids) include, face/smile detection, low “shutter lag/delay” and, for video, capability (option) for sound recording with an external microphone. Get a zoom lens with Optical Zoom digital zoom is meaningless and #X such as 3X or 8X is not very informative because they don’t have a common “base” 3×12 = 36 while 8×4 = 32.
Both #X zoom and digital zoom are marketing hype.

I found over 300 models in your price range from the brands listed above.

Here is a reliable on line store with any easy way to select a variety of options to find what you are looking for ~

http://www.adorama.com/catalog.tpl?op=itemlist&cat1=Cameras%20%26%20Lenses&cat2=Digital%20Cameras%20%26%20Accessories&cat3=Digital%20Cameras&feature1=Canon&feature1=Fujifilm&feature1=Nikon&feature1=Olympus&feature1=Panasonic&feature1=Pentax&feature1=Sony&feature3=Point%20%26%20Shoot%20with%20Zoom%20Lens&sf=Price&Startat=1

HTH. Good luck. Email me if you need more detailed help.

David answers:

Canon Powershot A2200 is exactly what I expect from the Canon brand. The pictures look great, and the camera is super easy to navigate.