Digital Cameras That Are a Snap to Use

One tech gadget that is practically essential at this time of year is the point-and-shoot digital camera. For the holidays, you want something that’s easy to carry around and simple to use. If you’re spending a lot of time with family, you’ve got enough stress. You don’t need any more from your camera.

Luckily, some of the latest digital cameras have become so analog-like in their ease of use that they hardly seem high-tech. And that’s a compliment.

In addition, they have gotten so petite that they can easily slip into a pocket or bag.

But which one to get? And how much to spend?

Point-and-shoot digitals -- complete with automatic focus, internal flash and zoom lens -- can be found for about $150 to $600. (Single-lens-reflex models, with changeable lenses favored by professionals and serious amateurs, can cost more than $1,000. Point-and-shoots with optional manual modes for more control are more than adequate for most of us.)

The price of a point-and-shoot is determined largely by the quality of the resolution, measured in megapixels, or millions of pixels -- the tiny color “dots” that make up a digital image.

Simply put, the higher the megapixel count, the richer the print’s detail and color. Also, pictures taken at relatively high resolutions can be blown up to big print sizes while retaining image quality.

My suggestion, if it’s within your budget, is to go for a 5-megapixel model. Although it’s true that 3 megapixels are all you need to make high-quality, 4-by-6-inch prints, 5 megapixels allow you the luxury of being able to make the occasional 8-by-10.

Also, the higher megapixel count allows you to pinpoint one section of a shot and blow it up to full size without losing discernible quality.

You could go for even more -- 8-megapixel nonprofessional models are widely available. But in my view, that verges on overkill for a point-and-shoot.

Another factor is the size of the viewing screen on the back of the camera. The screen is used for framing pictures and looking at them after taking the shot. Until recently, the standard size of the screen was 2 inches, measured diagonally. Now, the better cameras sport 2 1/2 -inch screens -- a considerable improvement in viewing ease.

How much will a camera with all these attributes cost? About $300 to $500 for a name-brand model, according to the manufacturers’ price tags, but in stores or online you can find them for less than $300.

(If that’s outside your budget, you can compromise by going for a 3-megapixel camera with a 2-inch screen and slightly chunkier housing. The price on those is less than $200 for a good model.)

If you can spring for one of the 5-megapixel, 2 1/2 -inch screen models, the question then becomes: which one?

I tried four current models by well-known makers: the Canon PowerShot SD450, the Fuji FinePix Z1, the Nikon Coolpix S1 and the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T5.

When it comes to photography, I’m strictly an amateur. But fortunately, I had help in sorting them out from Times staff photographer Myung Chun, who tried each camera and evaluated the features important to nonprofessionals.

Those of us who work with Myung know he is not easily impressed when it comes to camera equipment. “We photographers are picky people,” he said.

But he was impressed by all of them.

“I think someone would be happy with any of these,” Myung said. “They can take great pictures.”

And without a lot of work. Although it’s best to read the quick-start manuals that come with all these cameras, people with at least some familiarity with digital photography will be able to start snapping away as soon as the battery is charged up.

Myung zeroed in on two important factors.

* Ergonomics: He admired the especially sleek profiles of the Fuji, Nikon and Sony models but felt that they had slimmed down to a fault. They were slightly awkward to hold while taking a picture, and it was too easy for a finger to hit a wrong button or block the lens. This isn’t a fatal problem as a user would adapt in time.

But the clear winner in this category was the Canon, which was slightly thicker. But it had appropriate grip spots. “It makes it easy to cradle the camera, hold it steady,” Myung noted.

I thought the Canon, though petite, felt most like a traditional camera in the hand, and that’s a good thing.

* Auto-focus mode: All the cameras set up a shot in the same way when in auto mode. The user presses the shutter slightly down and pauses, giving the camera a chance to adjust for focus and lighting. Then the shutter is pressed the rest of the way down to capture the shot.

Canon won in this department too as it had a definite pause position easy for the user to feel.

For me, there were additional factors of importance to us amateur photographers.

* Charging: The Canon and Sony models use slick, easy-to-carry battery-charging units that plug directly into outlets. The Fuji and the Nikon use more cumbersome systems, requiring you to stick them in a cradle.

* Downloading: All the cameras downloaded their shots easily into desktop computers equipped with Windows XP or Mac OS X operating systems. But the Canon and the Sony connected directly to the computers with a simple cable. The Fuji and the Nikon again each needed that cradle, in addition to the cable.

* Memory storage: All the cameras came with internal or external storage capacity but only enough for about 10 pictures at the full 5-megapixel resolution level. (You can set them to lower resolution levels to fit more shots onto the memory.)

Plan on buying a larger, more practical memory storage card for about $30 or $40 -- 256 and 512 megabytes are good sizes.

The Canon and the Nikon use SD memory cards, which are easy to find in shops and online. The Fuji uses xD cards, which are a bit less common. Sony uses its proprietary memory sticks, mostly available in places that sell Sony products.

* Ease of use: All tested well, especially considering it was not long ago that operating a digital point-and-shoot was more like using a computer than a camera.

All these models are packed with advanced features, sometimes denoted by mysterious symbols. (Sony, for example, uses a stick figure of a golfer to designate its high-speed shutter mode.) The basic features to know how to turn on and off are the automatic flash (usually designated by a lightning bolt) and the close-up mode (a flower). The Sony was particularly good in showing those symbols plainly on its push-button controls.

The only symbol I couldn’t find was one for fixing all those stiff, are-we-having-fun-yet smiles you get in holiday family portraits.

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David Colker can be reached via e-mail at technopolis@latimes.com. Previous columns can be found at latimes.com/technopolis.