In the last couple of weeks I have had several parents ask me about video and still cameras. Most of them want to capture their kids as they grow up. The question involves how much money to spend on a video or still camera. Is it more important to have a good video camera or a digital still camera?
Here’s the simple answer. Get a good digital SLR still camera. The Canon Rebel XT (most popular camera on Flickr) is down to $500. With a good camera and some practice, you can get some good pictures of your family and friends. You can print them or carry them around with you on your MP3 player. You can share them using any number of free online services.
Video is much more complicated. Most friends or even family members do not want to sit down and watch an hour of your kids at Disneyland. On the other hand, if you take 500 pictures during your vacation, you can probably identify 50 of them that will be interesting enough to print and slide into an album. Your friends or family can quickly flip through that taking as little or as much time as desired.
For the long, complicated answer, you should ask Rappold. He does a lot of both.