As an experiment, I embarked on a Photowalk with my three digital cameras to discover which would be the most useful, and in which circumstances.

The cameras are, from left to right:

1. Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ8 — a DSLR
2. Advent MP8 — a compact.
3. Panasonic SDR S7 — an SD camcorder.

So, two still cams and a movie camera.

The walk was around the centre of Exeter, including the Quay, the High Street and the river bank, plus a number of tourist sites around the city.

Conclusion
As expected, I used the movie camera the most. There was just too much movement and activity for static shots.

However, when confronted with a fine view, the DSLR came out and a staged shot was taken. Even so, these were all hand-held. Pulling out my tripod would have involved too much effort and made me too conspicuous.

Where a fairly static scene was involved, but with something interesting going on, I reached automatically for the compact.

So, predictably the ratio was 3:2:1 for video, DSLR, compact.

Does that tell me anything about my usage and preferences? Probably not, except that I’ll make sure I carry the videocam everywhere from now on.

This may seem a boring exercise — depending on where you live, of course. But it needn’t be. What makes a photograph interesting is not necessarily the subject matter itself, but the artifice of the photographer.

Lunchtime in an Elizabethan setting

I have embarked on a project to photograph my home town of Exeter in Devon, England for the whole of the summer, in different lights and from different angles. The whole is designed to convey the gorgeous picture-book quality of this very ancient town.

I’ve found the best way to approach this project is by walking rather than driving around. When you walk, you’re free to divert down any interesting byway that may be impossible in a car.

I’m using a good quality compact digital camera : Advent 8MP, which I can slot onto my belt, plus a spare set of batteries. Nothing more.

Two things I’m looking for : the picturesque and the quirky. Both yield interesting images that others will want to look at. Here’s an example of the picturesque :

The Cathedral Close at Lunchtime — April

The next pic is definitely quirky. It’s Parliament Street, Exeter, which is little more than 2 feet in width. There hasn’t been a parliament in Exeter for a good many centuries, but the Council still keeps it up — just.

Super-slim Parliament Street, Exeter

Why don’t you try photographing your own home town?

You can see the whole of this set of images on our Flickr Photostream.

I’m always intrigued when a new Rollei camera is announced, even in these digital days — my first camera was a Rollei twin-lens 2 1/4″ square, and it still remains my favorite.

Imagine my surprise then, when investigating the new Rollei da 6324 and finding it virtually identical in every visual respect to a point-shoot camera I bought recently.

The Advent MP8 is a very nice camera, made in China and, with 8 mega-pixels and many good features, a classy product for its price range (I paid £130 GBP).

The new Rollei da 6324 is identical, front and back, in a way that can’t be simple coincidence. The Advent does have a couple of extra megapixels and part of the lens spec differs too, but the case and presentation are the same.

Did Rollei go to China, pick out a nice camera, and rebadge it with the Rollei imprint?

I’d love to know. Just think, for the same price I could have sported a Rollei. Bah!

A question that’s increasingly asked by newcomers to digital photography is, which should I buy, a compact, point-and-shoot model or a digital single lens reflex (DSLR)?

Darren gives a very comprehensive answer to this over at Digital Photography School. His conclusions are:

This is ultimately a question that you need to answer for yourself. My answer is to have both (I’m fortunate to be able to do so) but if I had to choose between one or the other I’d get a DSLR based upon my experience level, the type of photos I take, my desire to use manual settings and the quality of image that I’m after. If your situation is different to mine however and you want a portable camera that takes good pictures that you’ll mainly use for small prints and emailing that you’ll mainly shoot in auto mode - you’ll probably be quite happy with a cheaper point and shoot.

For myself, I’ve always used SLR-type cameras, usually Canons, and I have no complaints about them, except that they are bulky and heavy to carry for many excursions.

On these occasions I’ve relied on my camera-phone to snap anything interesting I see along the way. But the quality is dismal and I’ve been considering a middle way for a while. The main problem is that I don’t do enough of the opportunistic stuff to justify a high-priced digicam.

I solved the problem by purchasing a very cheap Advent MP8 (yes, 8 megapixels) from an online discount house for £130 ($245 US). This is good enough, small enough and flexible enough for the needs I have, and I rate it as a very good buy.

Update: This post is having a good run in TechMeme. Check it here.