Camera vs Phone

Since the kid arrived, I’ve started debating the merits of a dedicated camera vs the one built into my phone. We have two fairly decent camera, one’s a Canon Rebel EOS and a (Blank). They both take pretty good pictures and fill different roles.  The Rebel is big and has a nice lens for zooming. It also has an option telephoto lens for long distance pictures. The other one is small, portable and easy to carry around, while still having reasonable zoom.

Now, compare those to the phone, which can take the same quality pictures, is always with us but has no variability in focus distance. It’s great for having on hand, but can’t zoom and often has blurry pictures. Not something to have on hand for beautiful vistas.

The biggest advantage of the phone, aside from portability, is internet connection. I take a picture and can then immediately upload it to my Picasa web album, Facebook, email it, whatever. There’s no plugging it into the computer, copying it, and then uploading it from there. Instant delivery. Makes labeling, naming, storing, sharing all happen so much faster (and therefore likely to occur).

All three camera options call flat in the realm of speed. They all take forever to actually snap a picture, though the Canon is the best of the three. Compared to the Super Camera’s of Awesome that my older sister and parents have, they take ages to snap the picture.  I exaggerate some, as for most things they do just fine. But when trying to catch a baby doing something cute, you’ll likely miss it.

At some point, I’d like to replace all of these with a fast camera, with lots of zoom options, and internet access. That wouldn’t solve the portability issue (always have my phone, don’t carry the camera around except for vacations, so more likely to catch good shots). But it would remove the main barrier from it.

I know there are cameras, or possibly just memory cards, that will do that automatically. I might need to look into those.