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How many Megapixels do you really need?

A megapixel is 1 million pixels, and is a term used not only for the number of pixels in an image, but also to express the number of image sensor elements of digital cameras or the number of display elements of digital displays. It determines the quality of your photos. So many people pay too much attention to the number of megapixels in their cameras. But, in fact, megapixels are not everything. Higher megapixels means larger image sizes, which in turn means more expensive memory cards and more space devoured on your computer's hard drive.

So how many megapixels do you really need? It depends on how large a sharp print you want to make. For sharp prints use the formula: print width x 300 x print length x 300. If you only want to make prints up to 8x10 inches, you only need enough pixels to make a sharp print at that size. The general rule for high quality sharp prints is 300 pixels per inch. So an 8x10 inch print needs 8x300x10x300 = 7.2 megapixels. One can still make very nice 8x10 inch prints with less megapixels, but the lower the megapixel count, the softer the image.

Cameras with 2 megapixels or less will be hard to make a high-quality print of any size, but these are just fine for e-mailing photos or posting photos for a personal web site. For who really needs a nice-looking print, it is not a good choice. 3 or 4 megapixels is actually a good compromise between picture quality and low price for most casual photographers. Most new point-and-shoot cameras these days tend to have at least 3 to 4 megapixel image resolution. Bring these images to the lab and they'll be able to develop great looking 4x6, 5x7 and even 6x9 printouts. Cameras in the 5 to 7 megapixels range make nice 8x10-inch prints. Wonderful image quality, and you can print large photos, even 11x14 or perhaps more, with satisfying results. The more advanced cameras tend to have image resolutions of 8 to 12 megapixels. The quality of images shot by these cameras is simply stunning. Of course, their price tags are equally stunning.

Higher megapixels means larger image sizes but more isn't always better. Higher megapixels mean more expensive memory cards and more space devoured on your computer's hard drive. To most people for family use, camera with 3 to 5 megapixels is a good choice. 4 megapixel cameras allow you to achieve excellent photo quality for any picture size up to 8x10. For most people, this is the largest picture size they would ever get printed.If you have unlimited funds, then an 8 megapixels cameras would be better. But if you are a serious photography, 10 megapixels and up is needed. To them, Canon 400D, Canon 450D, Nikon D300 are cameras with high megaphixels and suit for the pro.

When buying a camera you should try to predict what exactly you will use it for. A lower resolution digital camera with better a lens can result in much better digital photos than a camera exclusively built for more megapixels. You should shop around and make sure that you get the best deal in terms of both megapixels and other features.

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