Holiday Shopping

If you're out holiday shopping this Christmas season, I've got a couple of photography holiday shopping ideas for 2011.

I was able to do extensive research on what cameras are best for HDR photography. Note that these cameras are really good for any type of photography. I've chosen the cameras with the biggest sensors (this matters more than the number of megapixels), the best AEB (Auto Exposure Bracketing), camera Raw option and the best price (from Amazon). Note that all point-and-shoot cameras have much smaller sensors than the dSLR models below.

To learn more about cameras for HDR photography, preorder my latest book, Beginning HDR Photography.

The Canon S95 point-and-shoot with HDR mode.

The Nikon V1 is a small sensor mirrorless model, one of a kind with a sensor size that is between those of a point-and-shoot and dSLR.

The Sony NEX-5N or 7, a mirrorless model, has an APS-C sized sensor (a little smaller than full-frame, which is the size of a frame of 35mm film) and Camera Raw options. Note that the AEB isn't the best. Wait for a later model.

The Rebel T3i, a great entry level dSLR has Raw, AEB and an APS-C sensor.

The Nikon D5100 contains everything you need plus a mode that puts the sequence of shots together to make an HDR photo.  

AEB means Auto Exposure Bracketing, a method of setting your camera to shoot a sequence of shots by pressing the shutter release button all the way down until the camera stops shooting.