After my last column that dealt with what you should look for in a digital camera, I received a large number of e-mails that said "Specifically which camera would YOU recommend for real estate?"

As I stated previously, the first thing that you need to ask yourself is "What am I going to be doing with this camera?" I think the answer to that most often is pretty simple.... you're going to be taking pictures of your listings. These pictures are then normally going to be used to communicate via printed medium such as flyers, CMA reports, etc., or electronically via email, diskette, CD, or on a website as individual images or a virtual tour. Based on this projected usage, here's the criteria I'd use to select a digital camera.

Wide angle lens

First, since the vast majority of your pictures will be taken inside the house, in my opinion, the most important feature a camera can have for a real estate professional is a good built-in wide angle lens. The difference between a good 28, 29, or even 30mm wide angle lens and the much more common 35-38mm normal lens is substantial. With a good wide angle lens you can simply take better, wider angle images that show off more of a room than you can with a normal lens.

As many people have found out the hard way, you can purchase a camera with an add-on adapter that will give you wide angle capabilities. However, these solutions are often less than optimal. You have additional parts to carry around, many times the images have a "fish-eye" effect, and often the add-on lens partially covers the built-in flash, which can make create dark areas on the photo.

Easy to carry

A smaller camera that can easily fit in a purse or pocket is preferable to one that is larger and bulkier.

Adequate resolution

Many people buy much more resolution than they actually need. For normal use, 1 to 2 megapixels is plenty for printing up to 5x7 photos, and far more than you need if you're sending photos by email or putting on a website.

After an extensive search, I only find only two new cameras on the market today that meet my criteria.

• First Choice - Kodak DX3215 - My first choice is the Kodak DX3215 for under $200. It's small, has adequate resolution for my needs (1.3 megapixels), and the price is right.

• Second Choice - Nikon CoolPix 5000 - My second choice would be the Nikon CoolPix 5000 with its built-in 28mm lens for approximately $1,000. If you feel you need higher resolution than the Kodak offers, this would be your best choice. Is it worth $800 additional dollars? Not for my use, but you'll have to decide that for yourself! Some of the other Nikon CoolPix series cameras have an optional 24mm add-on lens adapter that's quite good.

Buy a used camera?

You may also want to consider purchasing a used or rebuilt camera from eBay. Two of my favorite cameras that aren't being made anymore are the Kodak DC215 and the Kodak DC4800. Both are small and have very good wide angle lenses. There are normally several of these for sale at any time on eBay.

Published: September 30, 2002

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