Types of Camera

You may find these camera descriptions of use:-

• SLR (single lens reflex) camera
  A camera, usually with an interchangeable lens, which allows you to look through the lens itself via a series of mirrors to view your subject. When you release the shutter, the mirror folds up out of the way of the shutter. Electronics allow most SLRs to do everything for you, but you can usually have manual control over aperture (the size of the hole in the lens) and shutter speed (how long the shutter is open) if you wish.

• Compact camera
  These now often have auto-focusing zoom lenses, but inexpensive models still have fixed focus. Top models allow some control over exposure, not by controlling shutter speed and aperture directly, but by allowing extra or fewer 'f-stops' (convenient steps in how much light reaches the film, each step being twice or half as much as the previous one) exposure. In some this is expressed as +1 or +2 or -1 etc. In others, you can just add one stop by activating the 'backlight' feature.

When you go to the techniques pages, you need to know which sort of camera you use, as the advice is very different dependent on how much control you have, and also which films you use.

Conventional vs. Digital

Digital cameras have now reached the stage in their development where image quality can compare with the results from conventional film. At the top of the digital market, the mega-pixel models can match the fine quality of a Kodak Gold of Fuji Reala film shot with a £60 compact. However, you will need either a microdrive-equipped digital camera or a large stock of memory cards/sticks if you are going to keep your images at that high quality level until you can upload them to your PC. You can normally arrange that the camera saves images in a lower-resolution format to maximise the number of pictures held, providing you won't want to make A4 sized printouts which should be produced from the highest-resolution files. There are advantages to digital if that ultimate in quality is not important to you, not least of which is the ability to download into your PC and produce your own prints on your inkjet. However, you can also do this very well with a conventional print and a flatbed scanner costing much less than £100. 35mm conventional film and cameras are unbeatable value, even if you do want to play with the images in your PC.

Conventional vs. Other Formats

Leaving aside digital options, for most photographers the choice will be between 35mm and APS (advanced Photo System). APS is ultra-convenient to load, offers an innovative selection of print shapes and (except on the cheapest cameras) records information such as date - which will usually be printed on the back of the print. However, quality is not as quite as good as 35mm in cameras of similar price and complexity, simply because i) the negative is slightly smaller and ii) other things being equal, an APS cameras is more expensive than 35mm.

Care of Equipment

Obviously the main problems facing a photographer in outdoor locations are related to heat, sand or dust, and water. Hopefully, protection against extreme cold, where batteries fail and film becomes brittle, is not something that will concern most naturists!

• Heat is a problem for film, especially if it is prolonged or very moist. A small insulated cool-bag that you might use for a packed lunch is ideal for keeping your films in good condition. (And if your holiday apartment comes with a fridge, keep your film in there - inside its little plastic tub so that it doesn't get damp and covered in condensation.)

• The bag your camera comes with is almost always useless for protection and inconvenient. For any type of camera invest in a pouch which is padded to protect the camera from a drop and offers some water resistance. Ideally, the pouch can be put on a waistbelt or hung from your rucksack or whatever, so that you don't have to delve for it when a photo-opportunity arises. See the Links page for suppliers.

• Keep sand, dust and water away from the camera at all costs. Water always damages the electronics, and, despite the prevalence of plastics in camera construction, there will still be many metal parts in all cameras which are vulnerable to corrosion. Be especially careful in humid climes - you know what happens to glasses-wearers when they walk into a hot room! Sand will jam the shutter or winder, or at best will scratch the film if a grain gets onto the camera's pressure plate. Carry a lens cloth and a camel-hair blow brush with a cap. If you do get dust on the lens, blow it away with the brush before using the lens cloth. Some cameras are "weatherproof" - this doesn't mean they can be used underwater! If you want to take pictures in a pool or the sea, either get a specialist underwater camera or buy a sealable housing for your existing camera - they aren't that expensive.

• Fit each lens with a Skylight 1b filter if you can. It has a marginal warming effect on the photos, but most of all it is better to scratch a £10 filter than a £100 lens.

• See separate advice about travel for aircraft stowage and X-rays etc.

Accessories

• Your choice of lenses if you're an SLR user will be your own. Some people prefer fixed length lenses, others prefer zooms. A range between 28mm and 200mm will cover most 'people-picture' needs, with 90-135mm giving the most pleasing portraits, in general.

• A polarising filter is another useful accessory, helping to remove glare from water, and for deepening those blue skies. (Take off any polarising sunglasses before looking through the viewfinder!!!)

• Use a lens hood. Light hitting the lens at an oblique angle on bright days can cause 'flare' - a blob of orange or blue colour or a general foggy effect on the film caused by internal reflections in the lens. A lens hood will eliminate most of this.

• Carry spare batteries. Most cameras today rely totally on batteries, and running out of power when you need it is a real pain. Don't forget that batteries have a finite shelf-life - check the "use-by" date.