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BY KATHY BURNS-MILLYARD

Many hobby photographers have what’s referred to as a point and shoot camera. These types of cameras are usually quite small and lightweight, allow you to view the picture on a digital screen instead of looking through the viewfinder, and do not have complicated accessories like interchangeable lenses.

A point and shoot camera is an excellent type of digital camera for beginners, and they make fantastic gifts too. These days they can be purchased for as little as $100, and prices range upwards from there to around $500. The difference in pricing usually indicates the quality of the camera, how many features it might have, and how big the pictures turn out too.

The size of your pictures is usually determined in megapixels. A camera that offers 10 megapixels will turn out larger, more detailed photographs than a 4 megapixel camera will. The megapixel size of a camera should not be the only criterion to consider when shopping around, though; there are many more things that should be taken into consideration.

If you’re buying a camera for someone who is brand new to photography, you’ll want to choose a camera that has easy to use preset controls. With preset camera controls, the photographer doesn’t have to understand the details of what the camera’s doing — they simply select the mode they want, point the camera, and push the button.

Most cameras have preset controls these days, but some have more than others. Here are the most common settings you’ll find:

Sunlight mode — The camera will automatically configure itself to take a picture in bright sunlight.

Night time mode — If you want to take a picture outside at night, set your camera to this option.

Indoors — This is usually indicated by a little lightbulb on the control dial. When you’re taking pictures inside, set the camera to this and it should do a better job at handling the dimmer lights.

Sports mode — This is indicated by a little running man icon. When you want to take pictures of sports — or any kind of fast action such as little kids chasing each other in the backyard — switch to this mode, and it will do a better job of catching the fast movement.

Flash mode — This is used most often when you’re taking pictures indoors. If you don’t have enough light to get a good picture, then turn on your camera’s flash and set it to flash mode.

You don’t have to actually use these modes if you don’t want to. A brand new digital camera user for instance, might prefer to simply leave the camera in automatic mode all the time. Leaving it set to automatic will help ensure the camera adjusts itself depending on the conditions of the image you want to capture. If you’re indoors, for instance, and you don’t have enough light for a good picture, the camera will automatically turn the flash on for you.

Kathy Burns-Millyard publishes the Hobby Hour site. Check out its hobby photography area for more tips, advice and techniques. Stop by her SasEz! site to see some of her recent stock and portrait photography.