Digital Photography Review runs regular photography challenges for readers
If you are thinking about buying one of the more serious digital cameras, take a look at Digital Photography Review. It provides thorough reviews of digital SLRs, and while it may not cover all the compacts, it does track models from leading brands.
DP Review's Buying Guide section has a database of cameras so you can search for the features you want. If you're trying to decide between different models you've heard about, you can pick the ones you want and see their specifications side by side for comparison. You can also go beyond the site's reviews and click to read opinions from people who own them. There are 11 reader reviews of the Canon PowerShot A550, for example, 36 of the G10, and 168 of the EOS 450D (Digital Rebel XSi).
An even quicker way to see what's hot is a table of the "Top digital cameras of the last five days" as measured by reader interest. (Today, Nikon D90 information is attracting the most clicks.) There's also a timeline that shows when various cameras were launched, going back to 1995. Along with the reviews, it provides a terrific overview of the rapid development of the digital camera business from the days of 0.3 megapixel images.
The site didn't actually start until 1998, when Phil Askey wrote a review of a camera he'd bought and "dropped it onto the now defunct photo.askey.net." He says on his blog: "But then a funny thing happened, I began getting emails, lots of them, all asking about my article and what I thought of other cameras." People were looking for a site that provided "honest, detailed reviews", so he started one.
Like IMDb, DP Review was one of the few UK sites to attract a global (mainly American) following, and like IMDb, Amazon bought it. Although it doesn't seem to have changed much since then, it's now run on a professional basis. It has new offices, a greatly expanded staff, and the use of Amazon's server infrastructure.
Amazon's ownership isn't mentioned in the site's credits, and there are no banners or logos. There are, of course, lots of links that take you to Amazon to buy stuff, but the site still provides links and prices for alternative site.
As you would expect, DP Review has become a home from home for hardware buffs, who comment on reviews and help each other in the forums. Recently, however, it has started expanding its coverage of what cameras are used for: taking pictures. The site now runs Challenges, where users are invited to submit photos on specific topics, then vote on the results.
At the moment, people are voting on six challenges, two are open for submission, and another three have been announced. Topics include: It's hip to be square (407 entries, 3,137 votes), View from my window, and – starting next Monday – The Lone Tree.
People still go to DP Review for the specs, but many stick around for the creativity and the community.
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