Louis Miller wanted to know when a DSLR is worth the extra money, and when it’s just better to stick with your smartphone or a point and shoot camera.

Here’s Louis’s question:

“Do you have a video on whether the home photographer, the non-professional, could benefit from a DSLR over a compact or smartphone camera and when it is a waste of money? I just bought a $450 DSLR from Costco because the compact camera I bought didn’t have manual settings and I wanted to experiment. I have 90 days to decide. I can return it. I’ve been looking through your videos and so far, I can’t find anything that just gives straight information on this subject.”

The short answer is that an advanced camera, whether it’s a DSLR, a mirrorless camera, or an advanced point and shoot, is worth the extra money if you’re going to take advantage of the benefits that camera provides.

The main advantage of an advanced camera is that you have control of all camera functions, and that control allows you to make the camera do exactly what you want it to do.

If you’re going to use that ability to control the camera, then it’s going to be worth the money. Yes, it will take you some time to learn how to use it, but it will be worth it.

On the other hand, if you’re using happy with your basic camera shooting in auto, buying a DSLR and shooting it in auto is a waste of money.

Especially if you feel embarrassed or envious when you see other people using “professional” cameras, because it doesn’t matter what you use, what matters is if you’re happy with the photos you’re taking.

Of course there’s a bit more to it than that, so check out the video to get all the details. 🙂