Best Cameras For Every Kind Of Photographer And Vlogger

1 - Best Instant Camera (Polaroid Originals OneStep+)

Instant cameras have come back in a big way, and you can now shoot on film that develops more-or-less instantly instead of writing to a memory card. The Polaroid Originals OneStep+ looks like it popped out of a time portal from 1977, but has modern flourishes as well. If you connect the OneStep+ to your smartphone via Bluetooth, for example, you can use your phone as a remote trigger, perform double exposures and paint with light in long exposures.

But at its heart, this is a simple point and shoot instant camera with a big red shutter button and two modes: portrait and closeup photography, and a standard shooting distance from three feet to infinity. There are a lot of instant cameras out there, but we’re especially partial to Polaroid for its large 3-inch-square prints.

2 - Best Point & Shoot Camera (Canon PowerShot ELPH 180)

If you’re looking for a simple point & shoot camera that handles all the exposure decision-making but includes a handful of scene modes for more creative moments, this is the camera. It’s a 20-megapixel model with an 8x optical zoom and 720p video recording, all for a very modest price that’s only a little north of $100.

There are some tradeoffs. The ELPH 180 doesn’t have a lot of light sensitivity (it has a maximum ISO of 1600), a relatively small 1/2.3-inch sensor and doesn’t capture full HD video, to say nothing of 4K. But it’s easy to use and has cool extras like a face self-timer (it waits to see your face before taking the picture) and scene modes like portrait, fisheye, fireworks and long shutter. Bottom line: It’s a great alternative to using your smartphone.

3 -  Best Mirrorless Camera for Beginners (Sony Alpha A6100)

Novice photographers coming to the Sony A6100 might not appreciate how compact and light it is, because they don’t have a ton of experience lugging around a DSLR to compare it to. Nonetheless, this is a perfect camera to start a photography hobby; in the slight camera frame lives a formidable 24 megapixel sensor and the ability to shoot 4K video.

In addition, the camera has all the modern luxuries, including a responsive touchscreen display that tilts to any angle you need, pop-up flash and an excellent, easy-to-use interface. But perhaps the best reason for a beginner to choose this camera is the fast and accurate autofocus that can detect faces and focus on eyes—both in people and animals. Combined with a shooting speed of up to 11 frames per second, this is a beginner-friendly camera that can serve you well as you learn and grow as a photographer.