IF YOU want to progress from taking snaps of friends in front of city landmarks to stunning pictures of the landmark itself, then you need to dispense with your compact camera and buy a digital SLR.

SLR stands for single lens reflex, which is a jargon-rich way of saying you own a big camera with interchangeable lenses. This differs from a compact camera, which is defined by having a fixed lens and is normally smaller and much cheaper.

Back in the olden days - the late 1990s - SLRs could be described as boxes that had detachable lenses at one end and could take any film at the other. Picture quality was determined by the quality of lens and film.

They've worked on the same principles for the past 150 years.

Now when you buy an SLR, you can't change the film. You're stuck with a digital sensor that can't be replaced. Until recently, you could spend a lot of money on an SLR that had a mediocre sensor, meaning that even a top-quality lens couldn't yield a top-quality picture. Now, however, quality at the entry level is very good across the board. Competition has increased among the manufacturers, prices have dropped and there has never been a better time to buy your first digital SLR.

SLRs take much better pictures than compact cameras mainly because they have much bigger lenses. Bigger lenses are sharper and let in more light, which means you can be more creative. Allowing more light through means you can change the shutter speed and aperture settings. These sound scary to newcomers but on compact and SLR cameras alike they're normally adjusted automatically.

Increasing the shutter speed simply means you can take sharp pictures of something that's moving. A camera's aperture determines how much light passes through the lens and on to the digital sensor. If the aperture hole is small then everything in your photo will be in focus. If the aperture hole is big you can focus on one thing and everything else will be blurry.

Digital SLRs and compact cameras have control dials that do this automatically. But every digital SLR picture will look superior. And, once you've progressed from beginner to enthusiast, you'll find the digital SLR's manual controls give you more options to get creative.

The latest gimmick is called Live View, which lets you compose an image on the SLR's screen instead of looking through the viewfinder. But focusing is slow and often inaccurate and rarely do you see anything better than you'd get using a compact.

The first starter-level digital SLRs were missing advanced features. Now, just about every advanced feature is available at the starter level; top-end models have faster operation and professional-level quality.

All the cameras on test take pictures that will blow up to A3 size thanks to their 10-megapixel sensors. This means you can also crop them and still print a top-quality, though smaller, photo.

Ease of use and handling are very important. If a camera is fiddly, you won't want to use it so often. Finally, there's the range of accompanying lenses. Until recently this was a big issue but now all manufacturers provide a wide range of lenses of varying quality and price.

Having a group of products from different manufacturers that are very similar is a sign that a market is mature - a good time to buy. That's the case this with these digital SLRs.

The contenders
Sony Alpha 300
Price $999 with 18-70mm lens
dslr.sony.com.au
5/5
The 300 is the largest but it packs some great features considering the price. It has image stabilisation in the body, so all pictures with all lenses are steady. The screen tilts down, helping the fast-focusing Live View work very well. It also has the longest zoom, is a reasonable price and takes great pictures. For enthusiasts, there isn't a feature missing; it's easy to get to grips with for beginners.

Canon EOS 1000D
Price $1099 with 18-55mm IS lens
canon.com.au
4/5
The 1000D is very simple to use for beginners but also has advanced features for enthusiasts. It's certainly a camera you can grow into. The lens with the kit is image-stabilised, making it easier to get sharp shots indoors and there's a huge range of others to choose from. Live View is a bit fiddly to operate but that's the only weak point with this all-rounder. It could be cheaper, though.

Nikon D60
Price $999 with 18-55mm IS lens
www.nikon.com.au
4.5/5
Nikon's D60 is aimed more at the enthusiast market. It's the oldest of the group but that means the price has dropped to starter level. It's not as quick to get to grips with as the other cameras but the lens is the sharpest and the controls and features are top-notch. There's no Live View mode, which might put off beginners, but this is a great camera to grow into.

Olympus E-420
Price $899 with 14-44mm lens
olympus.com.au
3.5/5
Olympus aims to make the transition from compact to SLR very simple. The E-420 is the smallest SLR around (at 380grams). It takes CF and xD memory cards, has the shortest zoom and is the cheapest. It takes pictures in the squarer 4:3 format rather than an SLR's 3:2 and its Live View function works well. But it feels like "my first SLR": once you master it, you'll want something else.

Verdict
The standard is incredibly high but Sony's Alpha 300 is our recommendation. Considering the price, the 18-70mm lens gives a noticeable boost to zoom shots and, although we feel the Nikon lens is slightly sharper, performance is impressive. The Sony has every feature an enthusiast could want. The well-labelled switches and dials make it easy to pick up and use for beginners, too.