Everybody wants to be a photographer and thanks to digital cameras, people can practice their craft without having to worry about burning through rolls of film or the cost of development. Of course, while we might all lust after the fancy, complicated, and expensive cameras that the professionals use, the truth is this: not everybody is ready for or even needs something so advanced.

When deciding on which digital camera is right for you, be honest with yourself: what kind of photography are you going to be doing? Snapshots? Art shots? Serious photography? The kind of photography you will do will dictate the kind of camera you get. For simple snapshots you don’t want something that requires a lot of fiddling with lenses.

The kind of photography you are going to be doing will determine how many megapixels you need and what kind of special features you should look for. For simple snapshots, you don’t need something with ten megapixels, a four or five megapixel camera will work just fine. On the other hand, the serious photographer probably won’t need to worry about facial recognition in their shots—something that is important for recording family memories.

Choosing the right digital camera can be a confusing process. There are dozens of popular brands, and each brand has a wide range of cameras from the simple point and shoot to the complicated, multi-lens professional camera. It will be tempting to opt for the fanciest camera you can afford, but don’t buy the first camera you see. Make sure that you do your research—look into the different brands and the kinds of cameras they offer. Read some consumer reports and talk to your friends to see what kind of cameras they like.

Once you have decided on the perfect camera, all that’s left is to take pictures of everything you see!