These days, it seems like everyone's a photographer - especially anyone who owns a smartphone. The popularity of image-driven social media platforms such as Instagram (with 80 million registered users as of September 2012), Flickr (75 million users), Tumblr (70 million blogs), and Pinterest (20 million users), is proof that we live in an increasingly visual digital age. According to a September 2012 Pew Internet Project study, 45 percent of all American adults owns a smartphone. Many smartphone owners use them to take photographs that they then post onto social media sites.

"We've become a world and a nation of photographers," explains K. Scott Crawford, special markets and OEM manager for Nikon. "Unlike the days of film where you only took out the camera for special occasions and you had to be mindful about using your film, today, every moment and opportunity is a 'Kodak moment,' an opportunity to capture our world."

So, it may surprise you that, despite the growth of smartphone ownership and improvements in smartphone camera technology, sales of traditional, professional-quality cameras are still robust. When it comes to incentive redemptions for cameras, digital single-lens reflex cameras, or DSLRs, are in high demand. Although they may be larger - and bulkier - than your average smartphone, the picture quality that they deliver far surpasses that of any photo taken on a smartphone or compact digital camera.

"DSLRs and similar products, what some people call 'bridge' or long-zoom cameras, are seeing increasing demands in both placements and redemptions," says Crawford. "This follows similar trends in retail. These are aspirational products and the increased demand is being driven, we believe, by smartphones."

The more people take photographs on their smartphones, Crawford explains, the more they begin to realize that the picture quality of these photos simply cannot match that of a professional camera model.

"Everybody wants to take better pictures," he explains. "Smartphones are poor in being able to define images, have poor optical zoom capabilities, cannot perform well in low light, and lack high image quality when it comes to printing an image. DSLRs do what the smartphone won't do, or can't do, well."

Because DSLRs have larger sensors than smartphone cameras or compact digital cameras, and larger lenses, the picture quality they can produce, even in low-light situations, is without compare. The ability to swap out lenses and add extra flash expands their capabilities.

The higher price points of DSLRs - most range in cost from $500 to more than $2,000 - make them an even more aspirational and motivating item than other camera models. "When an employee has an opportunity to own something like this, without busting his budget, it's very much a motivator," Crawford says.

Shelly Colla, Premium Incentive Group national sales manager for Sony Electronics, agrees, adding: "Even though the price points are higher for DSLR products than standard point-and-shoot cameras, we continue to see strong demand in the incentive channel for the newest technology. There is trophy value in these higher-end products."

Here are some of the newest DSLR and bridge cameras available through the incentive market.

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