Digital Camera Basics
Digital Camera Basics? The Vocabulary Shopping for a digital camera can be a difficult task considering the sheer number of choices out there. The number of manufacturers, models, and price ranges that need to be sorted out make the process difficult enough, but throw in all the buzz-words that need to be understood, and even a short list of cameras can become difficult to analyze. This Tech Tip will take a look at a few key words that may come up when researching a digital camera, and will hopefully reduce the headaches associated with the process. Pixels Digital images are composed of thousands or millions of tiny squares called picture elements, or pixels for short. Each square has its own color assigned to it, and the compilation of all of these little colored squares allows for images to appear smooth when viewed at original size. If an image is magnified several times, the appearance of the pixels can become more obvious, and at high magnifications each colored pixel can be distinguished individually. Megapixels Basically, the term megapixel means one million pixels, and it is used to describe the maximum number of pixels found in an image produced by a digital camera. It is generally the criteria used to classify cameras, and checking the Geeks.com selection (http://www.geeks.com/products.asp?cat=CAM) shows that their cameras are all sorted into ranges of megapixels (MP). Many people assume that because cameras are marketed so heavily by their megapixel specification, that this is the single most important criteria when choosing a camera. More megapixels do not necessarily equal better images, they mean larger images (both in physical size and in file size). The megapixel count is achieved by multiplying the number of pixels in one horizontal line by the number of pixels in one vertical line. So, if a camera can produce images at a maximum resolution of 1600 by 1200 pixels, it is a 1.92 megapixel (1,920,000 pixel) camera. It is not fair to assume that the images from the 5.0 MP Kodax CX7525 are automatically better than those from the 4.0 MP Kodak CX7430 strictly based on their megapixel count. All it means is that the maximum image size of the CX7525 is 2560 x 1920 and the maximum image size of the LS743 is 2408 x 1758. Many other features in the cameras can impact the quality of the images they produce, and may be far more important for the typical user to consider than the maximum overall size of each image. Larger image size may do nothing for a user who only wants to view images on his computer screen, or for use on the web, but the higher megapixel images are important for those looking to make prints of their images. Generally, higher pixel counts in an image translate to the ability to create larger prints. Sensors - CMOS and CCD Digital cameras use a small sensor to capture the image before transferring it to flash memory for storage. Equivalent to a negative in a film camera, these sensors come in a variety of sizes, with most being between 20 and 40 millimeters squared. There are two types of sensors that may be found in cameras: CCD (Charged Couple Device) and CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). CMOS sensors are usually found in cheaper cameras and offer lower image quality than a CCD sensor that would probably be found in a more expensive camera. There is an exception to the rule that CCD is better than CMOS, and that is with the Digital SLR-type (Single Lens Reflex) cameras. They use a much larger sensor (greater than 300 millimeters squared) and can provide excellent image quality, but the quality does come with a much higher price tag. Zoom - Optical and Digital Most digital cameras offer some sort of zoom, but it is important to identify which type is being provided. Optical zoom functions just as on a film camera, where the lens physically moves to produce the magnification. Digital zoom uses circuitry to enlarge a portion of the standard sized image and crops the content outside of the zoomed area. The quality of images produced using digital zoom suffer due to the nature of the process, and optical zoom is a far more desirable feature. The price of a camera with optical zoom may be a good deal more than one with digital zoom, but the quality of the images cannot be compared. The Kodak CX7330 and the Kodak CX7300 are comparable cameras in many regards, but the CX7300 features only digital zoom, while the CX7330 features both optical and digital zoom for about $30 more. Memory - Digital Film The two important things to consider when choosing flash memory for a digital camera is that the right format is chosen, and that a quality module is chosen that can record quickly and be ready for the next picture as soon as possible. A photographer looking to snap a rapid series of high resolution images on their Kodak DX7440 has many options in SD (secure digital) memory to choose from but, they would be far better off with something like the SanDisk Ultra II SD card capable of a sustained write speed of 9 MB/s, than with a generic SD card capable of a burst speed rated at only 2.5MB/s. Aliasing Even if you think you know the basic definition of this term, it may seem confusing in the context of digital cameras. Aliasing refers to the appearance of jagged edges generally seen on diagonal or curved surfaces in images. This effect is caused by the fact that all pixels are square, and that even non-square shapes in an image need to be created with square components. The solution to aliasing is not surprisingly called "anti-aliasing." Through software, the edges generally affected by aliasing are blended and the jagged appearance can be made much smoother. Video game enthusiasts may be familiar with anti-aliasing and the impact the varying levels of it can have on the overall performance of game play. Although the technology is similar, the personal importance of having the best digital images possible makes applying anti-aliasing just about a no-brainer. Aspect Ratio Aspect ratio describes the shape of a digital image, or any image for that matter, where the first number represents the width of the image and the second number represents the height. People may be familiar with the term as applied to televisions (as 16:9 wide screen televisions are now all the rage to replace traditional 4:3 units), and the concept is the same here. Standard film cameras generally use an aspect ratio of 3:2, but most digital cameras have adopted a 4:3 aspect ratio so that images better fit on a standard computer monitor. Monitors with typical resolutions of 800x600, 1024x768, or 1280x960, for example, all have an aspect ratio of 4:3, so it only makes sense to produce images that will fit well on these screens. Although images can be manipulated to print on any size paper, special photo-quality paper is available to allow for high-quality prints to be made at the correct aspect ratio. Connectivity The pictures taken by a digital camera have to be extracted by some means in order to get them onto a computer, or perhaps directly onto a printer. In general, cameras provide a cable to connect to a computer either via serial, USB, USB 2.0, or Firewire. Serial ports are just about extinct at this point due to their slow connection speeds and lack of plug-and-play support, but some older or lower-end models may still offer serial connectivity. USB may be the most common form of connectivity, and if speed is important to you, look specifically for USB 2.0 support, as it is up to 40 times faster. Some specialized cameras may take advantage of the high speed Firewire protocol for connecting to a computer. Just about all modern computers come with at least a pair of USB ports, but not all computers include Firewire. Firewire capabilities can be added to any computer with an available PCI slot by using an expansion card such as this one. Some cameras don't require any cables at all, as they can transmit the images to a PC wirelessly. The Concord EyeQ is such a camera that utilizes Bluetooth technology in lieu of wires. Even with all the modes of transmitting images listed so far, one other method may serve as a universal replacement for all of them. Many people find flash memory card readers to be a quick and convenient alternative to using the camera's native means of connecting. You simply remove the memory from the slot on the camera and pop it into the appropriate slot on the reader, and then the computer system can access the card like a local disk drive. Final Words Every high-tech field has its own set of specific buzz words, and digital photography is no different. Although by no means an exhaustive resource of digital photography terminology, this Tech Tip provides insight to a few key terms worth knowing in order to make shopping for a digital camera just a bit easier. Jason Kohrs
MORE RESOURCES: The Eight Styles of Street Photography Fstoppers 2024's best (and hottest) queer art & photography Out Magazine Peter Fetterman Gallery : Woof Woof : The Dog in Photography The Eye of Photography What a Photographer Saw in New York’s Migrant Shelters The New York Times Photography exhibit focuses on living with mental illnesses, recovering from substance abuse Yahoo Entertainment UK political photographs of the year – in pictures The Guardian Burr Ridge man finds peace through photography, then shares it Chicago Tribune Billboard’s Best Photography of 2024 Billboard Home for the Holidays The Photo News EXPLORE Act boosts photography, risks impacts to Teton park's visitors, athletes Jackson Hole News&Guide New innovations and Photography pricing updates in 2025 the Adobe Blog Emulsion Celebrates Five Years of Analog Photography The Eye of Photography Photography ArtFair - Photoszene-Festival: Open Call Feelings & Photography - The Eye of Photography Photography ArtFair - Photoszene-Festival: Open Call Feelings & Photography The Eye of Photography Ben Felten Makes the Most Beautiful Double Exposures (NSFW) The Phoblographer Tennessee Top 25 | Titans at Colts Photography Tennessee Titans Cathy Cade, Groundbreaking Lesbian Photographer, Dies at 82 The New York Times The Tiffen Warm Black Pro Mist Filters are a Photographer’s Dream The Phoblographer Sioux Falls photography brings local look to airport expansion SiouxFalls.Business Photographer Jeffrey Serusa at Louisa Gould Gallery Martha's Vineyard Times Like the Arts Side of Photography? We’ve got a Gig For You! The Phoblographer I plan to stream these 3 movies about photography over the holidays, and you should too Digital Camera World This year's final Entries of the Week World Photography Organisation | 15 stunning nature photos from 2024 Livescience.com ‘27 years of goodbyes’ thrust Kansas photographer to unexpected international acclaim Kansas City Star The Photographers’ Selection: 2024 Magnum Photos Vanity Fair’s Year in Photographs Vanity Fair The Cuban Reality in Photography Havana Times Check Out 14 Hilarious Winners From the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards Contest Smithsonian Magazine av vattev wants post-modern candlesticks, Robert Mapplethorpe’s photography and Paul Mescal’s cardi Hero Magazine Museum of the Home reveals new photography exhibition plans Amateur Photographer Annoyingly, I have seen my travel schedule dry up, so I’ve been stuck at home. My photographic output has taken a nosedive but taking photos on your own doorstep can be just as rewarding Digital Camera World Photography exhibit focuses on living with mental illnesses, recovering from substance abuse CBS News The Best Camera Kit for Street Photography The Phoblographer “Travel becomes a strategy for accumulating photographs. The very activity of taking photographs is soothing and assuages general feelings of disorientation exacerbated by travel" Digital Camera World How I Fell Back in Love with iPhone Photography The New Yorker The Best Lenses for Photographers with Shaky Hands The Phoblographer Student wins global photography competition for second year in a row Northwestern Now West Side Photographer Kenn Cook Jr. Named Legler Library’s 2025 Artist-In-Residence Block Club Chicago Carolina Global Photography Competition The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Guardian US’s best photos of 2024 – in pictures The Guardian ‘Right time, right place, right people’: Chow Yun-fat on his photography South China Morning Post Readers Write: Juvenile justice, Elon Musk’s influence, Minnesota leaders, photography, inclusion Star Tribune What We Saw: How RFE/RL's Photographers Captured Their Best Photos Of 2024 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty These photographers gaze at the Milky Way from the Middle East WIRED Middle East - English Bob Wick Is the Greatest Outdoor Photographer You’ve Never Heard Of Backpacker Magazine 2024 Man of the Year: Columbia’s Mystery Photographer - Washington Free Beacon An Inexpensive 50mm Lens: A Fly Fishing Photographer's Best Friend Sports Illustrated CPW (Center for Photography at Woodstock) debuts newly renovated building in Kingston, NY on January 18, 2025 See Great Art The New Art: American Photography, 1839–1910 The Metropolitan Museum of Art Elane Photography v. Willock Alliance Defending Freedom Photography inspires UC student to chart new path University of Cincinnati |
RELATED ARTICLES
The Truth About Pixels, Part 2-1: Printing 4x3 Inch Photos Why is a 3 megapixel camera better than a 1 megapixel camera? It really depends on how you intend to reproduce the picture. The reason cameras produce pictures at 72 pixels per inch is that this format is standard in video uses such as television and DVD. Use A Tripod! Using a tripod is essential when taking photos - and not just for night shots. To get ultra crisp and sharp pictures, your camera cannot move at all when the shutter is open. Digicam File Formats Looking at the digital camera, a person can visualize it as a combination of a camera along with a miniature computer system that stores the images as files or sets of bits, rather than a chemically treated film. Thus it comes to be a fact that there are certain file formats in which these images of the photographs captured by the camera are stored. How Can I Preserve My Lifetime of Memories in Photographs? Like most folks you have probably have organized and sorted your photos atleast once. The problem is they never seem to stay organized no matter how hard you try, and even if they do they seem to lack that original impact that they had shortly after you took them or if they do, you never drag them out until sadly, someone passes on. Seven Ways for Saving Your Digital Images Forever! So, you have taken lots of pictures with your new digital camera, the memory card is full, and you are wondering how to store and archive your images.1 Buy another memory cardThe method of storing your images with least effort is to buy a new memory card and keep your images on the first card. The Well-Dressed Photographer - Summer Outdoor photographers shoot year round. That includes the hot summer. The Photography Portfolio: Building Your Reputation If you have hopes of becoming a professional photographer, or even just of trying to get your work published in a public forum, you will need to create a photography portfolio. So what's so important about a photography portfolio anyway?There are many reasons why having a portfolio of your work available for others to view. How a Digital Camera Works The digital camera is not something of a magic box that came out of the blue and made wonders! The digital camera is very much like the conventional analog camera, but the technology has been altered. It also contains most of the associated components that the conventional camera contains, like lens and a shutter for letting in light, however instead of reaching a photosensitive film, the light is made to fall upon array of image sensors or photosensitive cells. Weddings, From a Photographers Point of View Your wedding day is without a doubt one of the happiest and stressful days of you life. The happy part comes naturally but how can you cut down on the stress? Well from a photographers standpoint, seeing that he is with you from the beginning of the day till the end, and sees you before and after the wedding, I would like to offer some tips and secrets to make it more happy than stressful. Everybody is Fixing Their House or Apartment Up These Days. Use That Digital Camera to Capture That's right, you go through all the trouble of making your house or apartment nicer by hauling yourself off to the local fix it yourself store or hiring some professionals to come in and do it for you, so why not capture an accurate record of it for posterity. At almost no cost I might add. Digital Camera Memory - An Introduction The digital camera is essentially a computer-based device, whose core is controlled by the computer. And as a result the photographs are stored in a location called memory. Canadas Digital Cameras, Digital Camcorders and Cheap Memory Cards Canada Digital SLR Camera or Digital single-lens reflex (SLR) camera is an ideal camera for professionals and amateur photographers. They usually having interchangeable lenses and are known for capturing superior quality images. Understanding Digital Photography Most serious photographers and all professionals use a Single Lens Reflex camera (SLR), the definition of an SLR camera is that the image is captured exactly as you see it in the viewfinder. However there are now two types of SLR the single lend reflex film (SLRF) and the single lens digital (SLD). How to Buy a Digital Camera Are you buying your first digital camera? Well, you must be confused by the bewildering range of models out there. How do you know which model will suit your needs? To make things worse, digital cameras do not come cheap. Camcorder Techniques: How To Make Home Movies Your Family And Friends Will Be Excited To Watch Pre-Production:It's all got to start somewhere, so before you even charge your batteries, rewind those tapes or pack the car, take a seat and have a good think about what you are planning to shoot with your camcorder. 'Planning is the key' to a good production even if you're just shooting a small home movie. How Many Megapixels Do We Need? Are you having megapixel envy each time you walk by the camera section of your favorite electronics store? So do I. But, do we really need more and more pixels? The answer depends on what we intend to do with the images. Keep a Digital Photos Diary Digital Photo Diary - memories that last a life timeThe best things in life come in threes, like friends, dreams, and memories.A digital photo diary keeps some of the big and little memories of our life. Taking Professional Quality Pictures By now I'm sure you've used Either a digital or film camera. You've taken pictures and had them developed and just weren't satisfied with the Quality. Taking Panoramic Landscapes - The Easy Solution I love panoramas. There's something very appealing about their shape. Underwater Digital Cameras Underwater photography's is primarily focused towards entertaining and informing the people and the users themselves about what is happening in the world of under water with the aid of photography. The advent of digital cameras has opened up new horizons for such ventures. |
home | site map |
© 2006 KeralaClick.com |