Previous Posts
Digital Camera Storage Media
Conserving Digital Camera Battery Power
Beginner Guide to Digital Camera
How a digital camera works
Transfer Digital Camera Images to PC
Digital camera macro mode
Digital Camera Lenses
Digital Camera Batteries
Digital cameras Digital Camera Storage Media by Charlie Vuong
When someone buys a new digital camera for recreational purposes, they rarely look at the type of storage media the camera supports. How important is the storage media, exactly? Well, it's where your pictures are stored, so it must be pretty important! Someone doesn't want to be in a another country before they figure out the camera blinks "Memory Low" in red. A new digital camera usually comes with a means of storage, but the storage media is, most of the time, not sufficient enough to hold the slighest amount of pictures. The average stock digital camera may come with 16MB, 32MB, and maybe even 64MB worth of memory media. A memory card with at least 512MB-1GB storage is highly recommended to replace the stock memory card the camera packaging includes. The most common types of digital camera storage media are CompactFlash, Secure Digital, xD Picture, Memory Stick, MicroDrive, and SmartMedia.
Most of the current digital cameras use CompactFlash cards. The two types of CF cards are Type I and Type II(slightly thicker). The Type II CompactFlash card is also known as MicroDrive, which will be discussed further down this storage media list. SanDisk describes their CF cards as "size of a matchbook and only weighs half an ounce". There is a controller card that allows for faster transfers. These cards are the most popular because of the decent price and the support throughout many digital cameras.
Secure Digital Cards are the smallest digital camera media cards in the storage media market. The cards can store up to 4GB of memory as of now, but new technology will soon increase the max size to 8GB. A high level of protection is guaranteed against illegal copying. This means that Secure Digital Cards offer more data security.
xD Picture Cards can be used in CompactFlash supported cameras with a CompactFlash adapter. The maximum capacity of xD Picture Cards is a gigabyte of space. The cards offer fast read and write capabilities for digital cameras.
Memory Sticks were created by Sony for their Cybershot line of digital cameras. They aren't supported by brands of digital cameras other than Sony which decreases their digital camera's support of Memory Sticks severely. Many of Sony's other products, besides digital cameras, support Memory Sticks. The Playstation Portable(PSP) uses Sony's Memory Sticks as well as Sony's Vaio line.
MicroDrives are the hard drives inside of Type II CompactFlash Cards. They have better value and are better priced than flash memory, but flash memory has more space and storage. You may have heard that hard drive MP3 players fail over time due to their moving parts. The same concept can be applied to these cards because they have moving parts as well. This is why you may have heard that MicroDrives are unreliable and low in quality. Many of them would break due to the mishandling of the card.
SmartMedia cards are being replaced by the new flash card technology. The cards are still available, but the modern digital cameras usually don't support this type of storage media anymore. The card is cheaper than all the other types of storage media mentioned above.
Storage Media for digital cameras is constantly evolving and improving in quality and capacity. Years ago, the maximum storage capacity for an average memory card was 128MB or 256MB at max. They cost way too much, probably 300% more than they cost right now. The prices of digital camera storage media gets lower every year as the technology gets better. The types of storage media provides diversity and choice for the average consumer with a digital camera.
About the Author
Charlie Vuong is the webmaster of DealOverflow, http://www.dealoverflow.com/ which is a site that offers deals on technology. Features computer deals, pda deals, laptop deals, digital camera deals, and coupons.
5 Tips for Conserving Camera Battery Power by Gary Hendricks
Running out of battery power can be one of the most annoying aspects of digital photography. Too many times in the past have I experienced taking the time to set up a shot or needing to use my camera in the heat of the moment, only to find that the battery didn't have enough power left to capture the moments that I wanted to photograph.
Instead of carrying spare batteries with me incase this happened, I decided to research into the area of conversing camera battery power. I share what I learnt with you in this article in the hope of helping you to avoid such annoying situations!
Tip 1: Keep LCD Use to a Minimum
The part of your digital camera that uses up the most power is without a doubt the LCD screen. Every time you open up this digital display you are presented with a view of what the camera sees in real-time, meaning that the display has to be refreshed multiple times every second to show you a fluent-moving picture. Keeping usage of the LCD screen to a minimum will definitely help a freshly charged battery last much longer!
Tip 2: Manage Photos While Your Batteries Charge
Another easy way to cut down on the amount of power drained from your batteries is to wait until you can plug your camera into an AC adapter before you start to manage your photos. This is an important tip to remember - you may enjoy cropping, deleting, and viewing your photos on the go, but it will leave you with much less power to take photos if you do so.
Tip 3: Try Not to Use the Memory Card
This tip goes hand in hand with the previous one, but also plays an important factor in keeping enough juice in your camera batteries to take those important photos! It uses up a lot of power every time that you access the memory card, so keep this in mind before reviewing every photo that you take while relying solely on battery power.
Tip 4: Don't Mix Different Types of Batteries
Keeping the same types of batteries together can help to conserve power in digital cameras as well as most other battery-powered devices. This is mostly because the performance of older batteries will not be as good as newer ones, and they will drain much faster. Another important reason to remember this tip is that mixing different types of batteries can be dangerous - the batteries can become damaged and even leak, which in turn could end up damaging your digital camera.
Tip 5: Let Batteries Run Out
Letting batteries completely run out of power before recharging them can help them to last longer as well as increase their performance. Something that people tend to forget is that just because your batteries aren't holding enough energy to run your camera it doesn't mean that they are entirely empty of power. You can make sure that your batteries are as empty as possible before recharging them by leaving them in an old radio or a flashlight that is turned on until they run down.
Conclusion
Hopefully this article has offered you some new suggestions to help you conserve digital camera battery power. It may first seem annoying to not immediately review all of your photos as you take them, but after a while you will most likely find that you get more photos taken this way, and using this in combination with some of the other tips will help you become more efficient at using your digital camera!
About the Author
Gary Hendricks runs a hobby site on digital photography. Visit his website at http://www.basic-digital-photography.com for tips and tricks on buying digital cameras, as well as shooting great photos.
5 Basic Digital Camera Terms You Need To Know by Gary Hendricks
Being familiar with the terminology used in any subject of interest in is always useful, and digital cameras are no exception. Although most digital cameras available on the market allow you to simply point your camera and quickly snap a picture with the touch of a button, there is often a lot more going on behind the scenes than you may have realized.
Put simply, understanding the most important terms about digital cameras will allow you to make a better-informed purchase of a new digital camera, let you have more control over your digital camera's features, and help you to take the best quality photos possible.
1. Megapixel
When we use the term megapixel, we are referring to the maximum resolution at which a digital camera can take photos in millions of pixels. This means that a camera with a range of 4 megapixels can take photos which each contain a maximum of 4 million pixels.
But what does this mean to the consumer? One word: quality. A higher megapixel count means better quality photos, and considering the price of digital camera getting lower all the time; you should try to stick with a digital camera that has a 3 megapixel range or above, especially if you intend of making prints of your photos.
2. Focal Length
Focal length is a term overlooked far too often in amateur photography, and refers to how much the lens of a camera can magnify a shot. Focal lengths are generally split into two categories, these being wide-angle and telephoto, which are better for spacious and narrow fields of view respectively.
Due to the ease of manufacturing telephoto lenses, digital camera manufacturers seem to provide wide-angle lenses in a lot less cameras, even though these lenses are better suited towards the type of photos that most people commonly take, including groups of friends and wide landscapes. To sum up, a wide-angle focal length is the better choice in most cases, with the 20mm and 35mm varieties catering to most people's needs.
3. Digital Zoom
Unlike the focal length, digital zoom is a term that seems to be given a lot more attention than it deserves. Unlike optical zoom, which uses the physical lenses inside the camera to enlarge a scene, digital zoom electronically enlarges the pixels in the center area of a photo, meaning that any time you use the digital zoom function on your camera you are actually sacrificing the quality of your photos. It is a good idea to disable the digital zoom function all together to stop this from happening.
4. ISO
The term ISO stands for the International Standards Organization, but what does this have to do with your digital camera? The organization sets standards for photography, and the ISO range of a camera refers to how sensitive the camera is to light.
For instance, a low ISO number (100 or under) is not very sensitive to light, and is best for shots in good lighting conditions. A higher ISO range means that the camera will be suitable for photography in darker conditions, so it is best to look for a camera that has an adjustable range; ISO 100 to 400 should be adequate for most people's needs.
5. Shutter Lag
Shutter lag refers to the time between pressing the button to take a photograph and the time when the picture actually gets taken. This may not seem a very important factor when buying a camera, but think of it this way: if you have to wait a second or longer for a photo to be taken, like with many older and inexpensive digital cameras, then chances are that you won't end up with the photo you desired. Many camera manufacturers do not list the shutter lag time for their cameras, so the best way to find this out is by testing a camera before you buy.
Conclusion
Hopefully this article has helped you to better understand some of the most important terms used when referring to digital cameras, and in turn will help you to choose the digital camera that best suits your needs. I think that testing a digital camera before you make a purchase can help greatly when it comes to making a final decision, and it makes sense to do so; you may be using the camera you choose to capture your memories for years to come!
About the Author
Gary Hendricks runs a hobby site on digital photography. Visit his website at http://www.basic-digital-photography.com for tips and tricks on buying digital cameras, as well as shooting great photos.
Previous Posts
How a digital camera works
Transfer Digital Camera Images to PC
Digital camera macro mode
Digital Camera Lenses
Digital Camera Batteries
Digital cameras
How a digital camera works by Jakob Jelling
http://www.snapjunky.com
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. Much of the differences are like this, yet most of it still remains in oblivion for the ordinary people. And it order that the digital camera gets its true respect, it is necessary to explore these areas of truth and reveal them in light.
Looking a bit more in details about the working of the fantastic device, the digital camera. As a continuation of the above lines, it can be further investigated that the sensor array is basically a microchip about 10 mm across. Every image sensor is a charged-couple device (CCD) converting light into electric charges, and is essentially a silicon chip used to measure light. These charges are stored as analog data that are then converted to digital via a device called an analog to digital converter (ADC). Over the chip are present a collection of very small light-sensitive diodes, named photosites, or pixels that convert light (or more scientifically, photons) into electrical charges called electrons. The pixels are very much light sensitive, therefore with brighter light striking them, produces greater build up of electrical charges. Each 1000 array receptor creates 1 pixel, and every pixel corresponds to some information stored. The light enters the digital camera via the lens, which is the same mechanism as the conventional analog camera. And this light hits the CCD when the photographer presses the shutter button. The shutter opens and thereby illuminates every pixel, however with various intensities.
Taking a look apart, it can be observed that quite a few digital cameras use CMOS (meaning complementary metal oxide semiconductor, a technology of manufacturing these microchips) technology based microchips as image sensors. The basic advantage is that the CMOS sensors are appreciably cheaper and simpler to fabricate than CCDs. Another great advantage from CMOS sensors is that these take very less power compared to other technology, which adds up to the fact as to their extensive use, and can thus even support the implementation of additional circuitry on the same chip like ADC, some control units etc. Thus it can be stated that CMOS technology based cameras are small, light, cheap and also energy efficient, yet at the cost of some amount of image quality.
However the common trend remains that all cameras of the mega pixel range and higher up use CCD chips instead of CMOS. This is because of the fact of picture quality only, leaving aside the price differences.
This is basically the fact about how digital cameras work! Having known this much difference would not come in the photographing expertise of the users, but it always feels a kind of satisfaction on understanding the inner depths of a device that is so close to the eyes!
About the Author
Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.snapjunky.com . Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.
Transfer Digital Camera Images to PC
Transfer the digital camera images to your computer by Jakob Jelling
By Jakob Jelling
http://www.snapjunky.com
There are a few very important tasks associated with using the digital camera. The most important is of course capturing a beautiful photograph. The next most important task is that of transferring this image somewhere from where it can be printed. The most suitable place is hence the computer. Now, here comes another area of importance that needs to be analyzed and sufficient knowledge is required to be imparted to the users to make ample use of such an important feature. This discussion is thus generally focused upon this mechanism to transfer the digital camera images to the computer, and the various types of such a transfer. Looking from a very simple point of view, there are two methods for transferring the digital camera images to the computer; they are firstly by attaching the digital camera directly to the computer (a process that is popularly called tethering) and secondly by the use of a memory card reader.
In the present world most digital cameras are endowed with arrangements for a comparatively nippy USB connection. USB is basically an interface between a computer and peripheral devices like keyboards, telephones, scanners, and printers. In the current case this peripheral device is the digital camera. This USB feature enables the computer to be directly connected to the digital camera and transfer the images via the USB port present in the computer itself also. Many of the computer operating systems (like the Windows XP) have features for in-built tethering support for this purpose solely. One major problem of this feature of tethering is that it consumes a huge amount of power from the batteries. For this reason, many of the digital cameras are provided with AC adapter that powers the camera. The appropriate software installed within the computer and the digital cameras provides the entire task for making a successful transfer of the images from the digital camera to the computer.
Regarding the software associated with such a digital image transfer from a digital camera to a computer, it is important to state that digital cameras come equipped with CDs containing driver files, image viewers and photo editing software. It connects to the computer via a USB or other port. Some digital cameras come with a PCMCIA interface also.
The next feature for making a successful transfer of image from the digital camera to the computer is via memory card readers. These memory card readers make image transfers without consuming a lot of the precious digital camera batteries; this is the best part of this method. Two important points define the memory card readers; the first is the type of memory card the digital camera uses for storing images. Secondly, the type of connection the digital camera has with the computer. USB is the most predominant kind of card reader available in today's world. In some cases, many computers are equipped with certain slots that take in cards directly inside the computer or may be with the help of a PC card adapter too. Then the transfers of images are made appropriately from the digital camera into the computer memory efficiently.
All the features and the technology discussed in the above lines are focused towards uncovering the various efficient and suitable methods for a better transfer method of the images and photographs from the digital camera into the computer memory. As technology advances with years, these would get further improved and the popularity and flexibility of this fantastic device, the digital camera, would get even more all the rage!
About the Author
Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.snapjunky.com . Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.
Digital camera macro mode
Digital camera macro mode by Jakob Jelling
The digital camera is a wonderful device that allows a diverse variety of applications with its even diverse spectral collection of utilities. As technology progresses it brings along with it those intense pleasures that human beings have only thought of. Now the digital camera has opened up the dimensions for the people and the photographers in providing with the liberty of capturing whatever they wish and of whatever type they prefer! Well the magic words are macro mode. Although the words might seem to be a bit deceiving they have really a great application in the field of digital photography and digital camera as a device. In general the digital camera macro mode allows a digital camera to photograph close-up pictures of petite objects like flowers, insects, coins, etc. Macro mode potentiality vary from camera to camera but almost all digital cameras offer this exclusive feature to enable the users to widen up their imaginations and their weirdest fantasies in creating art.
Extending the discussion further we can state that just about most of the digital cameras has a macro mode. Each of these digital cameras can be verified of having the macro mode because for each of them one of the menu buttons will have an icon of a flower on it. This is the macro mode button invariably. And thus has the specific technology built in. The macro mode button, when pressed, switches the camera into a special close focus mode and many allow the photographer to shoot less than 10cm from the picture subject. Many cameras of reputed companies like Nikon and Ricoh allows the users to be as close as 3cm from the picture subject that permits barely credible close ups of tiny objects such as little insects. The macro mode has a greater variety of applications in security measurements too. At times macro mode may be also useful for making photographic records of priced jewels for insurance purposes in order to prevent theft and fraudulent activities.
The macro mode is more often than not present on the menu button that as well has an icon of two triangles symbolizing mountains (or rather landscape mode) and sometimes MF (manual focus) too. This button has to be pressed several times until the flower icon appears on the viewing LCD. A number of digital cameras then subsequently by design shift into a particular precinct on the zoom lens making a mechanical sound as the zoom reset. While using a digital camera macro mode it must be noted that it is harder to focus for the digital camera instantly, so it takes a bit of time for adjustment. Thus the users need not hurry while using the digital camera macro mode. As the subject comes in focus the depth-of-field also increases. On the other hand, the depth-of-field is controlled by the camera's aperture. Most digital cameras are full automatic and this setting cannot be changed. Thus patience becomes a virtue while using the digital camera in their macro mode.
Much has already been discussed about the digital camera macro mode. It can be stated here that the digital camera macro mode is a really intricate feature. And every delicate object or subject needs to be handled with care. To really cherish the beauty of the digital camera macro modes the users require developing the expertise and also building a kind of patience that is necessary to cerate beauty in art and object.
About the Author
Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.snapjunky.com . Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.
Digital Camera Lenses
How to Buy Digital Camera Lenses by Gary Hendricks
With new technology comes new opportunity. This statement is particularly true in the case of digital cameras, and more importantly, as the title of this article suggests, in the case of digital camera lenses.
There are so many different lenses with varying specifications available that it can be quite overwhelming to find exactly what it is that you require from a lens, but that is where we step in to help.
This article acts as a guide to explain the jargon and to allow you make a better-informed purchase the next time you are shopping for a new digital camera lens.
Choosing a Suitable Focal Length
Focal length is probably the most important factor that should be considered when choosing a lens, and for good reason: focal lengths determine the field-of-view of the photos you will be able to take successfully with your camera.
The two main types of focal length are telephoto and wide-angle, and while telephoto lenses have a narrow field-of-view and are best suited for close-up shots and portraits, wide-angle lenses have a wider field-of-view which is perfect for indoor photography and landscapes.
Keep in mind that the performance of lenses can differ from camera to camera, with the magnification power behind a lens generally being greater on a digital camera than on a 35mm film-based camera.
The Need For Speed
When you hear about fast and slow lenses, reference is being made to a lens's maximum aperture, which is the maximum amount of light that a lens can let in. A simple rule of thumb is that a fast lens lets in a lot of light, while a slow lens lets in less light, which defines how your photos will look.
Maximum apertures are measured in f/stop numbers, which are actually a ratio of the size of the lens aperture and focal length. The smaller the f/number, the more light is let in. An increment in the f/stop number doubles the amount of light let in, so f/2.0 lets in twice as much light as f/1.4.
This may seem quite confusing at first, so the easiest way to make sense of it is to remember the following: fast lenses are best suited towards successful photography in darker lighting conditions, and slow lenses are targeted towards photography in lighter conditions.
The Ins and Outs of a Zoom Lens
Unlike a fixed-focal-length lens, a zoom lens often gives you the diversity of a range of focal lengths all rolled into a single adjustable lens. This can be great if you often have to switch between various lenses for different shots, but it is important to remember that not all zoom lenses have a constant maximum aperture, and those that do are often larger and more expensive.
Although the maximum aperture may be reduced as you zoom in using a lens with a variable maximum aperture, this may not be as important to some photographers as the reduced cost and size of such lenses. Keep this in mind when purchasing a zoom lens.
Add-on Lenses
Add-on or accessory lenses are targeted towards compact digital cameras, and allow owners of such models to significantly lengthen or reduce the camera's built-in focal length while at the same time being able to automate camera functions including f/stop settings and focusing.
These lenses can be an excellent low-cost add-on to your digital camera, with telephoto add-on lenses being able to increase focal lengths by up to 300%, and wide-angle versions allowing for reduction in focal lengths of up to 30%.
Final Considerations
There are several other terms to take into consideration when buying a digital camera lens to make sure you are making the best purchase. If your lens utilizes aspheric lens elements, then you can rest happily with the knowledge that your lens will help produce sharper photographs and help keep lens weight to a minimum.
Lenses using internal and automatic focusing also keep lens weight down thanks to less moving parts, and of course allow for faster focusing. Low-dispersion glass leaves photos looking less hazy or fuzzy, while stabilization systems help to keep images sharp when taken using slow shutter speeds.
Conclusion
Hopefully this article has helped you to better understand what to look for in a digital camera lens. There are a lot of terms to remember here - so before shopping for your new lens it may be a good idea to take the time to make a list of what you want to do with your camera. Then you can double check your requirements against the features of different lenses. If you are still unsure if a lens will cater for your needs then by all means try to test it so that you can see some results before you buy!
About the Author
Gary Hendricks runs a hobby site on digital photography. Visit his website at http://www.basic-digital-photography.com for tips and tricks on buying digital cameras, as well as shooting great photos.
Digital Camera Batteries
Digital camera batteries by Jakob Jelling
By Jakob Jelling
http://www.snapjunky.com
Every device needs a driving force to operate, just as every living thing needs a heart to keep it alive! Basically electric power does this job for any kind of devices nowadays. Similarly for any digital camera too, a good battery is necessary in order to ensure an excellent performance from it as long as possible. Being such a crucial task as if searching for a good heart for a human being, perhaps the most tedious thing about digital cameras is the quest for their battery consumption and thereby finding a suitable one for any particular one. Yet a basic overview regarding this so important component of a digital camera makes the ventures of the users somewhat less complicated and makes life easier with a proper selection of the battery!
Leaving aside the ever power thirsty LCD screens and flashes, the digital cameras themselves exhaust batteries much faster than film cameras, due to their state of the art electronic designs and intricate circuitry. Many digital cameras run from AA cells, around 4, and can even drain a set of alkaline cells in less than 1 hour of working! For example, the Kodak DC120 draws about 210mA during start or switch ON, but progresses to around 1.3A with the association of the LCD fully working and can go ahead to about 2.1A while picture taking and after it too.
With all these nightmares regarding the batteries of the digital cameras, it is worthwhile to analyze and reveal some of the available batteries for the digital cameras in an effort to explore area of power consumption in this fantastic device. Coming to first one of these, like its great name suggests, it is the Li-ion (Lithium Ion). It is one of the latest cell types available to digital camera users. This has many advantages to its credit. It is light in weight and currently available for many commercial uses and thus being so the Li-ion (Lithium Ion) battery type is becoming quite popular. This has an added advantage of being able to endow with more power than any of the other main cell types available. It is also free from the problems of memory effect, hat some battery types do have, and maintenance is least in this type of battery. These are but real goodies about this Li-ion (Lithium Ion) battery. Yet it has one major disadvantage, that is, the price is usually significantly higher than conventional batteries, due to its sophisticated design and technology.
Coming to the next one in the line, the NiMH (Nickel Metal Hydride). This is a battery that is perhaps the most frequently under use for not only digital cameras, but also for other sophisticated devices like laptop computers! This has the advantage of being cheap in price due to the fact that it incurs cheap manufacturing costs, and thus a choice for many users! But this does have the problems of memory effect, and much more maintenance and care is required while handling this kind of battery.
Another such battery is the NiCAD (Nickel Cadmium) Battery. This is perhaps belonging to one of the older cell types generally available for older laptops and electronic devices. These batteries or cells have an aptitude for handling high power loads, and therefore is more frequently found in handy power tools and devices that require more amounts power to work efficiently and perfectly. Yet again, these batteries too have the problems of memory effect, and much more maintenance and care is required while handling this kind of battery.
Apart from the different batteries themselves, the selection should be based upon the charging techniques and the different charges available for all these digital camera batteries. Latest batteries come handy with charging free techniques too! So care needs to be taken in this area also, depending upon the requirements of the user.
With all the vivid conversation regarding the hearts of the digital cameras, their batteries, it is expected for every person going through the lines to have grabbed a significant amount of information in dealing with the intricacies of the purchase, and thereby also augment the ability of the person in using such a sophisticated device as a digital camera with a proper battery!
About the Author
Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.snapjunky.com . Visit his digital camera guide and learn how to take better pictures with your digicam.
Digital cameras
Create high-quality images with Digital cameras by Michael Sanford
Digital cameras have recently grown in popularity because of their increasing image quality and easy interaction with desktop PCs. Digital cameras create high-quality images that allow you to send to others over the Internet or print on a color printer. Red Hat Linux supports several brands of digital cameras and has applications that help you access, view, and modify your digital photographs.
digital camera has many advantages. It saves you money in the long run because you don't have to buy rolls and rolls of film and you don't have to pay for development. You don't have to go to the store to drop off an then pick up your pictures. A digital camera shows you the images before they are printed, an if you don't like it, you simply delete them. Digital photographs are incredibly easy to distribute and use. You can insert them into word processing documents, send them to friends by email, or place them on a website where anyone in the world can seem them. You can also connect your digital camera to the TV and show them like a slide show. It's like instant photography without the film costs. You can also use photo-editing programs to improve your pictures. Red eyes are easily removed, you can change colors or contrasts, element can be deleted or added... It's like a darkroom without the chemicals. Some digital cameras are also capable of capturing sound an video. They are so useful that they are being incorporated into more and more devices like PDAs and cell phones. This way you can send your images to other phones or post them on the internet.
Digital cameras have recently grown in popularity because of their increasing image quality and easy interaction with desktop PCs. Digital cameras create high-quality images that allow you to send to others over the Internet or print on a color printer. Red Hat Linux supports several brands of digital cameras and has applications that help you access, view, and modify your digital photographs.
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.
