Digital Camera Systems Ltd
Killeshin Heights
Co Carlow

Beginner's Photo Course

Entering the World of Digital Photography

Life's certainly not easy once you start thinking about getting yourself a smart digital camera ...

How many pixels does a person need?
What help is a digital zoom?
Which battery concept and which type of memory card are ideal?
Do you read tests that describe the features of one digital camera in flowing technical jargon, only to praise the special characteristics of another model as the be-all and end-all in the very next breath?

The answers to (almost) all these questions are nigh! You'll find them in the chapters of this Beginner's Photo Course, together with tips on sending photos by e-mail, creating Internet photo albums and, of course, information on how to optimally print your image data on real photographic paper - after all, even a digital photo needs to be put on paper.

Why digital?

Before getting to the 'How?', some people will no doubt first ask 'Why?' - i.e. why they should get acquainted with a digital camera at all. There are several good reasons for taking this step:

• The photos can be viewed on the camera's built-in miniature monitor immediately after you take them. If you don't like what you see, you simply delete it. And if a photo is too bright, to dark or even blurred by camera shake, you immediately have the opportunity of taking the shot again.
• The digital photos are available for sending off by e-mail as soon as you have taken them.
• You can creatively edit your photos on a computer.
• If you want prints, you don't have to get the 'whole film' developed, but print only those photos that have turned out really well.
• Digital cameras also offer a number of extra functions, such as:
  • sound recording
  • video clips
  • web cam.

One thing soon becomes clear: Even though digital cameras are still somewhat more expensive than their 'classical' counterparts, they offer a host of advantages that turn photography into a completely new experience.

Buying a Digital Camera

Before spending your hard earned cash, you must be aware of some of the digital camera jargon:

RESOLUTION

The more pixels a camera has at its disposal, the greater its ability to reproduce even the finest details and structures - much like a mosaic with a large number of small tiles as opposed to a much coarser mosaic with only a few, large tiles. Nonetheless, you don't have to have maximum resolution all the time. For more details click here.

OPTICAL ZOOM

Enlarging an image by using the lens. The quality of the image is maintained. This is normally x2 or x3 for a mid-range camera.

DIGITAL ZOOM

The camera computes what an enlarged image would look like. The quality of the image is reduced as it is enlarged.

MEMORY

The electronic medium that is used to store the images, stated as a number of MegaBytes. 'The more the better' is the usual advice.

Camera Speed

Sometimes it is important to consider the following points:

1. After you switch the camera on, how long does it take until it is ready to take the first photo?
2. How long is the shutter delay typical of digital cameras, i.e. the time between pressing the button and the actual taking of the picture?
3. How long a 'break' does the camera take between two shots?
4. Does the camera permit continuous shooting? If so, at what rate and with what resolution?

More information from:

Digital Camera Systems Ltd
Killeshin Heights Co Carlow

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Wednesday, June 4, 2003 10:08 PM