Learn about features and options you should be aware of when buying digital cameras. We'll also review some of the things you can do with your pictures after you've taken them!
Although they were practically non-existent 10 years ago, digital cameras are a staple of modern technology. Digital cameras make it easy for anyone to computer, to print, email, and share pictures with family and friends. With imaging software, digital photos can easily be manipulated to fit your personal needs. Cropping, color adjustments, etc. With an average knowledge of computers, this class is designed to help users learn the basics of digital camera technology, tips on buying, and the basics of using a digital camera to take, and transfering to a computer, using Windows XP, a USB connection and Windows built in software.
Digital Camera Vocabulary
These terms are essential to know when considering a purchase of a digital camera. You can also search for terminology here: http://www.webopedia.com.
Download / Upload: the process used to move information from one place to another digitally, like taking a picture from a digicam to your computer.
USB: a standard of computer connection commonly used to connect digicams to computers for downloading pictures. The most common form of USB is USB 1.1, but recently, a faster USB 2.0 has become the standard with newer computers and digicams. USB 2.0 is backwards compatible, so if you have an older USB port on your computer, you should be okay buying a USB 2.0 digicam.
Memory: the device which holds the pictures taken with the digital camera. Some cameras have a built-in source of memory, but in general all cameras support additional cards which will store many more pictures. There are various types of memory cards, such as compact flash, secure digital, xD, and Sony Memory Sticks.
Pixel: (picture element) - a single dot or building block that makes up a digital image. Computer monitors, and LCD camera displays, are all compromised of pixels arranged in rows and columns so small that they appear to intersect into what we see as a large display.
Megapixel: the equivalent of 1,000,000 pixels (per picture), today's digital cameras range between 1-8 megapixels.
Image Resolution: refers to the quality of an image. Resolution is calculated by the amount of pixels contained in a square inch of space. So a camera that takes pictures of 1200x800 resolution can take pictures with up to 960,000 pixels per inch squared. In terms of printers, when the DPI (dots per inch) measurement is used, a 300 DPI image contains 300x300 (90,000) pixels per inch squared. The bottom line: the higher the resolution measurement gets, the higher the quality of your picture is (and vice versa).
Megabyte: In terms of data storage, 1 Mb ~ 1,000,000 bytes of information. Most commonly used in defining the amount a memory card holds (64, 128, 256 and 512 MB cards are most common. 1,000 megabytes = 1 gigabyte)
Buffer: The amount of temporary memory in a digicam, which allows for the temporary storage of pictures until they are written to memory. The higher the buffer on a digicam, the faster the speed between picture taking.
CCD: The "digital lense." Stands for Charge Coupled Device. This converts color and light that the camera can "see" into a digital format, your computer can use.
LCD: Liquid Crystal Display, commonly used for the viewscreen on the back of the digital camera. Other variations include the less common OLED (organic light emitting display) and ALCD (active light crystal display).
How They Work
Digital Cameras work by taking natural light (what you see) and converting that into digital information (what the computer sees). This transfer is accomplished by the digicam CCD. More powerful CCD can handle a lot of data per picture, so higher and higher megapixel cameras (megapixels define the quality and size of a digicam picture) are being developed all the time. Digicams can connect to computers (and sometimes printers) so you can download the pictures you take to use for e-mail, printing, or just archiving on your computer.
Higher end digital cameras can even be upgraded with new lenses, more memory (space for more pictures), accessories like an external flash, remote controls etc. There are many advantages (and also a few disadvantages) that digital cameras have over their analog counterparts. Research is the key to finding a digicam that you can be happy in using.
Camera Comparisons: Prices and Features
Choosing a digicam that will meet your needs is a very important task, and requires a lot of know-how on your part. It is not commonly recommended to go and buy a digital camera without first having a basic knowledge of digicam vocabulary and basic computer use.
There are a few factors that can go into your choice in
purchasing a camera. Most of these terms compare to what you would consider in
buying an analog film camera.
Here are the basic things you should consider:
Memory
Depending on the camera you get, you may be able to purchase and use additional memory cards to expand your digicam picture storage capabilities. There are many kinds of memory cards, all different, and all brand specific.
Alternative Digicams
You can also find digital camera features built into a lot of portable electronics today, including:
Digital File Formats
When your digital camera takes a picture, it translates light into electronic data, but then what happens? That digital data is written into a picture using what is called a "file format". A file format is like an instruction booklet to a puzzle, that tells the computer how to arrange electronic data into the picture that you see on screen. There are hundreds of different digital photo formats, all of which have different compression ratios, portability and purposes. But here's a list of common photo formats:
PowerPoint Presentation
http://www.lkwdpl.org/classes/digicams.pps
Internet Resource Links
Additional resources, including links to vocabulary, buyer's guides, comparisons and other helpful websites, can be found on the Library's Digital Camera Class page here:
http://www.lakewoodpubliclibrary.com/classes/
Helpful Books From Our Collection
770.2882 SAWYER Digital Camera Companion
778.3 CHAMBERS Digital Photography Handbook
778.3 FREEMAN The Complete Guide to Digital Photography
778.3 GREENBURG Complete Idiot's Guide to Digital Photography
778.3 ODAM Start with a Digital Camera
778.3 SHAUB Using Your Digital Camera
771.46028566 JOHNSON How to do everything with Your Digital Camera