PHOTOGRAPHY SANS FILM
 Soon
film rolls may become things of the past. Digital cameras,
once the exclusive property of the rich few, are turning
out to be affordable alternatives to 35mm cameras. Though many
professional photographers still prefer the traditional film-based
camera over digitals, there is no denying that these hi-tech
devices are here to stay, and may well phase out the traditional
gadget.
Though the major argument against digital cameras is the poor
quality of the images when compared to film-based cameras, its
convenience far out weighs the disadvantages. Besides, technological
inroads have improved image quality. It is easy to get good
pictures with point-and-shoot digital cameras, but to get pictures
of excellent quality you need to understand the basic functions
of the camera. If you get a hang of the basic principles, you
will be able to capture the mood and details that make up a
scene.
The greatest advantage that digital photography enjoys
over traditional photography is that it is flexible and instant.
Once the photo is taken the image is seen immediately on
the small LCD screen at the back of the camera. Another plus
point is that these images are flexible and can be stored
in a u niversal
format, making them transferable between many devices and applications.
HOW A DIGITAL CAMERA
WORKS
Images in digital format are made up of hundreds of thousands,
or even millions of tiny squares called pixels. A digital
camera has a lens and a shutter that lets in light. But the
light strikes an array of image sensors or photosensitive
cells instead of a film. The sensor array is a chip about 6-11
mm across. Each image is a charged-couple device (CCD), which
converts light into an electrical charge. The charge is stored
as analogue information, then digitized by another bit
of technology called an analogue to digital converter (ADC).
Every receptor in the array of thousands creates one pixel,
and for each pixel a certain amount of information is stored.
| HOW TO CHOOSE A DIGITAL CAMERA
|
| Choose
a camera that has the right balance of features
and portability. Though a small compact camera can
be carried everywhere, it may not have certain features
that make for great photos. |
| Buy the camera with the
highest resolution you can afford, at least 2 to
3 mega pixels (2 million to 3 million pixels), if
possible. |
| The
lens should be 100 percent glass. Avoid plastic
lens. |
| The more RAM the camera
has the more pictures it can store. Buy a camera
with as much RAM as you can afford, so your won't
need to download or erase them as often. |
| A UBS allows fast connection
for downloading pictures. Serial connections, on
the other hand, are very slow. |
| A camera with a rechargeable
battery is the best. It saves time and money. |
| There are four types of
memory cards: Compact Flash type I cards, Flash
type II cards, Smart Media cards, and Multimedia
cards. CF cards are the best. Avoid buying Smart
Media cards. |
| Inspect the zoom capabilities
of the camera you intend to buy. |
| Look for an optical (through-the-lens)
viewfinder as well as an LCD display. |
| If you intend outputting
pictures only on to a computer monitor (for viewing,
web page use or e-mail), and inexpensive digital
camera with a 640-by-480 pixel resolution will provide
very satisfactory results |
| If you plan to print photographs
on a good colour printer, go in for a high resolution
camera. |
| Investigate auto focus and
macro features, shutter-release lag times and bundled
software. |
| Consider other features
like interchangeable lenses, steady-shot, burstmode,
auto exposure, automatic white balance, voice memo,
variable shutter speeds, manual focus and self-timer.
|
| Other useful features will
include a battery-time-remaining indicator and AC
adapter. |
| Video-out connections are
used for outputting to a television. |
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