Digital Camera Terminology
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Here is a quick summary of the Basic Terminology most often used when describing a digital camera's features
and options.
This knowledge will put you far ahead of the general public and be of great benefit when choosing a camera
that is just right for you.
So here are the most important and common terms used to specify a digital camera.
Resolution: Is a fancy term for quality. The higher the number of pixels (little points
holding the photographic information), the better the image quality. This is measured in megapixels (millions of
pixels)
Sensor: The internal element of the camera, that now acts like film used to, namely to record
the image electronically, so that it may be stored in the memory for future use. The sensor is usually specified
by type (ccd, cmos etc.) as well as number of pixels.
Megapixel: Determines the actual quality of the image recorded. Not long ago a 2.3 megapixel
camera was regarded as reasonably high quality for domestic use. You were able to make postcard size pictures,
that looked very good. Today a good quality compact camera, will have between 5 and 8 megapixel resolution. This
allows you to take sharper pictures. The SLR cameras that professionals use, go as high as 12.8 megapixels, and
studio equipment can go into the hundreds of megapixel. This is not required for all but the most demanding
professionals.
For home use, taking pictures of the children, holiday snaps etc, anything around 5 megapixel and above will
achieve excellent results. So no need to be lured into paying for a multi megapixel camera, unless you know that
you will definitely use that quality.
Digital Zoom: Is used by a lot of compact cameras, to magnify the recorded image, effectively
making it appear closer and larger. This is done by using a portion of the total image, and enlarging it to fill
your frame of vision. This effectively reduces number of pixels available to make the image, so reducing the
quality. For this reason, it is usually a good idea to get a higher megapixel camera if you intend to use the
digital zoom function often.
Optical Zoom: This is different from the digital zoom as it uses the lens to actually magnify
the image that is recorded. The image is captured by the sensor using all the available pixels, enabling no
quality loss.
Memory type: This is required by any type of digital camera to electronically store the
captured image. There is usually internal memory, built into the camera, and then external removable memory that
the internal memory writes to to store the images. The memory used is not standardized by the industry. So Sony
will use something called a memorystick, or memory stick ultra, Canon, Nikon and others use Compact Flash, then
there are SD cards, mini SD Cards etc etc. There does not seem to be any real leader at this stage, so the actual
type of memory would not be a deciding factor.
Memory Capacity and Speed: Even though the external memory types are inconsequential, the
size and speed could be important. If you have a high megapixel camera, set to high resolution, each image could
take up a lot of memory. So the bigger the external memory capacity, the more images you would be able to store.
Modern memory comes in sizes of up to 16 gb (gb= gigabyte or 1000 million bytes) The speed of the memory
determines how quickly the camera can write the images to the memory, enabling pictures to be taken in quicker
succession.
Digital viewfinder: This is like a mini laptop screen, which displays the image that the
sensor is seeing, enabling you to focus and frame your picture before taking it.
Optical viewfinder. This is a lens which is separate from the electronics, basically allowing
you to position the image correctly, usually at a fixed magnification.
Once you understand the above, you are 90% ahead of the people using digital cameras. You will also be able to
look at a product specification and make a more intelligent decision on its suitability for you.
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