Intro to Digital Photography

Digital Photography ArrowQuick Solutions, L.L.C. http://www.arrowquick.com/

Digital Photography - Agenda

ArrowQuick Introductions

Digital Cameras & Terminology

Digital Camera – Computer Connection

Digital Camera – Buying Tips

Digital Camera – Software

Questions & Answers

Tuesday Topics -Introductions

ArrowQuick Solutions

Partners

Rob Hammann

Perry Lund

Melinda Stonebraker

Ryan Jund

Tuesday Topics - Introductions

ArrowQuick Solutions

Services

Web Development / Hosting

Programming / Web Applications

Software Training (MS Office & others)

Multimedia (Video Editing & VR Photography)

Technology Consulting (Computer Networks)

Digital Camera & Terminology

Basic Terminology

Optical zoom

Mega pixels

CCD

USB connectivity

Smart Media / Flash Cards

ISO Film Speed Equivalency

Optical Zoom versus Digital Zoom

Sometimes known as "telephoto" or "true zoom," optical zoom works like the zoom on a traditional film camera. Elements within the lens move, reducing the field of view and making the object appear closer.

With digital zoom, the camera takes a small portion of an image and uses mathematics to artificially restore the file to its original size. Unfortunately, digital zoom also reduces the resolution of an image.

Mega pixels (measure of resolution)

The total number of pixels, in millions, that an image contains when multiplying the height x width in pixels.

Nikon Coolpix 885

2048 x 1536

3145728 total pixels equal 3.14 mega pixels

Camera Resolutions

The higher the pixel count, the sharper the image

640 x 480 could be fine for web page work

CCD (Charged Couple Device)

The CCD is the light-sensing device inside a digital camera and is composed of an array of individual sensors, or pixels, that "see" the image coming in through the camera's lens.

Nikon Coolpix 885

Sensor pixel count = 3.34 million pixels

Difference in recorded versus CCD pixels

The vertical columns & horizontal rows on the edges of a sensor are covered by a black dye called Video Signal Shading, for a digital camera to know "what black is“.

Trivia Break

The where and when of CCD technology

At Bell Labs (where bubble memory had been invented), two Bell Labs scientists, Willard Boyle and George Smith came up with the CCD as a way to store data in 1969.

In 1975,the first CCD TV cameras were ready for use in commercial broadcasts.

In 1979, an RCA 320x512 Liquid Nitrogen cooled CCD system saw first light on a 1-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory.

Universal Serial Bus / Video Out

USB is an outgoing connector compatible with virtually all PCs and Macs made since 1998.

A USB port is much quicker and more user-friendly than a serial port.

USB ports are hot swappable and plug in and out without turning your computer off and on again.

Video Out port allows you to view your digital pictures on your TV or record them on a video cassette.

Smart Media / Compact Flash Cards

You can think of a Compact Flash or Smart Media card as a reusable roll of film for your digital camera.

A Compact Flash (CF) card is a small removable mass storage device, which weighs half an ounce and is slightly smaller than a matchbook.

Smart Media Cards, or Solid State Floppy Disk Cards, as they were known, are slightly longer but significantly thinner versions of Compact Flash cards. Like CF cards, Smart Media Cards use flash memory chips for storage.

ISO Film Speed Equivalence

A measurement, borrowed from traditional film cameras, of light sensitivity. The higher the ISO rating, the better the camera will perform in low-light conditions. Most digital cameras have ISO ratings of around 100.

Nikon Coolpix 885

ISO 100

ISO 400

ISO 200

Digital Camera – Computer Connection

Connection Types

USB Connection

Most common camera connectivity

USB Card Readers Available

FireWire Connection

Highest speed data transfer

New Canon camera use FireWire

Floppy Disk

Portability

Cheap media

Identifying Your Needs

Will you primarily be viewing pictures on a computer screen or do you plan to make a lot of prints?

Will you be using the camera for professional graphics work?

Will you want a zoom lens?

Are there specific features you require, like macro ability or movie mode?

Resolution

The resolution of a digital camera refers to the sharpness of its pictures and is measured by how many pixels make up a photo, usually measured in the horizontal by vertical resolution. (i.e. 1280 x 960 Pixels = film resolution of 4" x 6" print).

The higher the resolution, the sharper the picture.

Power Source

Digital cameras use significantly more power than traditional cameras. A digital camera may run out of batteries before it's memory is filled, especially if you use the LCD all the time.

To avoid this problem consider buying an extra pack of re-chargeable batteries to have on hand, select a camera that comes with an A/C adapter, and/or buy a battery recharger.

Focus and Exposure

Fixed-focus cameras have a non moving lens that is preset to focus at a certain range. Higher-end digital cameras usually have auto focus instead, which automatically focuses the camera at your subject's distance.

Lighting

Most cameras automatically determine the correct exposure for the lighting conditions, however there are cameras available that offer manual exposure compensation. This allows you to set the exposure a few stops brighter or darker.

Red-Eye Reduction

Some cameras include additional features, such as red-eye reduction or night portrait mode. Red-eye reduction is ideal for photographing people or animals. It works by firing a series of short flashes before the final flash and exposure, making your subjects' pupils contract and preventing them from having glowing red eyes in the final photo.

Special Features

Macro: this lens feature allows you to take close-up shots, usually within one foot or less and is useful for taking pictures of small objects.

Rapid-Fire Shots: If you plan on taking pictures of subjects in motion, you may want to buy a camera that offers "Rapid-Fire Shots.“

Remote Control: with this feature, you can take a picture without holding the camera.

Digital Camera – Buying Tips Approximate number of pictures a card will hold at highest resolution Camera Resolution 1 mega pixel 2 mega pixel 3 mega pixel 8 MB card 24 photos 12 photos 5 photos 16 MB card 48 photos 24 photos 10 photos 32 MB card 96 photos 48 photos 20 photos 64 MB card 192 photos 96 photos 40 photos 128 MB card 384 photos 192 photos 80 photos Note: If you reduce the quality of the images, you can double, or even triple, the amount of pictures that you can take for the same memory.