Digital photography has largely replaced film-based photography due to various advantages of digital cameras and sensors over film. Digital cameras use image sensors with pixels that record light information digitally, while film uses light-sensitive chemicals on a medium. Key differences include:
- Digital cameras have much higher ISO capabilities than film, allowing better low-light performance.
- Resolution depends on sensor/film size - large format film can exceed most digital cameras, but medium format digital provides 39-80 megapixels.
- Digital images have fewer grain/noise issues than film and allow post-processing edits without quality loss.
- Dynamic range varies between media types but digital HDR capabilities exceed what's possible with film.
- Cost