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Understanding the Features of Modern Digital Cameras
By Christina Mulberry
Digital cameras have come a long way. They're faster, create sharper images, and offer a variety of features that allow even amateurs to create outstanding photographs. Of course, not all of these features are equal. For anyone shopping for a new digital camera the terminology can be confusing. Let's review some of the common features to help provide some guidance for those on a shopping excursion. -- Image stabilization Unless a tripod is used, a certain amount of hand movement can be expected when taking a shot. This movement of course can create blurring in the resulting picture. To compensate for this, many modern digital cameras offer image stabilization. Optical image stabilization is a mechanical process which helps to counteract the unwanted hand/camera movement. The resulting image will be more distinct than would otherwise be possible. On the other hand, some cameras offer what is termed digital or electronic image stabilization. This form of stabilization is inferior. It is an electronic process and can even result in poorer image quality, therefore shoppers should look for the term optical image stabilization or OIS if they want superior performance in this regard. Terms like "anti-shake" and "anti-blur" technology don't assure that the camera makes use of OIS. -- Zoom Zoom of course is a useful feature for those times when the photographer wants to get a closer shot of a subject that they can't really physically approach any further. For instance, if there is a deer in a field it would be difficult to creep closer without scaring it off, therefore, zoom can be a critical feature if the photographer wants to capture the features of the animal. Obviously, a 10x zoom lens could potentially provide a close up of items more distance than would say a 2x zoom lens. Aside from this, it's important to understand that optical zoom is a mechanical function that allows such close ups without a negative influence on image quality. On the other hand, digital zoom is merely an electronic function that crops the image and digitally enlarges it to give the appearance of zoom. The quality of the resulting image can be significantly decreased. Thus for optimal performance, a camera with optical zoom would be preferred. -- Shooting and Scene Modes Shooting and scene modes help amateurs easily adjust settings to best fit the situation in which they are shooting. These features can certainly increase ease of use. For instance, instead of adjusting shutter speed, aperture, and white balance manually to capture a photograph in a low light scene at dusk, the photographer can merely switch to that mode and many of the necessary adjustments are made by the camera. When shopping, it's important to know some of the types of photographs the user will want to be taking to assure that the appropriate shooting or scene modes are provided. Some common ones include beach, snow, night, night portrait, portrait, landscape, action or sports, pets, macro, and so forth. Another shooting mode that is becoming more popular on digital cameras is "movie mode" which allows the user with the press of the button to switch to shooting video. Some of the more confusing modes to the novice include the "macro mode" and "burst mode". Macro mode is primarily for focusing on subjects that are very near the lens. Without this mode the subject is often out of focus and over exposed. Burst mode on the other hand allows the user to take several shots in rapid sequence without pressing the shutter button separately or waiting for the camera. It's great when trying to capture action. -- Face Detection Face detection is a feature on cameras that has proliferated a lot in recent years. This feature simply allows the camera to recognize a face in the scene and focus on it automatically while correctly adjusting exposure for the best results. Some cameras even offer a tracking function that allows the camera to place priority on a particular face within a group or crowd. -- Smile and Blink Detection Smile and blink detection features are also available. These merely allow the camera to snap a shot only when a smile is detected or when the subject is not blinking. Of course, with digital photography, it's easy enough to see the image taken and immediately re-take as necessary. These features therefore are certainly less critical. -- Autofocus and Red Eye Reduction or Correction Clearly anyone purchasing a compact point and shoot camera would be lost without autofocus. This automatic feature saves a great deal of time in making adjustments manually. Red eye reduction can help to eliminate the red glow that is sometimes evident in a subject's eyes when they look directly into the flash. Some cameras provide red eye correction in the editing phase as well but obviously this is an additional step in process. -- Noise Reduction Features Some cameras will toute noise reduction features. By noise, they are referring to the speckles that occur in an image which distort it. This feature is most important if the user will be shooting in low light situations where "noise" is more of a problem. -- ISO ISO is a term that is "leftover" from film photography. In digital photography it relates to the sensitivity of the image sensor. Lower ISO settings are fine in many situations for the average person but high ISO settings are needed to shoot in other circumstances; most commonly, low light situations. Therefore, higher ISO settings are needed for good low light shots. Therefore, a point and shoot camera than can use an ISO of 3200 or better can be important. Without this, the image will have a lot of distortion or "noise" as described above. Certainly, there are many other things to consider when purchasing a digital camera, but understanding some of these basic features should prove very useful for the average consumer.
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Digital Cameras Under $200
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Very informative and helpful. Thanks!
Great explanations. 5*
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This intel was contributed by mulberry
mulberry
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May, 2012
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