How to Use a Digital Camera

Using a digital camera is not very different than using a traditional, automatic camera with film. However, since you do not use film, taking pictures with a digital camera allows you more flexibility and opportunities to experiment to get the kind of pictures that you want. Not only do you avoid using film, you don’t have to have the pictures processed so you can see the results immediately. Then, if you don’t feel it is the shot you want, you simply delete it and shoot again. No fuss, no muss . . . and no extra cost!

Of course, since most of the digital cameras sold today are fully automatic, you have very few controls to worry with. Unfortunately, that means you don’t have the capability of controlling lighting, speed, focus, etc. since it is all done for you. Of course, that is also the good news, you don’t have to worry with all the adjustments – just focus, perhaps zoom, and shoot. The images are saved to a disk, card, or hard drive in the camera as a digital image. That means you can download the images into your computer where you can manipulate them as you wish.

As soon as you take a picture, you can look at it and either delete it or keep it or take some more. You can get dramatic close-ups and even take panoramic shots using the software program that comes with the camera to stitch several pictures together into one long panorama.

Using a digital camera is a little different than using a traditional camera with film. The most noticeable difference is that on most digitals, you look at a small video screen instead of looking through a viewfinder. You get to see just what the picture will look like before you push the shutter release. After you take the picture, you can view it immediately to see if it really looks the way you thought it would. If not, you can simply delete it and reshoot. Or, you can take a series of shots and then view them to decide which to delete and which to keep. Find the on/off switch - turn it on and set it to "record" or "still."

A digital camera also allows you to select the quality you want in the picture. The higher the quality (or resolution) desired, the more memory it will require. So, the more high resolution pictures you take, the fewer pictures you can take. If you are simply planning to attach the pictures to email or you are going to view them on an LCD projector or TV monitor, you may want to select the lowest resolution for your pictures because these are probably only going to be able to handle lower levels of resolution. However, if your camera has plenty of memory available, then use the highest resolution because you will get the sharpest pictures. Pictures will be sharper if they start out large (higher resolution, more pixels) and are then reduced. Small pictures that are enlarged later will not be as sharp. To strike a balance between the desire for the highest quality picture and the wish to take as many pictures as possible, the best decision may be to use medium resolution if your camera offers three choices (high, medium, and low resolution). Otherwise, let the purpose for the final copy determine the quality level you need.

Many digital cameras have a zoom capability so you can crop the picture to look the way you want without having to move closer to or further from your subject. Your digital camera will probably focus automatically. Be sure you have sufficient lighting.

Try to have as many light-colored areas in your picture as possible. Dark areas generally end up with poorer quality than light areas. Be sure there is sufficient lighting if shooting indoors. Outdoor shots in daylight will be the best. If shooting under fluorescent light, use flash to avoid subjects having a green appearance.

When you download your images from the camera to your computer, you may use a cable to connect them together, you may have a memory card in your camera that can be removed and put into a special drive for direct access by your computer, you may have a standard 3.5 inch disk in your camera (like a Mavica) that can be placed directly into your computer’s “A” drive, or you may have the capability for infrared beaming of the images to your computer. When you save the images in your computer, you usually have a choice of compression methods. You should select the .jpg format (jpeg) if you plan to use the images on the Web or in email attachments or for other purposes where you want to take up as little memory as possible. If you plan to bring the images into a photo editing program to manipulate the images, you should select the .tif (tiff) format.

In summary:
  1) Shoot at the highest quality you feel you can afford.
  2) Since it doesn’t cost you anything extra, take a number of shots of the same subject and then select the best ones to keep; delete the rest.
  3) Pay attention to the lighting, have enough.
  4) Select the appropriate compression format for images saved on your computer.
  5) Use a photo editing program to manipulate the images for the best look and import them into email, Web pages, PowerPoint slide shows, etc. to personalize them.

Look on the Internet for further information on Web pages such as:
http://www.wmich.edu/etti/etti98/day3/kevin.html
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~cumulus/digcam.htm

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