2. Chapter 1 Getting to Know Your Digital Camera

3. It is important to know the features of your camera, it will make taking pictures (creating images) more enjoyable and fulfilling.

4. Types of Digital Cameras Subcompacts (pocket cameras) Compact (rangefinder) Superzooms (SLR like) Digital SLR (DSLR) Camcorders Cell phones, PDAs etc.

5. Subcompacts (pocket cameras) Pocket size camera They cost a bit more for the same capabilities as compact cameras Come with compromises shorter battery life no viewfinder a zoom range usually no greater than 3x smaller controls No manual controls

6. Compact (rangefinder) Mainstream bigger then pocket cameras Simple to use and best for everyday events Some don’t have manual controls Can have limited zoom capabilities

7. Superzooms (SLR like) Super-zoom cameras are characterized by a very long zoom range—10x or greater, which is good for sports, travel, or nature shooting. Some also have macro capabilities Larger the pocket cameras Viewfinder image is a direct electronic version of what the lens is seeing Have more controls to capturing the image

8. Digital SLR (DSLR) Single-lens reflex cameras are for profession or serious photographer SLRs, the largest and heaviest type Including interchangeable lenses. A lot more control features.

9. Camcorders Many camcorders are coming with the ability to take photos and store them on Media cards. Image controls are based on the setting for the video recorder.

10. Cell phones, PDAs etc Designed to take and share photos on your digital device Very little image control Very little zoom capability Some image quality is getting close to digital cameras.

11. Lenses Three types Fixed length In-Camera zoom Interchangeable Most people buy cameras with in-camera zoom lenses. Since we are working with the cameras you presently have there is not much that can be done about the zoom range.

12. Lenses Zoom range how much can you magnify an image. The more zoom range you have the better image control you have. Zoom range can vary for 3X on sub-compact and compacts to 12X on Superzoom (SLR like) cameras. We will not consider DSLR’s because they can have interchangeable lenses.

13. LCD Screen In the days of film there was no real way to know how the picture you took looked until you had the film processed. With the LCD screen you can see immediately how the picture you took looked.

14. LCD Screen Beyond just being able to see the picture instantly you can Determine if composition is good Determine if you have good exposure There are ways to set you LCD screen so that you can immediately see the picture you have taken before you take another one. We will get to this later in the class.

15. EXIF Exchangeable Image File Format Extensions to image file formats that hold the camera settings used to take the picture. Most digital cameras support EXIF and save the data in the file headers. Most software used to organize digital images, like Picasa3 have the ability to display this information This information is useful, photographers can use the information so they do not have to remember how the camera was set up when the picture was taken.

16. Digital Camera – Front Lens Flash Microphone AF Assist Beam Rangefinder

17. Digital Camera – Top Shutter Button Self Timer/ Burst Button Mode Dial Mode/Power Dial Mode Lever Off Button Flash/Mic Button Flash Button Speaker Zoom Lever

18. Digital Camera – Back View Finder Omni Control LCD Screen Speaker Zoom Lever OK Button

19. Digital Camera – Back (close-up)

20. Digital Camera – Sides Left Side From Back Right Side From Back

21. Digital Camera – Bottom Batteries Tri-pod Mount