Friday, August 17, 2007

Digital Camera Scene Modes - The 5 Modes You'll Use the Most

Technology is a beautiful thing. Every year hundreds of new or enhanced products are produced. Digital camera manufacturers come out with new models a couple times a year, each company trying to outdo the other. They've gone crazy with the variety of scene modes that are being added to new cameras.

Digital camera scene modes are a simple way for you to "tell" the camera what type of picture you are taking. The camera will then optimize the settings for that particular shot. Some modes change how colors are recorded, others change whether or not the flash fires. The trend now is to add special effects and things that you'll probably never use.

How often will you use a Starburst effect? Do you take a lot of photos that require a Pastel Color effect? Even the semi-popular Sepia mode is not needed, as far as I'm concerned. One click in your editing software and you've got Sepia.

If you're like most people, you'll only use a few of the scene modes on your camera. Here's details on the 5 modes you're most likely to use.

Portrait Mode
Portrait mode is for taking people pictures. Whether it's a single person or a group of people, you should use the Portrait mode. Your digital camera will select an appropriate shutter speed and aperture combination to capture your subject and blur the background. The idea here is to make the background less distracting.

Newer digital cameras incorporate autofocus technology that actually scans the picture looking for faces. It's usually called Face Priority or Face Detection. It especially helps when your subject is not dead center in the picture or when you have a group of people. Nikon, Fuji, Sony and others manufacturers are putting this technology in many cameras.

Check your owners manual to see if your digital camera uses this technology and whether it's automatic or you have to enable it manually.

Landscape Mode
Landscape mode should be your choice for all of those breathtaking views you want to shoot. Scenic vistas of the beach, the mountains, a field of flowers or a city skyline are all prime uses for Landscape mode. Your digital camera selects an exposure combination to maximize what's in focus from front to back.

Although it's not absolutely necessary, using a tripod or some other sort of support will help. Walk around a bit to find the best vantage point. Sometimes a small shift to the left or right (or up or down) will make the difference between a snapshot and a photograph.

Sports Mode
Whether it's kids soccer or baseball, or an NFL game, Sports mode is designed to help you stop the action. Your digital camera will set the shutter speed as high as possible for the lighting conditions in order to stop action. Sports mode also puts your camera in Continuous shooting mode (hold the button down and shoot 3-4 pictures in a row) and forces the flash off. If you can, setting the ISO to 400 or 800 will also help. A few cameras do this for you.

You'll want to get as close as you can for great Sports and action pictures. First get physically close, right on the sidelines if possible. Move up and down the field with the action. (Not so easy at hockey games.) Then use your zoom lens to get the shot you want. Take some wide shots to show all the action, along with tight shots of one or two players. This will help tell the story much better.

Be sure to pay attention to what's going on in the game. You may have to jump out of the way of the players!

Beach/Snow Mode
Having been a longtime resident of Florida, and as a current resident of Colorado, I can attest to the real benefit of the Beach/Snow scene mode. Both film and digital camera light meters are calibrated to a medium tone. Overly bright or dark scenes are not recorded properly. Beach/Snow scene mode is for all those bright scenes.

Big open areas of water on a sunny day. Long stretches of white sandy beaches. Snow covered mountains on your next ski vacation. These are all perfect times to use Beach/Snow mode. You are telling the camera that your subject matter is quite bright and it will compensate accordingly. Instead of muddy grey snow it will be recorded bright and white as it should be.

Sunrise/Sunset Mode
While most Scene modes change the aperture or shutter speed used, Sunrise/Sunset mode changes how the colors of the scene are recorded. The goal is to record the beautiful quality of light at these times of day.

Sunrise and sunset are times when the world is bathed in beautiful warm light. You'll hear photographers refer to this as Golden Light or the Golden Hours. By using these settings instead of Auto mode you'll capture that beautiful light and the dramatic colors. Try it for yourself next time you photograph a sunset and you'll see the difference.

The next time you read your manual (You do know where it is, right?) check out all the scene modes your digital camera has. Perhaps there are a few that you would find useful for your style of shooting. Try them out, along with the 5 listed here, to improve the pictures you take.


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Digital Camera Pointers - The Best Buy

Cheap is not always best nor is best always cheap – but here are a few suggestions to help you select the best digital camera to fit your needs at a reasonable price. There are many versions of the digital cameral available – each with various options and capabilities – so it is best to maintain a list of your demands before you begin to compare models and prices. Excellent deals are always being advertised via computer websites and local retail stores.

The #1 reason most people want a digital camera is because it eliminates the need for traditional camera film and viewing is immediate. The top item for consideration in your quest for a digital camera should be resolution. The highest resolution provides the best photographs – normally between 2 and 3 megapixels or two to three million pixels). Your intended use for pictures is an important factor. If you will only be downloading pictures for web pages, personal viewing, or e-mailing, you might want to consider a digital camera with a 640 by 480 pixel resolution as it will provide excellent photographs.

It seems that there are few ‘best buy’ digital camera offers with high resolution and sometimes, the resolution may only apply when used with software to achieve the true optical resolution. Be aware of each camera’s properties before you purchase. Printed photographs from a color printer require a high resolution – at least 720 dots per inch. Digital cameras are often advertised as a best buy that use a plastic lens. One hundred percent glass lenses are best, and camera packages should have an adequate RAM storage. The higher the RAM, the more pictures one can store. Downloading is then required less often. Zoom capabilities is another area of concern, and one should compare both optical and digital zoom capabilities. This feature is used most often on digital cameras, and one must have the capability to take pictures both close and at a distance.

Accessories are another point for consideration before making a decision to buy. Some packages include all the accessories needed or required while others may require additional purchases of extra cables and software to enable functionality. If one has to buy all these extra things to enable connectivity, then the purchase will not be considered such a good deal. If your purchase is made from a website or catalog retailer, be aware of the actual shipping costs. Shipping charges can make even the greatest deal more than you want to pay. Many retailers will advertise low prices and then charge exorbitantly high shipping costs.

With all these considerations, one should be able to find a great digital camera with many accessories at a great cost. Just remember, the higher resolution with more pixels means beautiful pictures.

A leader in technology reporting, Julia Hall has published articles about the latest digital devices and gadgets for over ten years. After graduating from MIT with a degree in electrical engineering, Julia turned down huge salaries from some of the most recognized fortune 500 companies in the world to pursue his dream of becoming a leading consumer advocate. Julia uses her expertise to cut through the too good to be true deals offered by high tech companies to reveal the real steals and the real duds that we're bombarded with daily. If you enjoy staying on the cutting edge of technology, whether for business or pleasure, but find yourself occasionally confused by the overwhelming information out there let Julia be your guide.


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Finding A Digital Camera Online

The great international market bazaar known as the Internet has rapidly made inroads on the territory of traditional brick and mortar retailers, and has in fact become the preferred shopping venue for millions of consumers. The Internet allows people to shop a their convenience from the comfort of their homes without spending money on gas and time fighting traffic.

Internet shopping also allows consumers to comparison shop online, reviewing the features of different items and finding the best prices. While there are, of course, things that should not be purchased online like perishable foods or live animals, it would be very hard to run a search for a non-perishable item an not find someone, somewhere ., who is selling it on their website.

Concerns About Shopping Online

Electronic items are especially in demand for online purchase, and many thousands of people have bought or considered buying a digital camera online. While the chances of getting scammed when purchasing a high-end item like a digital camera online do exist, they are probably greater than the chances of being cheated by a regular store or by purchasing a camera through the classifieds.

Internet retailers, like traditional ones, live and die with their customer base, and if they cannot get repeat business, will be doomed. Being conned when you purchase you digital camera online guarantees you will not be a return customer, and also guarantees bad publicity for the seller.

People buy digital cameras for different reasons; environmentally conscious consumers like them because there are no polluting chemicals involved in the production of digital photos. Others like them because they allow instant viewing of a photograph, and because there are digital camera software photos which can turn even the most amateur photographers into a budding Ansel Adams.

If you’re considering buying a digital camera online, you can feel good both about doing you small part to protect the environment, and about owning a technology which appears to be the future of amateur photography. While your digital camera online purchase may not get you the superlative quality photographs that professional photographers create with traditional cameras and darkrooms, it will get you started, and the digital camera technology is improving by leaps and bounds.

What To Look For In A Digital Camera

When shopping for your digital camera on line, research its storage capacity and pixilation; the greater its pixelation number, the better the sharpness and detailing of your photos will be. But the price you pay for a digital camera online will increase as its pixelation does.

The number of photos your digital camera can store is determined by its storage capacity; however, you can always purchase extra storage capacity by getting an additional flash card, just like you can buy extra memory for your personal computer. The very first digital cameras could hold up to thirty photos, making them competitive with 36-picture rolls of 35mm photographic film.

Today, however, even digital cameras priced in the medium range will store a hundred of more photographs. Once you’ve settled on ho much pixilation and storage capacity you need, and found the camera website offering it at the best price, you should be ready to buy your digital camera online!

You can also find more info on Digital Camera Software Downloads and Digital Camera Online. Topdigitalcamerareviews.com is a comprehensive resource to know about Digital Cameras.


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Digital Camera Buyer's Guide - What to Expect

Like most people you probably take pictures. We all use cameras for all sorts of things; we take pictures of special events, trips and many more. We immortalize those moments in pictures for us to see them time and time again. Of course we can use a variety of cameras to do that not all of us are professional photographs. But if you are looking to buy a good quality camera these days it helps to look at a digital camera buyer’s guide.

You will soon find out that there is a wide range of digital camera buyer’s guide. But the important factor to keep in mind is that they serve all the same purpose. To help you find the best digital camera for your needs. Most of theses digital camera buyer’s guide are inexpensive but you should go to the nearest camera dealer there is a good chance you can get one for free with a photography magazine.

Just make sure you look a t the cover of the digital camera buyer’s guide as they will show what are the camera models reviewed inside and if they can be of any use for your photographic needs.

Here is some of the buying information you can expect to get out of a good digital camera buyer’s guide:

- Digital camera comparisons
- Lenses
- Various accessories
- What hot and what’s not

One good thing about these guides is that sometimes you will get valuable buying information about the latest digital camera models. Some of these articles will cover in-depth the multiple features and the overall performance of the camera. They very often point you in the right direction telling you what are considered the best digital or compact camera on the market for your money.

With the information you will gather from your digital camera buyer’s guide about the prices, lenses and even the newest camera printers there is a good chance you will be able to know what is considered a good deal when you see one.

All things considered these are just a few of the products and services you can find when looking at a digital camera buyers guide. If you are looking to buy a new digital camera, these guides can help you greatly to make an informed decision. They are jam-packed with a great quantity of information that will help you buy the camera you want.

If you are looking to buy a digital camera then it would be a good idea to consult digital camera reviews website or getting a digital camera buyers guide.

Visit my website at http://www.CameraDigitalPro.com we offer various information about the art of Digital Photography and we also offer reviews of canon digtal cameras.


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How Many Megapixels Equal Digital Photography Success?

If you are looking for a digital camera, you no doubt have been met with the term megapixel, or MP. This probably sounds like a foreign language, but there is no reason to fear the terms. Instead, with some patience and careful research it is possible to really understand what a megapixel is, and what it means for your pictures. The first thing you should understand is all digital cameras have a MP or megapixel rating.

In digital photography megapixel tell you how many pixels your picture has, which directly relates to how large you can make your picture. If you have a camera that only has a 2MP size, you are going to be lucky to make that picture the size of a stamp. However, a camera that has a 6MP rating will be able to give you a gigantic poster sized picture that you can treasure forever, and see from more than 2 inches away. However, you should also realize that megapixel size will also affect your picture quality.

For example, a picture taken from the exact same distance with a 4MP and a 6MP camera are going to look very different. The 6MP camera will have much less blur and will be a crisp and sharp picture. Many digital cameras now come with sizes as large as 10MP without breaking the bank. You can purchase cameras with 10MP for as little as a few hundred dollars.

If you are looking for digital photography success with making large poster sized portraits then you really need to splurge the money on a camera with a high megapixel rating. You should never select a camera smaller than 7MP if you are planning on poster-sized prints. However, if you are only planning on doing pictures to a maximum size of 8x10 then you can stay to a camera in the 6MP and smaller range.

As you can see, the megapixel size you select has a huge impact on how much digital photography success you will really have. If you do not have very many needs for an advanced digital camera then you can save the money and just purchase a cheaper digital camera with a smaller megapixel size. However, if you want your camera to last as long as possible, and grow with all of your potential needs then splurging for the advanced camera can be a very good long term investment.

Chris Wight has been dabbling in photography since he was child playing in his dad's darkroom. You can learn more about digital photography at his site: http://www.digitalphotosuccess.com


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Camera Canon Digital PowerShot s2 - A Great Camera for Everyone

If you want to take high quality pictures you will surely need a high quality camera but which one? Today there is a wide range of cameras that you can buy. There are the old fashion cameras, the automatic cameras and of course the digital cameras. One of the best is the digital camera Canon PowerShot s2.

You will find that the digital camera Canon PowerShot s2 is packed with high quality features. The new version of the PowerShot s2 is an amazing improvement compared to its predecessor. The Camera Canon PowerShot s2 is like having a mix of a high quality camcorder and a high quality digital camera.
If you want to take high quality pictures you will surely need a high quality camera but which one? Today there is a wide range of cameras that you can buy. There are the old fashion cameras, the automatic cameras and of course the digital cameras. One of the best is the digital camera Canon PowerShot s2.

You will find that the digital camera Canon PowerShot s2 is packed with high quality features. The new version of the PowerShot s2 is an amazing improvement compared to its predecessor. The Camera Canon PowerShot s2 is like having a mix of a high quality camcorder and a high quality digital camera.

Here are some of the new features for the canon digital powershot s2:

- 12x optical Zoom Lens
- A large 1.8 inch LCD Display
- A New “Night Display” Feature
- DIGIC II image processor

The new night display is very useful; it will brighten the LCD screen and the EVF when you are in dark environments. Also the New DIGIC II image processor of the canon digital PowerShot s2 will provide you with amazing quality performance ability.

On top of that the brand new canon digital PowerShot s2 comes with a stereo sound recording giving you an excellent sound and pitch. Another important factor to know is that the canon PowerShot s2 has a 5 megapixal CCD.

If you are one of those who like to make home movies the canon digital PowerShot is perfect for you. You will have a wide range of features for movie making. Features like:

- Wind Filter
- Adjustable mic level
- Sound quality level
- and more

That’s not all; this camera canon digital PowerShot s2 brings you great features for adjusting the color quality. You can swap the colors and you can even highlight various parts of the picture! That’s pretty cool in my book.

By now you should agree with me that with so many features buying a digital camera Canon PowerShot s2 is a very good choice on top of that the PowerShot s2 uses many of the features of its predecessors. Features like:

- Optical image stabilization
- USB 2.0 High Speed Support
- Rotating LCD
- Secure Digital memory card (instead of CompactFlash cards)

On top of that the addition of manual controls, an amazing movie mode and support for various lenses makes the camera Canon Digital PowerShot s2 one of the most important part of your arsenal when you go out on holiday or special events.

Visit our website for more quality information about the Camera Canon Digital PowerShot s2. We offer various information about the art of digital photography and camera models. If you like our article about Camera Canon Digital PowerShot s2 visit our website for more quality articles.

- 12x optical Zoom Lens
- A large 1.8 inch LCD Display
- A New “Night Display” Feature
- DIGIC II image processor

The new night display is very useful; it will brighten the LCD screen and the EVF when you are in dark environments. Also the New DIGIC II image processor of the canon digital PowerShot s2 will provide you with amazing quality performance ability.

On top of that the brand new canon digital PowerShot s2 comes with a stereo sound recording giving you an excellent sound and pitch. Another important factor to know is that the canon PowerShot s2 has a 5 megapixal CCD.

If you are one of those who like to make home movies the canon digital PowerShot is perfect for you. You will have a wide range of features for movie making. Features like:

- Wind Filter
- Adjustable mic level
- Sound quality level
- and more

That’s not all; this camera canon digital PowerShot s2 brings you great features for adjusting the color quality. You can swap the colors and you can even highlight various parts of the picture! That’s pretty cool in my book.

By now you should agree with me that with so many features buying a digital camera Canon PowerShot s2 is a very good choice on top of that the PowerShot s2 uses many of the features of its predecessors. Features like:

- Optical image stabilization
- USB 2.0 High Speed Support
- Rotating LCD
- Secure Digital memory card (instead of CompactFlash cards)

On top of that the addition of manual controls, an amazing movie mode and support for various lenses makes the camera Canon Digital PowerShot s2 one of the most important part of your arsenal when you go out on holiday or special events.

Visit our website for more quality information about the Camera Canon Digital PowerShot s2. We offer various information about the art of digital photography and camera models. If you like our article about Camera Canon Digital PowerShot s2 visit our website for more quality articles.


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Canon Digital Camera - Point And Shoot

Canon is the premiere image and information systems company across the country - amassing a good reputation from its production of quality copiers, printers, lenses, and digital cameras. First on the line of Canon digital camera is the PowerShot S2 IS - 5 mega pixels, 12x optical zoom and 4x digital zoom, this is among the best digital cameras to acquire. It has an Optical Image Stabilizer or the IS reducing camera shakes during shots. The UD lens offers the most amazing color accuracy within the zoom area of a digital camera.

The PowerShot S2 IS records moving pictures without missing a single perfect image because of the Movie Snap feature - with one click, that perfect image stores itself in your PowerShot together with the recorded video. The DIGIC II Image Processor increases its processing speed, image quality and several features that make this digital camera so much more amazing - a quicker start-up time, instant playback, and faster auto focus. The Canon PowerShot S2 IS is USB 2.0 compatible with a Hi-speed standard for an easier file sharing and transfer to and from your computer, together with an super-speed SD card, the PowerShot S2 could ultimately work for your advantage.

The S2 previews images through fold out 1.8 inch LCD screen display with 115,000 pixel resolution. Its 30 frame per second shooting capability can be reduced at night mode to give you sufficient brightness when taking pictures.

The latest point and shoot Canon digital cameras, apart from the S2, are the PowerShot SD500 and PowerShot SD400.

The SD500 is the first Canon digital camera with 7.1 mega pixels. It captures images to its minutest details - high quality for image making. Its 3x optical zoom serves well for close up shooting along with a 37-111 mm lens - equivalent that of a 35mm film camera. Its curvy figure fits your hands very well - which makes it very good to carry around. Its slim design sets itself apart from other digital cameras with its 2.0 inch LCD for an easier frame and playback use. The amazing features of images taken with the SD500 come from the DIGIC II Image Processor, which all Canon digital cameras have. It works well with the combination of USB 2.0 and hi-speed SD card.

The Canon PowerShot SD500 shoots moving images up to 60 frames per second - a perfect gadget for sports and live action. Its 30 frame per second capability makes it perfect for still images too. The SD500 has different scene modes, portrait, foliage, beach, underwater, fireworks, night snapshot, kids and pets, indoor, snow and digital macro, for you to experiment with. This allows you to shoot and edit at the same time. its customization modes include lightening skin tones, positive film, darker skin tones, etc. making the PowerShot SD500 the perfect Canon digital camera.

These are just a pinch of the many features of the SD500, and more yet to be discussed. Canon's website contains full details of the Canon PowerShot SD500 and other quality Canon products and releases.

see more information on digital cameras here at Digital Camera Review

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Olympus Digital Camera Review

Olympus is well known for producing high quality cameras way before digital cameras became popular. Due to the popularity of digital cameras, olympus has been producing their own line of digital cameras. Here’s my olympus digital camera review.

Professional photographers will definitely want to get hold of olympus Digital SLR cameras as they are the best in the business.

For example, I highly recommend the Olympus 5300 Digital SLR. It has a whopping 8 megapixel camera with 7 to 14 mm lens which can be used to take almost any pictures with clarity and precision.

One unique feature of the 5300 is its filter called the super sonic wave filter which can shake off the dust accumulating in the camera lens and sensors. It has 4 exposure modes and 14 scene modes which allows you to take any kind of pictures whether in day or night. The price isn’t cheap but you get quality.

Olympus also has a line of digital cameras for photo enthusiasts and amateur photographers. They are a lot cheaper than top of the line DSLR cameras making it more affordable for the masses.

An example is the Olympus CaMedia C-70 digital camera. It’s small and compact making it easy to carry anywhere and does not take up too much space. It has a 7.0 megapixel camera with 5x optical zoom. Good enough to take most pictures with clarity. It also has auto-focus which allows you to take pictures quickly and it can start up fast. The LCD screen is about 2 inches which is about the standard nowadays.

Other features include a SD card slot and USB 2.0 which allows you to take more pictures and easily transfer them to a computer.

There are other models such as the Olympus MJU-mini and MJU 500 which are equally good.

If you are looking for an affordable and high quality digital camera, you can’t go wrong with a Olympus digital camera.

Ricky Lim is an avid olympus digital camera fan. Visit his site for more info on the best digital camera and how to buy digital camera.


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