Datasheet

■ KNOWING YOUR DIGITAL CAMERA

Another way to extend the ability of your digital camera is through special soft-

ware that stitches multiple images together and creates either a panorama or an object

movie. (All of this is detailed in Chapter 11.) Just about any digital camera can be

used to create simple panoramas. However, if you want to create professional quality

panoramas or object movies, you’ll need a digital camera that has exposure and focus

control overrides. You’ll also need to use a tripod, and it really helps if your digital

camera comes with the appropriate screw mount.

Knowing Your Digital Camera

You may be surprised to hear that many of the professional photographers featured in

this book used cameras not labeled “professional.” But even a point-and-shoot camera

in the hands of a professional can be effective. It’s not just a matter of having a “good

eye.” A pro also knows one thing that many others don’t: understanding both the

strengths and weaknesses or your equipment is critical. A weakness can be overcome

only if you know it exists.

In short, it’s not the digital camera that makes a great photo; it’s the relationship

between the photographer and the camera—one based on knowledge and experience—

that produces the best results.

Take shutter lag. There has been a lot of improvement over the last few years,

but many digital cameras still suffer from it. You press the release button expecting to

get the shot, only to see later that the camera actually released the shutter a good sec-

ond or so later. What can you do if you own such a camera? Well, first of all you need

to find out how bad the lag is. I learned a very simple test from my Los Angeles Times

friend, photographer Tony Barnard. Sitting at a coffee shop in San Francisco, he

showed me the test found in Chapter 4, “Testing for Shutter Release Lag.” Once you

figure out the lag, if any, you can learn to anticipate a shot.

Knowing your camera is such a huge and important subject that I’ve devoted a

whole series of sidebars to it throughout the book. (In fact, it’s one of three topic areas

that I’ll cover in sidebars throughout the chapters; you’ll meet the other two shortly.) In

most chapters you’ll see sidebars titled, “Know Your Camera,” and you’ll find techni-

cal explanations that you can apply to just about any digital camera.

Know Your Camera sidebars include:

• General Quality Test (Chapter 1)

• Controlling Depth of Field (Chapter 3)

•Testing for Shutter Release Lag (Chapter 4)

• Frame and Focus (Chapter 5)

• What Goes Wrong with Digital Cameras (Chapter 6)

• The Sensor Inside (Chapter 7)

• File Formats (Chapter 8)

• Built-In Flash (Chapter 10)

• Lenses (Chapter 9)

• LCDs (Chapter 9)

• Adjusting White Balance (Chapter 11)

42877ch01.qxd 9/18/06 11:21 PM Page 15