Digital Cameras

Why buy a digital camera?

After all, film photos have an almost infinite resolution, while digital photos are limited by the size of the camera�s memory, the optical resolution of its digitizing mechanism, and by the resolution of the final output device, such as a laser printer. Digital cameras often produce photos of people with red eyes, a problem that needs correction. While film camera batteries last a long time, digital cameras run down their batteries almost as quickly as you can say "smile" so be sure you get one with rechargeable batteries, and plan to
buy some spares as well. Digital cameras also tend to cost a bit more than do comparable film cameras, though recently this gap has narrowed considerably.

So why not stick with film?

Resolution is only one factor that helps to determine a photo's quality. Because the cost of lenses depends on their size, and because digital camera's only need to focus light on a tiny sensor, their lenses can be quite small. This means that even inexpensive digital cameras tend to have lenses far superior to all but the most expensive film cameras. Despite their inferior resolution, they nonetheless tend to make better photos than one can get with film. Also, you can work on those photos to improve them with editing software.

The great advantage of digital cameras is that the cost is virtually all up front. Making photos is both inexpensive and quick, because there is no need for film processing. Shoot it, and you've got it. This speedy feedback lets you know immediately whether you need to reshoot a particular scene or portrait, and the low cost helps ensure that you will take many, many more pictures than you ever did with film.

Digital photos are very easy to share over the internet, so you will tend to send many more out to family and friends. You will find this new, virtually costless, way to share adds a whole new dimension to your relationships with friends and loved ones. All of these factors help to make people using digital cameras much better photographers than they ever were before. Of course, you enjoy much more doing the things you are good at, so you are likely to take a much greater interest in photography than when you relied on film.

Depending upon whose statistics you read, digital cameras began to outsell film cameras between 2003 and 2006, so get with it: Go Digital.