The age of digital photography is upon us. The increase in the quality of the images that digital cameras capture along with an equally impressive drop in their cost has made digital photography available to almost everyone. Digital cameras offer many benefits over film-based cameras, including the following:
Choosing a Digital CameraObviously, before you can capture digital images, you need to have a digital camera. Obtaining a digital camera can be intimidating. Hundreds of models are now available, and more seem to come into the market every day. These cameras range in price from $100 to over $1,000. The vast array of features and designs that they offer can be bewildering. However, you can greatly limit the number of models from which you will want to choose by considering the factors described in the following sections. Mac OS X CompatibilityThis might seem like an obvious one, but some digital cameras do not support the Mac. And some support the Mac, but not Mac OS X. You should immediately eliminate any models that are not designed to work with Mac OS X. If the camera you are considering supports the Picture Transfer Protocol (PTP), you can use it with Mac OS X even if its software is not Mac OS X compatible. You can use iPhoto or Mac OS X's Image Capture application to download images from any camera that uses PTP. Make sure that you investigate this specification for models in which you are interested if their software is not compatible with Mac OS X. iPhoto CompatibilityBecause iPhoto is an ideal application to use for all aspects of working with images you capture with a digital camera (as you will learn later in this chapter), you are very likely to want to use it. To make the most of its capabilities, you should obtain a camera that is iPhoto-compatible. Fortunately, many brands and models are. To see whether the models you are considering are compatible with iPhoto, visit www.apple.com/iphoto/compatibility/. ResolutionResolution is the single most important factor affecting digital image quality. The higher resolution the camera has, the more pixels that it captures in each image and thus the quality of the image is higher. Unlike some devices, it is common to measure the resolution of digital cameras by the total number of pixels in their images. Usually, this is referred to in millions of pixels or megapixels. And using the shorthand 2 megapixel or 3 megapixel further simplifies this. The resolution you want is determined by how you are going to use the resulting images. If you are going to use images only for onscreen display, such as on the Web or in onscreen slide shows, you don't need images with as high a resolution as if you were going to want to print those photos at large sizes (such as 8x10). A general guide to the resolution of digital cameras is in Table 15.3.
All cameras enable you to change the resolution at which they capture images (they usually have low, medium, and high resolution settings). So, the resolution of the camera is really its maximum resolution; depending on the photos you are taking during a session, you might or might not take the highest resolution possible. TIP Many retail electronic sites on the Web are great places to do research on products you are considering especially digital cameras. You can get the technical details about specific models, compare various models easily, and obtain price information instantaneously. One of the best places to look for digital cameras is at www.smalldog.com. MemoryAll those pixels that a camera captures have to be stored in some form of memory. And as with your Mac, more memory is better. In the case of a camera, having more memory available enables you to take more photos without having to download them to your Mac. Some cameras have built-in or fixed memory, but most modern cameras use some form of removable memory (some options are listed in Table 15.4). Most of these formats are used in other devices as well (such as MP3 players), so choosing a memory storage format might depend on the other devices you have.
NOTE Decreasing the resolution of an image requires less memory to store it, so you can effectively increase the memory of a camera by capturing images at a lower resolution setting. The trade-off is that those images you capture at lower resolutions won't be as high quality as those captured at higher resolutions. You can also swap out memory cards, which means that your camera's memory is limited only by the amount of money you can afford to spend on additional memory cards. PriceAs you might expect, higher-resolution cameras are more expensive than lower-resolution cameras. As with most electronic devices, one of your most important criteria should be the amount you can afford to spend. Although prices change so fast that it is impossible to provide specific price information in this book, there are some general guidelines about the cost of various "classes" of camera. Generally, cameras in the 3-megapixel class cost $350 or more. These cameras are good choices if you are interested in high-quality photos for both onscreen and hard-copy use. One excellent camera in this class is the Nikon Coolpix 885 (see Figure 15.1). Figure 15.1. Nikon Coolpix cameras have a long history of being among the best digital cameras.Cameras in the 2-megapixel class generally cost around $250. These cameras are suitable for all onscreen work as well as most hard-copy applications. Cameras in the 1-megapixel class can be purchased for $200 or less. These cameras are fine for most onscreen work (such as capturing photos for Web sites), but probably will not be adequate for printing your photos. Cameras in the 4- or 5-megapixel range can be purchased for $700 or more. If you are producing professional-quality images that are used in very high-resolution devices, you might need such devices. But for most people and purposes, a 3-megapixel camera has more than enough quality. BrandIf you have a favorite brand, you can eliminate many models from consideration. If you are open to any brand, you have more research to do. Most manufacturers of film-based cameras also make excellent digital cameras. These include Kodak, Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Olympus. TIP All camera manufacturers maintain Web sites on which you can get extensive information about their products. Although this information isn't exactly unbiased, it is usually very detailed. You can often see very detailed images of a camera, such as the location of its controls, its shape, and so on. To get to these sites, just go to www.manufacturer.com. For example, to learn about Kodak cameras, go to www.kodak.com. FeaturesDigital cameras offer more features than even film-based cameras do; in fact, the sheer number of features can be intimidating. Usually, you can limit the number of features you have to consider by first using the other criteria (such as iPhoto-compatibility, resolution, brand, and price) to eliminate most models from consideration. After you have a "short list" of possible models, you have to decide which features are the most important to you. You aren't likely to find a single model that offers exactly the features you want, so you are looking for the best mix of features to suit your needs. NOTE Some digital still-image cameras can capture video clips, and some digital video cameras can capture still images. Usually, the video capture by a still camera is of fairly low quality, but some digital video cameras can capture still images that rival the quality of still-image cameras. An example of this is the Sony DCRPC110. In addition to excellent video, it can capture megapixel still images. Using a Digital CameraUsing a digital camera is quite similar to using a film-based camera. There are several major differences, however, which include the following:
TIP With cameras that use "standard" batteries, such as AA, you should also carry an extra set of "emergency" nonrechargeable batteries for those situations in which you run out of rechargeable batteries (and you will usually right in the middle of a particularly important shoot). This is assuming that your camera is capable of operating on such batteries, of course. After your images are captured, the real power of a digital camera comes into play. Unlike film-based cameras in which you have to have the film processed, you can immediately download images to your Mac and begin working with them. Installing a Digital Camera's Software on Your MacIf you have a camera that is compatible with iPhoto, you don't need to install any software, including the drivers and applications that came with the camera. This is because iPhoto can manage all aspects of working with that camera. However, if your camera is not iPhoto-compatible or you want to use other applications to download your images (why you would, I don't know), you will need to install your camera's software. This software might include any drivers needed for your Mac to be able to communicate with the camera and usually includes applications you can use to manage and edit the images you capture. TIP If the digital camera you use supports the Picture Transfer Protocol, you don't need to install its software to be able to download images because you can use Mac OS X's Image Capture to do so even if you don't use iPhoto. However, you might still want to use the camera's software for its special features. Installing a digital camera's software is similar to installing other applications on your Mac. For help installing applications, see Chapter 6, "Installing and Using Mac OS X Applications," p. 121.
TIP There are several types of devices you can use to mount the memory card directly on your desktop. For example, the ScanDisk ImageMate enables you to mount CompactFlash memory cards directly so that you can copy the image files from the memory card to the Mac. These devices cost only about $30 and can be simpler even than using Image Capture. Downloading Images to Your MacThere are four main ways in which you can transfer the images you capture from the camera to the Mac. These are covered in the following sections. Using iPhoto to Download ImagesiPhoto is the best and easiest way to download and manage your images. To learn how to use iPhoto to download images from your camera, see "Downloading Images from a Digital Camera into iPhoto," p. 431. Using Image Capture to Download ImagesMac OS X was designed to work with digital cameras; it includes the basic Image Capture application that provides a consistent interface for various models of digital cameras. Its single purpose is to download images from the camera to your Mac. Because iPhoto is also included with Mac OS X, there isn't a whole lot of reason to use Image Capture, but because Image Capture remains part of the standard Mac OS X applications, you should understand its capabilities. Image Capture will work with cameras that support the Picture Transfer Protocol (PTP). Many cameras do support this protocol, but some do not. Check the manufacturer's Web site and product specifications to see whether a particular model supports PTP. NOTE The more technical name for PTP is ISO 15740. Image Capture can be used to download images from some scanners, and that is the more likely circumstance in which you will use it. But it works similarly whether your image source is a camera or a scanner. Image Capture can be configured so that it automatically downloads images when you plug your camera or scanner into your Mac. By default, Mac OS X is configured to open iPhoto when it detects a camera. You can change this behavior with the Image Capture Preferences command. Working with Image Capture is straightforward. Use the following steps to get images from your camera to your Mac:
NOTE Notice that the default download folders are Pictures, Movies, and Music folders. Some cameras can capture movies and sound. If your camera has QuickTime movies on it, those will be placed in the Movies directory in your Home directory. Likewise, sounds will be placed in the Music directory.
To download only selected images, use the following steps:
TIP You can connect multiple cameras to your Mac at the same time. To choose the one with which you want to work, use the Camera pop-up menu. Image Capture has other options that are useful:
NOTE Image Capture will download only those images that aren't already in the selected directory. So, you won't get duplicate files if you have previously downloaded images on the camera and then perform another download with new images. TIP Image Capture has a customizable Mac OS X toolbar. You can show or hide it, and change the buttons it contains just like other toolbars, such as the toolbar in Finder windows. To customize this toolbar, choose View, Customize Toolbar. Several automatic tasks are useful, but the Build web page task is a particularly useful one. When you choose this, Image Capture will build a Web site for the images you download. After the script runs, the Web page will open and you will see your images (see Figure 15.5). On the Web site, you can click an image to open a full-size version (click the full-size image to return to the preview page). Figure 15.5. This Web site was built automatically when Image Capture downloaded images to my Mac.TIP The combination of the List view and the Build web page automatic task is powerful. You can select the images captured on a specific date, such as a party, and quickly build a Web site containing only those images. Give the Build web page script time to work. You will see it processing each image you selected in the Finder. When it finishes, the Web page will open in your default Web browser (the title of the window will be the directory into which the images have been downloaded). If you mess around with the files while it is working, it can't finish the job. After you download images using the Build web page task, the directory in which they were downloaded will also contain a folder called Index. If you open this folder, you will see the index.html file. Open this file to see the Web page that was created. This is a great way to catalog and preview your images. If you want to share your images with others, simply post the Web site that Image Capture creates. For example, you can copy the index.html file and the Index files folder into your Sites folder to publish it. You can also drag those items onto the Sites folder on your iDisk to publish the site on the Internet. To learn how to publish Web sites, see Chapter 14, "Putting Yourself on the Web," p. 369. NOTE If you change the images you downloaded after the Web site is built, the updated image will not be shown on the Web page. If you use Image Capture to download images from a camera or a scanner, you should configure it to open automatically when the respective device is attached.
Both pop-up menus include the No application and Other options. If you choose No application, your Mac won't take any action when you connect a device. If you choose Other, you can select any application on your Mac and it will open when a device is detected. Using "Disk Mode" to Download ImagesSome cameras use a disk mode to download images to your Mac. When you attach the camera to your Mac using the USB cable and then power up the camera, it is mounted on your Mac just like a hard or removable disk. To download the images to your Mac, you simply drag them from the camera's disk to the location on your Mac in which you want them to be stored. This is the same mode you use if you attach a memory card reader to your Mac. The memory card you insert in the reader acts like any other volume you can mount. You simply drag files from the memory card into the appropriate folder.
Using Camera-Specific Software to Download ImagesSome cameras use a specific application to download images. This software might offer more features than Image Capture or the disk mode (but probably not more than iPhoto), although its purpose is the same. If the camera you use includes such software, check the documentation for your camera to learn how to use it. |