I got my first camera when I was ten years old. It was one of those slim little Kodak models that took 110 film and required a separate flash that clicked onto the top. Sometimes the flash wouldn’t work and you’d waste a picture, or when you finally got your pictures developed, you’d find a lot of them out of focus or completely not what you wanted.
My grandson will be getting his first camera for Christmas this year. It’s a digital camera in bright colors with a nice, big preview screen where he can look at the pictures he’s taken and delete them if he wants to. He’s three years old.
The business and pleasure of photography has come a long way since the first patent was issued for a camera in 1840. Over the years, we’ve seen cameras get smaller and smaller, move from separate flashes to built-in flashes, and finally to the absence of film with the digital camera.
Photography is a pastime that is growing in popularity with the rise in digital cameras and the ease with which an everyday person can obtain a beautiful photograph. No longer is it necessary to haphazardly take pictures and hope you got the shots you really wanted.
No longer will you have to make a special trip to get film processed. No longer will you have to wait three or four days just for your prints. Now, there are so many options including simply printing out your pictures on your home printer.
Touching up and manipulating pictures has also been made easier, no longer required to be performed by a photography expert.
Software programs are now available that let the everyday camera owner play with their pictures and use them to make all sorts of creative projects.
The advantages of digital photography are great. You have instant gratification with your pictures. You can immediately see the picture you’ve taken on the LCD screen and retake it if you’re not happy.
Since you are able to delete photos that you do not want, you have the freedom to shoot many photos of the same scene, and just keep the one or two that turned out the best. Once you discover this, you have another great way to capture memories.
You no longer have to shoot a whole roll of film just to get a few good pictures. With digital photography, you only print the best shots.
You can use your home printer or get professionally done prints at sites like snapfish.com and other.
You also have many, many options with digital images. Whether it's 4-by-6-inch prints to put in your photo album, homemade greeting cards printed on your inkjet printer, or sharing your photos online, digital photography opens up a whole new world of options for your memories.
You’d think photography was made ultimately easy and a no-brainer with these digital miracles and it really is easier than it ever has been. However, the truth is that there are still fine points, tips, and tricks to learn so you can be sure the pictures you are taking will be everything you want and more.
Professional photographers know about this, it’s time you should too! What better satisfaction than being able to take your own family photos and not have to worry about going to a studio to have them taken.
We’re not saying that photography studios aren’t capable – oh to the contrary. There will be moments you’ll want captured by the professional, but in general, digital photography has made those kinds of trips and events drastically reduced!
We have done extensive research into the world of digital photography and photography in general so that we can bring you this amazing book.
This author has already learned so much – and I’m just beginning to write this book! I’m surprised at how much I didn’t know about taking pictures!
We’ll start by looking at what kind of digital camera you’ll want that will meet your needs and go from there! Read on for digital photography basics – being your own photographer!
