Want to learn more? We hope you enjoy this McGraw-Hill eBook! If you, d like more information about this book, its author, or related books and websites, please click here. Digital Camera Second Edition This page intentionally left blank. Digital Camera Second Edition Dave Johnson McGraw-Hill/Osborne New York Chicago San Francisco Lisbon London Madrid Mexico City Milan New Delhi San Juan Seoul Singapore Sydney Toronto Copyright © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the United States of America. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of thåis publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a data- base or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. 0-07-222826-1 The material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: 0-07-222555-6. All trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners. 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DOI: 10.1036/0072228261 For Newt 1987–2000 About the Author Dave Johnson writes about technology from his home in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He’s the enterprise editor at Handheld Computing magazine and writes a free weekly electronic newsletter on digital photography for PC World magazine. In addition, he’s the author of two dozen books that include How to Use Digital Video, How to Do Everything with MP3 and Digital Music, and How to Do Everything with Your Palm Handheld (the latter two with Rick Broida). His short story for early readers, The Wild Cookie, has been transformed into an interactive storybook on CD-ROM. He’s also busy writing a book of family-style robot construction projects. Dave started writing professionally in 1990, before anyone had a chance to talk him out of it. Prior to that, he had a somewhat unfocused career that included flying satellites, driving an ice cream truck, managing weapons at an Air Force base, stocking shelves at Quick Check, teaching rocket science, photographing a rock band, and writing about space penguins. He’s still not playing bass in a psychedelic band, but at least he’s found steady work. For more information about this title, click here. Contents at a Glance PART I Your Camera CHAPTER 1 Welcome to the Future . 3 CHAPTER 2 Understanding Exposure . 21 CHAPTER 3 Composition Essentials . 43 CHAPTER 4 Flash and Lighting . 71 CHAPTER 5 Taking Close-Ups . 91 CHAPTER 6 Pushing Your Camera to Its Limits . 113 PART II Transferring Images CHAPTER 7 Conquering File Formats . 137 CHAPTER 8 Working with Digital Film . 151 CHAPTER 9 Keeping Images on the PC . 169 CHAPTER 10 Turning Prints into Digital Images . 187 PART III Editing Images CHAPTER 11 Quick Changes for Your Images . 203 CHAPTER 12 Cleaning Up Your Images . 237 CHAPTER 13 Creating Special Effects . 271 CHAPTER 14 Working with Text and Creating Projects . 303 Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Click Here for Terms of Use. vii viii How to Do Everything with Your Digital Camera PART IV Using Your Images CHAPTER 15 Printing Your Pictures . 329 CHAPTER 16 Sharing Your Pictures . 351 Index . 375 For more information about this title, click here. Contents Acknowledgments . xvii Introduction . xix PART I Your Camera CHAPTER 1 Welcome to the Future . 3 A History Lesson . 4 A Slow Evolution . 5 The Future of Digital Cameras . 6 Features, Gadgets, and Goodies . 8 The Optical System . 9 Power Systems . 10 Memory Storage . 12 Camera Controls . 13 Choosing Your Own Digital Camera . 15 Resolution . 15 Optics . 16 Memory . 17 Flash . 18 Special Effects . 18 Transfer Mechanism . 18 Gear You Need . 19 CHAPTER 2 Understanding Exposure . 21 How Cameras Take Pictures . 22 Inside a 35mm Camera . 23 The Moment of Exposure . 23 How Digicams Are Different . 28 Use ISO for Exposure Control . 29 Change the ISO Setting . 29 Perfecting Shots with Aperture and Shutter . 30 How Cameras Choose Aperture and Shutter Speed . 30 ix Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Click Here for Terms of Use. x How to Do Everything with Your Digital Camera Adjusting Exposure Manually . 32 Use Shutter or Aperture Priority Adjustments . 34 Tricky Lighting Situations . 35 Using Exposure Compensation . 35 Switching Metering Modes . 37 Using Exposure Lock . 39 When to Take Control . 41 CHAPTER 3 Composition Essentials . 43 Why Composition Is Important . 44 What We See . 45 Rules of Composition . 45 Isolate the Focal Point . 46 Use the Rule of Thirds . 47 Fill the Frame . 48 Move the Horizon . 51 Use Lines, Symmetry, and Patterns . 52 Use Foreground to Balance the Background . 53 Know When to Break the Rules . 54 Using Depth of Field . 56 Applying Depth of Field to Your Pictures . 59 Getting the Most Out of Your Zoom Lens . 60 Using Your Camera’s Exposure Modes . 64 Choosing Exposure Modes and Lenses in Special Situations . 65 Nature and Landscapes . 68 CHAPTER 4 Flash and Lighting . 71 Basics of Flash Photography . 72 Stay Within the Range of Your Flash . 73 Master Your Flash Modes . 76 Improve Your Outdoor Photographs . ..