All digital cameras store exposures in digital memory of some kind. This “memory” works the way film does in a traditional camera. Lower-end cameras usually have a set amount of onboard memory; when it’s full, you’re done
shooting until you download the stored images. (Think of this as running out of film.) Moderately priced and high-end cameras also use removable media, which is a fantastic timesaver (no more changing film!) and oh-so-convenient (just pop in a new card and keep on shooting!).
Figure 2-8:Supports come in pretty handy.
Funny thing about memory, though (and no, not just that losing it isn’t fun):
Different manufacturers like to use their own types, or at least different types, of memory in general. Thus, removable media formats usually aren’t exactly interchangeable.
Tangentially, if you download images from removable media to your com-puter (as compared with downloading straight from your camera via a USB cable), your computer must be able to accept these memory devices, too.
Some machines come equipped with card readers on their front (usually next to the USB ports), and some-times you need to use an external card reader (as in Figure 2-9). Sigh.
1.0
Figure 2-9:Download images on removable media via a card reader.
From a different angle . . .
Use a tripod’s moveable head (just play with the mounting base handles) to shoot on an angle and get some great canted (oblique) shots, as shown in the figure here. Adjust the tripod’s knobs, twist-ing and turntwist-ing them so that they are fixed into position. Then practice
Panning left and right: Move the tripod left and right slowly and methodically.
Panning up and down: Move the tripod up and down slowly, then quickly.
Moving from place to place: Move the tripod from one place — say, a flat ground — to another place on uneven ground. Readjust the legs so it sits evenly.
After you get used to moving the tripod head around and panning it in all directions, you can set it up — and adjust it — on the fly and quickly.
Here’s the scoop, as briefly as I can write it. Check your particular camera model/manufacturer to see what you need. Of course, the greater the memory the card can hold (say 1GB versus 512MB), the more shots you can take on that card and thus not have to swap it out or cease photographing. Likewise, the price will be higher.
Here are the major players. Prices change like crazy, so shop online for the best deals. Too, all these types (with the exception of the mini-CD) come in various amounts of storage — some as high as 8GB (yes, I did say 8 gigabytes) — so that factors in to the pricing, too.
Floppy disk:Yes, believe it or not, at least one type of digital camera (a Sony Mavica model) records to a 31⁄2" floppy disk. This storage method is rare.
Compact CD:Some Sony Mavica models use a compact CD-R/RW stor-age method. These are rare, too.
CompactFlash:This is a common memory card; see Figure 2-10.
These are physically a little larger in size than a Memory Stick (see the following bullet), and their capacities range from 8MB to 8GB of storage. The two types of CF cards are
•Type I: These are 3.3mm thick.
•Type II: These are 5mm thick.
Cameras with Type I slots
cannot use Type II cards. Cameras with Type II slots can use both Type I and Type II cards.
CompactFlash cards are generally referred to as CF cards.
Memory Stick:This is a proprietary format from Sony. These thin and flat removable memory cards are about the length of your thumb.
Compared with current SD (Secure Digital) and CF cards, the original MS card is incredibly slow.
Sony uses a smaller card — Memory Stick DUO — in some of its super-compact Cyber-shot models. A Memory Stick DUO card is half the size of a regular Memory Stick. You need an adapter to bring the Memory Stick DUO card up to the size that a Memory Stick slot or card reader can handle.
SmartMedia (SM ):These cards are smaller than a book of matches and not as thick as a credit card. Their design can cause incompatibility issues with cameras made before 2001. Some photog pundits predict the
3 2
MB16
MBFigure 2-10:Memory card removable media storage.
demise of SM cards because Fuji and Olympus — once the biggest users of SmartMedia cards — now both use their new xD-Picture Card. (See the upcoming bullet on that format.) All other camera makers, except Fuji, Olympus, and Sony (which uses its proprietary Memory Stick), have gone with Secure Digital (SD).
MultiMediaCard ( MMC ):These cards are similar to SD cards (see the following bullet) but are less secure and are physically thinner.
A MultiMediaCard can fit into an SD slot, but an SD card can’t fit into an MMC slot. MMCs are usually compatible with cameras that can use an SD Card.
Secure Digital (SD) Card:These cards are probably the most popular flash memory format for digital cameras and can also be used in other gadgets like PDAs. SD and MMCs are nearly identical on the outside, but SD cards are much faster than MMC cards. SD cards have become the flash memory card of choice for digital cameras because of their small size and low power consumption. SD Cards hold from 16MB to 2GB.
Because not all cameras that use SD can also use MMC cards, check your camera’s user manual.
xD-Picture Card:Man, oh, man! These cards are about the size of a quar-ter! Olympus and Fuji jointly developed the xD-Picture Card, which boasts an ultracompact design and storage capacity of up to 8GB. These cards are compatible with different digital camera brands.