New useful features cram latest digital cameras<\/p>\n
Zatni Arbi, Contributor, zatni@cbn.net.id<\/p>\n
Do you find that, sometimes, those user friendly digital cameras
\nstill are not that easy to use? Despite the great features that they
\nare already packed with, there have been many occasions that you
\nhave to repeat taking the pictures a couple of times before the
\nresult, as displayed in the LCD monitor screen, is acceptably
\nsharp.<\/p>\n
Clearly, this is not in line with the words \"point and shoot\",
\nwhich implies that everything should be as effortless as raising
\ntaxes.<\/p>\n
There are a couple of reasons for the disappointment. You may
\nforget that you have to first press the shutter button halfway to
\nset the autofocus working.<\/p>\n
In addition, when someone asks you to take his picture, his
\ncamera turns out to be much lighter than your own. You may end up
\ngetting blurry images.<\/p>\n
Contrary to what many people believe, a lightweight camera is
\nmore difficult to hold steadily when you are aiming the lens and,
\nespecially, when you are pressing the shutter button.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, many of these problems have been tackled with the
\nimplementation of new techniques. Last week, the Sanyo Division
\nof Datascrip launched two new Xacti digital cameras and one
\nhandheld Xacti digital camcorder from the Japanese company.<\/p>\n
Well, we may associate Sanyo with water pumps and
\nrefrigerators, but the fact is that they also make great
\nmultimedia devices such as the digital cameras and digital
\nprojectors.<\/p>\n
The more expensive ultra-slim Xacti E6, which is a six
\nmegapixel (6 MP) digital camera, has at least three new features
\nthat I would really like to see incorporated in other cameras as
\nwell.<\/p>\n
More Foolproof<\/p>\n
The Xacti E6 has a very smart feature called Touch Sensor. If
\nactivated, the camera will start the focusing process the moment
\nyou touch its shutter button. There is no need anymore to press
\nthe button halfway and hold it there for a few moments to give
\nthe autofocus mechanism the chance to measure the distance
\nbetween the lens and the subject.<\/p>\n
Now you can press the button all the way down and you will
\nstill get a focused image.<\/p>\n
This is certainly a very useful feature for true point-and-
\nshoot operation. The feature can be turned off if you wish, and
\nthen you will have the two-step shutter release operation like
\nmost other digital cameras today.<\/p>\n
Another interesting new feature on the E6 is the 3.0-inch LCD
\nscreen. It is probably the first to appear in a pocket camera
\n(Samsung Pro815 has a 3.5-inch screen, but it is not a pocket
\ncamera).<\/p>\n
The 3.0-inch covers almost the entire back panel of the E6,
\nleaving only a small space on the right for the zoom control
\nbutton, two tiny switches and the joystick for menu selection.<\/p>\n
Granted, a larger LCD screen will consume more battery power.
\nHowever, I can immediately appreciate some benefits of the larger
\nscreen. While the product brochure stresses the ability to show
\nthe pictures or video clips to others on the large screen, I
\nlike it more because it allows the use of bigger fonts and icons
\nfor the menu. Setting up and adjusting the camera is much easier
\nnow with the more readable text.<\/p>\n
And, the larger screen also allows the introduction of another
\nuseful feature called Guidance Display. When activated, it will
\ntell you what you need to do to ensure good results. For example,
\nif you have not set the focus, the Guidance will read \"Touch the
\nshutter button to focus.\" If you shake the camera too much, the
\nguidance will remind us to hold it steady.<\/p>\n
Turning your hand to stone<\/p>\n
In the last year or so, a growing number of digital cameras
\nfrom Canon, Konika Minolta, Nikon, Panasonic and others have
\nintegrated an image stabilizer system, which used to be found
\nonly in high-end digital video cameras. The system can be very
\ncomplex, but it helps those who do not have a tremor-free hand or
\nsimply do not have the time to set up the tripod for taking
\npictures.<\/p>\n
Panasonic's Lumix, for example, incorporates the MEGA Optical
\nImage Stabilizer (MEGA O.I.S.). At the heart of the system is a
\ngyrosensor that senses any lateral and vertical motion and feeds
\na signal to a tiny computer, which in turn calculates the amount
\nof compensation needed. Then a motor adjusts the position of the
\nO.I.S. lens so that the image captured by the Charge Coupled
\nDevice (CCD) is corrected.<\/p>\n
Different camera makers use different technologies. Konika
\nMinolta, for example, repositions the CCD to offset the yaw
\n(lateral motion) and pitch (vertical movement) caused by your
\nshaky hand. Meanwhile, Canon has its own, but similar, technology
\nfor stabilizing image.<\/p>\n
It was first incorporated in its Powershot S1 IS model (now
\nyou can guess what the IS stands for). Today, many of the credit
\ncard-sized Canon Ixus pocket cameras even have a built-in image
\nstabilizer.<\/p>\n
The image stabilizing system is needed each time you take a
\npicture using a very slow shutter speed -- for example, 1\/30
\nsecond. This setting may be necessary for taking a picture of the
\nneon lights over Las Vegas, for example. The system is also
\nimportant for taking a telephoto shot. A slight motion when using
\nthe optical zoom will blur the image significantly.<\/p>\n
Today, virtually all image stabilizing -- or anti hand-shake
\n-- systems rely on battery power. However, back in early 1980s,
\nlong before the digital camera came into being, Steve Hines, who
\nwas working at Kodak Research Lab, patented an image stability
\nsystem that did not require electric power. I do not know if the
\nsystem is in use in any of the digital camera today.<\/p>\n
Brightening up the LCD<\/p>\n
While the LCD screen on today's cameras is good for indoor
\npicture taking, where the ambient light is not so strong, they
\nmay not be as useful under a bright sun.<\/p>\n
If the display is washed out, it will be very difficult to
\ncompose the photo. To make it easier, some models, such as the
\nPanasonic Lumix DMC series, allow us to increase the LCD's
\nbrightness by up to 40 percent by pressing a button. Of course,
\nthe extra backlit needs to be turned off when not needed in order
\nto save battery power.<\/p>\n
These new features can be good news and bad news at the same
\ntime. They are good news because they make digital cameras more
\nfoolproof. However, they are bad news because now you need to
\nfind a way to dump your less-than-one-year-old 5 MP camera and
\nconvince your wife that you need to buy one of these latest
\ndigital cameras.<\/p>",
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