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10/08/2007 12:39:42 PM · #1 |
Looking to get my mom a point and shoot, cheap :-),
what does the 4x digital zoom = to ?
If I understand correctly, the 5x optical zoom is as it states about 38-190mm....what does the 4xdigital make it?
5x Zoom-Nikkor; 6.3-31.4mm (35mm [135] format equivalent to 38-190mm); f/2.9-5.0; 9 elements in 7 groups; Digital zoom: up to 4x |
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10/08/2007 12:42:36 PM · #2 |
| Digital zoom is the same as cropping the image so just turn it off or you will loose quality the more you zoom (digital) stick to optical zoom as you dont loose any quality using this type of zoom. |
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10/08/2007 12:49:04 PM · #3 |
Originally posted by dassilem:
....what does the 4xdigital make it?
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Useless!!
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10/08/2007 01:01:31 PM · #4 |
Ofcourse what they said. The main thing is to find a camera with optical zoom. 90% of them have digital zoom that is or can be turned off by or at the default.
In the end if she needs to zoom in any further its better todo it in post processing then letting the camera interpolate it.
To answer your question, thats kinda of hard to say even knowing the lenses base focal length. It could be one of two ways one its the view it would be if you blew the image up 400% and cropped the center out or they could be basing it off a predetermined length equivalent, which would be unkown to us.
Message edited by author 2007-10-08 13:03:49.
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10/08/2007 01:20:07 PM · #5 |
It's all fine and well to say "Cropping in PP is better than digital zoom", and for US this is definitely true. But for your average family-oriented amateur who gets automated 4x6 prints made in drugstores and the like, the digital zoom is a very nice thing. These people get frustrated if they have to fiddle with controls at kiosks to crop images.
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a camera with extreme digital zoom for such people, because the super-long reach is wonderful when shooting family and vacation stuff on the fly.
R.
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10/08/2007 01:36:08 PM · #6 |
Are you looking at any certain brand or does it matter? I got my daughter a panasonic lumix compact so she can throw it in her purse and have it anytime...she uses it to death with her friends. I can't remember the specific one she has but I know she loves how easy it is to use. This one offers a 10x optical zoom but still stays compact. Now at that range she is most likly going to want to use the hand stabilization mode but it is very easy to turn on and off if needed. Panasonic isn't usually the brand people think of when looking for cameras but my daughter, wife and her best friend all have them and have never had an issue with them...although my wife just can't understand why using the flash at full 12x zoom really does nothing lol.
Good luck on your hunt. |
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10/08/2007 01:38:02 PM · #7 |
yes my Mom fits with Bear's description....She has a older Kodak easyshare that barely zooms at all...and she can't 'see' it on the little screen....
She enjoys taking the backyard photos, but will not be post processing...other than to tell walmart to print a 4x6....(although she is learning to print her own 4x6)....
This camera is a Nikon coolpix L1, 6.2mp...I just didn't know how much a zoom this is? Don't want to just get her another 'basic' reach.
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10/08/2007 01:46:20 PM · #8 |
| AFIK, digital zoom allows the metering to be more correct. For example, if you're taking a shot of a brightly lit area with a dark area around it (or the reverse) using digital zoom may allow the camera to better expose the picture. |
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10/08/2007 01:50:56 PM · #9 |
4x means just what it says -- it "magnifies" the image four times. The effect would be the same as enlarging (resampling) the image 400% and then cropping the same number of pixels as present on the sensor from the center of the image. The total "effective" (or ineffective, depending on your opinion) zoom is 20x -- 5x optical times 4x digital.
For clean images with lots of smooth tones you might not notice that much difference. With a highly-detailed or noisy image the result will probably be not-so-good.
You should really compare by shooting the same scene(s) at maximum optical zoom both with and without digital zoom engaged, and then resample and crop the first image to see which process does a better job. |
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10/08/2007 03:43:52 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by NstiG8tr:
Originally posted by dassilem:
....what does the 4xdigital make it? |
Useless!! |
AGREED! I'd pick a 10x-12x optical zoom regardless of what the digital zoom is. Digital zoom is one of those things the manufacturers and sales people SUCKER you in with when you don't know any better. Better to ignore it.
The argument that "digital zoom" = "cropping in post" is wacky. So wacky I can't think straight... |
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10/08/2007 04:56:13 PM · #11 |
Going halfway between the OP and Bear. A high megapixel camera that uses "resolution croping" as a method of digital zoom would be best. For instance a 6 Megapixel camera that puts out a 3MP file in 2x digital zoom mode. and for stuff under 8x10 thats perfectly fine. Perfect for 4x6's.
Some cameras will only digital zoom at a lower res and some automaticly lower the output resolution when digital zooming. Both methods are fine and its better for the automatic user if they dont have to fiddle with anything to get it to work. |
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10/08/2007 05:14:56 PM · #12 |
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
It's all fine and well to say "Cropping in PP is better than digital zoom", and for US this is definitely true. But for your average family-oriented amateur who gets automated 4x6 prints made in drugstores and the like, the digital zoom is a very nice thing. These people get frustrated if they have to fiddle with controls at kiosks to crop images.
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a camera with extreme digital zoom for such people, because the super-long reach is wonderful when shooting family and vacation stuff on the fly.
R. |
I beg to differ. Digital zoom just looks bad, most of the time. My 707 had dz, and I used it once, just to see, and it was horrible. I've had the same experience with other cameras that had digital zoom. If she gets a camera with digital zoom, and uses it, she is probably going to think the camera is taking bad pictures. It's all pixelated and blotchy and stuff.
Would probably be easier and more effiecient to teach her to crop on the kiosk. When shown how, even the most frustrated user becomes quite adept.
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10/08/2007 05:25:21 PM · #13 |
Originally posted by RainMotorsports:
Going halfway between the OP and Bear. A high megapixel camera that uses "resolution croping" as a method of digital zoom would be best. For instance a 6 Megapixel camera that puts out a 3MP file in 2x digital zoom mode. and for stuff under 8x10 thats perfectly fine. Perfect for 4x6's.
Some cameras will only digital zoom at a lower res and some automaticly lower the output resolution when digital zooming. Both methods are fine and its better for the automatic user if they dont have to fiddle with anything to get it to work. |
That's the answer. I wasn't aware of this gap. The only cams with digital zoom I have used do that "resolution" cropping; use DZ and you get a smaller picture, megapixels wise. Works just fine, same thing as cropping in PP. I agree, if the "digital zoom" uses interpolation to produce a full-size image, that would be a bad thing.
R.
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10/08/2007 05:58:31 PM · #14 |
 motherlee has the Canon A630, optical zoom is great, but go past that to digital zoom and she gets terrible noisy shots that have their own folder...the recycle bin!!
It just isn't worth the bother, ignore the salesman and get a good P&S with a good Optical Zoom and leave it at that. |
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10/08/2007 08:00:44 PM · #15 |
Originally posted by formerlee:
motherlee has the Canon A630, optical zoom is great, but go past that to digital zoom and she gets terrible noisy shots that have their own folder...the recycle bin!!
It just isn't worth the bother, ignore the salesman and get a good P&S with a good Optical Zoom and leave it at that. |
I also have (HAD) an A630 great camera. She must not be aware it has 2 modes. SAFE and normal. In Safe Digital Zoom the zoom bar is blue. This occurs when using digital zoom at a lower then max (8 on the A630) resolution. When in the white your out of the safe zoom and into interpolated digital zoom. Theres a couple of settings that allow to turn one or the other on/off. |
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