A Brief Introduction To Fuji Digital Cameras / Camcorders

Digital Camera & Camcorder Features

Arguably the most important component of any digital camera, or camcorder, is its image sensor. A "Charge Coupled Device", or CCD, image sensor is the most common type, but you may also come across "Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor", or CMOS, sensors. This latter type is a more recent development, and more energy efficient, but the most important characteristic of any sensor is its "resolution", or the total number of pixels – often quoted in millions of pixels, or "megapixels" – of which it is composed. A pixel can be visualised as a tiny dot, or square, of which there are hundreds of thousands, or millions, in a complete image. The higher the number of pixels in an image, the higher the level of detail. The Fujifilm Z10fd model, for example, features a 1/2.5 inch CCD sensor, with a resolution of 7.2 megapixels.

The chances are that you will want, at some point, to get "close up and personal" with the subject of your photograph, or video footage, so be aware of the two types of zoom, or magnification, that are possible with a digital camera, or camcorder. "Digital" zoom may be unfamiliar to you, if you are used to analogue recording; digital zoom is performed by software, which magnifies a portion of an image by making educated guesses at what missing pixels should look like, based on the pixels on either side – a process correctly known as "interpolation". This can result in images that are grainy, or have jagged edges, at magnifications higher than just a few times, so is best treated with caution. "Optical" zoom, on the other hand – typically between "3x" and "20x" magnification, for consumer digital cameras and camcorders – works in exactly the same way as that in, say, a 35mm film camera; the lens assembly, itself, moves to create the magnification, and the results are altogether more satisfactory.

About Fujifilm

Fujifilm, with 178 subsidiaries, employing over 73,000 people, worldwide, is the largest photographic and imaging company in the world. Its operation extends from research, development and production facilities in Japan to China, Brazil, the United States and Europe. Fujifilm has had a presence in the UK for over 25 years, and is one of the most popular brand names for digital cameras and camcorders.

Conclusion

Superb digital images, and sound, available for editing, or distribution, almost immediately, are all very well, but remember that you still have to hold a digital camera, or camcorder, in your hand, and look through the viewfinder, or at the LCD screen, with your eyes, to obtain them. In other words, try not to overlook the ergonomics – size, weight, ease of use, etc. – of your chosen model, purely in the name of technology. If a digital camera or camcorder is awkward, or uncomfortable, to use, the chances are that you won't use it, or, at least, not as often as you would really like to.