Digital Images

Photographs are what make the internet a visually interesting environment. Before you can post images on the net, they must be in a digital format and the file size must be reduced for quick opening over today's limited bandwidth. The easiest way to get your photos in digital format is to have the film developed and put on CD ROM. Kodak offers this service for a reasonable charge. 

Another low cost option is to buy a scanner and scan the images into the computer. Scanners come in a bewildering array of models and capacities, but for web use you can get by with an inexpensive model. 

Digital Cameras

My favorite way to get digital images is to use a digital camera. I use a Nikon 950 using a 48 meg Compact Flash card for memory. This is a high end consumer camera, but it will capture images that will print out 8x10 photo quality prints. Before you buy a digital camera, I recommend spending some time looking and comparing the various models that are on the market. As will all computer related products, there are new cameras coming out all the time and it can be difficult to decide which one to buy. My favorite resource site for digital camera information is Digital Photography Review.

Digital Camera Views This is an interesting site with articles, reviews and news about digital imaging.

Another great source for books and information on digital photography and cameras is Dennis Curtin's Short Courses on Digital Photography I bought the book on the Nikon 950 and it got me up and running with the camera in the shortest possible time. Dennis has put up a rich site with lots of valuable information and supports himself with the books. Highly recommended.

Imaging Programs

One of the great advantages of digital images is that you can work with the images, clean them up, and make illustrations. I work with Adobe Photoshop 7.01 and ImageReady. This is the most popular digital imaging software on the market and if it is in your budget, there isn't a better product.

The Adobe web site is a helpful resource for imaging information and solutions

Paint Shop Pro is a  graphics program that is widely accepted as one of the best. You can download it from their web site and try before you buy. It sells for a lot less than Photoshop and yet is a complete imaging package. If you are just getting into digital imaging, this is the program to start with.

Image Management

ACDSee is a image management program. Once you start creating and working with images, you will quickly discover that you need a way to find, view and move image files.  It is fast and has it  has quickly become a must have program.

I will expand on this part of my site as time goes on, but for now please check out the following links for information on working with digital images.

Digital Photo Gallery

 Computer Resources | Web Design | Digital Photography| Computer Interface