Apple Aperture Digital Photography Fundamentals - Manual (Page 7)

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How Digital Cameras
Capture Images
If you’ve previously shot film and are new to digital media,
this chapter is for you. Here you’ll find basic information
about the types of digital cameras, camera components
and concepts, and shooting tips.
People take photographs for many different reasons. Some take pictures for scientific
purposes, some shoot to document the world for the media, some make their living
shooting products for advertisements, and others shoot for enjoyment or purely artistic
purposes. Whatever your reason for picking up a camera and framing an image, an
understanding of how cameras work can help you improve the quality of your images.
This chapter covers:
 Types of Digital Cameras (p. 7)
 Camera Components and Concepts (p. 11)
 Understanding RAW, JPEG, and TIFF (p. 21)
 Shooting Tips (p. 22)
Types of Digital Cameras
In its most basic form, a digital camera is a photographic device consisting of a
lightproof box with a lens at one end, and a digital image sensor at the other in place
of the traditional film plane. Advances in digital photography are fast providing a wide
spectrum of features and options that can be challenging for the new digital
photographer to master.
There are two basic types of digital cameras: digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) and
digital rangefinder.