9. Digital Camera

A digital camera records images electronically on a memory card rather than on film as did the older models of camera. The images can be downloaded from the memory card onto a computer and then printed, stored or manipulated with a photo editing application.

Most digital cameras let you view the image as soon as you have taken the picture; if you don't like what you see, it can be deleted.

The quality of the image is dependent on the resolution or the number of pixels. Most digital cameras range from 4 - 12 Megapixels (millions of pixels in the image). The more pixels, the better the quality and clarity of the image.

Many digital cameras are now capable of taking short video clips along with sound.

Advantages

• No film is needed, no developing costs to view the pictures
• Images can be viewed immediately and unwanted images can be deleted
• Images can be edited, enlarged or enhanced
• Images can be incorporated into documents or added to web sites
• Extra memory sticks can be purchased to store images

Disadvantages

• Digital cameras are generally more expensive than ordinary cameras which use film
• Images often have to be compressed to avoid using too much memory
• When the memory is full, the images must be downloaded to a computer or deleted before any more can be taken.