[lug] Digital Cameras and Linux

[Tkil]

>>>>> "Bryan" == Bryan Field-Elliot <bryan_lists at netmeme.org> writes:

Bryan> I'm in the market for my first digital camera. I know almost
Bryan> nothing about the space, other than "more megapixels is
Bryan> generally good".

A great resource for this is www.dpreview.com, they have a side-by-
side comparison chart that is outstanding.  It doesn't address Linux
compatibility, but everything else is covered.  The reviews are
ridiculously in-depth, too.

Other than sheer megapixels, also consider:

 - Size / Form factor
 - Battery type / lifetime (high-capacity rechargables rock)
 - "Boot" time (from "power on" to "take first shot")
 - Sturdiness
 - Lens size (bigger is generally better)
 - Orientation sensor (portrait vs. landscape)
 - Audio annotations
 - Video clips
 - Manual controls (shutter, exposure, "film speed" equiv, aperture)
 - Frames-per-second / Burst mode
 - Memory type

Even for megapixels, it depends on what you want to use it for; if you
expect to make many prints, then more megapixels is probably the right
choice.  If you're going to be putting up images on web sites, or
e-mailing them, you can get away with a much lower resolution, and
that will save you some money.  (Not much, but many of the low-MPixel
devices are also all-around toys: audio, video, mp3, etc.)

Generally, I'd start by deciding how much money you care to spend, and
what sort of uses you plan for it.  There are lots of good point-and-
shoot cameras in the 400-500 USD range; you can go a bit cheaper than
that if you must, but I'd look there for now.  

If you are planning on doing fancy shooting, or if you have some
investment in lenses already, there are some fantastic D-SLRs around
2000 USD.

Other costs that will perhaps come in: extra battery, extra charger,
lens adapter / sunshade.

I feel that my camera is bit too bulky and "intimidating" to be a true
casual camera; on the other paw, it's not powerful or flexible enough
to be even close to a "prosumer" level, so it's in the middle.  If I
had to do it again, I'd go one way or another.

Bryan> No idea yet about which memory type to use (Sony Stick or
Bryan> other?), etc.

I'd recommend CompactFlash: biggest and cheapest (512MB for 200 USD!).
Sony Memory Stick is proprietary; SmartMedia has gotten a rep lately
for being fragile.  The latter two also have "secure" variants that
are probably a lost cause under Linux.

Bryan> And most subtle of all (and which no store salesperson could
Bryan> possibly help me with in an intelligent way), I'd like to get a
Bryan> camera that plays well with Linux, so that I don't have to
Bryan> downgrade to Windows just to pull photos off the camera.

Well, I bought my camera (Kodak DC-4800) on the grounds that it
supported the open "Picture Transfer Protocol".  I used jphoto to pull
images off it.

I've pretty much come to the conclusion that you're much better off
buying a camera with the features you want.  To transfer the pictures
to your computer, get a media reader that adheres to the USB Mass
Storage Specification.  For compactflash, those are about 30$.  Most
cameras seem to format their cards as FAT filesystems, so you can just
mount them as ordinary drives under Linux.

Bryan> Is this a no-brainer or is this a difficult choice? I just have
Bryan> no idea. Input would be greatly appreciated.

Basically, you have many choices, and technology is still improving.
Like with computers, decide how much you're willing to spend and when
you're going to spend it, then find the best feature set.

Borrow some friends' digital cams, if you can.  Go to the camera
stores and play with them.

t.

p.s. I bought my digital camera to encourage me to shoot more
     pictures, and that's defintely worked; 3600 shots in 18 months.
     Feel free to browse:

        http://slinky.scrye.com/~tkil/photos/