3. Compression (continued)

The smaller image file, on the other hand, demonstrates an obvious lack of image detail.

To overcome this drawback many new digital cameras have a camera setting that allows the photographer to record the images in "raw" format.  (see "Shooting RAW for a more detailed explanation of this format).

4. Optical vs. Digital Zoom:

In order to increase the desirability of their product, manufacturers routinely incorporate a digital zoom into their cameras. This feature is generally found on compact digital "point-and-shoot" models, not the larger and more expensive models with interchangeable lenses.

Unfortunately, digital zooms don't really zoom closer: they merely crop a center portion of the image and then magnify it by interpolation. The drawback to this feature is obvious: image quality suffers.

The same effect can be achieved with any photo editing software after the picture has been taken, and generally with better results, since a home computer has inherently greater power and more memory than a compact camera.

The optical zoom is by far the more important feature of the camera. With an optical zoom, the lens maintains the same image quality throughout the magnification range.