8 PART 1 GETTING TO KNOW DIGITAL CAMERAS
Gathering the Light
Viewfinder:Peer through this
window to frame your picture.
(See Chapter 4, “How Light
Plays Tricks on Perception.”)On/Off switch:It does
run on electricity, after all.Light meter:Measures the
amount of light bouncing
off a subject, information
the camera’s electronics
use to expose the picture
correctly. (See Chapter 5,
“How Digital Exposure Sifts,
Measures, and Slices Light.”)Menu controls:Knobs
or buttons that allow
you to make selections
from a software menu
displayed on the LCD
screen.Here we’re looking at two types of digital cameras. The small one is less expensive, so it
doesn’t have all the features found on the giant to its side. Both cameras, though, follow
the same process when they capture a moment of time and a slice of space as millions of
numbers that describe perfectly the shapes and colors that constitute a digital photo. Both
cheap and expensive cameras start the process the same way—by gathering in light with
all its shadows, colors, and intensities, and channeling it through its digital metamorphosis.
Here are the parts of a digital camera that kick off the show by latching onto the light.