OT - day out at the Botanic Gardens with the camera

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/


--
Jette Goldie
jette@blueyonder.co.uk
http://www.jette.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/
http://wolfette.livejournal.com/
("reply to" is spamblocked - use the email addy in sig)

"Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/

Nice... I've been to Edinburgh twice, but never made it to the Botanical
Gardens.

Cathy

"Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/

What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?

You're really a terrific photographer, Jette. Have you ever exhibited your
photos professionally?

Eva

"Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>
> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>
>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>
>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>
> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll put in
> my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
----------
Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've sure
never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!

Eva

"Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>
> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>
> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?

Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll put in my
2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.

Cathy


>
> You're really a terrific photographer, Jette. Have you ever exhibited
> your photos professionally?
>
> Eva
>
>

"Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
news:RYKYj.4262$Uf1.3985@trndny08...
>
> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>>
>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>>
>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>>
>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>>
>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll put in
>> my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
> ----------
> Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've sure
> never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!

The coloring is exotic!

Cathy


>
> Eva
>

Eva wrote:
> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll put in
>> my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
> ----------
> Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've sure
> never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!

I've seen yellow and orange azaleas, in NJ, but they're not common.

Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do
you use? Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the
camera?

FurPaw


--
The plural of anecdote is not proof.

To reply, unleash the dogs

Eva wrote:
> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>
> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?

One of the many kinds of rhododendrons they grow there. Rhodis grow
well in Scotland, despite coming from China and other eastern
countries originally.

>
> You're really a terrific photographer, Jette. Have you ever exhibited your
> photos professionally?
>

No - nor sold any either.


--
Jette Goldie
jette@blueyonder.co.uk
http://www.jette.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/
http://wolfette.livejournal.com/
("reply to" is spamblocked - use the email addy in sig)

FurPaw wrote:
> Eva wrote:
>> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
>> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll
>>> put in my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
>> ----------
>> Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've
>> sure never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!
>
> I've seen yellow and orange azaleas, in NJ, but they're not common.
>
> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you
> use? Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?


Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some
digital zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.


--
Jette Goldie
jette@blueyonder.co.uk
http://www.jette.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/
http://wolfette.livejournal.com/
("reply to" is spamblocked - use the email addy in sig)

"Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
news:huYYj.7217$DZ6.785@text.news.virginmedia.com. ..
> FurPaw wrote:
>> Eva wrote:
>>> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
>>> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>>>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>>>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>>>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll put
>>>> in my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
>>> ----------
>>> Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've sure
>>> never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!
>>
>> I've seen yellow and orange azaleas, in NJ, but they're not common.
>>
>> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you use?
>> Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?
>
>
> Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some digital
> zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.

Yeah, there are some w/ 12x optical, which would be cool; but unless there's
a newer one out of which I am not aware, those cameras tend to be on the
bigger side - won't easily slip into a pocket.

Cathy

Cathy F. wrote:
> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
> news:huYYj.7217$DZ6.785@text.news.virginmedia.com. ..
>> FurPaw wrote:
>>> Eva wrote:
>>>> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
>>>> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>>>>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>>>>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>>>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>>>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>>>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>>>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>>>>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll put
>>>>> in my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
>>>> ----------
>>>> Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've sure
>>>> never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!
>>> I've seen yellow and orange azaleas, in NJ, but they're not common.
>>>
>>> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you use?
>>> Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?
>>
>> Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some digital
>> zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.
>
> Yeah, there are some w/ 12x optical, which would be cool; but unless there's
> a newer one out of which I am not aware, those cameras tend to be on the
> bigger side - won't easily slip into a pocket.
>
>

I'm sort of looking at the idea of one of the "hybrid" cameras - not
going the full DSLR route ... I don't want to have to be buying lenses
separately, don't want to get tempted into the "ooh, buy this shiny
new lens that costs more than a camera cos it does X" trap that my
DSLR friends get into. I want something that will do a half decent
macro, zoom in for a wildlife shot without me having to get so close I
scare the beastie, and maybe give me a wee bit "bokeh" (attractive out
of focus effect on different depths of field/focus) - but the "point
and shoot" will stay in the handbag for everyday.



--
Jette Goldie
jette@blueyonder.co.uk
http://www.jette.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/
http://wolfette.livejournal.com/
("reply to" is spamblocked - use the email addy in sig)

Jette <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote:
> FurPaw wrote:
>> Eva wrote:
>>> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
>>> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>>>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>>>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>>>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll
>>>> put in my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
>>> ----------
>>> Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've
>>> sure never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!
>>
>> I've seen yellow and orange azaleas, in NJ, but they're not common.
>>
>> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you
>> use? Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?

> Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some
> digital zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.

But note that one of the reasons you get such high quality sharp
detail from that camera is its conservative zoom. As the zoom range
increases it becomes harder to maintain good quality of image. It's no
coincidence that the highest quality "point and shoot" images tend to
come from cameras with zooms of 5x or less.

--
Chris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]

"Chris Malcolm" <cam@holyrood.ed.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:69k01dF2to16rU1@mid.individual.net...
> Jette <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote:
>> FurPaw wrote:
>>> Eva wrote:
>>>> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
>>>> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>>>>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>>>>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>>>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>>>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...
>>>>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/
>>>>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?
>>>>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll
>>>>> put in my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.
>>>> ----------
>>>> Yeah, they looked like azaleas (the shape and the leaves), but I've
>>>> sure never seen azaleas that color....or anything near it!
>>>
>>> I've seen yellow and orange azaleas, in NJ, but they're not common.
>>>
>>> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you
>>> use? Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?
>
>> Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some
>> digital zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.
>
> But note that one of the reasons you get such high quality sharp
> detail from that camera is its conservative zoom. As the zoom range
> increases it becomes harder to maintain good quality of image. It's no
> coincidence that the highest quality "point and shoot" images tend to
> come from cameras with zooms of 5x or less.

Hmmmm... I was under the impression that the optical zoom maintains great
quality/sharpness, even at the higher ranges. Whereas the digital zoom is
what messes with the sharpness. (I never use the digital zoom, only the
optical.) Yes? No?

Cathy


>
> --
> Chris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk DoD #205
> IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
> [http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]
>

Jette <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote:
> Cathy F. wrote:
>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>> news:huYYj.7217$DZ6.785@text.news.virginmedia.com. ..
>>> FurPaw wrote:
>>>> Eva wrote:
>>>>> "Cathy F." <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote in message
>>>>> news:SJWdndvZv9jb5q7V4p2dnAA@giganews.com...
>>>>>> "Eva" <EvaDStructionNO@NOverizon.net> wrote in message
>>>>>> news:jgKYj.5297$pk1.1370@trndny07...
>>>>>>> "Jette" <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote in message
>>>>>>> news:kvBYj.6660$DZ6.4098@text.news.virginmedia.com ...

>>>>>>>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfett...7605143992759/

>>>>>>> What are those gorgeous yellow and orange flowers in the last photo?

>>>>>> Jette's likely in bed by now (considering the time zones), so I'll put
>>>>>> in my 2 cents: probably azaleas - or else rhodedendrons.

>>>> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you use?
>>>> Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?

>>> Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some digital
>>> zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.

>> Yeah, there are some w/ 12x optical, which would be cool; but unless there's
>> a newer one out of which I am not aware, those cameras tend to be on the
>> bigger side - won't easily slip into a pocket.

> I'm sort of looking at the idea of one of the "hybrid" cameras - not
> going the full DSLR route ... I don't want to have to be buying lenses
> separately, don't want to get tempted into the "ooh, buy this shiny
> new lens that costs more than a camera cos it does X" trap that my
> DSLR friends get into. I want something that will do a half decent
> macro, zoom in for a wildlife shot without me having to get so close I
> scare the beastie, and maybe give me a wee bit "bokeh" (attractive out
> of focus effect on different depths of field/focus) - but the "point
> and shoot" will stay in the handbag for everyday.

The "bokeh" effects increase as the sensor size (and therefore camera
size) increases. But that increase also means that a smaller section
of your macro shots will be in focus. So the best macro shots come
from small sensors, best bokeh from big sensors.

If you get something which has a filter screw thread on the end of the
lens then even if it doesn't have a good macro setting for the fixed
lens, you'll be able to add small screw-on macro lenses.

It's certainly true that you get much better image quality for your
money if you stay away from DSLRs.

--
Chris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]

"Chris Malcolm" <cam@holyrood.ed.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:69k0raF2sj1jdU1@mid.individual.net...

> If you get something which has a filter screw thread on the end of the
> lens then even if it doesn't have a good macro setting for the fixed
> lens, you'll be able to add small screw-on macro lenses.

I had a set of these - macro lenses - for my old film SLR (an Olympus).
That camera took *nice* photos. But it's bulky & heavy. (I carried it all
over the UK for 3 1/2 weeks in '86.) And requires film that requires
processing...

Cathy

Cathy F. <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote:

> "Chris Malcolm" <cam@holyrood.ed.ac.uk> wrote in message
> news:69k01dF2to16rU1@mid.individual.net...
>> Jette <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote:
>>> FurPaw wrote:

>>>> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you
>>>> use? Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?
>>
>>> Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some
>>> digital zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.
>>
>> But note that one of the reasons you get such high quality sharp
>> detail from that camera is its conservative zoom. As the zoom range
>> increases it becomes harder to maintain good quality of image. It's no
>> coincidence that the highest quality "point and shoot" images tend to
>> come from cameras with zooms of 5x or less.

> Hmmmm... I was under the impression that the optical zoom maintains great
> quality/sharpness, even at the higher ranges. Whereas the digital zoom is
> what messes with the sharpness. (I never use the digital zoom, only the
> optical.) Yes? No?

You're talking about what happens in one individual camera. I was
talking about what happens between different cameras with different
kinds of lenses. However, you are oversimplifying a bit even in the
case of individual cameras, unless you're referring to the simpler
kind of camera which doesn't relate digital zoom to chosen MP of image
size.

Digital zoom in effect does a crop on the image, so it loses pixels
and thus sharpness, but only if you were using the maximum pixel count
of your camera in the first place. If you were using a smaller reduced
pixel count image setting (e.g. the 3MP setting in 6MP camera), then
you could use as much digital zoom as the reduction factor without
losing sharpness, because you had in effect already decided to set the
camera to lose that sharpness anyway.

Some cammera menu systems will do that calculation for you by
distinguishing between the amount of digital zoom you can use without
losing sharpness, which they will allow, and the amount extra that
loses sharpness, which they will forbid or warn you about. In some
cases it's a menu-selectable option whether the camera will behave
like that or not.

Optical zoom doesn't lose any sharpness in that way at all. It's well
known, however, that the very best most vivid and sharpest lenses are
"prime" lenses, i.e. not zooms. That's because the extra lenses and
complications in a zoom lens design mean that you can't quite reach
the same level of quality. The same goes for length of zoom. The
reason you can't get 100x zooms is because nobody could make one which
had better than very crap optical performance. And generally speaking,
for the same kind of price, the bigger the zoom factor of a zoom lens
the poorer the optical quality.

That's why many DSLR owners choose to cover the range of focal lengths
they want by having two zoom lenses, say 18-70 & 70-300, because those
two roughly 4x zooms give them much better optical quality than a
single 18-300 zoom which is roughly 16x.

Jette's camera is a Samsung Digimax s830, whose designers deliberately
opted for a low zoom factor of 3x in order to get the best image
quality. And as you've seen, its image quality is exceptionally
good. But of course good image quality doesn't necessarily make a good
photograph. You need a good photographer for that :-)

(Waves at Jette -- we've met each other on local photography
outings. :-)

--
Chris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]

Chris Malcolm wrote:
>

> Jette's camera is a Samsung Digimax s830, whose designers deliberately
> opted for a low zoom factor of 3x in order to get the best image
> quality. And as you've seen, its image quality is exceptionally
> good. But of course good image quality doesn't necessarily make a good
> photograph. You need a good photographer for that :-)
>

Phhht- I just point and shoot, Chris. OK, sometimes I lie on the
ground, focus in close and point and shoot, or get myself into awkward
positions and point and shoot, but it's still just "luck" as far as
I'm concerned.

> (Waves at Jette -- we've met each other on local photography
> outings. :-)
>

Chris climbs trees and hangs off rockfaces to get his shots :-)

--
Jette Goldie
jette@blueyonder.co.uk
http://www.jette.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/
http://wolfette.livejournal.com/
("reply to" is spamblocked - use the email addy in sig)

"Chris Malcolm" <cam@holyrood.ed.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:69l3mhF33umitU1@mid.individual.net...
> Cathy F. <clfrclfr@adelphiadotdashdot.net> wrote:
>
>> "Chris Malcolm" <cam@holyrood.ed.ac.uk> wrote in message
>> news:69k01dF2to16rU1@mid.individual.net...
>>> Jette <bosslady@scotlandmail.com> wrote:
>>>> FurPaw wrote:
>
>>>>> Jette, you are a damnfine photographer! What kind of camera do you
>>>>> use? Is that a removable zoom lens, or is it built into the camera?
>>>
>>>> Just a Samsung "point and shoot" - it has 3x optical zoom and some
>>>> digital zoom. I want to go up to something with more optical zoom.
>>>
>>> But note that one of the reasons you get such high quality sharp
>>> detail from that camera is its conservative zoom. As the zoom range
>>> increases it becomes harder to maintain good quality of image. It's no
>>> coincidence that the highest quality "point and shoot" images tend to
>>> come from cameras with zooms of 5x or less.
>
>> Hmmmm... I was under the impression that the optical zoom maintains great
>> quality/sharpness, even at the higher ranges. Whereas the digital zoom
>> is
>> what messes with the sharpness. (I never use the digital zoom, only the
>> optical.) Yes? No?
>
> You're talking about what happens in one individual camera. I was
> talking about what happens between different cameras with different
> kinds of lenses. However, you are oversimplifying a bit even in the
> case of individual cameras, unless you're referring to the simpler
> kind of camera which doesn't relate digital zoom to chosen MP of image
> size.
>
> Digital zoom in effect does a crop on the image, so it loses pixels
> and thus sharpness, but only if you were using the maximum pixel count
> of your camera in the first place. If you were using a smaller reduced
> pixel count image setting (e.g. the 3MP setting in 6MP camera), then
> you could use as much digital zoom as the reduction factor without
> losing sharpness, because you had in effect already decided to set the
> camera to lose that sharpness anyway.
>
> Some cammera menu systems will do that calculation for you by
> distinguishing between the amount of digital zoom you can use without
> losing sharpness, which they will allow, and the amount extra that
> loses sharpness, which they will forbid or warn you about. In some
> cases it's a menu-selectable option whether the camera will behave
> like that or not.
>
> Optical zoom doesn't lose any sharpness in that way at all. It's well
> known, however, that the very best most vivid and sharpest lenses are
> "prime" lenses, i.e. not zooms. That's because the extra lenses and
> complications in a zoom lens design mean that you can't quite reach
> the same level of quality. The same goes for length of zoom. The
> reason you can't get 100x zooms is because nobody could make one which
> had better than very crap optical performance. And generally speaking,
> for the same kind of price, the bigger the zoom factor of a zoom lens
> the poorer the optical quality.
>
> That's why many DSLR owners choose to cover the range of focal lengths
> they want by having two zoom lenses, say 18-70 & 70-300, because those
> two roughly 4x zooms give them much better optical quality than a
> single 18-300 zoom which is roughly 16x.
>
> Jette's camera is a Samsung Digimax s830, whose designers deliberately
> opted for a low zoom factor of 3x in order to get the best image
> quality. And as you've seen, its image quality is exceptionally
> good. But of course good image quality doesn't necessarily make a good
> photograph. You need a good photographer for that :-)

I understood parts of your post, & other parts were beyond me. This very
last bit - no prob understanding that. I'm light on the technical bits &
haven't delved much into them (although it's all relative... a couple of
friends send me *huge* pics - both in terms of file size & which don't fit
one's monitor, are fuzzy, & need cropping something fierce!), but I'm
intuitively pretty good with the composition part.

Cathy


>
> (Waves at Jette -- we've met each other on local photography
> outings. :-)
>
> --
> Chris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk DoD #205
> IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
> [http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]
>