a few questions

[wilson44512]

with the D40 is there a big difference between raw and jpeg?
when you get a hi zoom point and shoot camera. and it has like a 12X zoom. how is that equivalent to a SLR camera lens like the 18mm-55mm or the 55mm-200mm? do they go by X zoom?

thanks for any input.

[WestCoast]

The RAW file in any camera is the image taken directly off of the CCD, without any noise-reduction, white balance, or any other post-photo processing that the camera normally does before it saves the photo as a JPEG file. The advantage of shooting in RAW mode is that one can impose one's own noise reduction, white balance, etc. on the RAW image via third-party software (Photoshop, etc.). Sometimes, the photo quality when one does this his or herself is better than what the camera does automatically when it saves in JPEG.

Different cameras have different fields of view, depending on the sensor size or width of film used in the "older" cameras. To account for this, zoom distance is often normalized to a "35 mm eqiuvalent" when comparing between different cameras. The D40 has a crop factor of 1.5x, which means that the 55-200 mm lens zooms between 82.5 and 300 mm at a 35 mm equivalent. Most the "X" in most point and shoot cameras is equivalent to somewhere between 28 and 35 mm, so that would make "12x" somewhere from 336mm and 420 mm at max zoom.

Keep in mind that while point-and-shoots have a lot of zoom for little price, the sensors in most of these cameras aren't very good outside of optimal lighting (e.g., a bright sunny day). SLR sensors handle cloudy days and dark rooms infinitely better.

[toriaj]

RAW files, in any camera, are used by photographers who want to do extensive post-process editing. If you are interested in spending more time behind the computer than behind the camera, RAW is for you. If not, jpg is for you. Always use the highest jpg resolution.

The "__x zoom" on a P&S camera only tells you how big a range the camera has. For example, a camera that had a 18-36mm range would be a 2x zoom. But another camera, with a 100-200mm range would also be 2x zoom, yet it would bring subjects "closer" to the camera. If you give us the specific camera(s) you are looking at, we can tell you the "real" range each one has.

Oh! WestCoast beat me to the punch ... :(

[Rooz]

with the D40 is there a big difference between raw and jpeg?
when you get a hi zoom point and shoot camera. and it has like a 12X zoom. how is that equivalent to a SLR camera lens like the 18mm-55mm or the 55mm-200mm? do they go by X zoom?

thanks for any input.

the "x" is just the relationship between the longest and shortest part of the zoom. ie: an 18-55mm lens is a 3x zoom lens. (55 divided by 18).

[wilson44512]

i just took 2 shots 1 in raw and 1 in jpeg. i aimed it at the same thing. when i was looking at them the raw said it was 5.49mb and the jpeg is 2.53mb. it is set on the highest setting. since this is a 6mb camera shouldnt the jpeg be higher in mb?

[ssil2000]

hi there,
no the jpeg will always be smaller as it is a compressed format, the raw image has no compression applied it is stricly what comes off the sensor so in turn it is a larger file with more data etc.

hope that makes sense.

Sergio

[jcon]

with the D40 is there a big difference between raw and jpeg?


Honestly, if you dont know the difference or what RAW is for, then stick with JPEG.

[Rooz]

no harm in learning though J. we all learnt about RAW at some stage.