CCD
Short for Charged Coupled Device, this is a type of sensor used in most point-and-shoot and prosumer digicams. It replaces the 'film' used in conventional cameras.
CMOS
Short for Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor; like CCD this is also a light sensor, but it is used in most high-end digital SLR and professional large format digital cameras.
Digital zoom
This type of zoom digitally enlarges a portion of the image to make it appear bigger/closer. It causes a loss in fidelity and resolution.
Interpolation
A process to electronically increase the number of pixels (resolution) in a photograph. Since these 'extra' pixels have not been really captured, image quality does not improve. Beyond a certain size the quality can also deteriorate.
ISO/ASA
Short for Industry Standards Organization or American Standards Association. Both denote sensitivity to light, assigned to a number. Higher ISO/ASA means greater sensitivity and vice versa. Higher ISO/ASA can help reduce camera shake (by allowing use of faster shutter speed), but can also lead to increased image Noise
JPEG
Short for Joint Photographic Experts Group. It is the most popular format for storing digital photos as it is highly compressed but can still retain a high level of clarity.
LCD
Short for Liquid Crystal Display, it is the most common type of screen found in digital cameras. They range in sizes from 1 inch to 4 inches and usually display a plethora of information.
Li-ion
Short for Lithium Ion, a type of battery. Li-ion batteries are small, quick to recharge and hold a lot of charge for their size. They also don't suffer from the 'memory effect, i.e. they can be recharged at any point during the discharge cycle without detrimental effects.
Macro
Term used for extreme close up photography. A camera lens has to be macro enabled for this, and usually specifies the minimum distance that an object can be placed to the lens to attain a sharp image. Usually, there is also a macro setting on the camera that has to be switched on.
mAh
Short for Milli Ampere Hour. It is a term used to denote the storage ability of a rechargeable battery; higher mAh rating means that the battery can hold more charge.
Megapixel
Simply defined, it is one million pixels. This term is used to specify the resolution of a digital camera. Higher megapixels means that the camera sensor is capable of capturing more data. Note that higher megapixels does not always mean higher quality.
Memory card
A generic term used for all types of flash memory cards that are used in cameras. These include SD(Secure Digital), MMC(Multimedia Card), CF(Compact Flash), and MS(Memory Stick) among others.
Noise
It is an image defect that is usually caused by use of too high an ISO setting. It refers to the presence of several small, colored particles in the image.
Optical zoom
Refers to the use of movable lens elements to bring an object closer to you or appear larger in the frame. Look for the optical zoom figure and not the digital zoom.
PictBridge
A universal standard that allows digicams to connect directly to printers. Requires the use of PictBridge enabled cameras and printers. They can then be connected using a USB cable and the print command can be given directly from the camera.
Red Eye Reduction
Basically red eye reduction is a trick played by flash of the camera.
First let me tell you what is ‘RED EYE’ EFFECT.
In some pictures of people, when taken in low light conditions using a camera flash, their eyes turn out red. This is called the ‘red-eye’ effect. It happens because in low light or indoors, the pupils of our eyes dilate (widen) to allow more light inside our eyes. When we go out in sunlight, the pupils will constrict (narrow down) to cut down on the amount of light because there is abundance of it.
When a person is sitting with dilated pupils and the flash suddenly goes off. The intense and fast light from the flash goes through the eyes and reflects back from the retina inside the eyes. The retina is deep red because it has a lot of blood vessels. The quick flash basically does not give enough time for the persons eyes to narrow down. Therefore, in a ‘RED EYE’ reduction system, a separate light may come on a few seconds before you take the picture - or the main flash of the camera will fire two-three short bursts of light. This makes the persons pupils constrict and the red eye effect is reduced or many times eliminated.
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