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BY BRIAN TREMBLAY

Digital cameras have never been more affordable. Just a mere six or so years ago, a 2 megapixel digital camera was going for nearly $900. Now you can buy three times as much camera for less than half of that. Digital SLR cameras of professional quality are affordable for the average consumer. Stores can’t keep them on the shelves. But, once you get the camera home, you can run into a whole new set of problems if your computer is not ready for digital photography.

In order to make your transition to digital photography a smooth, one you should take inventory of your computer system to make sure it can handle some of the files that are being created by the camera. Or, if you’re thinking about getting into digital photography, you might want to budget for a few things that will make working with your images in the computer a pleasant experience.

 
If you’re considering a brand new computer to go with your digital camera, the best advice I can give you is buy the biggest and fastest machine you can afford! By that I mean make sure it’s got the latest and fastest processor. If it doesn’t come with it already, I would suggest upgrading the RAM (that’s the memory the computer uses to perform the tasks you want it to do) to the maximum it can hold. I advise at least 1 Gigabyte of RAM. Then there is the hard drive. Again, purchase the largest drive you can afford. The files that come out of digital cameras are large and need plenty of storage space. And if you can’t buy a large hard drive, make sure your computer has a CD/DVD burner for photo storage. Don’t forget to do backup each CD. That way if one gets broken or scratched, you’ll always have another with your photographs on it.

And, last but not the least, in order to manipulate the images and get them ready for printing or the Web, you’ll need some kind of photo manipulation software. The gold standard in photo software is Adobe Photoshop. It is presently up to version CS2 (Creative Suite 2). But, if you’re just a beginner, you will often get Adobe Photoshop Elements included with your camera or printer. This is a simpler version and can get you started until you’re ready to upgrade.

To view your images properly, you’ll need a good monitor. Today there are as many types of monitors as there are computers. But, the key element you should look for is the resolution and the monitor’s ability to reproduce colors. Also, the size of the monitor will help you see the images more accurately and make sure the colors of the photos are accurate and sharp. Look for a monitor that will have a more truthful reproduction of proper brightness and contrast, giving you an exact reproduction of how the final output of the photograph will look.

Speaking of output, you’ll also want to purchase a printer if you intend to make prints of your images. There are many printers on the market, but the three leaders in photo printers are: Epson, HP and Canon. All make very good printers of varying features and benefits. One of the things to check is the resolution that the printer is capable of. You’ll want a high resolution printer to make sharp and accurate prints. What type of ink does the printer use? Cheap printers use cheap ink, and that means if you print a photograph, it will not stand the test of time. Poor inks fade after repeated exposure to UV rays, certain gases in the air, moisture and humidity. So, make sure your printer has archival inks, making the final print more resistant to these elements that can fade your print.

Getting your images from the camera to the computer can be a tricky affair. Camera manufacturers will include a USB cable to attach your camera to the computer and upload your images to the hard drive of your computer. I recommend that you do not use this method! Using the camera to upload images to a computer is an extreme drain on your camera’s battery power, and if your camera runs out of battery power while it is uploading, the images may be lost, or the digital storage media may be damaged. I suggest you purchase a card reader. Card readers are usually USB devices (you can also buy Firewire versions) that you plug into your computer. They require no external power source and often require no additional drivers or software to operate. You can buy one that specifically matches your camera’s digital storage media format. Or you can get a card reader that can read all the major media cards on the market; that way, if you have more than one digital camera, each taking a different type of card, or you upgrade your camera later to something that uses a different card format, you still have a reader that will do the job.

The last burning question I often get is: What’s better, a PC or a Mac? Normally, I won’t take sides, but having used both types of computers in digital photography, I unequivocally say that Macs make the best and easiest computers to use. They may cost more, but you won’t have half the problems I’ve experienced with a PC. That’s just my opinion.

You’ll enjoy your new digital camera to the fullest if you have a computer that is outfitted and ready to handle your digital images. Happy shooting!

Brian Tremblay is a professional photographer. He operates a successful portrait, wedding and commercial photography studio in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario Candida. You can see his work at his website, Brian Tremblay Photography. He’s also the author of the ebook How to Take Great Digital Photos With Your Point and Shoot Camera, which will help anyone take much better photographs with their point and shoot digital camera.