Every digital camera has an MP, or megapixel rating.
When diving into the world of digital photography, get ready to grasp a handful of industry-related lingo and abbreviations. Whether you're preparing to buy a digital camera or want to understand the camera manual for your current gear, you'll have to learn a few imaging-related abbreviations. Most digital camera lingo relates to the digital sensor and image-quality settings unique to digital photography.
Digital Photography Terms
Look at the front of any digital camera and you'll find a number rating that ends with the abbreviation MP. The resolution, or image quality, of a digital camera is rated in "megapixels," or MP. One million pixels equals one megapixel. The higher the megapixel rating a camera has, the more detail it will record per image.
The resolution of a digital image can also be measured by DPI, or dots per inch. Cameras, computer printers and flatbed scanners use the term DPI to describe resolution. For example, an emailed photo sized at 72 DPI is less detailed than a print created at a lab at 300 DPI. Within one inch of the 300 DPI image, there are over three times more dots of data than the emailed photo.
About Camera Sensors
Digital cameras use imaging sensors, not film, to capture images. The two types of sensors used are CCD and CMOS. A CCD, or charge-coupled device, sensor is commonly found in smaller, compact digital cameras.
Larger, single-lens reflex cameras with interchangeable lenses utilize CMOS, or complementary metal-oxide semiconductor sensors. A CMOS sensor is just smaller than a postage stamp, while a CCD sensor is even smaller.
The number of MP on either type of sensor determines the camera's resolution. For example, a camera with an 8MP CCD sensor has eight million pixels worth of information on the CCD sensor.
Digital File Types
Images and video clips captured by a digital camera record in several formats. The most common still image file is a JPEG, or JPG. This abbreviation stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group. A JPG image has some level of compression applied when the camera moves the image from the sensor to an internal memory storage area or the camera's media card. A TIFF, tagged information file format, still image does not have any compression applied and takes up more storage space than a JPG. Movie files captured on a digital camera often save with the extension MOV to represent "movie."
Digital Camera Zoom
Unlike a film camera, compact digital cameras rate their ability to zoom. The "x" abbreviation can be read as "times" and acts as a multiplier, letting you know the amount the lens enlarges. A camera with an optical zoom rating of 3x will bring the subject matter in "three times" closer than what you see with the naked eye. So, a subject standing 30 feet away will appear 10 feet away after zooming the 3x lens to it's full capability.
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