Digital Cameras vs. Traditional Cameras
By Dave Kettner

Progress is usually a quick and expedited process. However, in the world of cameras progress was basically minimal because while the mechanics of the cameras would streamline over time, the chemical process of developing film had not changed for many decades and it did not appear that the process would ever change. Of course, this proved to be a false notion as the advent of digital cameras forever changed the landscape of cameras forever.

The Cost Effectiveness of Digital Cameras

When digital cameras first appeared some were a bit ‘put off’ by the price of the camera and, since traditional cameras were much cheaper some opted to stick with the tried and true classical camera. That is, they stuck with traditional cameras until they realized that the cost of developing film will eventually reach the point that they could have purchased a multitude of digital cameras!

Eventually, when people realized that digital cameras – while expensive to purchase – were basically much cheaper than traditional cameras due to the elimination of the need to develop film, it was only a matter of time before the sales of traditional



cameras would nosedive. Of course, this is to say nothing of the fact that not only was their no need to pay for the development of the film, there was also no need to purchase film as digital cameras record images on a hard drive or memory chip.

The Quality of Digital Cameras

In addition to the cost effectiveness, a had a huge leg up on traditional cameras in the sense that the picture quality of a digital image was significantly better than the picture quality of a traditional film camera. The resolution of the was not only better, but the colors could also be altered. In fact, a color picture could also easily be changed to black and white!

The Video Option

Many digital cameras also offered brief recording capabilities (30 seconds or so) of video images. While this remains a far cry from digital camcorders, it is still a nice little add on to a camera and a function that is more worth having than not. Of course, a traditional camera does not have any video function and that is another reason why digital cameras blow them away in the popularity division.