Image Software

  • Print

Photography and Images

One of the reasons to buy or upgrade a computer is because you want to improve your management of your digital photos. You could be a novice with your first camera that happens to be digital or an expert adding to your large collection of film equipment with new Digital equipment. However, we can only cover part of the subject - although recommendations are made on software. Links are also given to help you go further.

Topics

Image Formats

Computers (and digital cameras) use the following file formats:

RAW - unprocessed and uncompressed - used only by digital camera users wanting to make their own processing choices and not leave it to the camera. Usually results in a bigger file and therefore is slower to transfer to your memory card and fewer RAW images will fit on a card. If you want to make up for errors in taking the photo (e.g. exposure errors), this is the way to go. The errors need not be yours - the camera is rarely perfect in converting to a jpeg file. Most professionals use this format most of the time.

TIFF - uncompressed - very large files but best possible quality (same as RAW) - common for files from scanner and occasionally used in digital cameras. Not suitable for e-mailing. If you have RAW, basically a waste of time.

JPG or JPEG - compressed to a varying degree. At minimum compression, file size is about 25% of TIFF but few people can tell the difference - even when made into a large print. At medium compression, file size is about 10% of TIFF and ideal for e-mailing. At maximum compression, file is 2.5% of TIFF and suitable only for small images and not suitable for printing. As you you can see, as compression increases, quality decreases but file size also decreases. Make sure you take the photo in "high quality" if you plan to print the photo in a large size.

GIF - may be compressed but has a limited colour range. Not used for photos but extensively used in Web site images and clip art.

Note: These formats greatly affect the file size (KiloBytes or MegaBytes) but have no effect on picture size or number of pixels.

Pixels are individual pieces of data - each pixel has a specific colour and specific brightness. Each photo consists of many pixels with the exact number depending on the camera or scanner - the more there are, the more definition in the photo. Similar to "dots" (as in "dots per inch") on a printer.

Picture size is measured in inches or centimeters. To get a particular picture size, you specify the number of pixels per inch (e.g. a minimum of 200 pixels per inch) and depending on how many pixels in your photo, your print size is determined. So if you want a particular print size and your pixels are already decided, then you'll need to adjust the pixels per inch. To do this you usually will need some form of software. Windows XP includes such software (see next item) - other versions require that you use your favourite photo program.

There is another option - you can "re-sample" so that the number of pixels is changed; but you lose definition and you'd not want to do this for normal printing unless there was no other choice. "Re-sampling" using (e.g.) bi-cubic, will also require you to use your favourite photo program.

Viewing Photos on a computer

Simply double click on the image in a folder and Windows Picture and Fax Viewer (XP or Photo Viewer in Windows 7) will open the picture Full Screen or as large as it can be made on the screen. For looking at photos from Digital cameras, this is only true for jpg files - if you want to look at RAW images as a thumbnail or a slide show, you'll need the Windows XP (only) "upgrade" from Microsoft (already included in Vista and Windows 7). Their RAW Image Thumbnailer and Viewer is a free “PowerToy” for Windows XP that provides the ability to view, organize, and print photos captured in RAW image formats from supported Canon and Nikon digital cameras. It also enhances the photo info available when you hover over a file name. Get your copy here. Otherwise you'll have to use either Photoshop's "Bridge" or proprietary Canon or Nikon software to view RAW files.

Windows Picture and Fax Viewer, Photo Viewer and RAW Image Thumbnailer and Viewer all provide simple slideshows, and printing.

This is only true if you have not modified your default viewer. If you have, then your default viewer will open. To change your default viewer (program that opens jpgs and other photo files), you need to modify the file type list - more here.

If you would like to make a slide show with accompanying sound and effects, probably the easiest way is to use Microsoft's Photo Story 3. This is available to XP users only and can be downloaded from Microsoft for free. Another popular free program that produces a slide show is Irfanview (it also does other things - a highly recommended program - more below!) If you have Vista, you can achieve the same thing (a slide show) with Windows Movie maker.

Posting your Photos on the Internet

There are basically 3 ways to share photos:

  • Email - if you have Windows XP, go to the folder where your photos are stored, highlight (left click) the photo(s) you want to e-mail, then under File and Folder tasks on the left, select "e-mail the selected items" (or "email this file"), choose either "make all my pictures smaller" or "keep the original sizes", then you will be taken into your e-mail program where you can enter the addressee, change the subject and change the body of the e-mail to suit. If you choose "make all my pictures smaller", your photos will be reduced in size (fewer pixels - 640 x 480) and compressed so that the file size is about 100K and more suited for e-mailing. Use "keep the original sizes" if you want the recipient to be able to print a quality photo - but if the recipient does not have high speed Internet service they may not thank you! If you don't have XP, the process is longer unless you have an image management program that has a similar capability. Click here for more on this subject (compressing photos).
  • Use a web sharing service - there are quite a few of these available - none are suitable for everyone so you will probably have to search (e.g. with Google) until you find one that suits your needs. However, if you want to share with the world (as compared to sharing with just select friends), then the three most popular sites for this are Flickr.com (now owned by Yahoo), Fotolog.com and Picasa. Picasa is getting to be the industry leader with Flickr a close second. You can also use Picasa (below) to help you organize files on your computer. But then many other programs do this as well.
  • Have your own web site. If you know how to do this already - then you won't need help such as provided by Cobourg Internet.

Image Software

There are hundreds of Programs available and they all have advantages and disadvantages. Below are some recommendations:

  • Minimum - use the programs that came with your camera, scanner and/or new computer. These are generally adequate to familiarize yourself and you may never need more - especially if you get your prints printed by Wal-Mart, Blacks or similar.
  • Picasa - automatically finds your photos and organizes them by date and folder. Some limited fixing capability. Available free from Google.
  • Adobe PhotoShop Elements 9.0 - Photoshop Elements and CS5has complete editing and photo managing capability. Many professionals never need more than this. List price at Adobe is $99.00 USD although they often have specials.
  • Free Photo editing - limited but the price is right: IrfanView. Especially good for viewing jpgs etc. Has excellent batch renaming and resizing capability.
  • Adobe PhotoShop CS5 - the standard and best there is in this field. The catch is price ($699 USD) and it might take forever to learn ALL about it. Note that Adobe bundles packages together so that you can get Dreamweaver, Flash and more for much less than the individual costs. The hard part is deciding which package you want. Adobe.
  • Editing Videos - probably the best program is Adobe Elements premiere. (~$100US - list)

Colour Calibration

If you are serious about optimizing then printing your own photos at home, or getting the colours right for web sites, you need to worry about Colour Calibration.

Monitor

The colour you get and its consistency with the location on the screen and the angle of view varies a lot between monitors. Some brands are better than others and even within a brand, can vary with the model. One of the best brands for colour accuracy is NEC - if you want to get better than the default performance, I recommend you research the subject on the internet. Note that even after shopping around, you will pay more for a colour accurate monitor than for a regular monitor.

Why Calibrate

Typically, you will adjust photos using a program like Photoshop, then print them. To be useful, you'll want colours on your print to be the same as on your screen but "out of the box", this is usually not true - even with a colour accurate monitor. A further requirement - especially if you do commercial photography - is that the prints must have the same colours as the original subject. This latter means the monitor must be calibrated using hardware measuring systems. The best value on the market for hardware calibration is Pantone's Huey at $90US but you get better results with the Spyder3 Pro at $169US. Other systems go up from here! Also, you need to have software for editing photos that reads ICC profiles - e.g. Adobe Photoshop.

If you want to see if your monitor comes close, you should as a minimum check that grey's look grey (and don't have a colour cast) and that all shades of grey can be seen. Download this chart to help with this. It is harder than it looks to calibrate by eye!

For a more detailed discussion on the whole subject, go to epaperpress or Northlight Images.

Printer Colour Calibration

Second, you should calibrate your printer so it has (as near as possible) the same colour as the monitor. Use your printer driver adjustments for this. Every printer is different so details cannot be provided here. But explore your Printer Properties (and/or Preferences) and if it's a Photo Printer, you'll find that you can adjust the colour. Then print a sample colourful photo and compare it to the picture of it on your monitor. Make adjustments and print again. You'll use quite a bit of ink, but the results can be worth it.

If all the above is still not satisfactory, you may need to upgrade your monitor, software or printer.

Printing Photos

Almost any colour printer will print an acceptable photo if you use quality paper. The advantages of Photo printers (e.g. HP's PhotoSmart series, Epson Stylus Photo series or Canon's Photo Printer series) are:

  • Smaller droplets so sharper resolution;
  • More and better inks so more accurate colour;
  • Better drivers so more adjustment of colour, contrast etc is possible;
  • In some models, ink is also rated to resist fade longer (archive quality);
  • In some models larger photos can be printed (13'' x 14")

As new models become available, speed, colour accuracy and archive quality all improve.

Choosing

In the end, if you want to buy a camera, a printer or software, you have to make a decision. With a computer and your connection to the Internet, you can get the opinion of many experts and after researching for yourself, a decision can be made. Listed below are some sites that provide information and reviews - particularly on cameras.

But in looking at these be wary of old reviews (things can change in as little as 6 months).

Shopping for High Quality Digital Camera and Printing Equipment

  • Henry's - Largest photography chain in Canada - nearest branch is in Oshawa Mall - staff are knowledgeable
  • Vistek - Largest single photography store in Ontario - located in downtown Toronto - staff are knowledgeable
  • Downtown Camera - Good Selection - good prices - staff are knowledgeable

For specifications, the best sources are the manufacturer's web sites. To find the site for the manufacturer you chose, use Google to search then select the result described as the manufacturer's site. If possible, you should then navigate to the manufacturer's Canadian site - otherwise you'll be trying to buy a model not available in Canada.