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Memory booster
Is there a downside to buying a memory card with more storage and speed? Do I risk safety of the files, or is a 512MB 40X card just as reliable as a smaller, slower card?
Sam Feinstein
via e-mail
The larger-capacity cards are just as reliable as smaller ones, and are cheaper per megabyte—a 512MB card costs less than two 256MB cards. So, there is no reason not to take advantage of the greater storage space. But for peace of mind, transfer your favorite images over to your computer or a CD-ROM as soon as you can. What about increased speed? That depends on which camera you’re using. The camera must be designed to take advantage of faster read/write speeds on some new cards. If it isn’t, you won’t notice much difference in performance. Generally, the newer the camera, the more likely it’s compatible with faster cards. (Your camera’s instruction manual may not tell you if the camera will benefit from a high-speed card; contact the manufacturer to find out.) Card speed only affects storage time and doesn’t
affect the camera’s burst capability.
B is for...
What does the designation “B” mean on my camera? And how does it differ from the setting marked “T”? Aren’t they the same thing—a way to take a very long exposure?
Max Viston
via e-mail
Both settings do enable you to take longer exposures than those you can set with the shutter-speed control, but you need to use different techniques for “B” and “T.” When using the “B” setting, keep your finger depressed on the shutter-release button or cable release for as long as you want the exposure to last. To close the shutter, remove your finger. (To prevent “tired finger” syndrome, use a locking cable release.) With the “T” setting, press the shutter-release button once to start the exposure, then press the button again to end the exposure. In essence, you’re pressing the shutter twice. Although the letter “T” stands for “time,” many people remember the difference between “T” and “B” by thinking of “T” as “twice.” “B,” on the other hand, stands for “bulb,” which refers to the air-pressure squeeze-bulb shutter release on shutters of yore.
Extra chunky
I just bought a Minolta DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400. After a few test scans, I have only one complaint: the grain is chunky, and appears overly enhanced. Optical prints don’t look nearly as grainy as these scans, and the scanner software’s “grain dissolver” tool did nothing.
Is there a setting I can change, or a plug-in I can purchase to take care of this? The manual references the Digital GEM plug-in, but it’s not included with my software.
Lewis Fraga
via e-mail
Grain and scratches are often emphasized in scanners that use an LED light source instead of a fluorescent tube to scan images. The difference between an LED and fluorescent scanner is similar to the difference between an older, condenser-type optical enlarger and a modern diffusion enlarger in a traditional darkroom. One way to reduce grain and noise is to multisample the scan, but that adds time to the scanning process. Digital GEM (accessible from the scanner driver) also adds quite a bit of time, but should help. nik multimedia (www.nikmultimedia.com) just released a plug-in filter for Adobe Photoshop called Dfine 1.0 ($100 street) that targets noise reduction in scans and images from digital cameras.
Finally, when grain is very apparent, try applying a mild Gaussian Blur filter in Photoshop, followed by an Unsharp Mask. Experiment with the settings and then save the ones that work for you as a Photoshop action.
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