Digital Cameras Transform How Family, Friends Communicate

from the digital-family dept

It's been a quiet revolution, but for many people taking snapshots - the digital camera has replaced the old film camera. And, like so many other technologies that first gained acceptance because they were replacing something else, as people became used to using digital cameras, they've discovered other uses for them. They don't just take snapshots any more. The digital nature of the pictures makes it much easier for family and friends to communicate visually. The LCD screens on the cameras mean that people keep taking pictures until they have the "right one", and it's allowing families who live far away from each other to keep in contact beyond just text and voice. Even among people who live near each other, digital cameras are making a difference. Most of my friends now have digital cameras, and I know that no gathering of friends is complete until a few days later when someone posts all their digital pictures to an online album. That never used to happen. Of course, there are still analog elitists who say that nothing can replace an film camera for "real photography" - but digital cameras are certainly encroaching on more and more of the territory of film-based cameras - and, in many ways, people are learning to go beyond the limitations of film cameras to take advantage of the digital nature of their snapshots.

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