P.I.G.S. Spotlight -Digital Camera's
Digital Cameras from the point of a Paranormal Investigator
what to look for and tips to try.
Digital Cameras
A digital point and shoot camera is a must for the paranormal investigator.
There are some simple Tips in buying yourself something suitable.
Things to consider
-Mega Pixel
-Digital V’s Optical Zoom,
-Power Cells (batteries)
-The Lens,
-Overall feel (is it fiddly to operate).
Lets start with Mega Pixels, this is simply the number of pixels that your camera will divide the photograph into once the image has passed through the lens. Which becomes important if you intend to print poster size pictures or crop and zoom into small details with in the picture.
Many people get caught up on the mega pixel number for the camera this is actually pretty insignificant if not paired up with a decent lens. Remember the picture will only be what the camera sees so the lens and lens size becomes massively important. To keep it really simple with out banging on about various image sensors, Size matters in my view in a domestic camera market the bigger the lens the better. So in summery for a great pocket camera something from 3.2MP with a decent lens. Would be better than something with 7MP and a poor lens. Probably in the domestic digital camera market the lens brands Carl Zeiss and Lumix are among the most famous and offer excellent quality.
Three common types of camera
There are three types of digital cameras where the lens id the biggest difference, I will try and explain them in simple pro and con for the paranormal investigator.
-Traditional point and shoot
Typical lens some fixed and some extendable, these cameras are normally small, easy to operate, and are capable of Good pictures. At its best taking fun holiday snaps and useful on an investigation because of there size and ease of use.
-The super zoom,
Has the convenience of being small and compact but with a much larger lens, so for this camera they are a bit more bulky and can take Better pictures that its compact counterpart.
-The SLR (Single Lense Reflex)
Its not small and for the investigator on a night vigil ide say it’s not a suitable tool however this camera will take breathtaking scenic and portrait shots providing the lighting is adequate. So for location shot’s this is the Best option but for on the night investigating the point and shoot is the best option.
Optical V’s Digital zoom
The higher optical zoom will be the closer you can see an object that’s further away. The digital zoom simply makes the picture you are looking at bigger,
Imagine optical is like looking through binoculars while digital is like looking at a picture with a magnifying glass.
The Batteries
Cheaper cameras will use standard batteries while the better ones will use their own lithium chargeable power calls. Digital cameras simply eat standard batteries; Cameras that have Lithium rechargeable power cells will give you a reasonable usage time.
The Design
Great investigation cameras in my view are the ones that can take photographs without to much fiddling about with, So something with sensible solid controls not to many gadgets and big enough to use but small enough to fit in your pocket. For that great shot you need a camera that can be pulled from your pocket and shoot a photo in seconds, imagine you’re a cowboy in a duel it would be no good having a gun that you had to fiddle around with first to get your shot in
The Memory Card
Digital cameras normally don’t come with a memory card in the box so remember to get one with your camera, there are many types of card on the market such as SD, XD, Compact Flash, Sony memory sticks etc, with sizes from 512MB up to around 16GB, the higher you set the resolution on your camera the bigger the file size of the photograph will be and hence the smaller the number of pictures you can fit on your memory card.
Quick guide a 1GB card in a camera set to 4MP will allow for around 230 pictures.
Hints and Tips for the investigator
Its really important to take note of the atmospherics while using cameras on an investigation for example the cold, moisture, distant lightings etc can all have a paranormal look to them but will not be the paranormal you are looking for.
Use “burst mode” on your camera if it has it. This mode will take normally three photographs in succession and is a great way to track movement if you have pictured something odd that seems to be moving. (orbs apparitions etc)
Some things to consider are, make sure you have a fully charged and ready to go camera as this may be your most used piece of kit. buy your self a large memory card or spare memory card, never delete any photographs until you have viewed them on a computer as you never know what might be captured in the background of a shot .
Take as many photographs as you can without the flash, but remember you WILL need a tripod for this or place your camera on a steady surface (set camera to auto, no flash) the cameras shutter will be open far longer than normal so any camera movement will cause blur.
if you zoom in on a subject while holding the camera your picture is far more likely to be blurred so use a tripod or get closer to the subject.
Always warn people around you if you are in darkness and about to take a picture with the flash mode switched on , as flashes in darkness can cause retina burn or hurt the eyes of the people around you, (it is common place and polite to simply say 'FLASH')
Remember to have fun with your investigation and don't let your camera become to much of a distraction.
Another quick hint and tip, always check that the time and date is set correctly on your camera and see if you can get any other cameras that are being used to be synced with yours, as later on this can add to any evidence you may capture. Also when saving your pictures to your computer take time to add notes to them like atmospherics, temperature, humid, damp etc this will also add credibility later on (on a PC right click the image file then select details and you can add info there, on a Mac right click image file select ‘get info’ then add your comments to the spotlight info at the top)