According to USA Today, a full 2/3rd (67%) of homes in teh US nwo have digital cameras, up from 42% just a few years ago (2004). That's pretty amazing. I would have never guessed that the number would be that high.
Anyway, the point of the article was that digital cameras make possible the unparalleled documentation of life in pictures ... that it's so easy to snap photos of EVERY thing ALL the time, that this generation will be better documented / digitized than any in history.
No brainer (IMO), but I thought the article was interesting. And I *love* the image they stuck on the article...
It's not all that surprising to me to see such a high number. From my point of view, I'm surprised it's not higher. I just can't put a value on how nice it is to not have to buy a roll of film and then pay more to have it developed at a your regular 4x6 or 5x7 size. Nor can I put a value on how nice it is to snap a pic, then instantly determined if it turned out okay, giving me the chance to take another one if someone blinked or looked away from the camera.
My question, why doesn't everyone take the digital plunge? It just makes sense.
Open for debate...
The only bad thing about the digital age is that there will be a lot of "history" lost forever without anyone really knowing. For example, the Monica Lowinski(sp) affair would not have been quite as public without a reporter searching through stacks and stacks of photos from Clinton's campaign trips only to find him hugging Monica. In the digital age, that photo would have been deleted as not necessary.
Dan
P.S. I do agree that digital makes picture taking easier. I still prefer my Nikon F2AS though for quality.
Seriously! Now we have to hack his Flickr account! :-)
I think Dan's right, some history will be lost. Though I think as we've already seen, the ease of digital makes photos much easier to send around the world... hence in cases like Monica, a photo of any president hugging anyone, in digital form, will find its way into the e-mail box of every tabloid reporter in the US. Making digital really hard to get rid of. Even if you delete the original, there's a good chance that photo's found its way elsewhere. Look at the scandal from that girl in High School Musical 2. If that had been taken with film, there's a good chance it may never have gone public.
Of course, for the average person who isn't in the spotlight, digital can be lost if care is taken. Let this be a lesson to all. BACKUP! BACKUP! BACKUP!