 John P. Sandstedt |
Image Clarity and Sharpness My son asked me question this morning and I really didn't have a good answer. He described a situation in which he took a number of pictures with his 5 MP Canon Digital Elph the he's used for over a year. He described them as being taken on a medium fine setting, the same setting he's successfully used many times before to photograph images in his advertising business. This time, however, he indicated that his results were not a "clear and sharp" as he'd gotten in the past. His question, "Can a digital camera 'fail' in service?" My response: Check batteries and check the memory card. But, on reflection, is it possible that a camera's sensor or other "computer" parts might start to fail with time. [Note, it's time not usage in this instance.] I'd appreciate anyone's have any thoughts?
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Todd Bennett |
John, I would say yes. Basically a digital camera is a computer that has glass attached to it to capture an image. We have computer parts that go bad all the time. From things as simple as the CMOS battery, to video cards, to mother boards. Heck, sometimes we buy something new and it doesn't work correctly. My electronics background from the Marine Corps is about 23 years old; but, we would have systems on the A-6 that would stop working properly and we would replace a black box to fix it. A simple box swap out and it was as good as new. We'd then send the box to a higher maintenance level for repair. They would replace a bad resistor or diode or whatever and send the box back to start the cycle all over again. So it conceivable that, due to age, something inside has stopped working correctly; but, not completely and is affecting the quality. That's my 2 cents worth.
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Pete H |
John, I'd first investigate if he is comparing apples to apples. Are the photos in question of the same basic lighting to prior photos?..or did he shoot something in low light? In the latter case, there will of course be noise with the camera in question. Can a CCD or CMOS chip fail?..Sure it could. all the best, Pete
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R K Stephenson |
Hi, John, I thought you might get more answers by now. I'll throw in another 2 cents worth. It is unlikely that it is the chip or the memory. You won't find any diodes in there. ;^) It is also unlikely that it is memory (CMOS or card). Generally, they either work or they don't, but a bad card won't save an image out of focus. I would look at any moving part, e.g., the focus drive. Also, seems obvious, but check for fingerprints or abrasions on the lens. Good thing about the "moving parts" is that you can take it to our local camera store (not the mega-franchise one) and have the 'shop' look it over. And if it is anything like mine, it won't cost anything to look at it. Cheers, RK
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