Camera Questions

[deep1]

Once upon a time I was a pretty decent photographer.  That was in dinosaur days with film and stuff. Today there is a new breed and hoping that you, fellow cruisers could point me in the right direction.  I see "bridge" cameras that have good pricing. I actually had a couple. Most of the older ones had CD's you ran to get the computer to be able to read.  I'm seeing newer that run a SD card...? I think that is something you stick in one of the ports on computer or have a card reader? This basically means no matter what I gotta wait til I get back home to my computer to transfer.

Then we get to the "adult cameras"... DSLR. Looking at a camera package by Canon. That one comes with a regular lens and a telephoto 75-300...  I see under connectivity "Wi-Fi and NFC"... I have no clue what NFC means. Wi Fi has me curious? Does that mean it has the capability of transmitting images to my cell phone directly or to somebody else back in the states? If this were possible it might be the deciding factor. Fiancé wants to send steady stream of Alaska pics to daughter back home in college.

[Atlantix2000]

NFC stands for Near Field Communication - can trade files directly with compatible devices without using the internet.  That could mean a phone or a printer but you'd need to research specific devices.  I'm not sure how universal things are.  But in theory, print a photo straight from the camera without connecting either device to the internet (and without needing a cable).

SD cards aren't really new.  Cameras and phones have used them as hard drives for decades.  Most modern computers/laptops will have a slot for them so you can transfer files quickly since it shows up as an external hard drive.  And yes, there are tons of USB card readers you can get if your computer doesn't have a native SD card slot.

[ScottishRobbie]

Pretty sure for wi-fi it used the internet connection from your smart phone or similar. Although, probably best to tag @twangster, he's the resident camera/photography expert

[NewfieCruiser]

I have a Canon that has wifi connectivity. You just download the canon app and connect the phone to the camera under the phone's wifi settings. No internet required as you're only using wifi to connect the two devices. Then you can transfer the photos onto your phone. 

[Sweety]

Thank you for the information.

[USCG Teacher]

9 hours ago, deep1 said:

Wi Fi has me curious? Does that mean it has the capability of transmitting images to my cell phone directly or to somebody else back in the states?

My DSLR and underwater cameras are not new, but both have WiFi capability.  Through my Nikon App, I can download and edit any of the photos I want straight to my cell phone, and then send them off to whomever by either texting or emailing them, or (more commonly) just setting up a Google Drive folder and allowing whomever I want to see the photos access as a viewer.  That allows whoever wants to follow along to log in throughout my trip to do so without spamming photos to anyone who doesn't necessarily care to check them out at the moment!

[SemperMom]

Im a Canon user but always bring my MacBook for post-processting cause it's fun for me and have never used the wifi option so thanks for the info, I might give it a whirl.