Digital Photography, the Camera.

Digital Photography, the Camera. Brian D. Ratty. Lake Grove, OR: Media West Home Video (800-888-8273), 2003. DVD format, 85 minutes. $39.95.

This eighty-five minute DVD on digital photography is an excellent resource for art teachers and others just entering into the realm of digital photography. However, it is not a DVD that should be shown to students in one viewing. Fortunately, it is broken down into fourteen chapters with information that can be viewed and reviewed. Each of these chapters (How Digital Works, Files and Memory, Depth of Field, Exposure Control, et. al.), concludes with a listing of key terms and a website where more information may be obtained. Throughout the DVD host/narrator Brian Ratty covers everything you ever wanted to know about digital photography from the inner workings of the camera to the history of photography, where NASA's role in developing cutting-edge technology for digital imaging is recounted. Compelling visual examples are present in all chapters. Ratty comments that while most brands of digital cameras are quite similar, it is the person with the creative eye that makes the difference in image quality. He stresses that automatic doesn't always mean best and that manual controls are essential for images of a professional quality. A Teacher's Guide; a Digital Glossary; and a suggested thirty-question Quick Quiz, including fifteen questions to ask when purchasing a digital camera, are included.