Pixels - Nikon D300 Complete Manual

file format you choose is one of the key ones. Make sure
you're making the right decision for yourself
Okay, let's delve into the details so you can better understand
what you just read.

Pixels

Before we get to the individual data formats, let's make sure
that we have some basic understanding of the underlying
element used in them: pixels.
A pixel is the smallest element of a digital picture. You've
probably seen camera resolution figures expressed in the form
of two numbers, say 4288 x 2848. This means that the camera
produces results that have 2848 rows containing 4288
columns of data. At each row/column intersection, there's a
pixel, which is used to describe the color that should be
displayed there.
Pixels contain color information, usually expressed as
individual values for red, green, and blue
is stored in a series of bits. Bits are the smallest data elements
computers understand; a single bit has a value of either
(thus, an example 8-bit value is
capable of producing 12-bit or 14-bit values for each color
(assuming you shoot NEF and use a converter that retains that
data), most computer imaging programs, including
Photoshop, normally use 8-bit values for most work
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JPEG shooters should note that the D300 does a pretty darned good job of rendering
into the format. It's not that JPEG quality is bad, it's that NEF quality can be better in
the right hands. By these comments I don't mean to try to scare anyone off from
shooting JPEG—I do it myself from time to time when the situation warrants it—but
only to point out that you give something up by doing so.
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When I write about the Red channel, Blue channel, and Green channel elsewhere
in this eBook, I'm referring to these individual color data points.
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Photoshop now allows most of its image editing tools to function with 16-bit data,
but since all consumer printers and almost all commercial printers only accept 8-bit
data, some people still use Photoshop only with 8-bit data.
Thom Hogan's Complete Guide to the Nikon D300
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.
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. Each color value
0100 1101
). While the D300 is
V1.02
1 0
or
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