User:GroupC-2012/sandbox

History
The first digital image was produced in 1920, by means of the Bartlane method. British inventors, Harry G. Bartholomew and Maynard D. McFarlane, developed this method. The process consisted of “a series of negatives on zinc places that were exposed for varying lengths of time, thus producing varying densities,”. In 1927, Philo T. Farnsworth established the first electronic television. This television used an electronic scanning tube as well as a cathode ray tube that could administer and display different images. In 1957, Russell Kirsch produced a device that generated digital data that could be stored in a computer; this was made possible by his use of a drum scanner and photomultiplier tube.

These different types of scanning ideas were the basis of the first designs of the digital camera. The first cameras took a long time to capture an image and were not ideal for consumer purposes It wasn’t until the development of the CCD (charge-coupled device) that the digital camera really took off. The CCD became part of the imaging systems used in telescopes, the first black and white digital cameras and video recorders in the 1980’s. Color was eventually added to the CCD and is the basis of color that exists in cameras that we use today.

How Digital Imaging Works
Digital imaging has the capabilities of producing surrealistic, out of this world, yet fully believable images. The technology behind a typical photograph and digital image are very different from one another. Photography that is film-based contains, “a number of chemical reactions to produce a print or transparency,” [2]. Whereas, a digital image is associated with, “the capturing of an image, uploading it to a computer, manipulating it, and finally outputting the finished picture,” [2]. The digital imaging process begins with the acquisition of an electronic or photographic image. Regardless of the type of image, after it is captured, it must be converted to digital data [2]. The digital data is then fed into a computer, where a professional quality image is produced. Digital imaging can do anything from, “anchor pictured objects” to “bend, twist, stretch and contort physical objects in cartoonlike ways,” [3]. Once in the hands of a powerful machine, like a computer, digital imaging has endless possibilities. According to Grotta, every pixel can be changed, moved or deleted, and that is the very essence of what digital imaging is all about [2].

Positive Consequences
There are several benefits of digital imaging. First, the process enables easy access of photographs and word documents. Google is at the forefront of this ‘revolution,’ with its mission to digitize the world’s books. Such digitization will make the books searchable, thus making participating libraries, such as the Stanford University and the University of California Berkley, accessible to those around the world. Digital imaging also benefits the medical world because it “allows the electronic transmission of images to third-party providers, referring dentists, consultants, and insurance carriers via a modem”. The process “is also environmentally friendly since it does not require chemical processing”.

Benefits also exist regarding photographs. Digital imaging will reduce the need for physical contact with original images. Furthermore, digital imaging creates the possibility of reconstructing the visual contents of partially damaged photographs, thus eliminating the potential that the original would be modified or destroyed. In addition, photographers will be “freed from being ‘chained’ to the darkroom,” will have more time to shoot and will be able to cover assignments more effectively. Digital imaging ‘means’ that “photographers no longer have to rush film their film to the office, so they can stay on location longer while still meeting deadlines”.

Negative Consequences
Critics of digital imaging cite several negative consequences. An increased “flexibility in getting better quality images to the readers” will tempt editors, photographers and journalists to manipulate photographs. In addition, “staff photographers will no longer be photojournalistists, but camera operators…as editors have the power to decide what they want ‘shot’”. Legal constraints, including copyright, pose another concern: will copyright infringement occur as documents are digitized and as companies such as Google promote digitization?

Digital imaging also negatively affects organizations with financial limits. As the desire to preserve museum pieces digitally increases, so does the demand for experience and interdisciplinary knowledge about the new imaging technologies. Unfortunately, “probably only a few museum professionals and collection managers are likely to have” such skills – and many museums cannot afford to hire such techies or purchase new imaging technologies.