More than ever people are using the camera in their smart phone as a substitute for a dedicated digital camera. The capabilities of the camera on a smart phone have, no doubt, improved; but so have even the least expensive point-and-shoot digital camera. The appeal of a smart phone over a dedicated digital camera is, of course, the convenience. We all like to share images we take as soon as possible and a smart phone keeps our images in a convenient location. However, as easy smart phone photography is, we make photographic sacrifices for the convenience.
So, how do we bridge the gap between the convenience of using our phone's camera and the superior image quality and photographic flexibility of a dedicated digital camera?
Lots of cameras today are WiFi enabled so you can easily transfer image from you camera to your phone. Some cameras even go as far as to use Android's operating system. For those camera without built-in WiFi there are WiFi adapters and even WiFi memory cards which allow image files (including video files) to be transferred from your camera to your phone.
Eye-Fi memory cards are a great place to start. These memory cards are compatible with a wide range of digital cameras and are fairly inexpensive. Eye-Fi cards have been around long enough to have some camera makers building cameras to work specifcally with Eye-Fi memory cards. You can see if your camera will work with an Eye-Fi card here.
Lastly, Richmond Camera has a new Promaster Multifunction WiFi Card Reader. This is a card reader and USB hub that allows you to access your images from your tablet, smart phone or computer.
Using a dedicated digital camera that will let you transfer images to your phone joins the best of both worlds. You will still have the quality and flexibility of a dedicated digital camera without losing the convenience of your smart phone. Plus, with higher quality images from a dedicated digital camera you will have the freedom to not only share and edit, but you can make prints. After all, making a print turns an image into a photograph. Don't worry, you can order prints using your phone too. Check out RC Prints.