Light Meter: Optical Zoom & Digital Zoom

It was not that long ago that digital camera manufacturers advertised their products as having a 9x combined zoom. This led most consumers to believe that cameras had a 9x zoom, period. The box would likely say 3x optical/6x digital/9x combined. This can be rather confusing. People did not know there was such a thing as an optical zoom and a digital zoom.

Nowadays you’re less likely to hear digital cameras touted for their combined zooms as it’s become apparent that digital zooms are rarely used and for good reason as you’ll see.

Below are 3 photos of Katy* all taken with a Fujifilm A900. The image stabilization was on as was the flash. This camera has 9 million megapixels, a 4x optical zoom and an approximate 7.6x digital zoom.

This first picture was taken without any zoom at all. This is a nice and clear photo.

Next, I used the optical zoom here getting as close as possible. The photo is still sharp and can be printed as a clear 8×10, at least.

Finally, I zoomed in digitally. Even in this small example you can see the pixels.

I strongly suggest clicking on the photos to see them larger. You’ll instantly see the difference between the results of an optical zoom and a digital zoom. Now, there are some cameras that do a better job than this but the result you see here is extremely commom.

Why does this happen? Simply put, an optical lens brings the subject closer to you through the lens by changing it’s focal length. This is what is on all 35mm and APS cameras. A digital zoom kicks in after the optical zoom is maxed out and literally enalrges the pixels. This breaks the image apart.

Let’s say Katy is running track and her boyfriend Josh takes a photo of her. He’s zoomed in as far as he can but she’s still further away than he’d like. His best bet is to take the picture only using the optical zoom and when he gets home, crop it using photo software. He’ll get far better results than if he used the digital zoom.

When you’re out shopping for a new camera, only concern yourself with the optical zoom and forget about the digital. A good salesperson won’t even mention digital zooms. For those of you who have been getting pixelated looking photos, check your cameras. It’s quite possible that your digital zoom is turned on. Check your manual for instructions on how to turn it off.

Happy shooting!
* Katy was not harmed in the making of these photos.