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Really basic question: Mp and MB

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kimnjerry

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I bought a Canon 710IS for our trip to China. I love the camera, but, as a new digital user, the instruction manual is not user friendly. I may need a primer on digital photography.

My basic question is how do I get 7 MP photos? I assume there’s a relationship between the MP and the size of the file (MB). Perhaps that’s incorrect, or I’m just not understanding the basics. I’ve set the menu settings to “Superfine” and “L” (3072x2304), but some of my downloaded photos often show up as less than 1 MB. I want to get the best quality I can, with the option to crop my photos, so I would imagine I want to shoot at the highest MP possible. If I need to adjust menu settings, etc., let me know.

Have pity on the uninformed.

Thanks
 
. . . . you may need a primer on digital photography.

Much information is available to us through the search engine in this site, and various search engines in the http://www .

"Megapixels" refers to the actual # of pixels, or "picture elements", in the sensor of the camera.

That is not = to the size of an image taken through this sensor, thanks to elaborate compression algorithms in the(typically) jpg reduction of that image, and that is what will account for your image files not showing the same size in "megabytes" as they are taken in "megapixels" . . .

Happy Searching!
 
You are correct. Having the camera set at highest quality will always give you more options. You've got the right settings for maximum quality. Multiply the horizontal pixels by the vertical ones to get the total number of pixels. 3072x2304=7,077,888 or roughly 7 million pixels (7 MP).

The reason the photo file is only around 1 megabyte (not megapixels) is because the file is saved in JPG format. This is a format that compresses the image by throwing out what is deemed as unnecessary color. The advantage is it allows you to save many more images on a memory card. Most people are unable to notice the effects of the compression (MP3 is a format that does the same thing with audio). Some cameras can save in TIFF format, which doesn't have the same compression issues, but yields much larger files.

When working with JPG photos in post production, saving them to TIFF format will help preserve image quality as the save won't recompress them.

Hope this helps.
 
Flandry said:
You are correct. Having the camera set at highest quality will
always give you more options. You've got the right settings for
maximum quality. Multiply the horizontal pixels by the vertical
ones to get the total number of pixels. 3072x2304=7,077,888 or
roughly 7 million pixels (7 MP).

The reason the photo file is only around 1 megabyte (not
megapixels) is because the file is saved in JPG format. This is a
format that compresses the image by throwing out what is deemed as
unnecessary color. The advantage is it allows you to save many more
images on a memory card. Most people are unable to notice the
effects of the compression (MP3 is a format that does the same
thing with audio). Some cameras can save in TIFF format, which
doesn't have the same compression issues, but yields much larger
files.

When working with JPG photos in post production, saving them to
TIFF format will help preserve image quality as the save won't
recompress them.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
It certainly did. Explains what I need to know. And I'll check the other links provided. Thanks!!
 
A photo resolution of 3072 x 2304 = 7,077,888 pixels (or 7.1MP rounded)

The size of the individual file depends both on the amount of compression used (quality chosen) and what the photo is of or, more precisely, how much information is contained in the file. Obviously, a photo of a blank wall (low information) will result in a smaller file than a photo of a grass lawn (high information) even if both are 7.1MP resolution.

My own 7.1MP images (SD550, Superfine, L) range from 1.4MB to 3.6MB in size. It's hard to image then how you're routinely getting file sizes of less than 1MB.

--

Group Captain Lionel Mandrake: 'I was tortured by the Japanese, Jack, if you must know; not a pretty story....Strange thing is they make such bloody good cameras.' (Dr. Strangelove, 1964)
 
kimnjerry said:
My basic question is how do I get 7 MP photos?
Click to expand...
  • Turn the camera on in "record" mode.
  • Press the "Func. Set" button (in the middle of the 4-way controller).
  • Press the up or down-arrow keys until the bottom item in the left-hand menu is highlighted.
  • Press the left or right keys until the "L" is highlighted.
With the "L" highlighted you'll notice the menu says "3072 x 2304" - that's the number of horizontal and vertical pixels, and you get 7 milliion if you multiply them together. You can calculate the megapixels of the other picture sizes (ie, other than "L") the same way.

The size of the files you create will be much less than 7 megabytes due to compression. The size will vary depending on the quality setting (which is selected using the icon just above "L" on the left-hand menu). The leftmost setting (smooth arc with "S") is the least compression which gives you the best quality and biggest files, typically around 3-3.5Mbytes at the "L" picture size setting.
 
It could be that you also went in to digital zoom, which would cause smaller file sizes... the pictures are actually no longer 7.1MP, this gets reduced when you're in digital zoom.

-Tom
kimnjerry said:
I bought a Canon 710IS for our trip to China. I love the camera,
but, as a new digital user, the instruction manual is not user
friendly. I may need a primer on digital photography.

My basic question is how do I get 7 MP photos? I assume there’s a
relationship between the MP and the size of the file (MB). Perhaps
that’s incorrect, or I’m just not understanding the basics. I’ve
set the menu settings to “Superfine” and “L” (3072x2304), but some
of my downloaded photos often show up as less than 1 MB. I want to
get the best quality I can, with the option to crop my photos, so I
would imagine I want to shoot at the highest MP possible. If I need
to adjust menu settings, etc., let me know.

Have pity on the uninformed.

Thanks
Click to expand...
 
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