Which is the best digital camera for shooting 2d artwork which will then be put on a home page or sent via email as a jpeg file? I am interested in good color and sharpness, particularly for work which has a certain degree of surface subtilty. I would prefer shooting in natural light. I also would like the images to not require tons of memory to open. Any comments welcome.

-- Sarah Brayer (sbrayer@mb.amsinet.ne.jp), August 16, 1999

Answers

I just bought the Olympus c-2000z (over the CP950 esp.) for doing similar documenting work (in my case 3D artwork and live theatre). I had a subjective preference for the color in the test shots. Other important factors: The ability to attach filters etc. to the camera body and not to the telescoping lens assembly (a hot mirror is essential for good color under stage lights). A remote control for tripod work (you'll definitely want to use a tripod). A large number of aperture settings for more control over depth of field (not as important for 2D work). The white balance does seem best with natual light, but is very close and easily correctable in other situations.

Correct color reproduction of artwork is tricky, since you can't clue in to natural tones of leaves or faces, etc. One trick is to include a true-white card at the edge of field (maybe with title, date, medium, etc. for archival purposes). This makes it easier to correct for color in your computer, either manually or with automatic software. Just crop the card off when your done.

If you really intend the camera primarily of documenting artwork, pay more attention to optics and exposure flexibility than features. Most cameras will take pictures at multiple resolutions. Lower resolutions will keep the file size down, but you will lose detail. If you want people to see the artistry of the original work (as opposed to the artistry of the photgraph), use the highest resolution you can. You can always scale the image down to post on the web, but you'll probably want a really good quality image for your archive.

HTH, didn't really answer your question, but maybe you'll have a better idea what to look for. Good luck.

-- Kirk Markley (nkm@phoenix.net), August 18, 1999.