Digital photo myths debunked

Myth #2: Printing digital photos is too time-consuming
Some people see digital photography as a time-eating activity. Isn't it easier and faster, they ask, just to drop your film off at a photo lab and forget about it? To answer that question, here's a little tale. It's set in the olden days...before digital photography was born.

Once upon a time....
Once upon a time, you had to drive to the store to buy rolls of film whenever you wanted to take pictures. You had no idea of how your pictures looked until you shot a whole roll, drove to the store to drop off the film, waited at least an hour (often a few days), and then returned to the store for the prints.

And if you wanted to share pictures with your friends, you'd have to go back to the store and get reprints, and then mail them out. Later, if you wanted to enlarge a favorite shot, you'd have to search through a shoebox full of negatives. And then it was back to the store again.

Is it really easier, then, to just drop off your film at the store? Let's take a closer look at how digital photography can save you time.

Instant gratification
Printing photos at home puts an end to all the waiting. If you want a photo now, you can print it now. As soon as you get back from your trip to Europe, you can hook your camera up to the computer and view your photos at once. And you don't even have to use a PC anymore. Many HP printers allow you to edit your photo and preview it on an LCD screen. You could even take a portable printer (like the HP photosmart 230 on your trip and enjoy your photos immediately!

If you have a photo printer at home, you don't have to drive to a photo lab to drop off, wait for, and then pick up, your pictures. You can even produce high-quality prints right in your kitchen. No more trips to the film lab, or waiting hours or days for the prints or slides to come back.

Plus, you're always ready for picture-perfect moments with a digital camera. No more trips to the store for film. And you no longer have to wait to finish a roll of film before having it processed or waste unexposed film when you can't wait.
Finally, when you decide that you need reprints or enlargements, you can make them yourself: saving yet another trip to the store, and paying a fraction of what you'd pay a lab.

Don't keep grandma waiting
The digital camera has forever changed the way we share images. While it's always been possible to share photos quickly, new advancements in camera technology have virtually eliminated any waiting time, so you can share photos instantly.

Today there are inexpensive inkjet printers that let you plug in your memory card and push a button for a print of each photo on the card. Software improvements simplify this process even further, allowing you to eliminate any unwanted images before the printing process begins.

Many HP Photosmart digital cameras provide an incredibly helpful function unique to HP: HP Instant Share, which allows you to snap a photo and then choose where you want it to go.

You essentially "tell" your camera how you want to share your pictures. You can select from several different destinations, including e-mail addresses and printers. Just pick a digital photo, select the destination (Grandma's e-mail address, the printer in the den, etc.) with the press of one button, and connect the camera to a PC, Mac, or optional HP Photosmart digital camera dock. And presto! Photo sharing without the wait.

It's in the mail
If you really love taking digital photos but feel very strongly about not printing them yourself, then you don't have to. You can use an online photo-finisher. There are online services, and even some local drop-off locations, where someone else will print them and send them to you. Websites like HP Photo and Ofoto let you upload your digital images and order prints in whatever sizes you want. Then the photographs arrive in your mailbox without any work on your part.

Of course, that means you miss out on all the fun, and miss out on a chance to live the glamorous life of a home photo developer! But the point is, you don't have to miss out on the benefits of digital photography just because you don't want to be part of the printing process.