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Digital Camera Test Images

We use a range of subjects to judge photo quality.

Tracey Capen

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Image quality is the ultimate test of any camera, and it's especially important to evaluate in digital models: They vary greatly both in resolution and in the method they use to translate color into digital format. As a result, digital cameras are far less consistent than film cameras.

To come up with an overall image-quality score for each of the digital cameras we reviewed in "Full Exposure: Today's Best Digital Cameras," the PC World Test Center took four test shots under controlled lighting conditions. Two of those photos are of our colorful mannequin, affectionately known as Gloria--one with the camera's built-in flash, and the other with a daylight-balanced flood lamp. The color accuracy of the resulting photos is a good gauge of how well a camera's automatic white balance works.

Our still-life shot is especially useful for revealing a camera's ability to resolve fine details into sharp lines and edges, with a minimum of color and moiré distortion (most noticeable in the blocks of small parallel lines and at the center of our radiating line pattern). In the outdoor shots, we look for sharp detail, a good balance of highlights and shadows, and accurate blues in the sky with little mottling.

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