Understanding the Camera Crop Factor and How To Apply It

Understanding the Camera Crop Factor and How To Apply It

Note:  This is a rather long and technical article.  If you want to skip all the technical stuff, jump down to the “Summing Up” and “Action Plan” sections at the end to get a concise summary of the results and how to put them to use.

Recently, I was shopping for a new camera.  I was considering both DLSR and Superzoom cameras.

Zoom was very important to me as one of my main purposes for getting a new camera was to photograph wildlife.  My current cameras have only limited zoom and I am constantly frustrated because I can’t get close enough to the wildlife to get a good shot.

But when I started comparing cameras, I immediately got confused.

DSLRs designate their lenses in mm focal length.  For example, 18mm, 140mm, 200mm, 300mm, etc.

Superzoom cameras, on the other hand, designate their lenses by zoom factor, which can range anywhere from about 35x to up to 83x on the new Nikon Coolpix P900 camera.  These factors are based on the zoom from the lowest focal length of the camera to the longest focal length and can be quite misleading.  For example, a 30x zoom on one camera can be quite different than a 30x on another camera, depending on the actual focal lengths used on each camera.

And these zoom values tell you almost nothing about how much objects will be magnified over what you see with your naked eye.  I have a 4x zoom compact camera that magnifies only slightly over what I see with my naked eye.  How disappointing is that?

As a result, these different designations make it extremely difficult to compare the different types of cameras and lenses.

What I really want to know is how much larger will a lens make an object appear over what I can see with my naked eye.  That’s all.

Well, it took a long time, but I think I finally have it all sorted out.

Let’s see what all it all means.

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An Incredibly Easy Way To Prevent Cast Iron BBQ Grates From Rusting

An Incredibly Easy Way to Prevent Cast Iron BBQ Grates From Rusting

Here at CerebralAdvantage.net, we mostly focus on right thinking and acquiring the right mindset and mental skills to lead a highly successful life.

However, we are also on the lookout for tips and tricks for working smarter or doing things better and will report those when we find them.  We consider such things as right thinking in action.

Our first tip is for around the house.  For the BBQ, actually.

Many of us enjoy grilling whenever we can, cooking hot dogs, burgers, steaks, and a variety of other foods on our BBQ.  A BBQ imparts a unique flavor to foods; a flavor that we all love.

I have a BBQ with cast iron grates and I have a love-hate relationship with the thing.

I love how the cast iron grates cook my food.  Their high thermal mass provides uniform heating and helps get my food done just right every time.  They just seem to cook food much better than stainless steel or other materials.

But I hate the cast iron grates because they rust.  No matter how careful you are with them, even if they are porcelain coated, which mine are, they will eventually rust.  And once they start, they can really, really rust.

And cooking food on rusty BBQ grates is not something I want to do.

So, what is the solution?

Let’s take a look at what works and what doesn’t.

 

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How to Use Questions to Supercharge Your Critical Thinking

How To Use Qestions To Supercharge Your Critical Thinking

 

“Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.”  _Tony Robbins

Critical thinking is the methodical practice of collecting and analyzing information to solve problems and arrive at sound, informed decisions.

Critical thinking is arguably the most important skill needed for success in the 21st century.

Unfortunately, most people have poorly developed critical thinking skills.

But that doesn’t have to be you.

Want to know the fastest, most effective way to improve your critical thinking?  To solve problems?  To get the answers you crave?

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There is Magic in the Mornings! Become an Early Riser and Get More Out of Life.

Become an Early Riser and Get More Out Of Life

Early to bed, early to rise makes you healthy, wealthy, and wise.
__Ben Franklin

Want to know a secret to accomplishing more and getting more out of life?  Get up earlier each day.  That old adage above from Ben Franklin has a tremendous amount of truth to it.

People who do get up early seem to be a different breed.  They always seem to be ahead of everyone else, to have an unfair advantage.  They seem to know exactly who they are, where they are going, and how to get there.

Here are some characteristics that early risers consistently seem to have.  They tend to be…

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25 Characteristics of Successful People

Characteristics of Successful People
 

What makes one person more successful than another?  Is it education?  IQ?  Heredity?  Environment?  Luck?

These are certainly factors, but not the overriding ones.

No, the real difference between successful and unsuccessful people is in their thinking.  How they approach life.  How they approach problems.  How they deal with people.

Successful people embody right thinking, which, in turn, is reflected in their behavior.

A good way to become more successful in your own life is to study successful people and emulate their positive qualities.

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Your Mind Is Like a Garden. Tend It Well.

Your Mind Is Like a Garden - Learn To Control Your Thoughts For a Beautiful Mind

“To gain all things, we must first gain a disciplined, orderly, constructive state of mind.”
_Raymond Holliwell

An essential life skill for creating a successful and fulfilling life is to be able to control your thoughts.  This is one of the most difficult things you will ever do.  But it is crucial.

If you don’t learn to control your thoughts, they will control you.  And, believe me, you won’t like the results.

Your mind is like a garden.  Each time you think a thought, you plant a seed.  Positive, optimistic, uplifting thoughts grow into beautiful flowers.  Negative, pessimistic thoughts grow into ugly, destructive weeds.

And if you’ve ever tried to grow a garden, then you know how destructive weeds can be.

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The Power of Precise Thinking

The Power Of Precise Thinking

Clear, precise thinking is a life skill that you must master if you want to be the success that you desire to be. Fuzzy logic may be great for writing computer programs, but it sure gets people into a world of trouble.

Raymond Holliwell put it well in his book “Working With the Law” when he said:

“The practice of clear thinking tends to clarify the mind, tones up the faculties, sharpens the perceptions, and gives one a stronger and better grasp of the basic essentials for a larger and richer life. Clear and exact thinking is a very great necessity.”

If you want to solve a problem, you must state the problem precisely. If you want to answer a question, you must state the question precisely. If you want to achieve a goal, you must state the goal precisely.

It’s just like a road map. If you want to get to a destination, you must state the address precisely, right down to the street number. Anything less and you won’t get to where you want to go.

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The Secret to Making Bold Improvements in Your Life

How To Make Bold Changes and Improvements In Your Life

“It’s in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped. Choose Now. Choose Well.”

__Tony Robbins

Making dramatic and significant life changes is a crucial part of your personal development. If you continue to do the same things in the same old way, you will continue to get the same old results. To grow, you must change. You must break bad habits. Learn new skills. And develop new habits that will propel you to success.

The secret of making a significant life change — to lose weight; to quit smoking; to learn a new skill; to develop a more positive attitude; to eat healthier; to become an early riser; — is to make a formal, committed and focused decision to do it.

I know this sounds obvious. After all, don’t we always decide to do something before we do it? Well, yes and no.

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