The traditional camera market does not stand still. The latest digital SLR cameras come with great video options, including sound capture, as well as features like slow motion effects. This may be attributed simply to the competitive threat provided by the rapid evolution of the smartphone.
Phones like the new iPhone 4 include an image capture that now rivals many digital cameras. The iPhone 4 can take a 5 megapixel picture (a resolution of 2592 x 1944 pixels). This means an 8″ X 6′” photo at 300 dpi and this resolution is suitable for use in glossy magazines and print publications. These are not small files and this means that they can be repurposed all the way up from use on the Web to newsprint or, as we mentioned, magazines.
As the pictures smartphones can capture get bigger, it means that the file sizes get bigger. It is easy enough to take a large file and scale it down for the Web, but it is not practical to take a small image and scale it up for print. Print publications are not disappearing, they are simply changing. In turn, digital asset management systems that focus solely on tiny thumbnail-size pictures, optimized for a Web browser, are simply going against the current.
Larger quality photo files can serve a myriad of purposes therefore covering a wide spectrum of applications and media outlets. The smartphone makers know this fact and so do their customers. CNN on its broadcast, for example, makes plenty of use of video clips and photos taken via smartphone. As the resolution of these devices gets better, the files inevitably get larger and the viewer experience is enhanced. They say that “content” is king on the Internet; there is no doubt that file resolution goes a long way in enhancing the experience of the content. It appears to me that any system that dumbs down your brand images to no more than thumbnails seems to be a shortsighted approach and counter-indicative to enhancing your communications with the media.
