• Benefits
• PictBridge
• Memory card slots
• Docks

 

You've taken pictures with a digital camera, and now you want prints of those photos. With direct printing you send digital images straight to a printer without going through a computer. It requires a digital camera, a printer and only a few minutes to produce fantastic photos. Direct printing is the shortest distance between clicking the shutter and holding a photograph. Here are all of the great benefits of direct printing:

 

One way to send your digital images to a printer is to attach your camera to the printer with a USB cable. In order for the printer to receive the digital images, the camera and the printer have to speak the same language. Digital camera and printer manufacturers got together and created a common language—PictBridge.

 

PictBridge is software inside many digital cameras, camcorders and printers that allows them to communicate with one another without needing a computer to translate. Otherwise, you might have a camera speaking Sony-ese while the printer speaks Canon-ese. And we all know how well that goes.

 

Pick any PictBridge-enabled digital camera and connect it directly to any PictBridge-enabled printer using a USB cable to get great photos, without needing a computer to play the middleman. This connectivity allows you to purchase the electronics you want—regardless of brand—and know that they will work together.

 

More than anything, PictBridge makes printing images easy—one camera plus one printer equals great pictures. 

Many photo printers have built-in memory card slots. All you have to do is pop the memory card out of your digital camera, slide it into the correct slot in the printer, and print.

 

To make this simple process even easier, many printers have built-in LCD screens that let you view your photos before you print. Many also print out preview sheets with tiny versions of the images on your memory card. These thumbnails allow you to preview your pictures quickly, and easily choose which ones to print.

Some manufacturers have printer docks that are compatible with specific cameras. Instead of connecting a camera with a cable or moving the memory card, you just place the camera on the dock itself and print. The camera's LCD screen lets you preview images before you print. Under normal conditions, you get 4" x 6" photos in a matter of minutes. These docks often recharge the batteries as well—a definite plus in the digital world.