Analog is defined as, "Relating to or using signals or information represented by a continuously variable physical quantity such as spatial position or voltage." Since film photography relies on reflected light for a chemical process/process to take place, film cannot be correctly considered "analog."
Old 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, etc., TVs are analog technology; modern HD TVs are digital technology.
Not in my view. there is no "signal". It is a chemical phenomenon. Declaring it as analog is somewhat like declaring injection molding of plastic as an analog process. the shape of the plastic bottle would be the "analog" (actually analogue), just as the image in a photograph is an "analog" (truly an analogue) of reality, but we do not use the term "analog" in information processing as having that same meaning of "equivalent in proportion and form" that analogue is used in a generic way.
They are different words, analog (signals) and analogue (proportionality or equivalence).
Yes, the FILM can be considered analog, but once PROCESSED, the photo cannot.
No. Analog, per the first source below, refers to "a device or system that represents changing values as continuously variable physical quantities." Photographic film captures an image in a mosaic of minute crystals (grains) of silver halide. In processing, a grain that has received a sufficient amount of light is converted to metallic silver, the other grains are washed away. Actually, photographic film could be considered a digital process, in the sense that each grain, like a bit in digital electronics, has only two states.
Analog and digital are opposite poles in the context of electronic signal processing -- a value is represented either as a particular level of some electrical property such as voltage, or by a string of bits (binary digits) which denote a specific number. An electronic camera is not necessarily digital -- old TV cameras were analog devices.
Johnny, I'd love to answer that but my command of the English language is too bad for digging deep in almost philosophical ground.
Rgds
Martin
Digital means it comes from the binary number system. There is only zero and one, on and off, black and white. That's what it means...... If there is gray, it is analog, and film has gray - gray meaning anything more than pure black and pure white.
Re comment: "It" means anything called digital. And no, digital images don't contain gray in the same sense as film. Film emulsion has full exposed, partially exposed and not exposed, in a manner of speaking, anyway. That is black, gray and white. Digital is dots - called pixels. Each dot has a "digital signature" assigned to it. One dot is black - #000000, one is white - #FFFFFF, and one is gray - #999999. Hex codes for the colors, and hex codes are shorthand for binary numbers. Otherwise black would be 00100100100100101001001010101010 or something like that.
Reading your confusion and comments: An analog watch is driven by a spring. The time is calculated by a train of gears. A digital watch calculates time literally by a digital signal that comes from a tiny quartz crystal. "Beep, Beep, Beep". An analog photo has varying exposures on the emulsion depending on how much light it was exposed to. Grays are half exposed, so to speak. In digital photos every pixel is 100% exposed, it just has a color value assigned to it. THAT pixel is 100% exposed but it's 100% gray.
Compared to digital , I would have to say yes . But after looking up the subject online I got mixed opinions . No set yes or no answer(s) .
When you get right down to it, the entire universe is digital. Planck lengths and all that.
I don't absoutely think so. Because photographic flim can not accurately described as "analong". It is a mordern technology.....................
Photographic engineers strive to make the camera output a “faithful” image. This has never been achieved, close but no cigar. If such were possible, sitting in a Cinema Theater, you would need to dawn sunglasses to comfortably view a sunlit vista. Such is not the case because no photographic camera and image presentation system is yet up to this task. Let me add that the first successful photographic system was the Daguerreotype of 1839. You likely wont’s believe me when I tell you that the tonal range of this system continues to outshine todays black & white systems.
I tell you because what followed was graphic arts imaging used to print photographs for mass publications (printing press imaginary). Now for the jargon: Graphic Arts images in books and newspapers is referred to as “half-tone”. This is because the “continuous-tone” photograph is converted to dots of ink. The tonal range of the half-tone can be OK but never as good as the its continuous-tone cousin.
What can we call this wonderful continuous-tone image? How about “analogue” (British) or “analog
(United States). The definition is signal information represented by a continuously variable quantity.
I can’t help myself for the following on the digital method:
The digital camera fractures the image. In this way, millions of tiny picture elements are organized to represent the image of a vista. These picture elements are nicknamed “pixel”. Further, the pixel is subdivided into sub-pixel, one for each of the three light primaries which are red, green, and blue.
The imaging chip with its millions of photo-sites, records an image present to it by the lens as collection of electrical charges. The intensity of each charge is proportional to the brilliance of the scene at that specific location. Thus initially the image captured by the imaging chip is an analog image. Each charge is too weak to be of much value so the scheme is to amplify each charge and then convert it to a digital signal.
