Windows 8: Out of the Box

Chapter 6. Importing, Viewing, and Editing Your Photographs and Videos

Photographs are an ever-important part of life, allowing us to relive precious moments or share in the experiences of our friends and family. Digital cameras have allowed us to take many more photographs than we could have with film cameras and to share them in new and exciting ways both with friends and family and also with the wider world. You can read more about how to share your digital photographs in Chapter 3.

While your digital camera will probably come with software that will enable you to import photos and organize them in different ways, Windows 8 includes many of these features as standard so that in many cases there’s no need to install the additional software that came with your camera.

Top Tips from This Chapter

1. Windows Photo Gallery, free from Microsoft, includes some excellent photo-management and editing tools.

2. You can choose what happens when you plug a memory card into your computer through the Default Programs panel.

3. Tags can be added to photos to make them easier to find.

Importing Photos and Video from Your Digital Camera

You can import photos and video from your digital camera or camcorder in the same way, either by plugging your camera directly into your computer using a cable, or by removing the memory card from the camera and inserting it into a card reader built into or attached to the PC.

Note

You can’t import photos to all Windows 8 tablets, especially the consumer tablets. This is because ...