14 DAY TRIAL // With the Windows operating system reaching the ubiquitous level of more than 1 billion users worldwide, Microsoft sees its involvement in the digital photography industry as nothing short of a natural evolution of its operating system. At the same time, Microsoft's involvement in the digital photography market spans beyond the Windows client and includes a combination of solutions, services and initiatives. However, with an install base already past the 1 billion milestone, the Redmond company's proprietary platform is placed virtually at the heart of the digital photography market.
“It’s a natural evolution in keeping with the overall evolution of technology. Many people now use their computers for digital photography. Computers have become, in a sense, the photo albums of our era. With that in mind, and considering that there are such a large number of Windows customers worldwide, we felt that we had a responsibility to find ways to improve the experience for photographers. To do that we assembled a team of photographers who live and breathe digital photography. Their goal is simple: produce and deliver professional quality products that are easy to use for photographers of all skill levels,” revealed Kostas Mallios, general manager, Microsoft’s Rich Media Group.
In terms of services, Microsoft offers projects such as PhotoSynth, designed to permit users to build navigable 3D environments out of 2D digital images with overlapping details. As far as software is concerned, Windows Vista is an epitome of how Microsoft understands to deal with digital photographs. Vista even supports images shot in RAW proprietary file formats. At the same time, the Redmond giant is delivering the Expression Media 2 management software which will also feature support for RAW via Capture One. On top of these products, Windows Live Photo Gallery is also available for download as a product aimed at non-professionals.
“Since we’re committed to offering more technologies in the future by taking a multi-tiered approach that spans research, our platform, applications and services, Microsoft’s presence in the digital photography industry represents a natural evolution. We simply wanted to provide more sophisticated products as the capabilities for digital photography expanded. That’s why we’re here today, and that’s why we’re thrilled to play a role in helping digital photographers make the most of technology,” Mallios added.