--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Small, portable digital cameras that…" description: "\"Small, portable digital cameras that exceed the performance of an off-the-shelf Nikon using 35mm slide film are further away from current reality than ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ea/galen-rowell-19446_cameras_small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exce_1406201.png" --- # Small, portable digital cameras that exceed the… ![“Small, portable digital cameras that exceed the performance of an off-the-shelf Nikon using 35mm slide film are further away from current reality than the proposed NASA manned Mars mission, although I expect both to happen sometime during my lifetime.” quote by Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ea/galen-rowell-19446_cameras_small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exce_1406201.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ea/galen-rowell-19446_cameras_small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exce_1406201.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ea/galen-rowell-19446_cameras_small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exce_1406201.png) > “Small, portable digital cameras that exceed the performance of an off-the-shelf Nikon using 35mm slide film are further away from current reality than the proposed NASA manned Mars mission, although I expect both to happen sometime during my lifetime.” [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The statement compares the feasibility of advanced consumer cameras to a Mars mission, highlighting skepticism about near‑term technological breakthroughs. **In simple terms:** Skeptical about rapid tech progress. Key Takeaway Question hype and set realistic expectations. Themes technology skepticism future innovation expectations Mood cautious analytical Type explanatory critical When to use this quote - product development - consumer expectations - future planning - space mission timelines Key Concepts technological diffusion market hype space exploration Questions to Reflect On - Are there emerging technologies that could bridge this gap sooner? - How do you evaluate realistic timelines for tech breakthroughs? A Different Perspective Overly dismissive comparisons can overlook incremental advances. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) [Cameras Exceed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras-exceed-4943322/) [Currents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/currents/) [Digital](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/digital/) [Digital cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/digital-cameras/) [Exceed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exceed/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Film Away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film-away-1355193/) [Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens/) [Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) [Mars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mars/) [Missions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missions/) [NASA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nasa/) [Nikon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nikon/) [Performances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performances/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Proposed Nasa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/proposed-nasa-4943323/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Shelves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shelves/) [Slides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slides/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) ## Related quotes > [I've never seen a film get away completely unscathed like I have 'Animal Kingdom.' 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The film needs to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pirjo-honkasalo/you-give-your-film-away-to-the-audience-once-it-s-done-i-never-look/) [Pirjo Honkasalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pirjo-honkasalo/) > [Sometimes when you make a film you can go away for three months and then come back and live your life. 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Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tegan-quin/i-don-t-want-to-live-my-life-like-a-story-always-thinkin-i-could-ve/) [Tegan Quin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tegan-quin/) > [When I finish a film, I put it away and I never look at it again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/when-i-finish-a-film-i-put-it-away-and-i-never-look-at-it-again/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) > [When I make a film I'm away from home for two to three months. So I want my kids to look at my films…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-costner/when-i-make-a-film-i-m-away-from-home-for-two-to-three-months-so-i/) [Kevin Costner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-costner/) > [We have become a nation of Kodachrome, Nikon, Instamatic addicts. But we haven't yet developed a clear idea of the ethics of picture-taking. ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/we-have-become-a-nation-of-kodachrome-nikon-instamatic-addicts-but-we/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [Kodachrome, it gives us those nice bright colors Gives us the greens of summers Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, oh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/kodachrome-it-gives-us-those-nice-bright-colors-gives-us-the-greens/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [I'm gathering Kylie thinks that all it takes to capture an image is to point and shoot. That's what everyone thinks. But there's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-thomas/i-m-gathering-kylie-thinks-that-all-it-takes-to-capture-an-image-is/) [Valerie Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-thomas/) > [If you can shoot well, all you need is a disposable, toy camera or a camera phone to create great work. If you're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-rockwell/if-you-can-shoot-well-all-you-need-is-a-disposable-toy-camera-or-a/) [Ken Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-rockwell/) > [ \[After Easy Rider\] I couldn't get another movie, so I lived in Mexico City for a couple of years. I lived in Paris for… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-hopper/after-easy-rider-i-couldn-t-get-another-movie-so-i-lived-in-mexico/) [Dennis Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-hopper/) ## More by Galen Rowell > [I almost never set out to photograph a landscape, nor do I think of my camera as a means of recording a mountain or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/i-almost-never-set-out-to-photograph-a-landscape-nor-do-i-think-of-my/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [Theres no question that photographs communicate more instantly and powerfully than words do, but if you want to communicate a complex concept clearly, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/theres-no-question-that-photographs-communicate-more-instantly-and/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [Ever since the 1860s when photographers travelled the American West and brought photographs of scenic wonders back to the people on the East Coast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/ever-since-the-1860s-when-photographers-travelled-the-american-west/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [The most interesting parts of the natural world are the edges, places where ocean meets land, meadow meets forest, timberline touches the heights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/the-most-interesting-parts-of-the-natural-world-are-the-edges-places/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [I think landscape photography in general is somewhat undervalued.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/i-think-landscape-photography-in-general-is-somewhat-undervalued/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [We mountaineers always live with the feeling that we came on the scene too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/we-mountaineers-always-live-with-the-feeling-that-we-came-on-the/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [Today, I'm very careful not to mention very specific locations when I write or give captions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/today-i-m-very-careful-not-to-mention-very-specific-locations-when-i/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [One of the biggest mistakes a photographer can make is to look at the real world and cling to the vain hope that next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/one-of-the-biggest-mistakes-a-photographer-can-make-is-to-look-at-the/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [There is no question that photography has played a major role in the environmental movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/there-is-no-question-that-photography-has-played-a-major-role-in-the/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [The landscape is like being there with a powerful personality and I'm searching for just the right angles to make that portrait come across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/the-landscape-is-like-being-there-with-a-powerful-personality-and-i-m/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [You only get one sunrise and one sunset a day, and you only get so many days on the planet. A good photographer does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/you-only-get-one-sunrise-and-one-sunset-a-day-and-you-only-get-so/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [And most of my early pictures failed but about one in a 100 somehow looked better than what I saw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/and-most-of-my-early-pictures-failed-but-about-one-in-a-100-somehow/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [I began to realize that the camera sees the world differently than the human eye and that sometimes those differences can make a photograph…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/i-began-to-realize-that-the-camera-sees-the-world-differently-than/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [I find it some of the hardest photography and the most challenging photography I've ever done. It's a real challenge to work with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/i-find-it-some-of-the-hardest-photography-and-the-most-challenging/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) > [When the light is right and everything is working for me, I feel as tense as when making a difficult maneuver high on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/when-the-light-is-right-and-everything-is-working-for-me-i-feel-as/) [Galen Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) [Explore all 32 Galen Rowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/) ## More Cameras quotes > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I have a way to photograph. You work with space, you have a camera, you have a frame, and then a fraction of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastiao-salgado/i-have-a-way-to-photograph-you-work-with-space-you-have-a-camera-you/) [Sebastiao Salgado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastiao-salgado/) > [I'm a film guy. I love it. When I read the screenplay, I knew that there would be no HD camera that could achieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deon-taylor/i-m-a-film-guy-i-love-it-when-i-read-the-screenplay-i-knew-that-there/) [Deon Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deon-taylor/) > [To shift the structure of a sentence alters the meaning of that sentence, as definitely and inflexibly as the position of a camera alters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/to-shift-the-structure-of-a-sentence-alters-the-meaning-of-that/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [I can look around a room and tell you if there are hidden cameras or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-ash/i-can-look-around-a-room-and-tell-you-if-there-are-hidden-cameras-or/) [Lauren Ash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-ash/) > [There's nothing like the energy in a small comedy club room or a small theater when it's going really well. I can see everybody's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-carey/there-s-nothing-like-the-energy-in-a-small-comedy-club-room-or-a/) [Drew Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-carey/) > [When they took me to do the camera test for the vampire make up, after they put the prosthetic on, I went though the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-benz/when-they-took-me-to-do-the-camera-test-for-the-vampire-make-up-after/) [Julie Benz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-benz/) > [I like acting too much and it's too, I'm just too busy doing that and I'm too hungry for it, to get behind the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-weisz/i-like-acting-too-much-and-it-s-too-i-m-just-too-busy-doing-that-and/) [Rachel Weisz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-weisz/) > [“To all the secret writers, late-night painters, would-be singers, lapsed and scared artists of every stripe, dig out your paintbrush, or your flute, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/to-all-the-secret-writers-late-night-painters-would-be-singers-lapsed/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [Many times I've sat with a camera and another actor and seen all their fears and insecurities and struggles. 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What I do now with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-mekas/i-m-not-so-much-in-the-future-as-always-in-the-present-the-future/) [Jonas Mekas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-mekas/) [Browse all 2,666 Cameras quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Small, portable digital cameras that exceed the performance of an off-the-shelf Nikon using 35mm slide film are further away from current reality than the proposed NASA manned Mars mission, although I expect both to happen sometime during my lifetime.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Galen Rowell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exceed-the-performance-of-an-off/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cameras" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exceed-the-performance-of-an-off/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ea/galen-rowell-19446_cameras_small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exce_1406201.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ea/galen-rowell-19446_cameras_small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exce_1406201.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1ea/galen-rowell-19446_cameras_small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exce_1406201.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Small, portable digital cameras that exceed the performance of an off-the-shelf Nikon using 35mm slide film…” — Galen Rowell", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Galen Rowell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galen-rowell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Small, portable digital cameras that exceed...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exceed-the-performance-of-an-off/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galen-rowell/small-portable-digital-cameras-that-exceed-the-performance-of-an-off/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```