Mashable has a great article today, This Is How Your DSLR Camera Actually Works, and I thought it worth a quick mention.
DSLR Camera
In the article, Dani Fankhauser explains how the viewfinder, mirror, prism, and lenses come together in helping photographers generate great photos. Dani touches on how the single-lens-reflex technology is one of the main features that differentiates DSLR cameras. “DSLR” is an acronym for “digital single-lens reflex”, in fact.
I wish they had also gone into the software behind the autocorrections, compression and saving of the resultant digital images, however. These algorithms often either help or hinder photographers since they can mitigate some of the worst mistakes that photographers unwittingly make, such as shaking the came while taking the picture. The compression algorithms can also sometimes leave little trace artifacts within the image pixels, although these types of issues are reduced every day.
Still, it’s a simple, solid article and a worthwhile read for anyone unfamiliar with DSLR cameras.
If you want even more info on the subject, read the Wikipedia article on Digital single-lens reflex camera.