Image CaptureŃItŐs still here.
Before there was iPhoto, there was Image Capture, and itŐs still included in every copy of OS X. As its name implies, it helps you import images into your Macintosh. You can import from almost any digital camera or card reader without any driver installations, and you can also use Image Capture to import from a scanner, which is something iPhoto cannot do. In fact, there are a lot of things Image Capture does that iPhoto doesnŐt. I donŐt have time to go into all of the details, so I suggest opening Image Capture yourself, and browsing the Help Viewer. Some of the cooler features include Rendezvous device sharing, (scanners and cameras) as well as the ability to remotely control a digital camera via a web page (for monitoring purposes).
iPhoto is excellent if you take a roll of pictures, and want to import all of them into your photo library. If you want more advanced controls and automation, give Image Capture a try. For example, I have been composing a QTVR file of my entire house, which requires several hundred source images. Since I donŐt want these photos cluttering my iPhoto library, especially considering that there are 24 pictures for each panorama, it is easier to import the files directly to where I can use them in QTVR Authoring Studio. To make my life easier, in Image Capture preferences, I have Image Capture open when I insert a Memory Stick in my card reader. In the device settings, I have it set to automatically download the images to my QTVR folder, and then delete the originals from the card. This means that all I have to do is insert the card, and Image Capture does the rest.
You can also set more automatic tasks, such as resizing, cropping, building a slideshow, or building a web page. Another nice option is that it allows you to embed a specific ColorSync profile in all of the images. If you want, Image Capture can create full 128x128 pixel icons for the image files, which come in handy when organizing within the Finder. If you shared the camera with somebody else and only want to download some of the images, Image Capture allows you to do that (in two different viewsŃlist and icon), with options to rotate along the way. For those of you who use the audio and video capabilities of your camera in addition to still photography, Image Capture can automatically direct the files to the corresponding Pictures, Movies, and Music folders.
This is just a taste of
the power of Image Capture. Have fun.
UPDATE: Macworld has also pointed out the new features of Image Capture.