• Laptops fo tethering to digital cameras require specific specs to work as expected.laptop image by Manika from Fotolia.com
  
  Tethered photography involves connecting a digital camera to a computer or laptop and uploading the images for live preview during shooting. The advantages of tethered photography include immediate, high-resolution previewing of images and the ability to immediately share images with clients. A good laptop for tethered photography must be lightweight, have plenty of internal storage and lots of memory to manage the file transfer, and specific software requirements.
  
  

MacBook Pro

• The 15-inch MacBook Pro, with its unibody enclosure, LED backlight display and dual NVIDIA GeForce 9400M and NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT video cards, is a great choice for tethered photography. Its lightweight design--it comes in at 5.5 pounds and is .95 inches thick--allows it to easily sit on tripod platforms. The 15.4-inch backlit-LED display delivers crisp, clear images essential to judging photos while tethered. The MacBook Pro also features two USB 2.0 ports, perfect for faster uploading of images from any digital camera. Its additional features include extra-long battery life of up to seven hours (great for shooting in the field), maximum storage of up to 500 gigabytes (required for storing large numbers of RAW image files) and up to 8 gigabytes of RAM and a maximum processor speed of 3.06 GH (necessary to support the required tethering image software). As of April 2010, the 15-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1699.
  
  

Lenovo ThinkPad W510

• With its USB 3.0 ports, the Lenovo ThinkPad W510 offers increased file transfer rates compared to USB 2.0 devices. The W510 comes equipped with X-Rite PANTONE color calibration for precise color matching, plus its WSXGA or WUXGA displays offer increased high-resolution viewing. The W510 display features touch-screen technology for ease of use, plus the unit features ultra-wide band and WiMAX and Bluetooth connectivity, making it compatible with some of today's digital cameras with wireless technology. The W501 features up to 2.0 GHz of processing power with Intel i7 processor, Windows 7 Professional 64-bit operating system, and up to 8 gigabytes of memory capacity. As of April 2010, the Lenovo ThinkPad W510 lists from $2059.
  
  

Dell Inspiron 14

• The Dell Inspiron 14 features up to 4 gigabytes of memory and has a 14-inch high-definition wide-screen display. The Dell Inspiron 14 features the Intel Core i5 processor that delivers enough speed to manage the image editing software requirements for tethering. The maximum storage space comes in at 500 gigabytes, another requirement for uploading large RAW file images. The Inspiron 14 also features 3 USB 2.0 ports and has an optional SD, SDHC, MMC, xD and MS Pro media card reader. The machine is lightweight---it starts at 4.81 pounds, making it ideal for mounting on tripod stands and for carrying in larger camera bags. The internal DVD +/- RW burner allows for immediate burning of uploaded tethered images direct to DVD. As of April 2010, the Dell Inspiron 14 starts at $559.