A method for automatic image capture control and digital imaging is described. An image buffer is initialized to store a digital image produced by an image sensor, through allocation of a region in memory for the buffer that is large enough to store a full resolution frame from the image sensor. While non-binning streaming frames, from the sensor and in the buffer, are being displayed in preview, the sensor is reconfigured into binning mode, and then binned streaming frames are processed in the buffer, but without allocating a smaller region in memory for the buffer. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.