physics

A camera for visible light imaging detects energy in form of electromagnetic radiation.
Energy is detected / collected with a light sensor.
The sensor converts electromagnetic energy into electrical energy. This is an energy transfer.
The conversion is a more or less non-linear function for the range of wavelengths in visible light.
The electrical energy distribution is then digitized. 

Images are a projection from a 3D spatial energy distribution (visual light) onto a 2D planar density distribution area (sensor surface). 
The projection is facilitated with an optical lens system.

The images shown are "black & white", which is essentially a continuous (analog) and discontinuous (digital) gray scale between black and white.