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Imaging Resource have just reviewed the 4 megapixel Kodak Easyshare LS743 digital camera.
“While the LS743 is very similar to the 5-megapixel LS753 model, after reviewing both models, I feel that the LS753 really offers better value for the money. While the LS743 is $50 cheaper than the 753 at retail, the 753 has a few more scene modes, twice the internal memory, and seems to have a more accurate white balance system than the LS743 as well. The LS753 shares the 743’s tendency to lose subtle subject detail to its anti-noise processing, but the higher resolution of its sensor will help win a little of that back. Bottom line, if you can afford the extra $50 (probably less than that, when comparing the cameras’ “street” prices), I’d recommend the LS753 as a better deal.”
Imaging Resource have just reviewed the 4 megapixel Kodak Easyshare LS743 digital camera. “While the LS743 is very similar to the 5-megapixel LS753 model, after reviewing both models, I feel that the LS753 really offers better value for the money. While the LS743 is $50 cheaper than the 753 at…
Imaging Resource have just reviewed the 5 megapixel Kodak Easyshare LS753, which was first announced back in January.
“High barrel distortion, but no pincushion. Very low chromatic aberration. Optical distortion on the LS753 Zoom was high at the wide-angle end, where I measured approximately 1.07 percent barrel distortion. The telephoto end fared much better, as I couldn’t find any geometric distortion, either pincushion or barrel. There appeared to be a little “coma” in the corners of the image, producing a little blurring of target elements there, but chromatic aberration was quite low, showing only very faint coloration on either side of the target lines. (This distortion is visible as a very slight colored fringe around the objects at the edges of the field of view on the resolution target.)”
Imaging Resource have just reviewed the 5 megapixel Kodak Easyshare LS753, which was first announced back in January. “High barrel distortion, but no pincushion. Very low chromatic aberration. Optical distortion on the LS753 Zoom was high at the wide-angle end, where I measured approximately 1.07 percent barrel distortion. The telephoto…
Digital Outback Photo has published another excellent article by Glenn E. Mitchell II which looks at using the Lens Blur filter in Adobe Photoshop CS.
“I do a lot of botanical and nature photography, so I constantly wrestle with getting just enough DOF to blur the background without losing sharpness at the tips of flower petals or on stamens projecting out towards the camera on long antlers. Sometimes I get the shot. Sometimes I wind up with less DOF that I would have preferred. I usually hedge my bet by bracketing my shots.
The Lens Blur filter changes all that. I can shoot for wider DOF to make sure I get all of the flower details in focus and then narrow the DOF once I get the image loaded into Photoshop CS.”
Website: Digital Outback Photo - Taking Control Over Depth Of Field
Digital Outback Photo has published another excellent article by Glenn E. Mitchell II which looks at using the Lens Blur filter in Adobe Photoshop CS. “I do a lot of botanical and nature photography, so I constantly wrestle with getting just enough DOF to blur the background without losing sharpness…
Shriro Sweden Press Release 12/08/04
A BRAVE NEW WORLD: HASSELBLAD AND IMACON MERGE TO TAKE ON THE PROFESSIONAL DIGITAL MARKET
8/12/2004 Shriro Sweden, the holding company of Victor Hasselblad AB, and part of the Hong Kong-headquartered Shriro Group, has announced the acquisition of leading international high-end scanner and digital cameraback manufacturer, Imacon. The move will see Imacon and Hasselblad merge to accelerate Hasselblad’s ambitions in the professional digital photographic sector, and creates the first single source supplier for digital photography at the top end of the professional photographic market.
Christian Poulsen, founder of Imacon, and CEO of the newly-enlarged Hasselblad says: “Hasselblad has long been synonymous with quality in the field of analogue photography and Imacon is recognised as leading the way in terms of innovative technologies in the high-end digital photographic sectors.
This new company presents us with tremendous opportunities to move forward and is the most exciting development in the field of professional digital photography for many years. It will significantly lower the barriers to entry and allow more photographers than ever before to realise the quality, versatility and performance of our high-end digital solutions.”
Shriro Sweden Press Release 12/08/04 A BRAVE NEW WORLD: HASSELBLAD AND IMACON MERGE TO TAKE ON THE PROFESSIONAL DIGITAL MARKET 8/12/2004 Shriro Sweden, the holding company of Victor Hasselblad AB, and part of the Hong Kong-headquartered Shriro Group, has announced the acquisition of leading international high-end scanner and digital cameraback…
CNET have published their review of the new 5 megapixel Nikon Coolpix 5200 compact digital camera.
“Although targeted at the same snapshooting cadre as its Coolpix 3200 and Coolpix 2200 siblings, the Nikon Coolpix 5200 is a horse of a different color. It’s just as pocketable and as highly automated as its stablemates, but the Coolpix 5200 sports a 5-megapixel sensor and a slightly smaller metal—not plastic—body with a better layout. Additionally, it costs $150 to $250 more. It will please first-time digital camera owners who want to make large prints without much editing, but if you’re an image-quality snob, look elsewhere.
Website: CNET - Nikon Coolpix 5200 Review
CNET have published their review of the new 5 megapixel Nikon Coolpix 5200 compact digital camera. “Although targeted at the same snapshooting cadre as its Coolpix 3200 and Coolpix 2200 siblings, the Nikon Coolpix 5200 is a horse of a different color. It’s just as pocketable and as highly automated…
PictoColor Corporation Press Release 11/08/04
PictoColor Releases iCorrect EditLab Pro High Speed Professional Color Correction and Color Management Software
iCorrect EditLab Pro combines the highly-acclaimed, easy-to-use iCorrect color technology with automated processes for fast and easy digital photo color correction and color management.
August 11, 2004, Burnsville, MN, USA, PictoColor Corporation has released iCorrect EditLab Pro color correction and color management software that enables photographers and photo labs to accurately color correct images with speed and precision. Based on an enhanced version of the award-winning and highly-acclaimed iCorrect ?point-and-click? color technology licensed from Pictographics International Corporation, iCorrect EditLab Pro incorporates automated batch processing features designed to make digital photo color correction simple and extremely fast. Color accurate images are automatically profiled into a RGB working color space for use in a color managed workflow. Color correction parameters can be saved as ICC input profiles or as Custom Settings. It is available either as an Adobe Photoshop action enabled plug-in or a Stand-Alone application for rapid-fire batch color correction. The Stand Alone version features ProcessQ(TM), PictoColor’s new technology for automatically applying customized correction parameters or ICC input profiles to a group of pictures. Both versions are available for Macintosh or Windows operating systems.
PictoColor Corporation Press Release 11/08/04 PictoColor Releases iCorrect EditLab Pro High Speed Professional Color Correction and Color Management Software iCorrect EditLab Pro combines the highly-acclaimed, easy-to-use iCorrect color technology with automated processes for fast and easy digital photo color correction and color management. August 11, 2004, Burnsville, MN, USA, PictoColor…
PhotoScala are reporting that Leica, in conjunction with a company called Hugyfot, have announced an underwater housing kit for their Digilux 2 digital camera, which allows you to dive up to 80 metres. As is usual with all things Leica, it is both very well-made and very expensive (2,400 Euros!).
“The Hugyfot underwater body has cable bushing for external flash units and sports many useful features, including a flat port, an anti-shock handgrip with screw ball and toothed rings for aperture, focus and shutter speed settings.”
PhotoScala are reporting that Leica, in conjunction with a company called Hugyfot, have announced an underwater housing kit for their Digilux 2 digital camera, which allows you to dive up to 80 metres. As is usual with all things Leica, it is both very well-made and very expensive (2,400 Euros!)…
In a blatant rip-off of a story that was on Engadget yesterday about people’s first ever cellphones, I thought it would be interesting (and a bit of a laugh) to find out what was your first ever digital camera. I was late to photography, never-mind digital cameras, so my first digicam was the Minolta DiMAGE 5 (pictured), a 3 megapixel model that I bought because it offered a lot of photographic control and because I couldn’t afford the 5 megapixel DiMAGE 7. The Minolta DiMAGE 5 cost me about ?500 a couple of years ago - how times have changed!
So what was your first ever digicam, or are you too embarassed to own up to it? :-) Post a comment below and share it with everyone…
UPDATE 11/08/04: As this story has proved so popular, I’m promoting it to be the lead story for the next few days :-)
In a blatant rip-off of a story that was on Engadget yesterday about people’s first ever cellphones, I thought it would be interesting (and a bit of a laugh) to find out what was your first ever digital camera. I was late to photography, never-mind digital cameras, so my first…
LetsGoDigital have just reviewed the 8-megapixel Konica Minolta DiMAGE A2 digital camera.
“The unique Anti-Shake function is absolutely one of the strongest trump cards that Konica Minolta possesses. We will undoubtedly hear more about it! The camera starts up really fast and is excellently capable of capturing the fast moments. Despite of the high resolution on a relatively small image sensor, the low ISO values have an outstanding noise proportion. Beside that the Konica Minolta’s focusing technique is capable of dealing with diverse objects. It is only occasionally that the focus gives in. If that is the case the switch to manual focus can be made easily and quickly.”
LetsGoDigital have just reviewed the 8-megapixel Konica Minolta DiMAGE A2 digital camera. “The unique Anti-Shake function is absolutely one of the strongest trump cards that Konica Minolta possesses. We will undoubtedly hear more about it! The camera starts up really fast and is excellently capable of capturing the fast moments…
Photo.net have posted a review by Damon Fernandes of the 8-megapixel Sony CyberShot DSC-F828 digital camera.
“The pictures that the Sony produces are incredibly sharp and natural. As far as the “purple fringing” issue, for me it wasn’t a problem. In 3,000 frames, I’ve seen it maybe four times. I have no idea why there is such a focus on this issue in the various forums on the web. I’ve read that there are ways to get around the issue, but really, it hasn’t been an issue for me. I feel safe in saying that with the type of images I shoot, I have not experienced a purple fringing problem with the F828.”
Photo.net have posted a review by Damon Fernandes of the 8-megapixel Sony CyberShot DSC-F828 digital camera. “The pictures that the Sony produces are incredibly sharp and natural. As far as the “purple fringing” issue, for me it wasn’t a problem. In 3,000 frames, I’ve seen it maybe four times. I…
Steves Digicams have reviewed the new Olympus Ferrari-branded digital camera, which is based upon the the ultracompact Olympus Camedia AZ-1 (first announced on April 19th 2004). 10,000 of these cameras will be sold worldwide.
“The Ferrari Digital Model 2004 is the second generation of limited edition Olympus Ferrari Digital cameras. It’s a stylish and durable point-n-shoot, that offers 3.2-megapixels of resolution coupled with a high quality 3x optical zoom lens. With its Program Auto mode, any user can obtain great images without enduring a long learning process, and if you want to be more creative simply select one of the twenty-two scene modes. When using one of these scene modes, it offers helpful advice on what the intended uses for the particular mode are. This is useful when trying to capture a certain look and you are not exactly sure how to achieve it.”
Website: Steves Digicams - Olympus Camedia AZ-1 Ferrari Edition Review
Steves Digicams have reviewed the new Olympus Ferrari-branded digital camera, which is based upon the the ultracompact Olympus Camedia AZ-1 (first announced on April 19th 2004). 10,000 of these cameras will be sold worldwide. “The Ferrari Digital Model 2004 is the second generation of limited edition Olympus Ferrari Digital cameras…
Steves Digicams have reviewed the 5 megapixel Samsung Digimax V50.
“With its 5-megapixel imager, high quality lens, and host of exposure features, the Samsung Digimax V50 is only an average competitor in the consumer digicam market. It produces good image quality, but suffers a bit from shutter lag, a weak flash, and average low-light autofocus performance. If you need a camera that’s versatile enough to be used by everyone in your family, and like the expandability offered by the optional conversion lenses, the V50 offers a fairly good value with a street price of about $400 (as of Aug. 2004.)”
Steves Digicams have reviewed the 5 megapixel Samsung Digimax V50. “With its 5-megapixel imager, high quality lens, and host of exposure features, the Samsung Digimax V50 is only an average competitor in the consumer digicam market. It produces good image quality, but suffers a bit from shutter lag, a weak…
Steves Digicams have published one of the first reviews of the Epson PictureMate inkjet printer.
“The PictureMate is a good choice for today’s digital camera users that only need to make 4 x 6-inch size prints. If you want to make larger prints then look at the larger photo inkjet printers from Canon, HP or Epson—the PictureMate is strictly a 4 x 6” size printer. It’s small and very portable, it even has a carrying handle built right in to prove that it was designed to be portable. The only thing the PhotoMate lacks to make it a “perfect” standalone printer is a color preview LCD.”
Steves Digicams have published one of the first reviews of the Epson PictureMate inkjet printer. “The PictureMate is a good choice for today’s digital camera users that only need to make 4 x 6-inch size prints. If you want to make larger prints then look at the larger photo inkjet…
Canon USA Press Release 12/08/04
CANON RECEIVES 2004 INSIGHT AWARD FOR MOST INNOVATIVE CMOS IMAGE SENSOR TECHNOLOGY
Canon EOS 10D Recognized as One of the First High-End Digital SLR Cameras To Take Advantage of the Innovative CMOS Technology
Lake Success, N.Y., August 12, 2004 - Canon U.S.A., Inc., a subsidiary of Canon Inc. (NYSE: CAJ), today announced that it has received Semiconductor Insights’s 2004 INSIGHT Award for Most Innovative CMOS Image Sensor Technology.
Semiconductor Insights (SI), the leader in technical and patent analyses of integrated circuits and structures, analyzes hundreds of devices each year from the world’s most innovative companies. Through its INSIGHT Awards program, SI recognizes devices or technologies that change the performance/cost equation of their respective segments with a new design or process innovation. For the awards program, SI tested the CMOS Image Sensor Technology built into the Canon EOS 10D, one of the first high-end SLRs to use a CMOS image sensor.
“Our analysis confirmed that Canon has achieved the sensitivity and shutter speed of a CCD technology in a low cost CMOS process. As well, Canon’s CMOS process delivers a distinct power advantage over competitive CCD plays,” said Lluis Paris, director of TECHinsights for Semiconductor Insights. “The result is an affordable and high quality SLR.”
Canon USA Press Release 12/08/04 CANON RECEIVES 2004 INSIGHT AWARD FOR MOST INNOVATIVE CMOS IMAGE SENSOR TECHNOLOGY Canon EOS 10D Recognized as One of the First High-End Digital SLR Cameras To Take Advantage of the Innovative CMOS Technology Lake Success, N.Y., August 12, 2004 - Canon U.S.A., Inc., a subsidiary…
The winners of the July 2004 PhotographyBLOG Competition have now been decided. The theme for July was “Patterns” - you can view all of the entries in this gallery.
Once again, this month’s entries were excellent, making the judging particularly tough for the panel. Here are the winners:
1st Place
“Pebbles” by dapa_group
View this entry
Judges Comments:
“This photo looks like a stock photo it’s so good. The close-up perspective, the lighting, and the exposure are perfect.”
“Perfect lighting, composition and pin-sharp focusing combined with a great natural pattern.”
Prize: 1 copy of Ulead PhotoImpact XL
Kindly donated by Ulead Systems.
http://www.ulead.co.uk
2nd Place
“Windows” by csnudelman
View this entry
Judges Comments:
“The various representations are distinctly separated yet combine to an overall organic
image. The photo offers a complex variation of the traditional solution to simply photograph a given pattern, by letting us look through the pattern and see the same pattern in variations.”
Prize: Photobird.com one-year subscription with 100 megabytes of storage space
Kindly donated by Photobird.com.
http://www.photobird.com
3rd Place
“Munich Cafe” by turtletale
View this entry
Judges Comments:
“Well-seen man-made pattern, with the inclusion of the figure adding a sense of scale.”
Prize: 1 copy of Powerretouche Full Pro Pack
Kindly donated by Powerretouche.
http://powerretouche.com
Congratulations to the winners and thanks to everyone who took part!
The August 2004 Competition is now open for entries. This is a monthly photography competition with a specific theme and prizes for the top 3 photos. The winning entries will be decided by a panel of judges. You just have to submit one photograph to the Competition Gallery that best interprets August’s theme, which is simply “Sports”.
The winners of the July 2004 PhotographyBLOG Competition have now been decided. The theme for July was “Patterns” - you can view all of the entries in this gallery. Once again, this month’s entries were excellent, making the judging particularly tough for the panel. Here are the winners: 1st Place…
Modern buildings and reflections are two of my favourite photographic subjects - being able to put them together and combine both in one shot is even better. The building that occupies the address “5 London Bridge Street” lends itself well to an abstract approach.
Click on the image to view a larger version in a new window.
Modern buildings and reflections are two of my favourite photographic subjects - being able to put them together and combine both in one shot is even better. The building that occupies the address “5 London Bridge Street” lends itself well to an abstract approach. Click on the image to view…
Josh Waller seems to be making a habit of reviewing affordable digicams; this time he’s taken a look at the 3 megapixel Olympus C-725 Ultra Zoom, which has an 8x optical zoom and retails for around £141.
“Image quality is very good - the images have great colour, good detail, low noise, but seem a bit soft occassionally - there is some noticable purple fringing, which unfortunately is quite normal for ultra zoom digital cameras at the moment. The macro mode is good, if a bit average. The flash occassionally over-exposes photos when the subject is too close. The movie mode is quite poor, especially as it is limited in length and doesn’t record sound.”
Josh Waller seems to be making a habit of reviewing affordable digicams; this time he’s taken a look at the 3 megapixel Olympus C-725 Ultra Zoom, which has an 8x optical zoom and retails for around £141. “Image quality is very good - the images have great colour, good detail…
Roger Cavanagh has just reviewed PR Sharpness, part of the Power Retouche set of plug-ins for Photoshop (which incidentally is one of the prizes in the PhotographyBLOG August Competition).
“The first question, I suppose, is “does it work?”. My answer is: yes it does, very nicely. Fix Edges does an excellent job of handling sharpening halos (though it’s not as wonderful as the developer claims). The ability to adjust soft threshold, bright and colour ranges affected provide a lot of control to fine-tune sharpening. The neophyte who’s been used to using the Photoshop filters Sharpen and Sharpen More may, at first, find the array of controls a little daunting, but a careful review of the tutorial and a few hours experimentation with different images will remedy that.”
Website: Roger Cavanagh - PR Sharpness Review
Roger Cavanagh has just reviewed PR Sharpness, part of the Power Retouche set of plug-ins for Photoshop (which incidentally is one of the prizes in the PhotographyBLOG August Competition). “The first question, I suppose, is “does it work?”. My answer is: yes it does, very nicely. Fix Edges does an…
The Spanish website quesabesde.com have published their review of the new 5 megapixel Nikon Coolpix 5200 compact digital camera.
The Spanish website quesabesde.com have published their review of the new 5 megapixel Nikon Coolpix 5200 compact digital camera. Website: quesabesde.com - Nikon Coolpix 5200 Review
The Hungarian website Index Digicam has beaten everyone to the punch by publishing the first internet review of the 4 megapixel Canon Powershot A85 digital camera.
Website: Index Digicam - Canon Announces PowerShot A85 Review
The Hungarian website Index Digicam has beaten everyone to the punch by publishing the first internet review of the 4 megapixel Canon Powershot A85 digital camera. Website: Index Digicam - Canon Announces PowerShot A85 Review