News

Monday, January 22, 2007

AnvicaIn the latest installment of this regular series, we cast the spotlight on members of the PhotographyBLOG Gallery and ask them about their photography. The 27th member to sit in the interview chair is Anvica.

“Since I have been involved in this gallery I have got an illness, I have called it “Photitis”, when I go walking in the street, to work, for shopping, etc., my eyes are looking for a new image… look at this house… this shadow… this lighting in the bus…”

Website: Gallery Member Spotlight - Anvica

In the latest installment of this regular series, we cast the spotlight on members of the PhotographyBLOG Gallery and ask them about their photography. The 27th member to sit in the interview chair is Anvica. “Since I have been involved in this gallery I have got an illness, I have…

BenQ have announced two new 6 megapixel digital cameras, the E610 and C610. The BenQ DC C610 features a sliding front cover and 2 inch LCD screen, whilst the more fully featured E610 has a larger 2.4 inch screen and Pentax 3x optical zoom lens. The BenQ E610 and C610 are currently available only in Europe.

BenQ have announced two new 6 megapixel digital cameras, the E610 and C610. The BenQ DC C610 features a sliding front cover and 2 inch LCD screen, whilst the more fully featured E610 has a larger 2.4 inch screen and Pentax 3x optical zoom lens. The BenQ E610 and C61…

Sigma SD14Sigma have published two white papers for their new DSLR, the SD14. Available in consumer and technical versions, the white papers describe how the Sigma SD14’s Foveon sensor capture images. Sigma recently announced that the release date of the SD14 was being pushed back to late Feb / early March.

Website: Sigma SD14 White Papers

Sigma have published two white papers for their new DSLR, the SD14. Available in consumer and technical versions, the white papers describe how the Sigma SD14’s Foveon sensor capture images. Sigma recently announced that the release date of the SD14 was being pushed back to late Feb / early March…

Epson Stylus Pro 4800Epson America has teamed up with ExpressDigital to introduce a new workflow and printing solution called the Epson Portrait Edition Series. The package includes either a Epson Stylus Pro 3800 or 4800 printer, ExpressDigital Darkroom Core Edition software, and a customized Web storefront. The Epson Stylus Pro 3800 Portrait Edition printer offers a complete large format in-house wedding and portrait printing solution for $1,495. The Epson Stylus Pro 4800 Portrait Edition is a high-performance printer featuring a built-in roll-feeder and paper tray cassette and is offered as a solution for $2,195.

Epson America has teamed up with ExpressDigital to introduce a new workflow and printing solution called the Epson Portrait Edition Series. The package includes either a Epson Stylus Pro 3800 or 4800 printer, ExpressDigital Darkroom Core Edition software, and a customized Web storefront. The Epson Stylus Pro 3800 Portrait Edition…

Leica M8Luminous Landscape editor Michael Reichmann reflects on 6 days spent in Marrakech, Morocco, with the Leica M8 digital camera.

“I try not to shoot a new location with any preconceptions. Some people pour over books, trying to learn as much about a place as possible beforehand. I do the opposite. I rarely look at photographs of a place, and only read enough to get the lay of the land. It is usually afterward, if a place really interests me, that I study up on it. In the case of Morocco, and Marrakech in particular, I found that this allowed me to spend the first few days with very fresh eyes. In fact, the best work I did was during the first half of the trip even though I shot more during the second half. I attribute this to what I call, the saturation effect. “

Website: Luminous Landscape - The Leica M8 in Marrakech

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Luminous Landscape editor Michael Reichmann reflects on 6 days spent in Marrakech, Morocco, with the Leica M8 digital camera. “I try not to shoot a new location with any preconceptions. Some people pour over books, trying to learn as much about a place as possible beforehand. I do the opposite…

Panasonic DMC-L1DCResource have published their review of the Panasonic DMC-L1 DSLR camera.

“The Lumix DMC-L1—Panasonic’s first digital SLR—combines modern technology and classic rangefinder styling into an impressive (but not class leading) package. It has very good photo quality (especially if you shoot in RAW mode), live viewing on its LCD display, generally snappy performance, plenty of manual controls, and the best kit lens on the market. The L1 isn’t without its flaws, though.”

Website: DCResource - Panasonic DMC-L1 Review

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DCResource have published their review of the Panasonic DMC-L1 DSLR camera. “The Lumix DMC-L1—Panasonic’s first digital SLR—combines modern technology and classic rangefinder styling into an impressive (but not class leading) package. It has very good photo quality (especially if you shoot in RAW mode), live viewing on its LCD display…

Apple ApertureDIWA member LetsGoDigital have just reviewed the latest release of Apple Aperture software.

“One of Aperture’s main advantages is that the original files remain unaffected. You notice this if correcting pictures. You can go back a step easily and without loss of quality. The fact that changes are saved in small files and not via a copy of the photograph frees up a lot of disk space and enables you to work very quickly. Aperture asks a lot of the processor and memory. No problem with the latest Intel Macs. The program runs extremely quickly on the new Apple MacBook Pro and you won’t have to wait long, especially if you have the new Mac Pro desktop computer!”

Website: LetsGoDigital - Apple Aperture Review

DIWA member LetsGoDigital have just reviewed the latest release of Apple Aperture software. “One of Aperture’s main advantages is that the original files remain unaffected. You notice this if correcting pictures. You can go back a step easily and without loss of quality. The fact that changes are saved in…

Olympus E-400DIWA member LetsGoDigital have just reviewed the Olympus E-400, the world’s smallest and lightest DSLR camera.

“The Olympus E-400 is compact (130x91x53 mm) and light (420 g incl. battery). With the introduction of the E400, Olympus has directly upgraded its maximum SLR resolution to 10 Megapixels. The Olympus E400 is one of the few SLR from the 10 Megapixel segment to have a double card slot; one for xD Picture card and one for CompactFlash. Although it has been available for several years, xD’s share of the market just doesn’t seem to want to grow. It still lags behind the Secure Digital card in regard to exchangeability and a lot will need to happen in order to put xD Picture on the map.”

Website: LetsGoDigital - Olympus E-400 Review

Website: Read our Olympus E-400 Review

Latest Prices / User Reviews

DIWA member LetsGoDigital have just reviewed the Olympus E-400, the world’s smallest and lightest DSLR camera. “The Olympus E-400 is compact (130x91x53 mm) and light (420 g incl. battery). With the introduction of the E400, Olympus has directly upgraded its maximum SLR resolution to 10 Megapixels. The Olympus E400 is…

Saturday, January 20, 2007

Fujifilm ASK-4000The Fujifilm ASK-4000 and ASK-2000 are dye-sub digital printers aimed at studio, wedding and event photographers. An 8x10 inch print can be made in 40 seconds, and both printers feature color-correction software incorporating Fujifilm’s Image Intelligence technology. The ASK-4000 and ASK-2000 feature small footprints of 1.5 square feet and 1.3 square feet respectively.

The Fujifilm ASK-4000 and ASK-2000 are dye-sub digital printers aimed at studio, wedding and event photographers. An 8x10 inch print can be made in 40 seconds, and both printers feature color-correction software incorporating Fujifilm’s Image Intelligence technology. The ASK-4000 and ASK-2000 feature small footprints of 1.5 square feet and 1.…

EpsonIntended for storefront graphics and point of purchase (POP) displays, Epson Enhanced Matte Poster Board sheets is 850gsm, 1.3mm thick and can be printed on both sides. The new board is designed to work with Epson UltraChrome K3 printers and is available in A3+ and A2 sizes. A3+ costs £39.19, A2 £60.14, and there are also single-sided 24”x30” and 30”x40” sizes.

Intended for storefront graphics and point of purchase (POP) displays, Epson Enhanced Matte Poster Board sheets is 850gsm, 1.3mm thick and can be printed on both sides. The new board is designed to work with Epson UltraChrome K3 printers and is available in A3+ and A2 sizes. A3+ costs £39.19…

International Shooting-All-The-Time DayPopular Photography & Imaging Magazine is challenging photographers to take as many pictures as they can for one day. The first ever International Shooting-All-The-Time Day is January 21. Photographers are challenged to take at least one photo every five minutes during the day, for a minimum of 225 photos. The subjects of the photos, along with the type of camera used are completely up to the photographer. This exercise will hopefully force photographers to grow and sharpen their skills by finding pictures where there seemingly aren’t any.Participants are encouraged to email their five best shots along with their name, address and phone number to [email protected]. The images will be posted on PopPhoto.com and one lucky person will be selected to win a Pentax K100D digital camera with two lens and a 4GB SanDisk Ultra II SD card (an $1,100 value).

For more information, go to http://www.popphoto.com/photocontests/3575

Popular Photography & Imaging Magazine is challenging photographers to take as many pictures as they can for one day. The first ever International Shooting-All-The-Time Day is January 21. Photographers are challenged to take at least one photo every five minutes during the day, for a minimum of 225 photos. The…

Pentax K10DDIWA member and Norwegian website Digit.no have reviewed the Pentax K10D, which offers 10.2 megapixels, shake-reduction, dust removal system, 22-bit colour, three new shooting modes, 2.5 inch LCD screen and 11 point auto-focusing.

“Pentax K10D is a most pleasant camera to work with. It has a professional look and a weatherproof construction, CCD-shift image stabiliser and dust removal, a large and bright viewfinder with exchangeable focusing screen, a very convenient button for instant RAW shooting (.PEF or .DNG), digital preview function, multi exposure and a lot of other goodies. The camera delivers excellent image quality with very low image noise even at ISO 1600 and wide dynamic range thanks to 22-bit A/D conversion. Color reproduction and white balance are both neutral and natural. Its 16-segments evaluating metering is a bit too conservative with highlight subjects and optimum image quality requires a better lens than the standard 18-55 mm zoom. My main concern is the harsh JPEG compression at “Best” quality setting, with almost the same compression ratio as “Better” quality. Unfortunately, Pentax have not fully implemented professional requirements. I miss X-sync terminal for studio flash, selectable options for noise reduction, larger selection of image parameter presets, 100% viewfinder coverage and multiple memories for manually metered white balance. A more user friendly menu system, memorising previous setting, is also desired.”

Website: Digit.no - Pentax K10D Review

Latest Prices / User Reviews

DIWA member and Norwegian website Digit.no have reviewed the Pentax K10D, which offers 10.2 megapixels, shake-reduction, dust removal system, 22-bit colour, three new shooting modes, 2.5 inch LCD screen and 11 point auto-focusing. “Pentax K10D is a most pleasant camera to work with. It has a professional look and a…

Friday, January 19, 2007

Nikon D40The Nikon D40 digital SLR camera with an 18-55mm kit lens is currently available for less than $600 / £400, making it one of the cheapest DSLRs around. But price isn’t the only attraction of the D40, as we find out in our latest review.

Website: Nikon D40 Review

The Nikon D40 digital SLR camera with an 18-55mm kit lens is currently available for less than $600 / £400, making it one of the cheapest DSLRs around. But price isn’t the only attraction of the D40, as we find out in our latest review. Website: Nikon D40 Review

DxO LabsThe DxO Lighting Flickr Toy automatically brings more pop to any digital photo stored on Flickr.com or on any computer connected to the web. The DxO Lighting Flickr Toy incorporates automatic local exposure and dynamic range optimization technology from DxO Labs and is free of charge. It’s available now from FD’s Flickr Toys website, http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/ .

The DxO Lighting Flickr Toy automatically brings more pop to any digital photo stored on Flickr.com or on any computer connected to the web. The DxO Lighting Flickr Toy incorporates automatic local exposure and dynamic range optimization technology from DxO Labs and is free of charge. It’s available now from…

TamronTamron have added a new Online Photo Gallery totheir website, the twist being that all the pictures have been shot with Tamron lenses. It could turn out to be a good resource for all would-be Tamron owners, although there are only a few photos there at the moment.

Tamron have added a new Online Photo Gallery totheir website, the twist being that all the pictures have been shot with Tamron lenses. It could turn out to be a good resource for all would-be Tamron owners, although there are only a few photos there at the moment.

CameraLabsCameraLabs have published Part 2 of their guide to backing-up your digital photos using RAID.

“To find out how best to protect your data, simply take a leaf from the techniques long-employed by mission-critical corporate and web servers to keep them running 24-7. One of the most popular and effective technologies they use to combat disk failure is called RAID and the latest affordable versions mean homes and small businesses can enjoy the same kind of protection as the largest corporate web servers.”

Website: CameraLabs - Backup your digital photos part 2 - it’s a RAID!

CameraLabs have published Part 2 of their guide to backing-up your digital photos using RAID. “To find out how best to protect your data, simply take a leaf from the techniques long-employed by mission-critical corporate and web servers to keep them running 24-7. One of the most popular and effective…

Nik SoftwareTeam Nik is a newly formed group of professional photographers who will work with Nik Software to develop educational programs related to Nik Software products. Members include Suzette Allen, Doug Box and Carl Caylor. You can find out more about Team Nik at www.niksoftware.com/teamnik

Team Nik is a newly formed group of professional photographers who will work with Nik Software to develop educational programs related to Nik Software products. Members include Suzette Allen, Doug Box and Carl Caylor. You can find out more about Team Nik at www.niksoftware.com/teamnik

Apple has posted record revenues of $7.1 billion and record net quarterly profits of $1.0 billion for the quarter ended December 30, 2006. Over 21 million iPods and 1.6 million Macintosh computers were sold in the run-up to Christmas.

Apple has posted record revenues of $7.1 billion and record net quarterly profits of $1.0 billion for the quarter ended December 30, 2006. Over 21 million iPods and 1.6 million Macintosh computers were sold in the run-up to Christmas.

Transcend 2GB microSD Memory CardTranscend have announced the smallest memory card in the world, a 2GB microSD memory card. Approximately 20% the size of a full-sized SD Card, the Transcend microSD card can also be used in regular SD memory card slots by combining the card with its provided adapter. The Transcend 2GB microSD Memory Card will cost 68€.

Transcend have announced the smallest memory card in the world, a 2GB microSD memory card. Approximately 20% the size of a full-sized SD Card, the Transcend microSD card can also be used in regular SD memory card slots by combining the card with its provided adapter. The Transcend 2GB microSD…

Just Resize My PhotosJust Resize My Photos is a software tool for resizing digital images in batches. It takes six quick and easy steps to resize an unlimited number of digital images. The purchase price for one user licence is $19.99, and there’s also a trial version available.

Just Resize My Photos is a software tool for resizing digital images in batches. It takes six quick and easy steps to resize an unlimited number of digital images. The purchase price for one user licence is $19.99, and there’s also a trial version available.