DigitalCameraInfo have published their review of the new Sony DSC-H1 digital camera. The DSC-H1 has a 12x optical zoom lens (equivalent to 36-432 millimeters), 5 megapixel CCD and 2.5 inch LCD screen.

“As the digital camera market matures and consumers want better cameras, more people are growing tired of their 3x optical zoom lenses. Enter the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H1. This digital camera has a 12x optical zoom lens with the option of attaching wide angle and telephoto conversion lenses. It also has 5.1 megapixels, which is enough juice to pump out 11 x 17-inch prints. The H1 heads up Sony’s “enthusiast” series with a huge lens, 2.5-inch LCD screen, manual and automatic shooting capabilities, and a highly coveted image stabilization system. For the $499.95 retail price, photographers can get versatility from this digital camera without having to dish out more money for an SLR.”

Website: DigitalCameraInfo - Sony DSC-H1 Review

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The Hungarian website Index Digicam have posted their review of the 5 megapixel, 10x optical zoom Kodak EASYSHARE DX7590 digital camera.

Website: Index Digicam - Kodak EasyShare DX7590 Review

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Canon have published 4 sample images taken with the 12.8 megapixel Canon EOS 5D digital SLR. Full sized JPEGs are available, which were all converted from RAW using RAW Image Task. The largest image is 12.6 MB in size!

Website: Canon - Canon EOS 5D Sample Images

DIWA member Digit.no have published a preview of the Canon 5D, a new 12.8 megapixel full-frame digital SLR camera, which also has a few sample photos.

“The few test images I managed to shoot showed that the image quality is excellent at all ISO settings. A new and exciting feature is the “Picture Style” settings, which at first glance gave an “amateur” touch to the camera, but Canon’s explaination of the concept gave reasonable meaning. It’s an ingenious way of simplifying complicated settings to simulate the qualities of various film types. In its extreme consequence, the EOS 5D has a total of 48.816 possible settings combinations. “Picture Style” gives the photographer preset settings of colour, sharpness and contrast to match the subject type. The choices are Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Neutral, Faithful and Monochrome. “

Website: Digit.no - Canon EOS 5D First Impressions

DCResource have taken a look at the new Samsung Digimax i5, a slim 5 megapixel digital camera with 3x optical internal zoom lens equivalent to 39-117mm and a 2.5” 230K-pixel high resolution LCD.

“I applaud Samsung for going above and beyond the call of duty in the bundled memory department. Like many manufacturers, Samsung choose to build memory right into the i5 instead of supplying a memory card. On most cameras in this class, that means anywhere from 8.3 to 16 Megabytes of internal memory. Not Samsung—they put a whopping 50MB of internal memory on the i5, something that separates it from everything else in this class. If you want to add more memory, you can buy a Secure Digital or MultiMedia card and put it into the slot on the bottom of the camera. I’d suggest a 256MB SD card as a good starting point. A high speed SD card does make a difference, especially when shooting in continuous mode.”

Website: DCResource - Samsung Digimax i5 Review

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DPReview have published a preview of the Canon 5D, a new 12.8 megapixel full-frame digital SLR camera..

“My initial description of the EOS 5D when compared to the EOS 20D was ‘chunkier’, and I still think that’s a fair comment. It’s actually not that much larger than the EOS 20D, about 8 mm (⅓ inch) wider and taller but thanks to a remolded and grip (which now has a finger hook) and its extra weight (125 g / 4.4 oz) the EOS 5D does create the impression that it is both more substantial and more robust. Other than this the EOS 5D does look remarkably similar to the EOS 20D, even the control layout on the rear of the camera is virtually identical. The intention of course is to tempt existing EOS 20D owners to upgrade with the least amount of fuss.”

Website: DPReview - Canon EOS 5D Preview

The Hungarian website Index Digicam have taken a look at the new Sony DSC-S60 digital camera.

Website: Index Digicam - Sony DSC-S60 Review

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DesignTechnica have published their review of the 5 megapixel, 10x zoom Kodak EasyShare Z740 digital camera.

“Once the photos were taken the true blessing of the bundle makes itself very clear. Rather than run down to the local drugstore or mass merchant to use a photo kiosk to make prints, I simply placed the camera in the dock. It automatically sprung to life and asked how many prints I wanted of the image on the LCD screen. After picking the number and pressing print, in about 90 seconds a very high quality photo appeared. By simply tearing off the edges, I had a smooth-edged 4x6 in my hand. Very cool indeed.”

Website: DesignTechnica - Kodak EasyShare Z740 Review

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DXG USA Press Release

CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA., August 24, 2005—DXG USA has announced the availability of the DXG-528, a premium 5.1 megapixel CCD digital camera designed for step-up camera buyers looking for enhanced features and photographic quality without the high cost.

The DXG-528 features a slim aluminum housing, impressive 2.4” LTPS LCD screen, Pentax 3X optical zoom (with three aspherical lenses), built-in 32MB flash memory, SD/MMC card slot, MPEG-4 video with sound and Direct Print capability. The camera also offers voice recorder and MP3 functionality, as well as TV-Out capability for viewing pictures on a television. Other customer-friendly features include a real image optical viewfinder and the ability to be powered by two alkaline AA batteries. The DXG-528 is available immediately with an MSRP of $199.

Pentax USA Press Release

VISIT THE PENTAX www.H20camera.com WATERPROOF DIGITAL CAMERA WEBSITE FOR A CHANCE TO WIN AN OPTIOWP SKIN

Golden, CO. (August 25, 2005)…PENTAX Imaging Company announced today the limited availability of a protective, silicone Skin for the OptioWP digital camera.  Custom-made to protect the popular waterproof camera, the PENTAX OptioWP Skin helps prevent surface scratches and dents, offers a non-slip surface and retains the compact, elegant shape of the camera.  The translucent, non-toxic, versatile Skin material will stretch and give to fit snugly around the camera and offer an anti-static finish to further repel moisture and dust.  Made of high-quality, flexible and durable silicone, PENTAX OptioWP Skins will be available exclusively online from PENTAX Imaging Company at a cost of $19.95 US beginning September 1, 2005.

Lexar Media Press Release

Digital Camera Users Unaware of Need for Safekeeping their Efforts - Study shows the need for archiving digital photos

(PRWEB) August 23, 2005—A recent digital imaging study has revealed that many photographers are unaware of the need to archive their work. According to the study released by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), nearly 50 percent of all camera users shoot billions of pictures a year on a digital camera, but only 48 percent backup all or most of their images.

Lexar Media has simplified the solution for such photographer’s needs, whether a pro, semi-pro or simply a weekend warrior. Photo Mechanic is a program that facilitates organizing and managing hundreds or even thousands of photos at a time. Photo Mechanic is a workflow tool that assists in weeding out the preferred photos from a batch and allows very rapid browsing through a day’s or week’s images.

IDC Press Release

While Number of Digital Images Captured Increases Rapidly, Consumers’ Printing Behavior Changes, IDC Reveals

FRAMINGHAM, Mass., August 24, 2005 – The number of aggregate digital images captured per month continued to grow another 18 points in 2005, largely driven through cheaper flash memory card prices and increased capacities, IDC found in a new study of U.S. digital camera owners’ usage habits. As a result, the total number of average monthly prints is expected to increase by 29% in 2005. However, printing behavior is changing with home printing continuing to decline in favor of retail locations.

“Variability in printing behavior is obvious,” said Chris Chute, senior analyst, Worldwide Digital Imaging Solutions and Services. “While one-third of digital camera owners never print, over 10% print every image they keep. There are therefore distinct clusters of users who can be identified by their printing behavior.”

Imation Press Release

Americans Embrace Digital Convenience But Have Yet to Fully Master Digital Application Skills

OAKDALE, Minn., Aug. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/—Admit it. Like most Americans, we’ve got shelves piled high with dusty shoeboxes of old photos and empty scrapbooks. And now, with the growth of digital cameras, we have CDs, DVDs, computer hard drives and e-mail boxes that are overflowing with digital photos and videos as well. It’s true, according to a national consumer survey of 2,000 American adults, sponsored by Imation Corp (NYSE:IMN) , Americans are embracing digital technologies to capture and share their memories. Even so, many Americans have yet to fully master the more complex digital application skills, such as editing or digital scrapbooking.

Focal Press Press Release

WINNERS OF THE FOCAL PRESS KEEPING IT UNREAL COMPETITION

Earlier on this year Focal Press ran a student digital imaging competition. Students were invited to submit up to 3 seamless 2D images created using Photoshop and other software. The content had to be an everyday setting that has been digitally manipulated to offer an unexpected vision, one that only digital software could create.

From retro to contemporary to futuristic, winning images had to be grounded in the familiar but celebrate how things might change…a spectacle that can stun viewers with its contrasts and audacity.

The winners with judges comments can be viewed here.

Many thanks to our kind and generous sponsors iStockphoto, Pure360, Olympus and the British Journal of Photography who donated prizes for the winners.

Image courtesy of Sukey Parnell, Thames Valley University.

Center for Photographic Art Press Release

Center for Photographic Art offers $21,600 in cash awards for its Annual International Center Awards.

The 15th Annual Center Awards is an international juried exhibition open to all media including digital and mixed media.

This is a non-thematic international call to entry competition open to all photographic media including digital and mixed media. Arthur Ollman, Director of the Museum of Photographic Arts, San Diego, California will be the presiding Juror of the event.

HP Press Release

Join in the Fun of Home Photo Printing - Easy photo printing with the new versatile HP Deskjet 5440 Photo Printer

HP today announced the launch of the HP Deskjet 5440 Photo Printer, a versatile printer that makes it easy for everyone to print high quality, long lasting photos and a range of documents from home. Designed for people who enjoy sharing photos with friends and want the printing process to be as easy as possible, the HP Deskjet 5440 Photo Printer offers the key benefit of being able to print photos as easily as it does letters, e-mail, postcards and greeting cards. With impressive print speeds users can produce a 10 x 15 cm photo in as fast as 27 seconds.  Users can also print on any size of photo paper from 10 x 15 cm right up to large panorama (215 x 610 mm).  By using HP Vivera Inks, users can print in 4-ink or in optional 6-ink colours for photos that will resist fading for generations1.

HP Press Release

The Everyday Printer that Enjoys Printing Photos - From impressive photos to high speed everyday printing, the HP Deskjet 5940 Photo Printer meets the needs of the whole family

HP today announced the launch of the HP Deskjet 5940 Photo Printer, a versatile, all round device designed for families who want to print everything quickly, from high quality photos to documents –
and anything in between.

The HP Deskjet 5940 Photo Printer provides outstanding versatility at breakthrough speeds, with documents produced at up to 30 pages per minute (ppm) in black and 24 ppm in colour, making the printer ideal for families who need to print documents quickly.  Users can print on a range of paper types and sizes to complete a wide variety of tasks, from web pages and school projects to greeting cards and address labels.

HP Press Release

HP Introduces an Affordable Complete Business Solution - Print, fax, scan and copy with high quality, at an affordable price with the HP Officejet 5610 All-in-One

HP today announced the launch of the HP Officejet 5610 All-in-One, an affordable, versatile printer, fax machine, scanner and copier in one neat compact package. Ideal for businesses looking for a complete all-in-one solution, this device features fast printing, scanning and copying capabilities as well as an integrated junk fax barrier for added day-to-day efficiency.

Whether the source is a book, photo, report or even a 3D object, the HP Officejet 5610 All-in-One makes high quality scanning simple. At 1200 x 4800 dpi optical resolution and 48-bit colour, photos, images and documents can be captured and stored digitally for long periods.

Due to some database issues, the PhotographyBLOG Forums have been offline for the last couple of weeks. Also, if you registered as a new user yesterday (23rd August), you will have to register again. If you posted a photo in the Gallery yesterday, it has been lost and you will have to upload it again. Please accept my sincerest apologies for any inconvenience caused.

The upside is that the Forums have been upgraded to a more advanced version with lots of new features.

Please let me know if you encounter any unusual behaviour by emailing [email protected]

Nikon Press Release

Nikon Capture 4 (Version 4.3.1 Update)

The latest update to Nikon’s powerful photo finishing software with improved RAW(NEF) image processing enables faster processing of image data with stress-free handling for image display and data saving.

Amsterdam, 22 August 2005. – Nikon is pleased to announce an update of Nikon Capture 4, version 4.3.1, which became available for download from August 22nd 2005. In response to users’ requests, the latest version of Nikon’s post-production tool has realized faster processing and stress-free handling of image data more than ever. Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) is also supported.