Sony Press Release 29/06/04

TRAVEL LIGHT WITH SONY’S NEW THREE-MEGAPIXEL CAMCORDER

Enhanced Video Effects and Handycam Station Add Creativity and Convenience

SAN DIEGO, June 29, 2004 - Weighing less than a pound and easily fitting into a pocket or purse, the new Sony DCR-PC350 MiniDV Handycam camcorder packs advanced technical features and imaging power into a compact, vertical design.

This latest Handycam camcorder’s 3.31-megapixel, single CCD gives users the highest quality combination of video and still camera optics. It will be available in September, just in time for the holidays, for about $1,300.

And making it as handy as it is compact, the new unit will come with a Handycam Station—a tabletop cradle for charging and connecting to a TV or PC.

Rollei Press Release 30/06/04

6.3 megapixels and a 3x zoom lens for top results with the new Rollei Prego dp6300.

The imposing panorama from your last holiday, poster-size. A candid shot of your girlfriend, A3-size. Whoever would like to blow up his or her digital photos should turn to a high-pixel camera. Like the powerful new Rollei Prego dp6300 with its 6.3 megapixels. In its stylish and rugged stainless-steel body, with a 3x zoom lens and a 4x digital zoom as well as numerous custom modes and manual settings, the Prego dp6300 makes professional-quality photos accessible to amateur photographers.

The versatility of the Prego dp6300 is hard to beat: If you wish to send your friends a brief video message or record a particularly memorable scene from your holiday trip, capture a video clip with 320x240 pixels ? even with sound because a loudspeaker and microphone are built in. Your video clips or photos can be recorded on SD cards with up to 512 MB and transmitted to a computer or TV set via the USB or video port (NTSC, PAL). And of course, there is an ample choice of recording formats: from JPEG (EXIF 2.2) and TIFF right up to AVI.

Canon have released a new firmware version (1.0.2) for the EOS 1D Mark II DSLR.

This firmware update fixes/improves the following:

- The screen becoming magenta-colored when shooting bulb exposures
- The values being cleared when C.Fn-06 is set to “2” and the battery is removed
- Improves image quality of NTSC video output
 
This firmware supports cameras with firmware Version 1.0.1.  If the camera already has the Version 1.0.2 firmware, this update is unnecessary.

Website: Canon EOS 1D Mark II Firmware

Imaging Resource have reviewed the latest version of the popular alternative to Adobe Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro from Jasc Software. Version 8 includes several features aimed squarely at photographers, including the Perspective Correction, Straighten, One Step Photo Fix and Scratch Remover tools.

“So where does PSP fit into the image editing software landscape?

Sort of where Clint Eastwood’s Frank Corvin fits into Space Cowboys. He’s good, real good, but not too modern (despite the user interface face lift). He can still get the job done, even if it’s the old fashioned way. And he doesn’t have to worry about getting the girl—he’s already been married for years (to 40 million users).”

Website: Imaging Resource - Paint Shop Pro 8 Review

The Slovenian website eFotoGrafija have published a review of the new 5 megapixel Nikon Coolpix 5200 compact digital camera.

Website: eFotoGrafija - Nikon Coolpix 5200 Review

Apacer have quietly introduced a budget version of their popular CP100 and CP200 mobile storage devices. The CP80 Disc Steno only costs £115 in the UK - the main drawback is that it only supports the compact flash card format (although you can buy an optional 5-in-1 adapter for other card formats).

Website: ePhotoZine - Apacer launch CP80 Disc Steno

DPReview have posted their usual extensive review of the 14 megapixel Kodak DCS Pro SLR/c.

“Get it right, shoot RAW, good light, low to medium ISO’s and be careful about the development of your RAW images and you really can get some mind-blowing good resolution with rewarding image quality attributes (good dynamic range, good color). That’s just where the SLR/c fits in, it’s certainly not a camera for everyone, it’s not a point and shoot digital SLR, it’s a camera for enthusiasts who are ready to work around its quirks and utilize it as a photographic tool.”

Website: DPReview - Kodak DCS Pro SLR/c Review

Nikon have released a new version of firmware for their extremely popular D70 DSLR.

What is new/Content Description

Issues addressed with A firmware version 1.01:

- Images captured in Continuous mode at high shutter speeds sometimes displayed vignetting in upper portions of the image.  This problem has been corrected.
- When the built-in Speedlight was in its raised position but did not fire, the Automatic Sensitivity Adjustment function (ISO Auto: CSM 5) sometimes failed.  This problem has been corrected.

Issues addressed with B firmware version 1.02

- The camera now supports CompactFlash? memory cards with a capacity greater than 4GB.
- When images were captured in Continuous mode at an Image size setting of M and an Image quality setting of FINE, the memory card access lamp sometimes glowed continuously and the camera could not be turned off with the power switch.  This problem has been corrected.
- Text errors in display of Chinese menus and messages have been corrected

Compatible OS platform
Windows 98 SE
Windows 2000
Windows ME
Windows XP

What’s included in the download
AD700101.bin: Camera A firmware
BD700102.bin: Camera B firmware

Website: Nikon D70 Firmware

Website: Nikon D70 Firmware (Windows)

Website: Nikon D70 Firmware (Macintosh)

ByteSector have reviewed the HP Scanjet 4670 flatbed scanner, which retails for £179 here in the UK.

“In terms of quality, the 4670 is not a disappointment, image scans come out fairly sharp and rich in colour. However if the scanning surface has not been properly cleaned, a lot of dust particles get picked up in the scans. Unfortunately this is a deficiency present in all scanners; you must keep the surface clean to get a clean scan. I have had to scan the same picture 2-3 times (wiping the scanning surface each time) to make sure it came out clean. Other then that, scans come out smooth and undistorted; there are no lines or a heavy amount of noise present.”

Website: ByteSector - HP Scanjet 4670 Review

A-Digital-Eye have published some sample images taken with the new 5 megapixel Sony DSC-F88 digital camera, plus their initial impressions:

“Some of our initial impressions of the camera include that it does look very nice in a bright silver color and overall it is well built.  The camera is very very fast to start up as you just flip the rotating lens portion up into a shooting postion to power on the camera and in about one second its ready to take a picture.  We were able to find a shot, lift up the camera while turning it on, point and shoot, then flip the lens down and turn it off in just seconds.  The camera is very user friendly and quick.”

Website: A-Digital-Eye - Sony DSC-F88 Sample Images

The Norwegian website Akamera.no have published a useful roundup of the latest film scanners, including the Minolta DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400 (pictured), the Nikon LS-50 and Nikon LS-5000.

Website: Akamera.no - Film Scanner Roundup

FlashFixers Press Release 29/06/04

FlashFixers Launches the PhotoSaver Service, A Professional Digital Photo Recovery Program for Photo Retailers

The program will enable retail labs to offer customers the piece-of-mind that their digital photos can be saved with ImageRecall software and professional support..

Exeter, NH -June 29 2004- FlashFixers, today, announces the launch of the PhotoSaver Service, a professional digital photo recovery program for camera stores, photo retail outlets, and computer stores. PhotoSaver benefits include an ImageRecall 2 commercial license, 24/7 technical email and phone support, upgrades to the latest version, and Free Recovery Service if the software fails to recover all the data. In addition, member companies will also receive discounts on additional copies of ImageRecall, educational marketing materials, and priority recovery service for their customers.

The Fuji FinePix S20 Pro is aimed firmly at the professional photographer, with an SLR-style body, full manual control, external flash option via PC sync socket or hot-shoe, a Firewire connection and bundled Hyper Utility HS-V2 software which allows RAW file data to be fine tuned. The FinePix S20 Pro also features Fuji’s new Super CCD SR sensor, which enables the user to capture highlight and shadow detail missed by conventional digital cameras, resulting in images of stunning quality. So is the Fuji FinePix S20 Pro a viable option for the professional photographer that it’s aimed at? Read my review to find out.

Website: Fuji FinePix S20 Pro Review

The 30th Photo of the Week contest is now closed.

I have choosen what I think are the best photographs in my opinion. Now it’s your turn to vote for the overall winner of the contest. A Public Poll has been setup on the PhotographyBLOG Forums and you have 7 days during which you can vote for your favourite photo from the ones that I have chosen. Voting will end on Monday 5th July. The Poll will then be closed and the overall winner announced.

Vote now for your favourite image from the Photo Of The Week 21st-27th June 2004 contest

The 31st Photo of the Week contest is now open. This is a weekly photography contest with no set theme and you can enter as many photos as you like.

The voting for the 29th Photo of the Week contest has now finished.

The overall winner of the contest is “Cat Napping” by dapa_group. Congratulations!

You can view all of the entries that were submitted in this gallery.

WebFormation, Inc. have announced a number of significant changes to ExposureManager, a service that makes displaying and selling photography online quick and effortless. ExposureManager allows photographers to upload and display their photos. They are given complete freedom in the look and feel of their galleries, and are also able to customize a variety of templates through an easy-to-use interface.

The changes are:

1) You can now use ExposureManager to display your photography but to do the printing and fulfillment yourself. Through ExposureManager’s interface you can create as many product-price combinations as you want. ExposureManager will take care of the credit card transaction and send you an order confirmation.

2) For event photographers that want to use our fulfillment services we made life easier by now offering a ‘display only’ upload. Once an order is received, the photographer is e-mailed to upload the high resolution file. This way photograpers can save themselves many hours of uploading files.

3) We added a journal template (see
http://memorialdayproject.exposuremanager.com). It allows you to create a photo journal or a simplified blog. Rather than entering on a gallery overview it allows you to set a photo as an entry point.

Website: http://www.exposuremanager.com

The International Herald Tribune is reporting that Kodak are introducing their Picture Maker kiosks across Europe. The kiosks are equipped with Bluetooth, a short-range wireless technology, which will allow camera phone users to beam their photos to the kiosks and print them out. Perhaps more interestingly for digicam owners, Kodak is also planning to expand the service:

“Within the next 12 to 18 months, Kodak plans to expand the range of mobile devices that can communicate with the kiosks and also include other wireless technologies, such as Wi-Fi. “We are not married to any particular technology,” said Lisa Gansky, Kodak’s general manager for digital imaging services.”

From the same article, HP have introduced 2 inkjet printers that are bluetooth-enabled and which will accept photos from Sony Ericsson’s P800/P900 phones. “HP said it expects to introduce more Bluetooth-enabled printers that will work with a wider range of camera phones later this year.”

Website: International Herald Tribune - Your cellphone takes pictures. Now what?

Fortune.com have just published their review of the 6 megapixel Nikon D70 DSLR.

“Should you tempt the geek gods by buying a D70 now, knowing that next year there will be a newer, better, and maybe even cheaper digital SLR? The way I figure it, years from now, long after the D70 has been replaced by a fancier camera, I’ll still treasure the photos it has allowed me to take. To have missed them would be the real tragedy.”

Thanks to Sanj for the link.

Website: Fortune.com - Nikon D70 Review

Steves Digicams have started a new “Tech Corner” monthly column, written by Mike Chaney, who is the creator of Qimage Pro. Mike’s first article is called “The megapixel race. Where did it start? Where will it end?”.

“In 1996, I bought my first digital camera, a Kodak DC40. At the time, it was one of the only consumer cameras available and at 768 x 504 resolution, it offered only a little more than one third of a megapixel. It didn’t even offer a way to view your pictures on the camera, but it sure was cool. A year and a half later, I shelled out even more cash for one of the next generation: an Olympus D600L with a whopping megapixel of resolution. With that purchase, I became aware that the megapixel race had begun and that I’d be spending a lot of money on this new technology.”

Website: Steves Digicams - “The megapixel race. Where did it start? Where will it end?”