News
DPReview are the second website to post a review of Photoshop CS. Site contributor and author of the “123 of digital imaging Interactive e-book”, Vincent Bockaert has used his extensive knowledge of Adobe Photoshop and his involvement in the Adobe Photoshop CS Beta test team to produce this article which covers the major points of Photoshop CS from a digital photographer’s perspective.
“With the introduction of Photoshop CS, Adobe has taken a great step in the digital photography direction. Just like the Healing Brush Tool introduced with Photoshop 7 made retouching an order of magnitude easier and better, Adobe has done the equivalent to digital photography with Photoshop CS for prosumers and professionals alike.”
Website: DPReview - Photoshop CS Review
DPReview are the second website to post a review of Photoshop CS. Site contributor and author of the “123 of digital imaging Interactive e-book”, Vincent Bockaert has used his extensive knowledge of Adobe Photoshop and his involvement in the Adobe Photoshop CS Beta test team to produce this article which…
Several websites have published articles looking at the new Photoshop CS from a photographer’s point of view. First up is Digital Outback Photo, who have published a very nice round-up of the features that you will be most interested in.
“PS8 inherited the Photomerge tool from PS Elements 2.0 but allows (of course) the use of 16 bit images. We only looked into early versions and cannot tell about the stitching quality.
But probably the most powerful feature of Photomerge is the following:
Photomerge can leave the stitched images in layers so that you can do final tweaking yourself.”
Several websites have published articles looking at the new Photoshop CS from a photographer’s point of view. First up is Digital Outback Photo, who have published a very nice round-up of the features that you will be most interested in. “PS8 inherited the Photomerge tool from PS Elements 2.0 but…
DCResource have reviewed the 4 megapixel EasyShare DX6490 digital camera, a digital camera which features a 10x optical zoom lens (38-380mm focal length). The Kodak EasyShare DX6490 has a suggested retail price of ?399.99.
“Where the DX6490 really stands out is in terms of ease-of-use. The Kodak EasyShare system lets you easily share pictures, whether via e-mail or prints. The one-of-a-kind album feature is intriguing as well. The software that runs on your Mac and PC is very nice—the whole thing is tied together nicely. Throw in the printer dock for another $200 and you’ve got a complete system for sharing and printing your photos. Nobody, with perhaps the exception of HP, comes close to Kodak in this area.”
DCResource have reviewed the 4 megapixel EasyShare DX6490 digital camera, a digital camera which features a 10x optical zoom lens (38-380mm focal length). The Kodak EasyShare DX6490 has a suggested retail price of ?399.99. “Where the DX6490 really stands out is in terms of ease-of-use. The Kodak EasyShare system lets…
Olympus Press Release 30/09/03
Olympus celebrates Ferrari F1 sponsorship with limited edition Mju 400.
- The first digital camera in the world to be officially authorised by Ferrari SpA
- Sleek, stylish, all-weather metal body with official Ferrari team colours and logo
Just in time for Christmas, Olympus launches the first, and only, digital camera in the world currently branded by Ferrari SpA. The ?Ferrari DIGITAL MODEL 2003? is a limited-edition camera, developed to celebrate the Olympus sponsorship of the Ferrari Scuderia Formula One Racing Team. The camera will be available in the UK by mid-November 2003.
Olympus became an official sponsor of the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro F1 racing team at the start of the 2003 Formula One racing season.
The Ferrari DIGITAL MODEL 2003 is based on the all-weather Mju 400 digital camera. Its distinctive design reflects the style and quality that are hallmarks of Ferrari craftsmanship. The body of the camera is finished in distinctive Ferrari Red, and the lens barrier is adorned with the world famous “Cavallino Rampante - Prancing Horse” logo, featured on Ferrari road cars and F1 racing cars.
When the camera is switched on, the built-in colour LCD monitor displays the Ferrari name and logo, as well as an image of a Ferrari F1 racing car. As a limited-edition model with a production run of only 10,000 units worldwide, each camera is stamped with a unique production number.
The Ferrari Red finish was subjected to approximately five times as many checks as usual to ensure colour accuracy, and the external aluminium parts were hand-polished and given a special coating to ensure a level of lustre and durability which are extremely difficult to achieve through ordinary mass-production methods.
A limited-edition camera designed to appeal to both motor sport fans and the style conscious photographer, the Ferrari DIGITAL MODEL 2003 comes complete with a red-toned suede-textured camera case and custom-designed camera strap, both of which are emblazoned with the Ferrari logo. A Certificate of Authenticity bearing the serial number is also included, along with a greeting card featuring autographed photos of the Ferrari drivers Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello.
Olympus Press Release 30/09/03 Olympus celebrates Ferrari F1 sponsorship with limited edition Mju 400. - The first digital camera in the world to be officially authorised by Ferrari SpA - Sleek, stylish, all-weather metal body with official Ferrari team colours and logo Just in time for Christmas, Olympus launches the…
Canon have just announced the new imagePROGRAF W8200, a large-format printer solution designed for graphic imaging professionals. With a price tag of $7995, most photographers are obviously not going to consider this when they are shopping for a home printer :-)
What is interesting about this announcement, however, is that the imagePROGRAF W8200 uses Canon’s first complete six-color (C/M/Y/K, Bk, PC/PM) pigment ink set. “Engineered for superior quality and with a color reproduction equivalent to that of dye ink, Canon has formulated a pigment ink solution of ultra fine particles that boasts both light fastness and high ozone resistance - elements vital to the digital imaging, fine art and proofing markets. The question is, will this new pigment ink make its way down the Canon printer line-up to the consumer models? And how soon will that happen?!
Here’s another quote from the press-release to whet your appetite:
“Canon’s pigment ink has a super-fine pigment diameter of approximately 0.1 micron, and generates ultra-sharp images at 600x1200 dpi in Standard Mode and up to 1200x1200 dpi*. Suited for Fine Art and indoor signage, lighter density Photo Cyan and Photo Magenta inks are coated with an extra high polymer compound to protect the colors from fading with exposure to light, ensuring the sharpness and subtlety of prints for years to come.”
Canon have just announced the new imagePROGRAF W8200, a large-format printer solution designed for graphic imaging professionals. With a price tag of $7995, most photographers are obviously not going to consider this when they are shopping for a home printer :-) What is interesting about this announcement, however, is that…
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Chinese Moon Festival #11
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Chinese Moon Festival #2
| Chinese Moon Festival #1
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“On the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar, the moon is round and the Chinese people mark their Moon (or Mid-autumn) Festival. The round shape to a Chinese means family reunion. Therefore the Moon Festival is a holiday for members of a family to get together wherever it is possible. On that day sons and daughters will bring their family members back to their parents’ house for a reunion. Sometimes people who have already settled overseas will come back to visit their parents on that day.
As every Chinese holiday is accompanied by some sort of special food. On the Moon Festival, people eat moon cakes, a kind of cookie with fillings of sugar, fat, sesame, walnut, the yoke of preserved eggs, ham or other material. In Chinese fairy tales, there live on the moon the fairy Chang E, a wood cutter named Wu Gang and a jade rabbit which is Chang E’s pet. In the old days, people paid respect to the fairy Chang E and her pet the jade rabbit.
The custom of paying homage to the fairy and rabbit is gone, but the moon cakes are showing improvement every year. There are hundreds of varieties of moon cakes on sale a month before the arrival of the Moon Festival this year. Some moon cakes are of very high quality and very delicious.”
Website: ChinaVista
Chinese Moon Festival #11 Chinese Moon Festival #8 Chinese Moon Festival #14 Chinese Moon Festival #2 Chinese Moon Festival #1 Chinese Moon Festival #3 “On the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar, the moon is round and the Chinese people mark their Moon (or Mid-autumn)…
The biggest news of the day by far is the release of the “Adobe Creative Suite” software, which includes new versions of Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and GoLive. Adobe have dispensed with the version numbering system for all of these software products - instead they are now called Photoshop CS, Illustrator CS and so on.
“The complete design environment for print and Web publishing
The Adobe? Creative Suite is an integrated design environment that combines full versions of Adobe’s latest creative tools with innovative file-management features, a smooth Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) workflow, and comprehensive design resources to let you create and publish content for print and the Web faster and easier than ever before ? all at an unbeatable value. “
The entire suite costs US$1,229.00 for the Premium edition and US$999.00 for the Standard edition. Upgrade prices are US$749.00 (Premium) and US$549.00 (Standard). The difference between the two is that the Premium ediiton includes Photoshop CS, Illustrator CS, InDesign CS, Golive CS, Acrobat 6.0 Professional, and Version Cue, whereas the Standard edition does not include Golive CS or Acrobat 6.0 Professional.
All of the software programs are also available to buy individually. Photoshop CS is obviously of most interest to photographers, so I’ll concentrate on that and leave you to find out more about the other programs from Adobe’s website.
Photoshop CS increases user control, with a redesigned File Browser enhancing search, sorting and sharing capabilities and a new Histogram Palette monitoring changes in the image as they are made. Additional advances include: Match Color, which reads color statistics to quickly achieve a consistent look across a series of photographs; Shadow/Highlight which radically improves the contrast of over- or underexposed digital images; and enhanced ImageReady? CS integration.
“Photoshop is the gold standard in digital imaging and a catalyst in the continuing digital photography revolution. This release empowers our customers to deliver their highest quality work, faster and more efficiently,” said Bryan Lamkin, senior vice president of Digital Imaging and Video Products at Adobe. “For the millions of people worldwide who rely on Photoshop every day, our new CS edition will be a must-have upgrade to their digital imaging desktop.”
The Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in, which was released as a stand-alone product back in February 2003, has now been incorporated into Photoshop CS. The list of cameras that are currently supported has been expanded and now includes the Canon EOS-10D.
Adobe Photoshop CS will be available for an estimated street price of US$649. Registered users of any previous version of Adobe Photoshop can upgrade to Adobe Photoshop CS for an estimated street price of US$169.
Website: Adobe.com
Website: Adobe Photoshop CS
Website: Adobe Photoshop Camera Raw
The biggest news of the day by far is the release of the “Adobe Creative Suite” software, which includes new versions of Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and GoLive. Adobe have dispensed with the version numbering system for all of these software products - instead they are now called Photoshop CS, Illustrator…
The German digital photography website digitalkamera.de seems to have exclusive news this morning about a new digital camera from Olympus. The new C-5060 seems to be an updated version of the popular C-5050 camera. The C-5060 has a tilting, swivelling LCD screen, 5 megapixel CCD and 27.5-110mm optical lens. digitalkamera.de are even quoting a price - approximately 850 Euros. I’ll let you know more details when I find them…
Here’s a poorly-translated quote from the digitalkamera.de article:
“If the C-5050 zoom shot got only recently with the C-5000 zoom shot (in puncto form, equipment and price)“smaller” a model to the side posed, zoom shot a C-5xxx-Produktlinie develops at the latest now with the conception of the new C-5060. The C-5060 zoom shot extends this line upward; among other things with equipment characteristics such as wide angle zoom shot , trick and tiltable LCD color screen, optional battery handle and an adapter/converter system with bayonet connection.”
Website: digitalkamera.de - Olympus C-5060
UPDATE 15:22
As Mad@TT has kindly pointed out, DPReview are also now reporting the release of the C-5060, which will have a UK RRP of ?599.99.
Website: DPReview - Olympus C-5060
The German digital photography website digitalkamera.de seems to have exclusive news this morning about a new digital camera from Olympus. The new C-5060 seems to be an updated version of the popular C-5050 camera. The C-5060 has a tilting, swivelling LCD screen, 5 megapixel CCD and 27.5-110mm optical lens. digitalkamera.de…
Rumours are circulating that the Canon Powershot G6 will be released before Christmas! The monthly Newsletter G Series User, “For Owners of the Canon Powershot G Series Digital Cameras”, has a few details on its website. It doesn’t seem like 5 minutes ago that Canon released the G5…(found via Digicamera.net).
“The G6 is on its way, although no one is exactly sure when. Unconfirmed reports for the G6:
- Mid November shipping
- 20% size reduction
- 5 x Optical Zoom (maybe higher?)
- 6.5 Megapixel sensor
- New case design”
Rumours are circulating that the Canon Powershot G6 will be released before Christmas! The monthly Newsletter G Series User, “For Owners of the Canon Powershot G Series Digital Cameras”, has a few details on its website. It doesn’t seem like 5 minutes ago that Canon released the G5…(found via Digicamera.net)…
Digital Outback Photo have continued their Canon EOS 300D Experience Report with a brief roundup of 3 Canon telephoto lenses. They have taken a look at the EF 55-200mm f/4.4-5.6 II USM, EF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 EF IS USM and EF 70-200mm f/4.0L USM. I know which one I’d go for - the EF 70-200mm f/4.0L USM is a great lens and a clear step above the cheaper Canon zooms. I like it so much that I bought one 2nd-hand a couple of months ago…
“Because many 300D buyers will get the kit with the EF-S 18-55mm lens they will look into the options for a longer range zoom. We looked into 3 popular options:
EF 55-200mm f/4.4-5.6 II USM
EF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 EF IS USM
EF 70-200mm f/4.0L USM
These lenses all perform better than on full frame film or on the EOS 1Ds because the 300D only uses a smaller crop of the frame.”
Website: Digital Outback Photo - Canon EOS 300D Experience Report
Digital Outback Photo have continued their Canon EOS 300D Experience Report with a brief roundup of 3 Canon telephoto lenses. They have taken a look at the EF 55-200mm f/4.4-5.6 II USM, EF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 EF IS USM and EF 70-200mm f/4.0L USM. I know which one I’d go for…
DCResource have today posted updated photo galleries for the futuristic-looking 3.2 megapixel Minolta DiMAGE Z1 and the 6 megapixel Canon Digital Rebel (otherwise known as the EOS 300D).
DCResource have today posted updated photo galleries for the futuristic-looking 3.2 megapixel Minolta DiMAGE Z1 and the 6 megapixel Canon Digital Rebel (otherwise known as the EOS 300D). Website: DCResource - Minolta DiMAGE Z1 Gallery Website: DCResource - Canon Digital Rebel Gallery
photoworkshop.com has launched the Canon Digital Learning Centre, which is “specially designed to help you maximise the potential of Canon’s new EOS Digital Rebel” Each month a new set of Lessons will be posted which aim to give you a better understanding of the camera and photography in general (found via A-Digital-Eye.com).
Here’s a typical excerpt from Lesson 5, Picturing People:
“Having a choice of many different shooting modes (the Digital Rebel offers 12) gives you maximum flexibility and lots of creativity when it comes to taking people pictures. The modes let you control many camera functions ? including the auto focus mode, frame advance, exposure, metering pattern and flash ? to create the kind of picture you see in your mind?s eye.”
photoworkshop.com has launched the Canon Digital Learning Centre, which is “specially designed to help you maximise the potential of Canon’s new EOS Digital Rebel” Each month a new set of Lessons will be posted which aim to give you a better understanding of the camera and photography in general (found…
Bo Atkins at Photo.net has published a new article about portable storage devices, focusing on reviewing the Tripper device:
“One of the first things you realize once you’ve bought your digital camera is that you need some way to store the images. The memory card in the camera is fine, but it can only store so much data. It can be enough for a day’s outing, but what about a 2 week vacation?
Today’s 6MP DSLRs create JPEG files which are typically 2-3MB in size, or if you shoot RAW images which give the the best possible quality, file sizes can range from 6-8MB depending if you embed a JPEG in with the RAW file. This means that you may only get 56 images on a 512MB memory card if you are shooting RAW images with high quality embedded JPEGs. Even just shooting straight high quality JPEGs, you’ll only get about 170 images on a 512MB card.”
Website: Photo.net - Portable Digital Storage Devices Review
Bo Atkins at Photo.net has published a new article about portable storage devices, focusing on reviewing the Tripper device: “One of the first things you realize once you’ve bought your digital camera is that you need some way to store the images. The memory card in the camera is fine…
DPReview have posted a new gallery of sample images from the Olympus E-1, taken at this weekend’s USA Formula One Grand Prix in Indianapolis.
“We have just posted a gallery of Olympus E-1 images from the second qualifying session of this weekend’s USA Formula One Grand Prix in Indianapolis. These were taken by our good friend and dpreview.com contributor Les Freed. The camera Les used is the latest pre-production Olympus E-1 which appears to be delivering noticeably improved image quality, especially image sharpness.”
DPReview have posted a new gallery of sample images from the Olympus E-1, taken at this weekend’s USA Formula One Grand Prix in Indianapolis. “We have just posted a gallery of Olympus E-1 images from the second qualifying session of this weekend’s USA Formula One Grand Prix in Indianapolis. These…
The German website Photoworld.de has today reviewed the 5 megapixel Canon Powershot G5, which features a rotating LCD monitor and 4x optical lens.
“The image quality of the new G5 is very good. The colors are shown very naturally owing to a appropriate working white alignment. The dissolution is with 5 million pixels sufficiently for large sized photo departures or also cutout enlargements, besides is the sharpness of the objective very good and contributes thereby for their part to the excellent detail rendition.”
Website: Photoworld.de - Canon G5 Review
The German website Photoworld.de has today reviewed the 5 megapixel Canon Powershot G5, which features a rotating LCD monitor and 4x optical lens. “The image quality of the new G5 is very good. The colors are shown very naturally owing to a appropriate working white alignment. The dissolution is with…
Keith Cooper has emailed me today with some more information about the Epson 4000 printer that Michael Reichmann first mentioned on the Luminous Landscape website a few days ago. Keith has kindly let me re-publish the photo of the printer here, and his Northlight Images website has more details about the new printer. Apparently the Epson 4000 first appeared in the 17th September issue of the Dutch magazine Grafisch Weekblad (Graphic Weekly).
Website: Northlight Images - Epson Stylus PRO 4000 Printer
Website: Grafisch Weekblad
UPDATE 28/09/03
Adri de Groot has helpfully translated the full article from Grafisch Weekblad into English. Click the Read More link below.
Keith Cooper has emailed me today with some more information about the Epson 4000 printer that Michael Reichmann first mentioned on the Luminous Landscape website a few days ago. Keith has kindly let me re-publish the photo of the printer here, and his Northlight Images website has more details about…
Taking a break from equipment and reviews, here are a few photography-related websites that have found their way onto my Links list recently. Thanks to PhotographyBLOG reader Marky101 for suggesting some of them. In no particular order:
Website: The Blue Sea and Sails
Website: Mike’s Imagination
Website: Ami Barwell
Taking a break from equipment and reviews, here are a few photography-related websites that have found their way onto my Links list recently. Thanks to PhotographyBLOG reader Marky101 for suggesting some of them. In no particular order: Website: The Blue Sea and Sails Website: Mike’s Imagination Website: Ami Barwell
The new Rayovac I-C3 battery charger will charge your Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries in an amazing 15 minutes or less and up to 1,000 times.
“With older rechargeable battery systems, controlled by the charger, “it’s like pouring soda,’’ said John Daggett, Rayovac’s director of marketing services. “You control the flow by the angle of the can, pouring at a slow and constant pace so foam doesn’t build up.’’ But with the I-C3, “you can pour in a charge as fast as you want because the battery won’t let you go too fast.”
The Rayovac I-C3 battery charger is now available in the US. A pair of the AA or AAA batteries costs about $10. The I-C3 chargers cost about $25 for the two-battery model; a four-battery version costs about $10 more.
Website: Rayovac
Website: New York Times
The new Rayovac I-C3 battery charger will charge your Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries in an amazing 15 minutes or less and up to 1,000 times. “With older rechargeable battery systems, controlled by the charger, “it’s like pouring soda,’’ said John Daggett, Rayovac’s director of marketing services. “You control the…
Imaging Resource have reviewed the DiMAGE X20, which Minolta claims “is the world?s smallest and lightest 2 megapixel camera with a 3x optical zoom.”
“I’ve been a fan of Minolta’s “X” line of subcompact cameras since the original version was first introduced. The DiMAGE X20, while sacrificing a few features to keep the cost down, offers a capable, subcompact digicam at a street price of close to $200. Its compact size, solid feature set, and novice-friendly menu interface make the DiMAGE X20 a great “take anywhere” camera.”
Imaging Resource have reviewed the DiMAGE X20, which Minolta claims “is the world?s smallest and lightest 2 megapixel camera with a 3x optical zoom.” “I’ve been a fan of Minolta’s “X” line of subcompact cameras since the original version was first introduced. The DiMAGE X20, while sacrificing a few features…
Imaging Resource have reviewed the 4-megapixel Pentax Optio 450. This digital camera has a variety of features including a high resolution 1.5 inch LCD monitor, a movie mode that captures up to ten minutes of video with sound, a voice memo recording mode, a vice memo function, panorama assist, full manual control and a 5X optical zoom (20X combined).
“I found the Optio 450 to be a bit of a mixed bag. It has some strong points (nice case design, and high-quality 5x zoom lens, excellent macro capability), and does a lot of things very well (very good color, lower than average image noise, excellent exposure and creative options), but falls down in other areas (a tendency to underexpose and somewhat sluggish shutter response).”
Imaging Resource have reviewed the 4-megapixel Pentax Optio 450. This digital camera has a variety of features including a high resolution 1.5 inch LCD monitor, a movie mode that captures up to ten minutes of video with sound, a voice memo recording mode, a vice memo function, panorama assist, full…