As of Monday 18th May I will be moving the industry news section of the blog (Awards/grantsEquipmentEventsGallery/slideshowGeneralIssuesPhoto MA NewsPhotojournalismwork) to my twitter feed. Most of the stories I have been posting are simply links to existing stories on the web, and I can provide these links much more efficiently using twitter. The MA News will continue to be blogged at this site, as well as through the twitter feed.
To follow me on Twitter - go to www.twitter.com, click on find people and type "djclark". If you have a twitter account (its free and I recommend you do this) you can "follow" me. There are numerous pieces of free software to help you integrate the twitter feed with your web browser and phone.
The Kindle invites bloggers to distribute wirelessly to the kindle but the Kindle user has to pay a fee set by Amazon and the blogger only gets 30%. ...more
A new Kindle beater is released in flashy colours. A good comparison chart is here ..more
If the fusion of video cameras and dSLRs hadn't blurred enough before, Esquire shot their June issue cover of Megan Fox in video—a purported first in the magazine world.
Rather than click and endless series of stills, photographer Greg Williams shot the cover with the 4K Red ONE video camera. Fox essentially acted out a scene for 10 minutes, the best moment of which will appear on the June 2009 cover. (Not to be wasteful of Megan Fox footage, the video will also be uploaded to Esquire's site, of course.)
It's fascinating that as digital cameras evolve, so will the roles of photographers, models and publications. I can't see traditional photography ever dying, but whether photos will always be captured in photographs is another question. [Esquire] ...more
New Panasonic GH1 includes mic socket (but not standard) but still has auto audio gain (the undoing of the Canon 5D MKII sound). However looks to compete well with 1080P with other current offerings....more
Lots of iPhone apps center on the photos you take with your iPhone. But did you know that many others are useful when you shoot with your DSLR? From exposure calculators to GPS taggers, these apps will make the iPhone your best photo assistant ever....more
liveBooks, the leader in websites for professional photographers, with partners, the FiftyCrows Foundation and National Geographic All Roads are offering new personal website solution geared at photojournalists. It comes at a price though - $44 a month....more
A website has come about after frustrated Canon 5D users found they could not use the video mode in manual, which they believe was Canon being too paternal. So they are collecting pledges to the first hacker who comes up with a way round it with an unofficial firmware update...more
The latest step in electronic newspapers was announced this week with Amazon offering automatic newspaper delivery to their new Kindle device. Newspaper electronic versions are delivered to the device through wireless and 3G networks so are ready in the morning when you wake....more
"The SD Association has announced the new SDXC format offering greater capacities and speeds. The 'Extended Capacity' format increases maximum capacity to 2TB (2000GB), from the current 32GB of SDHC. Speeds will reach 104 MB/s by the end of 2009 with a target of 300 MB/s in the future. Although it is primarily aimed at the camcorder market, we wouldn't be surprised to see it become popular for photography too."
"Firmware v1.0.7 for the Canon EOS 5D Mark II, released today, addresses two image quality shortcomings: the "black dots" phenomenon widely discussed on Internet forums, plus a more rare instance of vertical banding when the camera is set to sRAW1. The new firmware "improves and mitigates" these problems." ...more
"Images of kids playing video games were created by Robbie Cooper, a British photographer who employed a Red camera — a very-high-resolution video camera — and then took stills from the footage. Cooper, who says he was inspired by the camera technique that Errol Morris used to interview people in his documentaries, arranged his equipment so that the players were actually looking at a reflection of the game on a small pane of glass. He placed the camera behind the reflection so that it could look directly into their faces as they played. Cooper and his collaborators, Andrew Wiggins and Charly Smith, videotaped children in England and in New York."...more
"Adobe has confirmed that the anticipated update to its Creative Suite line of products will be launched later this month.
On 23 September, coinciding with the Photokina trade show held in Cologne, Germany, Adobe will release CS4, which is expected to include a series of new features to Photoshop.
The previous suite, CS3, was launched in April 2007 in six different editions....more
"Photographers wary of the megapixel wars—the constant onslaught of higher-and-higher resolution cameras—might be about to get a break, as 20-plus megapixels become common. But it seems like a new war is brewing, and this one's going to be much more important for photographers." ...more
Sony launches 24.6 million pixel full-frame DSLR - Updated
Two years after the introduction of Sony’s first digital SLR, the Alpha 100, the firm completed its line-up with the launch of its flagship model – the full-frame Alpha 900. Olivier Laurent was in Edinburgh to test the camera. ...more
"Not content with turning the movie industry on its head with a revolutionary (and controversial) high-resolution digital video camera, RED has upped the stakes with a second model -- and has revealed plans for a digital SLR still camera."...more
Snapper Talk Web site post a detailed guide on how to ensure all your work is backed up and you never loose another picture....more (users in China may need a proxy)
Photographers can store, edit and share their pictures using new online-based software launched today on a free-to-use trial basis by Adobe.
'Photoshop Express has taken much of Adobe's best image editing technology and made it simple and accessible to a new online audience,' claims the firm in a press statement. ...more
Since Microsoft bought image management software IView there has been little development and rumors that Microsoft would stop supporting Macs. The new Mac release of Microsoft Office however brings good news to those that stuck with the software as Microsoft has included Expression Media (the new version of IView) into a special Office Media suite....more
Following Nikon's D3 full frame launch rumours are swirling around about an entry level FF camera from Nikon and the surprise seems to be that it might be built into a Rangefinder rather than an SLR....
"The low end FX camera is supposed to come in at around $3000, using the present D3 sensor. Its cost means the cost of the body has had to be severely restricted - but Nikon has taken a radical solution to this to meet the price restraints without compromising quality - the camera is not an SLR, it’s a ‘digital rangefinder’. AF uses contrast detection off the sensor, so there’s no mirror or AF assembly. Metering is also off the sensor. The direct view finder has an overlaid internal QXGA LCD which displays variable frame lines (thus allowing zoom lenses) and, if MF is selected, a ‘digital rangefinder spot’ in which the rangefinder image is taken off the image sensor, and thus operates with a diagonal split. It shares the XGA rear LCD of the D3/300, which is the preferred mode of operation for macro work and non AF lenses. This is not an F-mount camera. Originally it was to use an updated Nikon S-mount, but will actually use an electronic M-mount. This has no mechanical couplings, so although standard M-mount lenses will operate, focus and diaphragm are uncoupled. It will be released with a remounted version of the 45/2.8 pancake, and other ‘NM’ mount lenses will become available, perhaps modernised version of classic S-mount lenses. An adapter allows mounting of F-mount lenses, with full function only for AF-S lenses. The lens mount decision has been made to allow the camera to be very slim, and it is somewhat smaller in size than a Leica M8, but styled after an SP. The whole thing has been contracted out, probably to Cosina. It has an ‘S’ series name, maybe SD or SP-D. There’s also a rumour that the same camera will be released by Sony/Zeiss, badged as a Contax (having sorted out the wrangle with Kyocera)."
Nikon has finally joined Canon in announcing the release of their new Full Frame D3, 12 Mega Pixel camera along with a new D300 and selection of new lenses.
It looks like Nikon are catching up with Canon in the pro market with the success of their 5D and new 1D III. However, despite the new lens annoucenment they are still missing some fast wide prime lenses (24mm, 28mm and 35mm sub 2.8).
Amazon has unintentionally let slip details about a new 21MP Canon EOS 1Ds MkIII, an 11MP jump on the recently announced Canon 1D MkIII. Engadget speculates this is to try and lure the fashion and studio photographers away from their Medium Format cameras. read more about it here.
The Times have reported that the person who painstakingly photographed every page of the latest Harry Potter book and posted it online before it was officially released may be tracked by the digital fingerprint left in the Exif meta data of the images posted.
Apparently the camera in use was a Canon Rebel and the serial number (560151117) has already been posted online at digg.com. Canon have admitted that they would be able to track the probable store the camera was purchased in and if it had ever been serviced may even have the details of the camera owner!
Read the full report here and if you have lent out your Canon rebel recently double check the serial number!!
Reuters were coming to terms with the events that seemed to suggest their coverage of the Tour de France was cursed.
Following replacement vehicles, parking tickets, theft of a brand new Canon EOS 1D MkIII they probably thought things couldn't get any worse until their people carrier support vehicle that doubles as an editing and transmission suite and travels a few miles ahead of the racing pack, caught fire destroying thousands of pounds worth of equipment and personal belongings of the photographers, editors and motorbike riders covering the month long event!
The Canon Nikon debate rumbles on amid recent rumours of a "Big Announcement" about a possible D3 from Nikon as tech fiends salivate over the prospect of a full frame Nikon SLR and set of fast prime lenses to compete with the recent success of Canon's 5D.
Somebody with far too much time on their hands has even set-up a Nikon Watch blog to monitor all the Nikon rumours and reports!
Interesting field report on Andy Biggs' blog discussing his first impressions of the MkIII on a 3 week safari shoot. Addresses the auto-focus issues that some others have highlighted.
Many photographers are using MacBooks these days so you might be interested in this very easy to follow tutorial on how to upgrade your MacBook hard drive. If you are buying a new MacBook, worth thinking about upgrading it yourself rather than getting Apple to do it as they charge a serious premium...
UPDATE: There is another tutorial with more detail and photos here.
