Cameracraft magazine – Taking your practical photography further
Sony Europe’s Recording Media & Energy (RME) division today announced a new LTO-4 photo contest promotion that offers the chance to win one of three digital cameras from Sony – in return for creative pictures of LTO-4 tape cartridges. The competition can be entered by distributors, resellers and end-customers of Sony’s LTO-4, its highest capacity media. Continue reading »
Nikon today announced several new products for the UK marketplace, with the established Coolpix range of consumer compact digital cameras being overhauled with a range of 22 colours across 10 models, and optical stabilisation via Nikon’s established VR system on every model – from £80 to £300. The L16 and L18 models, offering 7.1 and 8.0MP resolutions respectively, offer flexible shooting at the budget end of the market with ISO 1600 equivalent and 3x optical zoom, plus easily obtained AA batteries. Further enhancements within the range include evolutionary progression of the now de riqueur face recognition technology, with the 10MP S550 offering “smile recognition” and professional features like D-Lighting for under £200. Continue reading »
Canon today launches its latest D-SLR, the EOS 450D. Featuring a 12.2 Megapixel CMOS sensor, EOS Integrated Cleaning System, 3.0” LCD with Live View mode and a new 9-point AF system, it marks Canon’s move away from 10 megapixels to compete with the Sony Alpha 700 and Nikon D300 – or, at least, with their cheaper successors everyone expects to see using the same size sensor. Continue reading »
Five new lenses are announced to supplement the existing range of accessories for digital SLR cameras. The two new fast telephotos smc PENTAX-DA* 200mm F2.8 ED [IF] SDM and smc PENTAX-DA* 300mm F4.0 ED [IF] SDM are not only optically astounding but also support the ultrasonic autofocus drive system for fast and quiet operation. Continue reading »
The entry-level series of PENTAX digital SLR cameras continues with the introduction of the new K200D, featuring the acclaimed Pentax Shake Reduction (SR) system. Blurred hand-held photographs, particularly with telephotos or longer exposure times, are a thing of the past. Two sensors are used by the SR system to detect any vibrations and compensate for any movement by the 10.2 Megapixel CCD. This blurring protection system occurs directly at the CCD saving the user from having to acquire expensive special lenses. Thanks to the Pentax K-mount bayonet virtually any Pentax lens can be used with the new K200D digital SLR. The exciting news is that the new series of PENTAX SDM lenses with ultrasonic autofocus are completely compatible with a new entry-level class camera. Continue reading »
Pentax has thrown out a challenge to all rivals with a new 14.6 effective Megapixel CMOS Sensor and integrated Shake Reduction in the K20D, based on the earlier K10D but taken to a level of pixel-count specification which now exceeds anything from Nikon, Canon, Sony or the FourThirds consortium. Samsung developed the new sensor and it will no doubt appear in a similar Samsung body. They describe the K20D as ‘semi-professional’. Continue reading »
We have a Photoworld day in Edinburgh on February 10th 2008, to which all Photoclubalpha registered members are welcome (it is strictly by prior arrangement, so please do not turn up on the day). It starts at 10.30am and ends around 4.30pm, and will be held at Edinburgh Photographic Society. There is a small fee for refreshments. Details follow.
Sony say that the Alpha 100 has a 230,000 pixel rear screen and the Alpha 700 has 920,000 pixels. What they don’t make entirely clear is how many individual R, G or B pixels are used to create each ‘pixel’ of the image (complete RGB). In fact the 920,000 pixel screen is VGA – 640 x 480 – in display resolution, which is 307,000 pixels not 920,000. What is going on? We took some macro images to show you. Continue reading »
A mention of 16mm Minoltas reminded me that a few years ago I found a perfect kit – without outer box or instructions, sadly – at an antique fair. A daylight developing tank for the film turned up in the closing-down stock from Konica Minolta’s warehouse. I decided they should really find a new home together via the normal eBay route, but before they went, a studio shoot was needed to record them for our virtual museum. Continue reading »
On January 5th, Photoworld was lucky enough to be able to attend the dress rehearsal and official photo-call for the new Cirque du Soleil production at the Royal Albert Hall in London, and to put the Alpha 700 through its paces for high ISO fast action stage show capture. This article with large reproductions of the images appears in our Photoworld issue due out later in January. Continue reading »
