Photography

Posted by Philip Northeast

The original film Pentax 645 series earned a place in the camera bags of professional photographers with the normal Pentax attributes of providing quality images at a reasonable price. They were the obvious choice for professionals seeking to enter market segments where image quality is critical.

Browsing Michael Reichmann’s experiences with the new Phase One 645 medium format digital camera focused my attention on the state of that camera market. With a rush of new medium format cameras is the market overheated or, is it a sign of professionals once again seeking the extra quality of larger format cameras. This extra quality could be the deal clincher when pitching for assignments against photographers using 35mm based DSLRs.

Of course Pentax had plans to enter this market some time ago, and even paraded a prototype 645D around the trade shows, but it never reached the market. Some say the Kodak sensor in the prototype may have been partly to blame for the 645D’s demise.

With new management from Hoya and a better long term arrangement with Samsung for sensors may breathe new life into the 645D project. Samsung proved their capabilities with the class leading sensor for the Pentax K20D. If they wanted to Samsung could produce an equally stunning medium format sized sensor. Dust off the old prototypes; fit a new sensor and Samsung electronics and Pentax are back in the serious professional market.

The original design for the Pentax 645D continued the Pentax digital philosophy of backward lens compatibility. This is marketing common sense as there are plenty of professionals with Pentax medium format cameras and lenses gathering dust. If Pentax produces a new medium format digital body this is an easy upgrade path for those professionals who moved to 35mm based DSLRs when they went digital.

Posted by Philip Northeast

Given a palette of colors, I take some time picking good colors, especially those that will work as foreground and backgrounds on a web page. What does this have to do with photography? Well I found a good color combination looking at other color schemes on the net. As soon as I saw the site, I knew these were the colors.

Now painter needs to able to create colors as they work. One of their basic tasks is mixing selections of paints to produce the right colors to represent their view of the world. As a photographer, I have trouble visualizing how to achieve good colors from samples. I tend to spend time with trial and error testing hoping to achieve the desired result.

However, when I see a good color combination I know it. This I think represents one of the differences between photography and painting. Photography as we know it developed from the desire of an Englishman, Fox, to be able to produce images for his scientific papers. Fox had little skill in producing accurate drawings of objects. So, he started developing a photographic process where he could capture and make printed copies of images.

One of the skills, and joys of photography, is viewing the world through an imaginary viewfinder and recognizing the possibilities. This is the similar to the artist’s view of seeing beyond the obvious and being aware of all aspects of the world around us.

A real photographer is always mentally looking at the ever changing interplay of light and angles, looking to bring out those telling details in even the most familiar and mundane surroundings.

Posted by Philip Northeast

Canon has updated one of their excellent hot shoe flash units and it is now the Speedlite 430EX II. Canon says the main changes have been improvements to recycling time with a 20% reduction. Recycling is the time it takes to recharge the flash unit so it is ready for the next shot. So when the action is fast, the updated Speedlite 430 EX II will reduce the number of missed shots.

As part of the revision of the recycling operation Canon say they have also made the Speedlite 430 EX II quieter, reducing the high pitched whine heard in some flash units.

While at first not obviously for photographers, Canon have released two new multimedia projectors featuring a new top-of-the-line REALiS WUX10. This is the world's first WUXGA-resolution (1920 x 1200) widescreen Multimedia Projector using LCOS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) technology. Offering the highest resolution in the Canon projector range the WUX10 provides precise color reproduction and exceptional image quality.

The REALiS WUX10 is a solution for the increasing number of photographers seeking ways of publicly displaying their work. Teamed with a laptop and appropriate software large size high quality slide shows are now simple. This harks back to the days of film transparencies, or slides.

Finally Canon in Europe yesterday announced its latest DSLR the 1000D, with Canon claiming it represents a more affordable entry point to the world of their EOS cameras.

“The EOS 1000D is a small camera with a big idea: the supreme adaptability and image quality of the EOS system, in an accessible, affordable package,” said Mogens Jensen, Head of Canon Consumer Imaging Europe.

The EOS 1000D joins an increasingly crowded Canon Rebel line up leaving potential buyers searching for searching for differences and wondering why?

Posted by Philip Northeast

Normally people with photographic collections of naked adolescents may have broken laws regarding the sexual exploitation of children. This is the basis of the police action in this case.

A number of high profile people, including Cate Blanchett, have leapt photographer Bill Henson’s defense claiming the work is not child pornography because some respected critics and curators say so, and likens the action to artistic censorship. Malcolm Turnbull, a politician with aspirations to one-day lead Australia, said police should not be tramping through art galleries.

There is no doubt Henson is a serious and accomplished photographic artist. Henson has exhibited his work in Europe and America and some of his other works are on display here.

The question really is not on the artistic merits of the works, but how far can you go justifying actions on the pretext it is art. If Henson is allowed to circumvent the law does this create an ugly legal precedent where people primarily interested in the sexual exploitation of the young can claim immunity “because it is art.”

Henson probably had consent from the models and their parents or legal guardians. However, the laws were set up to protect the innocent and the vulnerable that may not be properly make an informed decision about posing for a well-known photographer.

For example, the recent fuss over Miley Cyrus in a Vanity Fair shoot with Annie Leibovitz covered by a sheet showing only her naked back also raising the issue of informed consent.

One of the roles of art is to question established truths and dogmas. This Henson exhibition is objectionable, not because it shows naked people, but because it could open the door to the sexual exploitation of children. Fine art adult nudes are a well-respected and long running photographic genre.

Posted by Philip Northeast

There is an emerging trend of photographers graduating from the Point & Shoot scene preferring to use the LCD screen, instead of the optical viewfinder. This also involves the two-handed extended arm stance, rather than the normal technique of holding the camera up to the photographer’s head.

Many have no idea how good the optical viewfinder is on DSLRs, especially for critically focus adjustments. The newbies rely solely on autofocus systems or fixed focus lenses. Most camera LCD screens really do not have the resolution for fine focus adjustments required in manual focusing.

The Live View feature now starting to appear on top end DSLRs is useful when using the camera mounted on a tripod. It offers an excellent view of the image for critical composition adjustments; it allows a relaxed consideration of the scene through the lens.

The viewfinder technique also helps brace the camera, minimizing camera shake. It is possible to brace the arms against the body as well as steadying the camera with your forehead. While DSLR cameras are now embracing shake reduction systems, it is better to hold the camera as still as possible and use the shake reduction to gain extra sharpness in the image.

The resolution of DSLRs will show these differences, where as the poorer image quality of the P&S camera’s will mask some of the deficiencies in a photographer’s technique.

The differences between the two types of cameras really becomes apparent when using long lenses or operating controls and zooming at the same time. One significant difference is the extra weight of the DSLR, and particularly quality lenses. Try holding a pro style body with a battery grip and equipped with even a moderate telephoto zoom for any length of time.

Posted by Philip Northeast

Amazon already had been selling some GE-branded cameras but will now expand its offerings to include the 2008 models. This push by a manufacturer to increase its online retail presence highlights the increasing importance of e-commerce in photo retailing. The ability to generate high volumes of sales without the need for shops or knowledgeable sales staff helps keep prices low.

"We're delighted to offer our products through Amazon.com," said Hiroshi "Hugh" Komiya, Chairman and CEO of General Imaging. "Amazon has continued its amazing growth through 2007 and now into 2008, and we're happy to be a part of it."

Many photographers are happy to trade off the service provided by a local expert for the ease of internet shopping. "Many of our customers appreciate the convenience and selection of online shopping, and Amazon.com is obviously a leader in that category," said Rene Buhay, General Imaging's Senior Vice president of Sales and Marketing for the Americas. "We think e-commerce will continue its strong growth, so it's a perfect place for us to extend our brand."

The GE range is currently aimed at the compact point and shoot segment of the market and include an array of popular, advanced functions. The GE cameras offer blink detection and smile detection, helping photographers capture just the right moment when taking shots of people. After a shot is taken, the blink detection feature alerts the photographer if the subject's eyes were closed and allows another attempt. The smile detection feature works by tripping the shutter automatically when the subject smiles.

Posted by Philip Northeast

The theme of the Photography In The Parks Photo Contest for 2008 is "Inspirational Nature Images," and is open to all (legal) United States resident non-professional photo enthusiasts over 13 year of age. This rules out all those residing north of the 49th parallel.

Starting on April 22 and closing on September 30, photographic enthusiasts are encouraged to submit their favorite photographs from a United States park to the Canon Digital Learning Center. The winning photographer will receive a trip to a park of their choice, and a full suite of Canon photographic equipment.

While the image may be any park, national state or even a local city park in the United States trip is to a participating national or state park, so Central park in New York is probably out.

"A picture captures a moment in time, but the right picture triggers an emotional reaction within people. Through our Photography in the Parks Photo Contest, we want people to seek out those inspirational images and enjoy the beauty of the outdoors while doing it," stated Yuichi Ishizuka, senior vice president and general manager, Canon U.S.A. "As an environmentally-conscious organization, we encourage everyone to enjoy the beauty of nature, and also to work to protect it."

Logging onto the contest website, photographers will not only have the opportunity to enter their favorite photos, but also forward an e-postcard of their submitted images to friends and family as a fun way to share their photographs.

To help create a prize winning image, explore the Canon Digital Learning Center where there are various educational resources that Canon offers for novices and advanced photographers alike.

Of course, suite 101 offers expert advice in a rapidly increasing number of landscape photography articles from a variety of experienced photographers.

Posted by Philip Northeast

A Digital Storage Study shows one in three consumers don't see the need to back up their files, while nearly a quarter (22 percent) say they aren't backing up files because it's too time consuming. While modern hard disks are more reliable than never they still are mechanical device and still have the potential for catastrophic failure. Manufacturers continue to push the boundaries of technology to store more data on physically smaller hard drives, keeping the spectre of disk failure ever present.

Photos (85 percent) are the most stored files, while productivity files, such as home office documents (59 percent) ranked third.

"The issue appears to be a combination of lack of awareness of storage options and ease of use," says CEA's Director of Market Research, Tim Herbert. "Generally, consumers don't know how to back up their data and if they do, they're failing to back up data because they claim it takes too much time."

The research shows consumers are satisfied with their storage options. Eight out of 10 respondents report using their home computer as their main long-term storage option. Unfortunately, it may take the rude shock of total loss of data to make them realise the insecurity of digital storage.

While CD and DVD formats are popular for long-term backups the CEA recommends keeping an extra copy off-site, say at the office. This helps keep your data safe in case your home is damaged by fire, flood or earthquake. For additional data security use an online backup service to protect your content from disasters and/or hardware failures.

Posted by Philip Northeast

This month Pentax introduces a new scheme to capture budding professional photographers with offers of rebates for cameras and accessories to U.S. students enrolled in bona fide photography courses. With relative newcomers to the SLR world, Nikon and Canon, now dominating the market, Pentax are hoping to rekindle some of the magic created in the 1970s when many photographers learnt their craft using the K1000 film SLR.

The Nikon and Canon domination of the DSLR market is partly due to the hero effect of professional photographers using their top end cameras and lenses. This suggests to many first time DSLR buyers that entry level cameras from Nikon and Canon will magically produce top quality professional looking images. By enticing full time students with equipment at reduced prices Pentax hope to create a generation of professional photographers who will consider Pentax equipment first when making new equipment choices. For DSLR users the logical choice is to stay with their current system for expansion and upgrades.

Pentax said their photography equipment offers value, quality, ease-of-use, durability, and affordability, and Pentax takes great pride in the commitment to countless users who have learned and taught the art of photography with a Pentax camera

Pentax are offering the Student Photography discounts only to full-time students at accredited institutions (high schools, colleges and universities), as well as full-time photography educators in the United States, for Pentax equipment bought in the United States. See the Pentax site here for more details and application forms.

This perhaps reveals a major problem with Pentax equipment and support; in many countries local importers do the marketing. This limits the scope of initiatives such as this program to a particular country, while their competitors have a more coherent global marketing strategy.

Posted by Philip Northeast

Before the advent of zoom lenses, the 50mm primes were the workhorses of SLR photography. They were standard with every camera and were an important part of new camera reviews. Cameras makers put their best foot forward when designing the standard lens, unlike today when the kit lens often suffers from the compromise of achieving a low shelf price for the camera.

Another important aspect of the 50mm design is it gave an approximation of the angle of view of the human eye, so giving a natural look to photographs. With the smaller digital sensors, they now give the view of a 75mm telephoto lens. This is a very good focal length for portraits and general photography.

The Sigma carries their EX designation which they say, “Denotes the superior build and optical quality”, and differentiates it from the price conscious Sigma lenses. Another indication is the large maximum aperture (f1.4), making this a ‘fast” lens. Digital noise from high ISO settings is an issue for DSLRS, and the extra light from the large apertures helps produce low noise images in poor lighting conditions.

The extra light is also an aid to fast autofocus performance and the Sigma incorporates a HSM (Hyper Sonic Motor), ensuring quiet and high-speed AF as well as full-time manual focus override. In a sign of the times, there is no connector to the camera body focus motor. If your camera does not support HSM then only manual focus is available, although most new DSLRs now support HSM. Each manufacturer tends to have a name for it, such as USM and SDM.

The internal construction features a molded aspherical lens, rather than the more traditional manufacturing process of grinding the glass to shape. Aspherical lenses have complex curve shapes to compensate for off axis lens behavior.