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› archive for April 15th, 2009

Promaster: Widgets for All Walks

Promaster LogoRoberts is, if you didn’t know, now a distributor for Promaster products. Promaster is a pretty big group, so they make everything from digital cameras acessories (like remote controls, replacement batteries, such and such) to camera tripod ballheads and on over to flashguns (usually available as Nikon flashes or Canon flashes, showing the usual sstem discrimination I like to balk about). And everything in-between, sideways, underways, and other preposition-related ways. Bounce reflectors, umbrellas, a pretty rocking 4 channel flash trigger set that’ll work until you make the big break and can afford those shiny new PocketWizards.

We have their stuff in stores already, the list is quite boffo and I keep getting distracted by new cameras and camcorders, but they should all be online by next week for your online bargain-hunting convenience.



Nikon 10-24: Interesting Lens

Nikon 10-24: Wait ListThis right here is, of course, the newst member in the familyof Nikon lenses, the AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED. And i gotta say, it’s an interesting lens. Not because of the specs, those are good but fairly mundane in their way. It’s DX, so it’s for your Nikon digital cameras with the DX crop sensor, so you’re looking at a very solid 15-36mm ultra wide-angle zoom, which pretty much covers the entire usable and useful wide angle spectrum. f3.5 to 4.5 is a nice decision to bring weight and cost down. So nothing too interesting there.

What is interesting is its place in the current market. It’s very similar in view to the older 12-24 G, although weighing in at 200 bucks less is a pretty decisive factor in differentiating those twos roles. And, it’s all made further complicated by the fact that Tamron makes lenses with identical spec to both of the Nikons (in the case of this 10-24, the Tamron was even out first). So, at this point I’m waiting for some reviews of real-world performance to see how this newest Nikkor is going to fend for itself in an increasingly expansive line of options for Nikonians.



Coming Soon

So recently (yesterday) there was some concerns shooting around the camera world about the new Nikon D5000. More accurately the concern was with Nikon Digital Camera Batteries, Indianapolis and the rest of the country needed a clarification. If you have been keeping up with the news about the new D5000 Nikon you may have noticed that there is a new battery, the EN-EL9a. The question/concern was forward and backward compatibility. The Nikon Digital SLR cameras that used the original EN-EL9 batteries include the D40, the D40X and the D60. Along comes the announcement of the new vid on the block (yes the D5000 is going to be a more competent Nikon video camera too) and there in the fine print is the EN-EL9a battery. Will the new battery work in the older models, will the old batteries work in the new model.

The new D5000 with nifty swivel screen and so much more.

It’s the whole “You got peanut butter in my chocolate! No you got chocolate in my peanut butter! But what’s the answer? Will it work!
Luckily our Nikon representative was on site and we were able to persuade him to find out, because inquiring minds want to know. A call was made, a tech guru’s ego pampered and in a few minutes the definitive answer delivered.  Either battery will work in any of the cameras mentioned in this expose. The EN-EL9a is a higher storage capacity brother to the original EN-EL9 Nikon Digital Batteries. Whew! That’s a load off.

Next week we are going to call him about global warming, or the ever present  Coke vs. Pepsi debate.



The Viewfinder is a Lie

The viewfinder is a lie. There, I said it. Unpopular statement, I know. Especially since all a viewfinder does at one level is bounces the picture the sensor will see up into a little tunnel, but despite that, the viewfinder is a lie. Or, at least, its depth-of-field is.

There’s a lot of humbug these days about lenses with focus issues (front focus / back focus, what have you). This is the first half of a set of posts I have about things to check before you pull a chicken little and run to avoid the falling sky.

Here’s the deal: To better aid in manual focusing, most DSLRs use a micro-matte etched focusing screen. These are very good at enhancing micro-contrast and such things that we humans use to determine whether something is in focus.

The problem is, they often muck a bit with depth of field. I can’t speak for every system or every model, but, those of you with live view that allows for off-the-sensor magnification can test this yourselves. I first found it when playing with my old 50mm f1.8 OM lens, which has a shallower depth of field then my E-system was optimized for. I was looking through the viewfinder, as I prefer to do, and was a bit disappointed there wasn’t more bokeh happening. Snapped the shot and–woah!–the picture had a completely different bokeh than my viewfinder had showed me. I was confused about this for a while, and was mucking about with things, so I flipped to LV and zoomed in to 7x for some super-precise manual focusing and I noticed the picture in LV looked just like the ones the camera was actually taking. Then I remembered the matte focus screen and had an “aha!” moment.

The moral here is, sometimes the matte screen shows a greater depth of field than the camera is actually going to expose. So, while you’re looking through your viewfinder, something might look in great focus but you fire the shot and your focus was off. There’re chance, if you’re experiencing this wide-open only, that your camera picked a point for focus (or even your eye, if you manual focus) that fell within the matte screen’s depth of field, but was in a different spot than you had expected in the actual depth of field. Trust me, I’ve done it.

Next time: Auto-focus and the imaginary plane



Did We Mention We’re Having an Expo?

Spring Expo 2009

Spring Expo 2009

So, I somehow miraculously keep not mentioning this, but the 24th and 25th this month at or two Indianapolis (area) stores is our annual Spring Expo. We’re going to have most anybody who’s anybody (Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Mamiya, Leica, Sigma, Tamron, Tokina, Profoto, Induro, PocketWizard, FJ Westcott, RPS Studio, Manfrotto, Gitzo, Lastolite, and on and on and on…) out in our store, showing you the merch. If you’re within traveling distance, it’s really a good time to swing by and give us a visit, because there’re just too many toys to play with. It’s one of the two times a year I get to try one of the f2 constant zooms for my E-3, for instance. (Although, dyed-in-the-wool Oly shooter I am, I think I’ll step down and play some with the A900 and some Zeiss lenses and with Nikon’s under-rated D700, both of which are systems I’d have in a giant rolling case if my pay-grade allowed for it.)

I’m sure specials will abound as well, and for those of you who unfortunately can’t come out and see us I’ll be mirroring as much of them as humanly possible on our website as well, so remember to swing by the site that weekend and check on that equipment you’ve been scrounging for (and maybe some you didn’t know you needed, occupational hazzard).



What’s Up with Mechanical Linking?

Meant to write this little musing down yesterday but ran out of time. I read this review of the Olympus 12-60mm SWD lens. Now, I know Olympus isn’t exactly a common equipment vernacular outside of Nick, Phil, Chuck, and myself, so for those of you not in the know, most Olympus lenses use fly-by-wire focusing. That is, the use the AF motor even for manual focus. Personally, I’ve always liked this aspect of their camera system, it’s very techno-savvy and on their pro grade lenses and higher I’ve always found the fly-by-wire focusing to be very well dampened and precise. But, the 12-60 has a mechanical linking, you turn the focus ring and gears and what-have-you mechanically focus the lens.This is usually brought up as a big deal, because now you can focus even with the camera off.

You know, focus your all electric electronic recording device with the power off. The one that can’t take a picture with the power off.

So, what the heck is the big appeal to a mechanical linking then? I’m not sure what good focusing a camera which I can’t use to take a picture does me. Don’t get me wrong, I used the 12-60 for several months and it’s a real pleasure to work with, and the mechanical linkage feels very suave and sexy, I just don’t see why everyone’s excited about it because they can focus with the camera off. Seems strange, I guess.




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