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› archive for ‘DSLRs’

Better Than Daylight


I do a fair amount of higher ISO rated shooting with my photography these days and there is no doubt that the capacity to which we are capable to shoot this way has literally changed the realm of photography.  Its a game changer as much as roll film or Polaroids or the advent of digital photography.

Camera sensors are rated for a range of sensitivity and my Nikon D700 shoots from 200ISO through 6400ISO. Then you have the option of pushing beyond the sensor’s ratings into “High ISO” or, essentially, push processing (remember that?).  Push processing was rating film at your camera for underexposure then “pushing” the film back to its original rating during the processing of the negatives. This was tricky to get just right, unless you did the math.  Let’s be honest though, the math sort of ruined the fun and sometimes I’d rather just guess and see what came out the other end. This was akin to shocking your film with a cold water rinse just before the fixing stage or cross-processing chromes in color chemistry. All these options, with so much left to the unknown, often resulted in undesired results, but every once in awhile strange and happy photographs would greet you on the other end.

I know a lot of photographers that wont budge over 800ISO on their fancy pro DSLRs.  Three years ago I was more inclined to agree with them as the loss of detail through noise reduction or the overwhelming amount of noise produced in the image made it near impossible to see what was what.   Put simply, as a photographer, all we do is chase the light around.  Today, however, if you’re not venturing down the higher ISO road, you’re missing out on some great light.

I love night photography.   The color cast from lights at night are anything but normal.  The strong shadows and eerie light patterns are a draw to my photographic eye. Normally higher ISO ratings aren’t a necessary tool with night photos, a sturdy tripod is, however, a must have piece of equipment.  My daily tripod is the Manfrotto 3021BPro which is the earlier version of the 055XProB.

The image above (click for a larger view) was shot without a tripod because I can’t find my quick release plate for my tripod head.   I know, I know… =/  so the thought enters my head, lets see what light is out there.   With my D700 and my 70-300VR lens hand-held (lens hood pressed against a glass door) I looked across the backyard, dialed the ISO to High 2 (25,600 ISO, this is two stops above 6400 with each stop acquiring two times as much light), set the aperture to f/11 (the sweet spot on that lens) and the shutter speed to 1/2 seconds.  This metering set is equivalent to 200 ISO, f/11 at a 60 second exposure time (shutter speed).  Keep in mind VR in your lens can compensate the same 2-3 stops regardless of what shutter speed you start from.   I braced myself against the back of a chair for a little extra stability.

B/W picture control was set at the camera. The image was processed through Nik Capture NX2 for sharpening only. NO noise reduction was applied (NR was off in the camera, also).

I don’t normally venture above 6400 ISO on my camera, but i didn’t often cross-process slides either. Some days it just feels right to be a little abnormal.

Go shoot something differently tomorrow.

Get outside your comfort zone.

___________________

John Scott



Canon Announces Everything

So’s I walk in this morning to eager to stick a bunch of used gear into a light tent to keep fleshing out our Used presence online when I’m waylaid by the Grober. He says to me, he says, ”Canon announced everything today, I need you on the blog.”
Here I am, your faithful servant.
So what’s Canon releasing? A smorgasboard of L glass and an EOS 60D.


Sony Introduces Alpha A580 and A560 DSLRs

While not the most exciting cameras Sony trotted out today, Sony’s upgrades to it’s 500-series DSLRs are still very solid. They use the dual-sensor system for Live View Sony is renowned for using to date, so even in Live View you get to keep the phase-detect AF. But, that AF module has been upgraded now to 15 points with 3 of them being the better cross-type points.

The A580 will sport a 16 megapixel sensor, and the A560 a 14 megapixel one. They’ll both record 1080i HD video with audio either via intenral mic or via an external phono jack.

Continuing Sony’s trend of putting all its new features into every camera going forward, these DSLRs will support the Sweep Panorama, 3D Sweep Panorama, Auto HDR, and Handheld Twilight modes first introduced on other models, such as the NEX line.

And the “Smart Teleconvertor” digital zoom button has been replaced by a direct movie button. Good call, Sony. Good call.

Of course they maintain the 3″ vari-tilt LCDs and internal sensor-shift image stabilization of the Alpha line up. The controls has been jiggered a bit to hopefully be even more ergonomic, and so forth.

We’re unsure if the A580 is slated for a US release, but the A560 will be available sometime early next year. So, don’t worry current 500 series owners, you’ve got a few months yet to save up your pennies and dimes for the next upgrade.



Sony Introduces Alpha A55 / A55V and A33 DSLRs with Semi-Transparent Pellicle Mirrors

Once again Sony is reworking an already tried idea and claiming it as its own (the last time it did this was with the dual-sensor live view DSLRS, actually pioneered by the Olympus E-330), and once again we’ll probably let them get away with it because what they’re doing is admittedly quite cool. This time they’re reviving an idea Canon apparently tried in the 60′s of using a semi-transparent mirror. The idea was a third of the light went through the viewfinder, and 2/3 through to the film, and the mirror didn’t have to flip. It also meant the viewfinder was dark and the shots needed 1/3 stop more exposure, but hey, kudos for trying.

The Sony is a bit different. As you might know, Sony’s goal has been to make live view as seamless a process as possible, and they’re dedicated to bringing the faster, mirror-requiring phase detect auto-focus speeds to a system that normally requires the use of slower contrast-detect. Their first solution was the previously mentioned dual sensors. If you turned on live-view it shifted the mirror to bounce the light not through the viewfinder, but onto a secondary imaging sensor for live-view output. This allowed the mirror to continue bouncing part of the light into the same auto-focus sensor the camera used in regular mode.

This new solution uses a mirror that’s mostly transparent, it’s only enough of a mirror to redirect enough light into the auto-focus sensor for it to work. The rest barrels straight through the mirror and onto the sensor. This means that an optical viewfinder isn’t possible, and Sony gets around this by using a new time-multiplexed electronic viewfinder with a resolution equivalent to 1,152,000 dots (Canon and Nikon’s high-end offerings only have 921,000 dots on their 3″ screens, for comparison). What you’re left with is an SLR style camera with full-time Live View and full-time phase-detect auto-focus. Sony’s calling the tech “SLT” or “Single Lens Transluscent.” Sounds good to us.

So, these SLTs are neat in concept, and Sony doesn’t let it slide to gimmick by backing them with a host of the usual DSLR features. The A55V will have a 16 megapixel sensor, a GPS module, and thanks to that non-flipping mirror it can shot those 16mp images at 10 frames a second. (There’ll be an A55, too, we hear, but not in the US, and it won’t have the GPS). The A33 is only a paltry 14 megapixels, no GPS, and can only crank along at 7 frames per second. They both use those high-end EVFs, and both sport 3″ 921,000 dot center-hinged tilt-swivel LCDs on the back. And of course they have SteadyShot sensor-shift image stabilization.

The SLT tech also lets them have full 1080i HD movies modes with full-time auto-focus, so that’s a win.

They’ll both also feature those shiny new Sony features the high end compacts and NEX cams have been using, like Sweep Panorama, 3D Sweep Panorama, Auto HDR, and Handheld Twilight modes.

They’ll record to Memory Stick or the much more reasonable SD/SDHC/SDXC.

These two models will reportedly start shipping sometime in October, the A55V will be $750 body only, $850 with an 18-55. The A33 will be $650 body only, $750 with 18-55mm.



Nikon Announces D3100 Entry-Level DSLR

Nikon D3100

Nikon today has announced a new entry-level successor to the D3000 named, unsurprisingly, the D3100. It’s minor updates to what’s become a pretty carefully and tightly whittled product as is, with notable updates including an increase in resolution to 14 megapixels, the addition of a 1080 movie mode (formerly available only in the D3000′s bigger brother), and a new EXPEED 2 processor. It’s got enhanced help menus, and the ISO range is extended to 100-3200 with a push range up to 12,800.

It’ll only be available in a kit with the 18-55 VR, just like it’s predecessor, starting sometime next month(ish) for about $700. For those interested in the nitty-gritty product details, we’ve got the full press release after the jump.

read more



Canon 7D Updates Firmware to 1.2.2, Considers Buying Rosetta Stone

Didn’t quite get this out yesterday, but the EOS 7D has received yet another firmware update. And why paraphrase what it does when we can just quote direct from the horse’s mouth?

Firmware Version 1.2.2 incorporates the following fixes.

  1. Fixes a phenomenon in which the set aperture moves when shooting movies in manual exposure mode using some Canon lenses (such as macro lenses).
  2. Fixes the AF point-selection behavior of the C.Fn III-7 (Manual AF pt. selec. pattern) custom function when set to [1].
  3. Fixes the AF point display for the viewfinder electronic level when shooting in the vertical position.
  4. Corrects misspellings in the Spanish and Thai menus for applicable products.

The Version 1.2.2 firmware is for cameras with firmware up to Version 1.2.1. If the camera’s firmware is already Version 1.2.2, it is not necessary to update the firmware. Note that cameras with the Version 1.2.2 firmware (and also Versions 1.2.0, 1.2.1) cannot be downgraded to a previous firmware version (such as Version 1.1.0).

Itchin’ to have your Thai more grammatically correct? Then hit the external link below and fire it up.



Olympus E-330 Finds Cancer

So, many of you might not remember this guy over here, Olympus’ E-330 DSLR. But, when this 7.5 megapixel shooter debuted back in January of 2006, it was the first DSLR to offer live view, the ability to view off-the-sensor on the back LCD. At the time it was dismissed as a novelty, a sort of solution with no problem. Obviously, times have changed and now almost everyone and their brother are putting live view into DSLRs (to be fair, its usefulness is still just as hotly debated).

And, now the E-330 gets another feather in its cap, having been used by researchers at Rice University to distinguish cancerous cells from healthy ones. Now, Olympus is certainly no stranger to the medical world (its a large manufacturer of medical imaging equipment as is), but even so this has to be a bit exciting.

In the new study, the team captured images of cells with a small bundle of fiber-optic cables attached to a $400 Olympus E-330 camera. When imaging tissues, Richards-Kortum’s team applied a common fluorescent dye that caused cell nuclei in the samples to glow brightly when lighted with the tip of the fiber-optic bundle. Three tissue types were tested: cancer cell cultures that were grown in a lab, tissue samples from newly resected tumors and healthy tissue viewed in the mouths of patients.

Well, how about that? And, if you’re wondering why mod a four year old DSLR to do this:

“Consumer-grade cameras can serve as powerful platforms for diagnostic imaging,” said Rice’s Rebecca Richards-Kortum, the study’s lead author. “Based on portability, performance and cost, you could make a case for using them both to lower health care costs in developed countries and to provide services that simply aren’t available in resource-poor countries.”

Hit the external link for the full statement from Rice. Kudos, Rice, and congrats, Oly.



Sony Updates Entry-level D-SLR offerings

Side by side, the a-290 and a-390

We’re looking again at Sony’s interchangeable lens line. This time the entry-side Alphas. (Aside, I’d like to note that I’m a little sad that their E-mount isn’t also named for a Greek letter, but Eta mount or Epsilon mount might have thrown a few people if the Greek character were used. Similarly Omega would be hilarious, but I don’t think they’re allied with the Indianapolis Colts.) From a-230 and a-380, we’re getting the a-290 and a-390. It appears that the 90s will be running concurrently with their predecessors for a bit.

Most notably the resolution gets a 40% jump from 10.2 to 14MP on the a-290 and the handgrip has been redesigned for both models. The finish on each has been homogenized. The 290 lacks live-view, but retains wireless flash control, and SDHC support.

The 390, on the other hand, has a tilting LCD, Live view (with a dedicated sensor) and the same resolution as the 380.

You can read more detailed previews here, here, and here.



Canon EOS 5D mark II Gets Video-Rocking Firmware

OK, so, this was actually posted yesterday, which means most of you 5D mark II shooters probably already have it, but, if you haven’t heard yet there’s a new firmware in town. This one is for the video shooters, adding new frame rates (including real NTSC instead of the machine-perfect 30fps), new audio sampling quality, and an on-screen levels mixer for the audio.

Anyway, the firmware is up on Canon’s site. So, hit the external link below if you want to grab that.