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Most of the time monopods don't get much love. But, for some situations and cameras they can spell the difference between getting the shot properly and not.
My review of the Manfrotto 685B Monopod along with an accompanying on-location video is now online.
The name DxO Labs will be familar to many is the makers of DxO Optics Pro, a very popular image processing and lens correction program.
Today, DxO is launching a free digital SLR comparison test site DxOMark which uses the company's proprietary DxO Analyzer system to generate comparative test results, currently totaling more than 45 current and past model DSLRs.
These data are very well presented, in both numeric and graphic formats, and the site is unique in the industry in terms of the comprehensivness of the data presented.
My introduction to and review of DxOMark is now available.
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"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
Jay Maisel is unarguably one of the world's greatest photographers and a wonderful and challenging teacher. I am fortunate to consider Jay Maisel a friend, and we have worked and taught together in the past.
Jay has just announced his late 2008 and early 2009 teaching schedule at his building in New York. I am therefore pleased to use this opportunity to promote it on his behalf.
You can find out more here, which loads a PDF information page.
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There's some exciting news coming tomorrow (Monday) for those who like test reports and camera comparisons. Check back here first thing tomorrow.
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Michael, I just finished From Camera to Print, and I want to thank
you and Jeff for a seminar in which I feel like I learned to fly!
I learned so much that now I need to go back and watch again,
and take some serious notes.
I've made some nice prints in the past,
but with all this new knowledge,
I can only imagine what those old prints will
look like when I apply all this new knowledge.
So, a heartfelt "Thank You" to you both!
For those of you who think haven't bought it, what are you waiting
for? If you're anything like me, you'll be blown away by it. It may be
over six hours, but the conversational manner in which it is taught is
entertaining AND educational.
I'm starting on the Lightroom tutorial as I write this.
Great stuff, Michael.
The Red Scarlet & Epic camera systems were announced this morning. I have prepared an analysis of the various models along with some thoughts on the implications of this remarkable series of product announcements for both photographers and other equipment makers.
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Thom Hogan is one of the more knowledable and insightful pundits on the digital camera scene, and a leading independant expert on the Nikon system. He has just published his 2009 Nikon predictions, just ahead of Nikon's anticipated new product announcement next week. It covers more than just Nikon gear, and looks at the entire industry, especially in light of the current global economic situation. Insightful.
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I have several new product tests underway, including a monopod, a great new camera backpack, the Panasonic Micro Four Thirds G1 camera, and the Epson 7900 printer. These will all appear here over the new couple of week. Oh yes – and a number of new printing papers.
It has been announced that Sigma Corp. has acquired Foveon. Long held out by some as the holy grail of sensors, because it locates all three colours on the same photo site rather than using a matrix approach to colour, Foveon never caught on with any other DSLR maker except Sigma. Now it looks like it'll become exclusive through ownership if not through the disinclination of others to adopt it.
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If you're a working professional photographer, or thinking of becoming one, and live in Southern Ontario, you might want to consider a weekend workshop with Rob Davidson on Nov 21,22,23 in Toronto. The business side of things is where many a talented photographer has fallen down. Rob's course is based on many years of teaching at colleges in Ontario.
In the late Summer of 2008 I interviewed Henry Wilhelm, the world's preeminent authority on print permanence and the founder of Wilhelm Imaging Research. This interview was conducted on behalf of Epson, to be used as part of their 2008/2009 Epson Print Academy. The clip used by Epson was edited down to 14 minutes for use in The Print Academy.
Because the complete interview contains so much more fascinating and valuable information about current printing technology and materials than can be contained in 14 minutes, with the agreement of Epson we have put together a more complete version of this important interview. This runs slightly more than one hour.
We are making it available here online at no charge in two versions. the video full interview and also in audio-only format.
We hope that you enjoy this fascinating interview. It should prove to be a worthwhile resource for anyone interested in the state of contemporary print making.
Several things vie for your attention today.
Apple has announced the update of Aperture to V2.3. This adds support for several new cameras including the Canon 50D, Nikon D90, Sony A900 and Nikon P6000. (No Canon G10 though. Pitty).
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DxO has announced the release of Optics Pro v5.3. In addition to new high ISO support on certain cameras raw support has been added for the Nikon D700, Canon Rebel XS and Canon G9. (Hello DxO – the G9 was discontinued and has been replaced with the G10).
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My friend Andy Biggs, a leading wildlife photographer and African photo safari guide, has announced a new line of camera bags called Gura Gear. His first product, the Kiboko backpack is now shipping.
I have been testing and using the Kiboko for the past few months and used it on our joint Botswana photo safari workshop in September. The bag is superb – designed by a photographer for photographers.
My review of the Kiboko will appear here next week. In the meantime – Highly Recommended.
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William Neill is one of the most talented landscape and nature photographers working in the American Southwest today. I am a huge fan of his work, and he has recently started to contribute articles to this site.
Bill has a new e-book available, called Impressions of Light, and an essay on the techniques used to produce the images for this new book is found here today.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
The Epson 3800 and Adobe Lightroom are each at the top of their class. But, when it comes to B&W printing in Epson's Advanced Black and White mode they just don't play well together.
Adobe's Eric Chan has now created "profiles" that let us print accurately in ABW mode, and these are freely available for most popular papers. Find out more.
Two items of passing interest today – my friend Andy Biggs has just won this year's Wild Places catagory in the 2008 BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards. It was a shot taken on our joint 2006 Namibia photographic expedition. You can see the image and read more about it here. Congratulations Andy!
Sean Reid at Reidreviews has just published his first impressions report on the new medium format Leica S2. The camera and proposed lens system is enough to make one salivate, though the prices will likely lead to cardiac arrest for most folks. (This site is subscription based).
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I had an opportunity this past week to spend a couple of hours shooting with the recently announced Phase One P65+ back. I also did some comparisons with a P45+.
Since the back is one of just a handful of pre-production backs available in the world, and my time with it was quite limited, I'll hold off on doing a formal first-look report. But my initial impressions are very favourable, and the increase in resolution from 39 Megapixels to 60.5 MP is definately noticable. Frankly, just about every aspect of image quality is just amazing.
As soon as a production P65+ is available I expect to do a full field test report and I also hope to have one to use on my upcoming January expedition to Antarctica.
_____________________
Michael, I just finished From Camera to Print, and I want to thank
you and Jeff for a seminar in which I feel like I learned to fly!
I learned so much that now I need to go back and watch again,
and take some serious notes.
I've made some nice prints in the past,
but with all this new knowledge,
I can only imagine what those old prints will
look like when I apply all this new knowledge.
So, a heartfelt "Thank You" to you both!
For those of you who think haven't bought it, what are you waiting
for? If you're anything like me, you'll be blown away by it. It may be
over six hours, but the conversational manner in which it is taught is
entertaining AND educational.
I'm starting on the Lightroom tutorial as I write this.
Great stuff, Michael.
Canon and Nikon are competitive in almost every market segment. Now with their two new cameras, the updated Canon G10 and the brand new Nikon P6000 we have a new battelground – pocket digicams with raw capability and optical viewfinders.
My latest review, Pocket Battleships, is now online.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
The rate of change in the digital camera industry continues to accelerate. The Nikon D700 provides D3 image quality at half the price, and soon the Canon 5D MKII will equal the image quality of the Canon 1Ds MIII at a third the price. The trend is inexorable.
I recently started testing the new Canon G10 pocket digicam and have been shaken by the image quality. In You've Got to be Kidding! I look at the image quality that this camera is capable of and informally compare it to medium format.
No – I'm not kidding.
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Epson US has officially announced its next generation of professional ink jet printers – the 24-inch Epson Stylus Pro 7900 and the 44-inch Epson Stylus Pro 9900. These use new Ultrachrome HDR inks, print at twice the speed of previous models and offer a wider colour gamut. The printers feature 10 ink channel heads and have automatic black switching.
The Epson Stylus Pro 7900 and 9900 will be available in November for $3,995 and $5,995 (MSRP) respectively.
I expect to begin testing a 7900 printer at my studio next week, and will have a full test report here as soon as possible.
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Adobe has just released their Camera Raw 5.1 and Lightroom 2.1 updates. These include support for a slew of new cameras. This is the first version of Camera Raw designed exclusively for use with Photoshop CS4.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
A new generation of pocket-sized cameras that can shoot raw have just become available – the Panasonic LX-3, the Nikon P6000, and the Canon G10.
My review of the LX-3 is now online, and will be followed within the next two weeks by a comparison between the new Nikon and Canon. That review will also include how the Pansonic stacks up against the other two. Watch for it.
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I have also just updated my Botswana portfolio with another new image.
Adobe has announced that Creative Suite 4 (CS4) is now shipping in its numerous versions and upgrade configurations. Also available today are new versions of Photoshop CS4, Photoshop CS4 Extended, InDesign CS4, Illustrator® CS4, Flash CS4 Professional, Dreamweaver CS4, etc, etc. – Whew.
Prepare to stretch your wallet.
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Phase One has released (finally) Capture One 4 Pro. Capture One 4 PRO is free for registered users of Capture One PRO 3.x. Its estimated street price is USD399 and EUR299. Recommended minimum system requirements are Macintosh OS X 10.5.5 or later, Intel® based processor, or Microsoft Windows® XP SP3 or Windows Vista SP1 and Windows .NET Framework v3, Intel Pentium 4® processor, 1 GB RAM and a 1280 x 800 resolution screen.
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One-on-One Printing Training Sessions at my gallery / studio in Toronto have proven to be very popular. So popular that for the past couple of months I have had to stop promoting them as I was overbooked.
My time has eased up a bit for the rest of the year and I am now accepting new bookings for selected dates in November and December.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
If you've ever seen a Dye Transfer print made by a master printer you'll understand why it is considered to have the widest colour gamut and tonal range of any photographic printing process. Unfortunately Kodak stopped making dye transfer materials more than a decade ago.
There are still a few practitioners making dye transfer prints, and one of these is my friend Ctein, who when he learned that the process would be no more mortgaged his house and filled freezers full of the necessary materials. He is now one of the handful of people left in the world that still does dye transfer printing. Kodak once called him "the world's greatest living printer", and who am I to argue with that acolade?
The reason that I mention this is because another friend of mine, Mike Johnston, a long-time contributor to this site, and now the publisher of The Online Photographer, have gotten together to offer readers an opportunity to purchase a couple of Ctein images, custom printed using the dye transfer process, for just $100 each, or two for $180.
If you are a lover of fine photography and lovely prints this may be the last time for you to purchase an original dye transfer, especially at such a low price. I say – got for it.
You can view a video clip from an in-depth interview which I did with Ctein a few years ago. It can be found in its entirety in the Issue #11 DVD of The Luminous Landscape Video Journal.
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Lovers of film will be pleased to learn that Kodak is releasing a new colour negative emulsion – Ektar 100, with extreemly fine grain and high saturation characteristics.
I have just published a collection of images taken in Botswana by a few members of our safari. It was a great group of people, and some very strong work resulted.
I have also added a new photograph to my own safari portfolio.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
It seems to me that most amateur photographers aren't terribly excited about stills / video convergence. That's OK – they don't have to be – yet.
But for working pros it's another matter. A just published article in the pro journal PDN, titled Seeing RED, looks at how sometime National Geographic photographer David McLain used the ultra high-definition Red One camcorder to shoot a print and video campaign in Baja for clothing company Horny Toad.
A new business opportunity is emerging for professional shooters and a new art form is developing for adventurous amateurs. Ignore it at your peril.
Stay tuned.
Nikon was the first to announce and now ship a DSLR with video capability – the D90. I have spent the past week working with one, focusing on its video capabilities, and my exclusive review is now online along with sample footage.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
The product news is thinning out from Photokina, but there are some new stories to be had, and several more have just been added to my ongoing report.
Update: A report which I published originally about Sinar and Leaf turns out to have been incorrect. I have now published new information which clarifies the situation and have apologized to Sinar for my error.
My Botswana portfolio page has also had a new addition.
Having just returned from my recent safari / workshop shoot in Botswana I have been working on my files, and the second image from my upcoming Okavango portfolio and exhibition is now online on the site's Home Page.
I have also started a page titled Okavango which will feature new images every few days, and which also includes a discussion of the shots, equipment used, shooting conditions, and processing techniques.
I also expect to publish images taken by various safari members as they become available.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
While the major announcements seem to have all been made news continues to come out of the exhibition halls at Photokina. My Photokina 2008 page continues to be updated with new reports and commentary.
"I wanted to congratulate you on your LL guide to Lightroom 2 which I've just watched in a marathon single sitting while trying out the techniques demonstrated on a second monitor. Despite managing a database of 40,000 images in Lightroom this is the first time I've really deeply understood this software. The tutorial was extremely thorough, clear and enlightening. I cant wait to incorporate this new knowledge into my daily work".
Photokina opens today, and though a number of products were already announced during the past two weeks (while I was off the grid), there are several exciting news items today and assuredly more to come.
My Photokina 2008 page is now online and will be updated over the next week as further interesting products are announced.
The site's Discussion Forum is now open to new registrations, after being closed while I was in Botswana.
I have just returned from a two week photo safari in Botswana, only to discover that world financial markets had melted down and my Canon 5D MKII report, which should have been published on Sept 17th by one of our staff, wasn't.
Since the former puts the latter issue in perspective, it's hard to be too upset about it. So, better a week late than never, here is what I wrote...
Ps: Lots to write about our safari shooting experience in the days ahead. First priorities though are dealing with my suitcase, which Air France managed to lose somewhere between Maun, Botswana, Johanseburg, Paris and Toronto, and also some 700 emails that need responses. But – jet lag awaits, so I'll give it a few days.
Sept 17, 2008
As few knowledgeable observes doubted they would, Canon has announced its replacement for the somewhat long-in-the-tooth 5D. The 5D Mark II is a considerable upgrade, with a 21 Megapixel sensor, enhanced high ISO capability, and all of the current Canon niceties, such as sensor dust removal and a high res LCD screen.
Of considerable excitement to those that have been forecasting stills / video convergence (yours truly included) the new 5D MKII is able to shoot high definition video, in 1080P resolution using the advanced H264 video codec.
I was able to spend a couple of days working with a pre-production camera earlier this month, before leaving on my safari expedition to Botswana, and my exclusive report focusing on the 5D MKII's video capabilities along with some sample footage is now online.
This article contains a video report as well as sample footage from the 5D MKII – which was inadvertently omitted during the first hour that the piece was online. Sorry about that – jet lag at work I'm afraid.
UPDATES
When I tested the 5D MKII earlier this month I had virtually no information from Canon – just the camera itself. I then left for 2 weeks in Africa with instructions that the article be published on the product's announcement date while I was away .
Getting back and discovering that the piece had not been published, as I'd instructed, I put it online as quickly as possible. What I discovered since is that the 5D MKII shoots in 1080P not 1080i. Cool. But, not what I'd originally written. Sorry about that. No harm, no foul.
The first of what will likely be a considerable portfolio of new photographs taken this month in Botswana is now online on the site's Home Page. A full write up, discussion of equipment used, and shooting situations will also follow, as well as images from some of the trip's members.
Click here for a listing of the What's New archives.
