Photography Bay

Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips

Archives for August 2008

 

EISA Announces Award Winners

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The European Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) just published their picks for the 2008-2009 Award Winners, including for the Photo category. The EISA’s choices:

Canon 50D Reviews and Resources

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The Canon 50D was confirmed as of August 21, 2008 and was officially announced on August 26, 2008. Read the full Canon press release here. The Canon 50D carries a retail price of $1399.99 for body only and $1599.00 with the EF 28-135mm kit lens.

You can order the Canon 50D now from Amazon.com via the following links:

Canon 50D (body only)

Canon 50D (w/ 28-135mm kit lens)

The Canon 50D is pictured top left with the simultaneously announced EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens, which carries a retail price of $699.99 USD.

Read Photography Bay’s Canon 50D Review.

Canon 50D Key Features

  • 15.1 megapixel CMOS sensor
  • DIGIC 4
  • 1.6x crop
  • Dust Reduction
  • Auto Brightness Processing
  • 95% viewfinder .95 magnification
  • 9 point af (All Cross Type)
  • 35 meter area equipped with high-precision sensors
  • AF Fine Tuning
  • ISO 100-12800
  • 6.3 fps (high speed) 3fps (low speed)
  • Buffer: 16 RAW – 60 JPG – 10 RAW+JPG
  • 920,000 points VGA 3.0-inch LCD monitor
  • 100,000 cycle shutter
  • Rugged magnesium alloy body

Canon 50D Reviews

DP Interface

The camera offers a lot of functionality for photo enthusiasts and professionals, yet still has a small handful of scene modes and Creative Auto mode which appeal to users who want to enter and test the waters of the digital SLR world (if they’re daring enough to start out with this camera).

Neocamera

The Canon EOS 50D performs very well and deserves an excellent rating among DSLR cameras. Image quality is certainly good with low-noise, good color accuracy and reliable exposure.

Shutterbug

Overall, the 50D is an excellent photographic tool that’s flexible and delivers very good image quality.

Digital Photography School

The Canon 50D is a great mid range camera. Not quite a professional level camera in that it’s not using a “full frame” sensor but by no means “entry level” This camera will produce great results for you.

Steve’s Digicams

The combination of speed and performance makes this the perfect camera for the enthusiast or anyone looking to upgrade from an entry-level dSLR.

Bob Atkins

The ultimate test of a camera for me is whether I’d want to own it, and I’d want to own the EOS 50D.

The Digital Picture

If you are serious about your photography in general and can afford the higher price, the Canon EOS 50D is my recommendation over the XSi.

Digital Camera Review

The 50D continues to prove that Canon has one of the fastest (if not the fastest) AF systems, extremely high-resolution CMOS sensors with very impressive high ISO performance, and now offers (for some users, at least) a functional live view system.

Imaging Resource

So while the 40D is great, and will remain in the market, the Canon 50D incorporates plenty of enhancements worth the couple-hundred extra bucks. The Canon 50D is an excellent digital SLR.

Let’s Go Digital

It is an all-round DSLR camera for the enhanced hobby photographer who can deal with any branch of photography with this camera.

DP Review

Below ISO 1600 image output is clean with well balanced contrast and colors and as you would expect from a DSLR with a 15 megapixel sensor the 50D delivers a fair amount of detail.

Digital Camera Info

The 50D is a solid performer, but didn’t outshine the alternatives. If you’re already a Canon user, possibly moving from entry- to mid-level SLRs, and with a lens or two already in your hands, then it could be a good choice for you.

Camera Labs

The Canon EOS 50D is a worthy update to the already excellent EOS 40D, equipping it not just with the latest features, but also a significant boost in resolution without compromising noise levels.

Cnet

Though the 50D isn’t the successor to the 40D, it offers numerous improvements that may be worth the upgrade–or the outright new purchase–depending on your priorities. After having experienced the quality and depth of color in the new LCD screen it will be very difficult to go back to the 40D and to other comparable models in its class.

PhotoReview

Interestingly, low-light performance was generally outstanding, with no visible noise in shots right up to ISO 1600 and very little noise at ISO 3200. By ISO 6400, noise was visible – although not obvious.

TechRadar

The extra resolution, and the addition of three anti-reflective coatings makes a huge difference to clarity and visibility in both bright and poor light. Arguably, the EOS 50D is the first Canon DSLR that really shows sharp images as properly sharp on the LCD, which makes checking critical focus in playback much easier than it was in the past.

PhotographyBLOG

Considered on its own terms, the EOS 50D is a more than worthy addition to Canon’s semi-pro DSLR line-up. It boasts a significant number of refinements to a proven design that current EOS users will welcome, whilst adding enough features to catch-up with and in some ways surpass the Nikon D300.

Roland Lim

It is overall a nice camera and I don’t think most poeple would be disappointed with getting the 50D. However, the only caveat is that, do not expect the 50D to show any real imrpovement in high ISO performance comapred to the 40D and the competition.

DP Review (hands-on preview)

One of the most striking differences is the provision of a greatly improved LCD. The size remains unchanged at 3.0″ but the resolution rises from 230,000 dots to 920,000. This is effectively a change from 320 x 240 RGB pixels to 640 x 480 RGB pixels, putting it on a par with the latest high-end Nikons and Sony A700.

Canon 50D Official Images

Canon 50D ISO 1600 Official Sample Image (Click for Full Size)

Sony A900 Update

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Sony A900As usual, Photoclub Alpha has a keen ear to the ground on the upcoming Sony Alpha gear.  This time it’s more news on the flagship A900.  We’ve all been waiting anxiously to see the A900 since Sony announced its development last year at PMA.

While Photoclub Alpha notes two Cybershots on August 14th (today), I’m pretty sure we got those last week.

With regard to the A900 though, they point out:

The Alpha 900 will, as far as we are aware, be shown to the press on September 9th/10th worldwide.

Additionally, their info reveals that the A900 will go on sale on September 30th.

Expect to see lots more A900 coverage as we approach Photokina 2008.

For more on the Sony A900 flagship DSLR, stay tuned to Photography Bay’s Sony A900 page.

Nikon D90 Ads – Amazon and B&H Photo

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Just a little note to point out that B&H Photo and Amazon are already taking out Google Adwords ads on the keywords “Nikon D90”.

When you search for “Nikon D90” on Google, you’ll see the ads on the right side of the results page (opposite of the natural search results).  The ads are written by the companies and they bid on them for a given cost per click.

The Amazon page takes you to Amazon’s “search” page for the Nikon D90. . . .  No, there’s nothing exciting there yet.

B&H Photo’s ad takes you to a B&H “search” page for the Nikon D80.

We know it’s coming, so this is really just another hint of things to come.

For the latest news and rumors on the Nikon D90, stay tuned to Photography Bay’s Nikon D90 page.

Photographer’s Caluculator on the iPhone

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If you have an iPhone, PhotoCalc may provide you with a handful of photographer’s tools without having to carry around any reference materials. The iPhone application from Adair Systems offers a whole list of calculators for both professional and hobbyist photographers, as well as several reference documents that a photographer might need to consult on the job.

The calculators include the following:

  • Exposure Reciprocation
  • Depth of Field and Hyper-focal Distance
  • Flash Exposure
  • Sunrise/sunset/solar noon

You can configure PhotoCalc to use English or metric units as well as half or third stops.

PhotoCalc is priced at $3, not bad for what looks like an excellent reference tool that happens to fit in your pocket.

Nikon D90 UPC Code

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Nikon D90 UPC

Yes, the Nikon UPC has been spotted . . . in the UPC Database.  And, everyone is reporting it as fact.

This is a bit of a misnomer though.  See, the user-created UPC Database can be edited by anyone,  which makes this most likely bogus and something someone submitted to stir up some buzz.

Over the past couple years, we’ve seen links to the UPC database for the fictional Canon 7D and a variety of other cameras.

This doesn’t mean that the Nikon D90 is not real; however, this UPC news is really non-news until there is confirmation from a more reliable source.

For the latest news and rumors on the Nikon D90, stay tuned to Photography Bay’s Nikon D90 page.

Canon 50D Rumor Archive

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Canon has not varied in its release schedule for the Rebel series and 10D-40D series DSLRs.  Like clockwork, Canon has released a new one every 18 months . . . until this Summer when Canon announced the Rebel XS, which added another “level” of camera to its DSLR lineup.

Previously, the old Rebel model had become the step-down model in Canon’s entry-level lineup after a new camera was introduced.  Canon now clearly has a two-tier entry-level lineup with the Rebel XS and Rebel XSi.

Even though I’ve seen a few rumors for a while now, I have not posted any to Photography Bay because I generally considered it wishful thinking.  I fully expected the Canon 50D to arrive at PMA 2009, which would be 18 months after the Fall 2007 release of the Canon 40D, which has been taking some serious drops in price lately.

I am beginning to think there may be something to the rumors now.  Here’s one of the most recent rumors on the 50D specs:

  • 12.2 Megapixel APS-C sensor
  • Single Digic III Processor
  • ISO 100-3200 (High 6400)
  • 6-8 fps depending on grip
  • 3″ High Resolution OLED LCD
  • Will accept EF and EF-S Lenses
  • 11 point AF
  • 35 Zone metering
  • Viewfinder: 100 percent coverage .95 magnification
  • Pop up flash
  • New Lithium Ion Battery
  • Weather sealing slightly better than 40D

[via DPR]

Perhaps Canon is feeling pressure from Nikon with the successful entry of the D300 and D700.  While the 40D is still a stellar camera, it’s beginning to show its age when stacked up against Nikon, Sony and Pentax’s latest offerings.

Granted, some are calling BS on these specs.  Others say they’re real.  Either way, we’ll know in a few weeks.

Stay tuned to Photography Bay and our Photokina 2008 coverage for more.

Photoree: Bookmarking Reaches Images

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You have StumbleUpon for websites and Last.fm for music, but the choices for bookmarking and recommending photos are much slimmer. Photoree is an opportunity to see thousands of photographs — to see what images other photographers are creating.

The system is very simple: just like with other recommendation sites, you create a profile and note a few photos that you like from the Photoree colection. From there, Photoree recommends photos that match your taste. You can browse through photos, create your own personal collection and even use the Creative Commons images that you find through the site.

Photoree has also simplified sharing photos. While there are quite a few sites dedicated to sharing photos you’ve taken with your friends and family, there are few options for passing along a photo someone else took but that you enjoy. Your options are pretty much limited to pasty an unwieldy URL into an email. Photoree offers options for sharing photos easily with your contacts.