Nikon has jumped on the iPhone bandwagon with its new “My Picturetown” app, which can be downloaded by iPhone users at the iTunes App Store for free. More details in the press release below. [Read more…]
Archives for 2009
Lexar Full-HD Video Memory Cards
With the ever-growing crowd of HD video shooters out there, Lexar has stepped up to the plate with some high speed, high capacity SDHC and Memory Stick Pro Duo memory cards. Expect them to be available in March. See the press release below for more info on capacities and formats. [Read more…]
Pentax Optio P70 and Optio E70
Pentax has released two new point and shoot cameras. The Optio P70 features 12 megapixels, a 4x optical zoom, a 2.7″ LCD screen and a ridiculous maximum sensitivity setting of ISO 6400. The Optio E70 features 10 megapixels, 3x optical zoom and a 2.4″ LCD screen. The P70 will retail for $199.95 and the E70 for $139.95. For more info, see the following press release. [Read more…]
Nikon D700 Review
On July 1, 2008, Nikon somewhat surprised us all with the D700, which would become their killer camera of 2008 (and pretty much the past 3 or 4 years as well). The mid-summer announcement caught us off-guard and immediately made us drool over the specs and, more importantly, the price.
The Nikon D700 is essentially a trimmed down version of the flagship (at the time of release) Nikon D3, with a price tag of only $3000 US when announced. Fast forward six months and you can find the Nikon D700 in the sub-$2300 price range for the camera body. With the introduction of the Canon 5D Mark II at $2700, you can expect rebates and price drops to continue as Canon and Nikon compete for your hard-earned dollars.
Enough marketing hoopla, let’s take a closer look at some of the specs that make the D700 such a drool-worthy camera. [Read more…]
BrightQube – The Future of Stock Photography?
Recently, BrightQube contacted me to let me know about their service for stock photographers and stock purchasers, which gives purchasers the ability to search over 40 stock libraries. It has a very cool search and view function, with which I have only spent a few minutes and I’m not ready to pass judgment on the overall effectiveness of the site. However, it seems to be rather powerful. I’m interested in what you stock shooters out there think of BrightQube, particularly with regard to the distinguishing of “everyday” and “professional” images. Take a look at the introduction from BrightQube below, check out BrightQube.com and let me know what think in the comments or the forum. [Read more…]
Rumor Update: Canon 1Ds Mark IV
A commenter on Photography Bay’s Canon 1Ds Mark IV Rumors reveals word from CPS that an update 1Ds may be coming very soon:
Spoke with CPS 2 months ago, said to budget for a new improved mark ds camera coming out first qtr of 2009
Look for more news and rumors on the Canon 1Ds Mark IV as we approach PMA 2009.
Kodak Z980, M380 and Zx1
Kodak’s press release for CES 2009 (Consumer Electronics Show) appears to have leaked out onto the web a few days early, revealing a number of interesting items to be introduced by Kodak in the coming days.
Kodak has introduced two new point and shoot cameras and one pocket-sized HD video camera. The Kodak Z980 is a 12 megapixel sensor and a whopping 24x optical zoom. Of course, the Z980 also offers much needed image stabilization for its extended focal length. This spec-heavy superzoom will run $399 retail when it releases.
The Kodak M380 is a more affordable 10 megapixel camera with a 5x optical zoom and 2.7″ LCD screen. The M380 is available in black, red and teal for a retail price of $179.
The Kodak Zx1 is a competitor to the Flip-series cameras (Read Photography Bay’s Flip MinoHD Review). The Zx1 features 720p capture at 60fps. Like the Flip cameras, the Zx1 includes software to enable easy uploads to YouTube. It is also SD card compatible for sizes up 32GB, which will result in recording times up to 10 hours. If its performance lives up to its specs, the Zx1 will be a bargain at $149.95. [Read more…]
JPG Magazine Almost Dead . . . Almost
In a blog post on New Year’s Day, JPG Magazine called it quits:
We’ve spent the last few months trying to make the business behind JPG sustain itself, and we’ve reached the end of the line. We all deeply believe in everything JPG represents, but just weren’t able to raise the money needed to keep JPG alive in these extraordinary economic times. We sought out buyers, spoke with numerous potential investors, and pitched several last-ditch creative efforts, all without success. As a result, jpgmag.com will shut down on Monday, January 5, 2009.
There were several reactions to this news across the online photography community, with many people expressing their sadness to see JPG Magazine go. However, Don MacAskill, CEO of SmugMug, reached out to JPG Magazine via Twitter, which is a social media communication tool. This has sparked some reactionary comments and a feeling among many that JPG may be salvageable. Others, however, would prefer to see it just die.
Today, TechCrunch reported that “the company is in the process of taking bids from interested buyers now, and there are already firm offers on the table which are attractive to the company’s current stockholders.” It appears, however, that we won’t know the fate of JPG Magazine until some point next week at the earliest. Stay tuned.
Canon 5D Mark II In Stock at B&H
B&H Photo has the Canon 5D Mark II body in stock. Click here to go to the product page at B&H.
UPDATE: It’s gone now. Thanks Will.
Dell Inspiron 530 & Vista 64-bit Home Premium
A few months back, I faced the decision of purchasing a new computer for my photographic needs. My old iMac G5 at 1.8 GHz was maxed out with its lowly 250GB hard drive and 2 GB of RAM. I was processing my Lightroom Library off of an external hardrive and was at a breaking point in user-friendly functionality.
My first steps in looking for a replacement centered around the pretty and new iMacs with 24″ monitors. Man, they’re pretty. The price tags, however, are not so pretty. I wanted enough horse power to run Lightroom 2 and Photoshop simultaneously, in addition to Firefox and/or Safari. To get what I wanted out of my new Mac, I would have to put together an iMac with a $2000+ price tag, or step up to the Mac Pro where I was looking at $2500 to $3000. Ouch.
While I understand that many pro photographers out there (and I’m sure many amateurs as well) will pony up whatever Apple is charging for its great user interface and intuitive operation, that’s not necessarily for me. As I thought more about it, I realized that Lightroom is the program that is the most important to me. Second, would be Firefox. Third, is Photoshop. All three of these programs are available on Windows as well.
So, I started pondering the possibility of going back to Windows for my next box. Then, when I started looking, I noticed the huge price differential for essentially the same specifications. The price difference pretty much convinced me that I needed to go with a Windows machine for my next computer. [Read more…]