Photography Bay

Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips

Sigma APO 120-300mm F2.8 EX DG OS HSM Lens

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Along with the 150mm Macro, announced a new APO 120-300mm F2.8 EX DG OS HSM lens earlier this week at Photokina 2010.  This new version offers optical improvements over the last generation 120-300mm f/2.8 lens, along with the addition of optical stabilization.

As with other product announcements from Sigma this week, there’s no indication on price or availability, but it expect it to be significantly more than the $3000 street price of the current non-OS 120-300mm f/2.8 model.

More details in the press release below. [Read more…]

 

Sigma EF-610 DG Super and EF-610 DG ST Flashes

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At Photokina 2010 this week, Sigma announced a pair of new hotshoe flashes, the EF-610 DG Super and EF-610 DG ST.

Both new flashes feature a Guide Number of 61, manual flash mode and a TTL auto flash exposure with all popular DLSR systems.

The EF-610 DG ST gives you manual power control down to 1/16 power, while the EF-610 DG Super covers an 8-stop range that (assuming my finger counting is correct) gets you down to 1/128 power in manual mode.  Additionally, the EF-610 DG Super features a modeling flash function, multi-pulse flash, TTL wireless flash, high speed sync and rear curtain sync.

For those reading between the lines, the EF-610 DG Super competes with the likes of the Canon 580EX II and Nikon SB-900, while the EF-610 DG ST matches up more with the Canon 430EX II and Nikon SB-600.

No word yet on price or availability for this new pair of flashes, but considering where they fit in the market, you can probably expect them to be priced a little below the first-party products noted above.

More details in the press releases below. [Read more…]

Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM Macro

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Earlier this week, Sigma announced a 150mm f/2.8 Macro lens with its great HSM AF motor inside.  The new macro lens offers a 1:1 magnification ratio, along with a 9-blade circular diaphragm.

While Sigma showed off the new lens at Photokina 2010, it has not released further details concerning its price or availability.  For the sake of reference, the current 150mm f/2.8 Macro lens is available in Canon, Nikon, Olympus and Nikon mounts and carries a street price of around $730.

More details in the press release below. [Read more…]

Leica X1 in Black

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Leica announced at Photokina 2010 the availability of the X1 in all black, starting in October 2010.

The Leica X1 is an APS-C format camera, which has a 1.5x crop factor, and features a 2.7″ display and a fixed 24mm f/2.8 lens.  The all-black X1 will carry an initial retail price of $1995.00.  Check availability on Amazon.com.

Gorillapod Video

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The Joby Gorillapod Video is, as the name implies, a new Gorillapod for video cameras – mini-camcorders to be precise.  The Gorillapod Video has a pan/tilt head with an arm for controlling camera angles and movement.  It’s geared toward use with the likes of the Flip UltraHD, Kodak Zi8 and other lightweight camcorders.

The Gorillapod Video has powerful magnetic feet like those found on the Gorillapod Magnetic, which I love.  The Gorillapod Video runs $29.99 and should be available soon at B&H Photo and Amazon.com.

More details in the press release below. [Read more…]

Adobe Photoshop Elements 9

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Adobe has announced Photoshop Elements 9 for both Mac and PC.  As with past iterations of Photoshop Elements, this new version benefits from the advances made in the full Creative Suite version of Photoshop.  This time around Photoshop Elements 9 benefits by adding content aware technology to help repair and fill photos, among other new features.

Photoshop Elements 9 carries an initial retail price of $99.99.  Check availability on Amazon.com.

More detail about the new version in the press release below. [Read more…]

Panasonic Lumix GH2 Announced

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The Panasonic GH2 is the follow-up camera to the popular GH1.

The GH2 is built on the same Micro Four Thirds standard as all recent Lumix interchangeable lens cameras.  The GH2 features a 16MP sensor and offers an impressive sensitivity range of ISO 160-12800.

The GH2 will capture 1080p video at 24 fps in AVCHD format and records stereo audio on-camera, along with the ability to plug in an external mic.

The Panasonic GH2 should be available in December 2010 at an initial retail price of $1499.95 with a 14-140mm lens, or $999.95 with a 14-42mm kit lens.  Check availability on Amazon.com.

More details in the press release below. [Read more…]

Photo Fusion – Book Review

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Photo Fusion is a book by Jennifer Bebb that deals directly with integrating audio and video capture into wedding photography coverage.  This is a book written for photographers – specifically, wedding photographers.  The clear goal of the book is to bring experienced photographers up to speed with this new genre of wedding coverage, focusing mainly on adding HDSLR video capture to the wedding day coverage. [Read more…]

Pentax K-5 Announced

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The Pentax K-5 is a 16.3MP DSLR geared toward the enthusiast photographer and looks to compete directly with the Canon 7D and Nikon D300s.  The K-5 features 7 fps still image frame rate, ISO 80-51200 (w/ expansion) and 1080p HD video capture at 25 fps.

The Pentax K-5 should be available in October 2010 at an initial retail price of $1599.95 for body only and $1749.95 with an 18-55mm kit lens.  Check availability on Amazon.com.

Pentax K-5 Key Features

  • 16.3MP CMOS Sensor
  • 7 fps frame rate
  • ISO 80-12800 (expandable to ISO equivalent 51200)
  • 1080p video at 25 fps
  • Built-in Sensor-based Image Stabilization
  • 3-inch 921k dot res LCD
  • 0.92x Magnification VF w/ 100% Coverage
  • External Audio Mini Plug
  • 11-point AF System
  • In-Camera HDR
  • Magnesium Alloy Body (same as K-7)
  • HDMI Out
  • SDXC Memory Card Compatibility

Alongside the new K-5, Pentax has also announced a new 18-135mm lens, which should be available in October 2010 at an initial retail price of $529.95.

More details in the press release below. [Read more…]