Photography Bay

Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips

 

Olympus FE-360 and FE-370

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CENTER VALLEY, Pa., August 25, 2008 – Olympus introduces two sleek and stylish FE-Series point-and-shoot digital cameras that combine easy operation and smart performance to capture brilliant images at the push of a button. While small in size, the new FE-360 and FE-370 are full of impressive imaging technologies packed into colorful slim metal bodies ideal for people on the move. [Read more…]

Canon 50D Photos With 18-200mm IS Kit Lens

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UPDATE: The Canon 50D has been announced on August 26, 2008. Please see Photography Bay’s Canon 50D Reviews and Resources page and Canon 50D Official Announcement page for more.

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

The Canon 50D has been revealed with an EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS kit lens option. The image to the left is an official image from Canon, which appeared on this page [Update: Now password protected] from Canon Japan a third party site.

[Update: As some readers have pointed out, the location of the Canon 50D page is not on an official Canon site, nor is it Japanese – the language is Chinese. It looks like it could be a developer for Canon. I am also of the opinion that this page is related to the leak on the official Canon.com.cn site a couple days ago. I think we will see an announcement on Aug. 25th or 26th to confirm the leaks/rumors.]

Below you will find more official images of the Canon 50D. And, for those of you concerned about excessive noise in a 15.1 megapixel sensor, there’s an ISO 1600 sample image below as well.

For more info regarding the specifications and announcement news (when it comes) stay tuned to Photography Bay’s Canon 50D page.

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

Nikon’s BIG News

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Something BIG is coming from Nikon.  In a not-so-subtle ad that Nikon placed in Rangerfinder Magazine, Nikon notes that it’s got some “BIG” news for wedding and portrait photographers, which it plans on bringing along the MGM Grand Arena at WPPI in February 2009.

Additionally, the ad reveals that Nikon will unveil the BIG news “next month.”  I can’t imagine that this boastful ad could be a reference to anything other than the 24+ megapixel Nikon D3x (or whatever it will be called) announcement at Photokina 2008, which will obviously be shown off to WPPI attendees at the BIG advertised event next February.

What do you think?

[via Nikon Rumors]

Canon 50D Info Leaked – REAL SPECS!

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UPDATE: The Canon 50D has been announced on August 26, 2008. Please see Photography Bay’s Canon 50D Reviews and Resources page and Canon 50D Official Announcement page for more.

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

Canon’s China website has published specifications for the 50D in its public webspace. Although the info is not on the front page of the site yet, it is accessible to anyone. Here is the link (update: it’s down, but this one is still live for the moment 11:51p.m. ET).

We keep check for availability; however, there is no listing on Amazon.com search results or any other vendor yet.

I’ve set forth the relevant translated specs and info below. Please note that the original specs listed here listed in-body IS as a feature. The translation was wrong and the feature has been removed from the spec list below. The specs referenced the advantages and compatibility with lens-based IS instead.

  • 15.1 megapixel CMOS sensor
  • DIGIC 4
  • 1.6x crop
  • Dust Reduction
  • Auto Brightness Processing
  • 95% viewfinder .97 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 bodyFull Specifications

Canon 50D Full Specifications

General

Camera Type: Has a built-in flash AF / automatic exposure single-lens reflex digital cameras
Media Type: I or Type II CF card, UDMA compatible
Image Sensor Size: 22.3×14.9 mm
Compatible Lenses: Canon EF-series (including EF-S series lenses) (35 mm converted the focal length of the lens focal length is about 1.6 times)
Lens mount: Canon EF mount

Image Sensor

Type: CMOS Image Sensor
Effective Pixels: Approx.15.1 million pixels
Aspect ratio: 3:2
Dust removal function: Auto, Manual, add the dust data

Recording System

Recording format: Camera File System Design Rule 2.0
?Design rule for Camera File System 2.0? (Design rule for Camera File System 2.0)
Image types: JPEG, RAW (14 place Canon original); RAW + JPEG
Records of pixels: (4752 x 3168? Large: about 15.1 million pixels (4752 x 3168)
Medium: about 8 million pixels (3456 x 2304)
Small: about 3.7 million pixels (2352 x 1568)
RAW: about 15.1 million pixels (4752 x 3168)
sRAW1: about 7.1 million pixels (3267 x 2178)
sRAW2: about 3.8 million pixels (2376 x 1584)
Create / select: Folder Yes

Image Processing

Photo style: Standard, portrait, landscape, neutral, reliable setup, monochrome, User-defined 1-3
White Balance: Auto, the default (Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten Lamp, White fluorescent light, flash), user-defined, Color temperature settings (2500-10000 K)
Noise Reduction: Can be applied to long time exposure and high ISO sensitivity shooting
Automatic image brightness correction: Automatic brightness optimization
High-priority tone: Yes
The amount of light surrounding the lens correction: Yes

Viewfinder

Type: Eye-level pentaprism
Rate outlook: Vertical / horizontal direction about 95 percent
Magnification: About 0.95 times (-1 m-1, using 50 mm lens on the infinite distance AF)
Focus: About 22 mm (eyepiece lens from the central -1 m-1)
Built-in diopter adjustment: -3.0 – +1.0 M-1 (dpt)
Focusing Screen: Ef-A equipped with the standard screen, and can replace the screen (2 sold separately)
Mirrors: Express back –
Depth of Field Preview: Yes

AF

Type: TTL auxiliary video coincidence, the phase detection
Automatic focus points: 9 (all cross-)
Metering range: EV -0.5 – 18 (23 ° C/73 ° F, ISO 100)
Focus modes: Single AF, AI Servo AF, Artificial Intelligence AF, manual focus (MF)
AF-assist light: By the built-in flash for a short flash
AF fine-tuning: AF can be fine-tuning

Exposure Control

Metering Mode: 35 Zone TTL full-aperture metering

  • Evaluation meter (with the focus of any automatic linkage)
  • Partial metering (the viewfinder about 9 percent of the area)
  • Spot (viewfinder central area of about 3.8%)
  • Central focus of the average metering

Metering range: EV 1-20 (23 ° C/73 ° F, the use of EF50mm f/1.4 USM lens, ISO 100)
Exposure Control: Programmed auto exposure (automatic, portrait, landscape, Macro, Sports, Night Portrait, Flash off, creativity automatic, procedures), shutter priority automatic exposure, aperture priority auto exposure, depth of field priority auto exposure, manual exposure
ISO Sensitivity: (Recommended exposure index)

  • Basic shooting zone mode: automatically set between ISO 100-1600
  • District creative shooting modes: ISO 100 – 3200 (in 1 / 3 increments), Auto, ISO sensitivity can be extended up to ISO 6400 or ISO 12800

Exposure compensation: Manual and automatic exposure bracketing (with manual exposure compensation can be used in combination) – Can be set numerical: ± 2 Stage 1 / 3 or 1 / 2 units to adjust
Auto exposure lock Auto: evaluation of the use of metering single AF mode – Manual: auto exposure lock button

Shutter

Type: Electronically controlled focal plane shutter
Shutter speed: 1 / 8000 second to 1 / 60 seconds (automatic mode), flash synchronization speed of 1 / 250 second 1 / 8000 to 30 seconds, B Mun (the shutter speed range. With the availability of various shooting modes. )

Flash

Built-in flash: Recoverable, auto-flash
Flash: 13/43 (ISO 100, to m / ft unit) flash coverage: 17 mm camera angle. Recycle time of about three seconds
External flash: X series of flash (camera can set up some flash function)
Flash Metering: E-TTL II automatic flash
Flash Exposure Compensation: ± 2 Stage 1 / 3 or 1 / 2 units to adjust
Flash Exposure lock: Yes
PC terminal: Yes

Driving System

Types: Single-shoot, high-speed shot, low shot funny (10 seconds or two seconds delay)
Continuous speed High-speed: Approx. 6.3 / sec. max
Low: the most about 3 / sec.
Continuous maximum number of (High-Speed Continuous):

  • JPEG large / distinctions: about 60 (90)
  • RAW: about 16 (16)
  • RAW + JPEG large / distinctions: about 10 (10)

* Based on these values to use 2 GB of memory cards, Canon testing standards (ISO 100 photos and standard style).
*Value in brackets apply to the testing standards based on Canon’s Ultra DMA (UDMA) 2GB memory card.

Live View Shooting

Focus: Fast mode (testing phase)
Real-time mode, real-time facial priority mode (contrast detection)
Manual focus (can be enlarged five times / 10 times)
Metering Mode: The use of image sensors to evaluate Spot
Metering range: EV 0 – 20 (23 ° C/73 ° F, the use of EF50mm f/1.4 USM lens, ISO 100)
Mute shooting: Yes

LCD Monitor

Type: TFT color liquid crystal display (there are seven brightness adjustment)
Monitor size and resolution: 3 inches, about 920,000 points (VGA)
Coverage: About 100%
Language: Interface 25 (with English)

Image playback

Image display format: Leaflets, pamphlets + information (image quality records, the shooting information, the histogram), four images index, nine image index, rotating images
Zoom: About 1.5 times – 10 times
View images method: Leaflets images, 10 or 100 images, screen, the date, Folder as a unit Jump
High-warning: Excessive exposure of the regional high-flicker

Direct Print

Compatible printer: PictBridge-compatible printers
Print Image: JPEG and RAW image
Print command: DPOF1.1 compatible version

Custom

25 Custom Functions
Camera user settings In the mode dial position of the C1 and C2 registered
Registration menu: Yes

Interface

Digital Video: For computer communications and direct printing (Hi-Speed USB)
Video output terminal: 3.5 mm mini-jack (optional NTSC / PAL)
HDMI mini OUT: terminal C –
Remote Terminal: And N3-compatible line of the shutter
Docking Systems terminal: WFT-E3 Used to connect wireless file transfer for WFT-E3

Power

Battery: Battery BP-511A (1)
* AC adapter can be packaged using the AC ACK-E2
* Installation of the battery box and handle BG-E2N or BG-E2, you can use on the 5th (AA/LR6) battery
Battery capacity shooting (Based on CIPA testing standards): 50 percent of the normal use of flash photography: 23 ° C/73 ° F at about 640. 0 ° C/32 ° F at about 540. 50% of the use of flash photography of real-time display: 23 ° C/73 ° F at about 170. 0 ° C/32 ° F at about 130.

Size and weight

Size (Width x x high-thick): 145.5×107.8×73.5 mm / 5.7 x4.2×2.9 inches
Weight: About 730 grams / 25.7 ounces (body only)

Operating Environment

Temperature range: 0 ° C-40 ° C/32 ° F-104 ° F
Working humidity range: 85 percent or less

Battery BP-511A

Type: Rechargeable lithium batteries
Rated voltage: 7.4 V DC
Battery capacity: 1390 mA
Size (Width x x high-thick): 38x21x55 mm / 1.5 x0.8×2.2 inches
Weight: About 82 grams / 2.9 ounces
Battery Charger: CB-5L

With battery BP-511A, BP-514, BP-511 or BP-512
The length of the power cord: About 1.8 m / 5.9 ft.
Charging time: About 100 minutes
Input Voltage: 100-240 V AC
Output voltage: 8.4 V DC
Temperature range: 0 ° C-40 ° C/32 ° F-104 ° F
Working humidity range: 85 percent or less
Size (Width x x high-thick): 91x67x32.3 mm / 3.6 x2.6×1.3 inches
Weight About 105 grams / 3.7 ounces (not including the power cord)

More info is coming in and I’m still working on verifying the translations of the above specs, so stay tuned to PB’s home page and the Canon 50D page.

Photographers Face Paranoia in UK

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The Telegraph has an article this week about the paranoia that even casual photographers are facing in the UK. Photographers have been chased down by police for taking photographs while in a town centre. The writer behind the article, Sam Delaney, described his own experience sitting in a coffee shop while simply taking a look at a camera he had borrowed:

As I sit familiarising myself with this new toy, I sense suspicious glances from the people sitting beside me. I tell myself I’m probably just imagining it. I hold the camera up to my face, point the lens through the window at the busy street outside and peer through the viewfinder. The first thing I see is a large, bearded, angry-looking middle-aged man thrusting two fingers in a V-sign at me.

His story gets better. Delaney left the coffee shop, hung the camera around his neck and walked towards some nearby stores. The lens cap was on, but a security guard immediately homed in on Delaney and announces that photographing the area is prohibited. The guard insisted that Delaney put away the camera or leave.

There are so many incidents these days when photographers are assumed to be up to no good, simply because they’re taking photographs. How did photography become a crime?

Sony A900 at Photo Image Brazil

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The Sony A900 made an appearance at Photo Image Brazil this week.  Here on some shots of the displays that surfaced on the DPR forums.  In the image above you can see the see-through body of the A900 along with an example of the size differences in an APC and full-frame sensor.

Above is a head-on shot of what looks to be the final version of the A900 with references to its massive 24.6 megapixels along with the sure-to-perform Carl Zeiss 24-70 f/2.8 lens.  Now there’s a kit lens.

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

Fujifilm FinePix S2000HD

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Valhalla, NY, August 12, 2008 – FUJIFILM U.S.A. Inc. today announced the first model in its digital camera line-up to offer full High-Definition compatibility — the FinePix S2000HD.

Sporting a 10-MegaPixel 1/2.3″ CCD, a powerful 15x wide-angle optical zoom (27.6mm-414mm equivalent) and an extra large 2.7″ wide-view LCD, the FinePix S2000HD is perfect for advanced amateur photographers who want an affordable, step-up digital camera that will still fit in the palm of their hand. [Read more…]

Fujifilm FinePix F60fd

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Valhalla, NY, August 12, 2008 – FUJIFILM U.S.A. Inc. today introduced the FinePix F60fd, a versatile, compact digital camera that makes it easier than ever for consumers to take great pictures in any conditions. As the latest addition to Fujifilm’s award-winning F-Series lineup, the FinePix F60fd, like the FinePix F50fd before it, combines intuitive use with the most advanced features and technology available, enabling photographers of all levels to capture the moment as their eye sees it. [Read more…]