Photography Bay

Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips

The Summer Music Moment Contest

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The deadline for PDN and Billboard’s music photography contest is getting close: submissions are due by August 29. They’ve actually split the Summer Music Moment contest into two separate competitions. You can enter either as an amateur or a professional, through the contest’s website.

There’s a wide variety of prizes, including cash, cameras and computers. Just a head’s up, though: you must have written releases from anyone appearing in your photographs before you enter your work. You may have an absolutely awesome shot of some famous singer rocking out, but if you can’t get a written release, you’re out of luck.

You can see recent entries here, and some of them really do rock.

 

Free Links Friday

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Below are some of the best photography links from other sites that I came across this week. Enjoy!

Top 10 Tips for Getting Attention on Flickr, All Fresh and New for 2008 – Thomas Hawk’s Digital Connection – Coming from a guy that gets roughly 14,000 views per day on Flickr, these are probably 10 worthwhile tips to consider.

White Seamless Tutorial :: Part 4 :: Simple Changes In Post Production – Zach Arias – Zach shows off some post production techniques that really help to make powerful images out of seamless background photos.

A quick review of SmugShot for the iPhone – Mike Fullerton – Mike gives SmugMug’s first attempt at iPhone integration a big thumbs down.

Fujifilm, Nintendo offer photo printing service – Imaging Resource – In addition to still being hard to find, the Nintendo Wii now lets users order photos through its online interface, which includes upload photos from your SD cards.

If You’re a Wedding Photographer; You’ve Got To Check Out This Video – Photoshop Insider – Scott Kelby did this short video just to show off a piece of gear for wedding photographers.

Alan Jaras Photography of Light – Hypebeast – Awesome images.  ‘Nuff said.

If you want your photography-related site on Free Links Friday, just drop a comment or an email asking nicely.  Leave a link and a short description of what your site or particular post is about.  Spammers need not apply.

Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd Review at PhotographyBLOG

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PhotographyBLOG has posted a review of the Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd.

The new Fujifilm FinePix S8100fd ultra-zoom camera is a rather modest update of it’s predecessor, the S8000fd. New features include the inevitable increase in megapixels, up from 8 to 10, new Zoom Bracketing and Instant Zoom modes and some new continuous shooting modes. The S8100fd also offers the same CCD-shift image stabilisation system, 2.5-inch LCD monitor with a refresh rate of 60 frames per second, electronic viewfinder, Face Detection system and battery life of up to 400 pictures as the S8000fd. With a street price of less than £200 / $350, Gavin Stoker found out if the Fujifilm S8100fd can successfully undercut its main rivals without sacrificing features, performance or picture quality.

Canon EOS Rebel XSi Review at The Digital Picture

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The Digital Picture has posted a review of the Canon EOS 450D. The new EOS 450D (aka Digital Rebel XSi) kit comes with an stabilized 18-55mm lens. Canon’s entry-level DSLR now features a 3? rear LCD panel that’s capable of Live View framing and focusing.

Even compared to the not-very-old Canon Rebel XTi / 400D, the Canon EOS Rebel XSi / 450D delivers better image quality from a more attractive body with more features … I’m very pleased (actually somewhat surprised) with the improvements delivered by the Canon EOS Rebel XSi / 450D.

Read Photography Bay’s Canon Rebel XSi Review.

For more news, reviews and info on the XSi, check out Photography Bay’s Canon Rebel XSi Reviews and Resources.

Canon EOS 1000D Review at Photo Review

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Photo Review has published a review of the new Canon EOS 1000D (aka Digital Rebel XS). The EOS 1000D takes over for the EOS 400D (aka Rebel XTi) at the bottom rung of Canon’s DSLR lineup. It features a 10.1 megapixel sensor.

Low-light performance was very good. Shots taken at ISO 1600 were sharp and colour-accurate with only a hint of visible colour noise. This was eliminated with the high ISO noise reduction setting. Long exposure noise reduction produced minimal image softening.

For the latest news, reviews and more, stay tuned to Photography Bay’s Canon Rebel XS Reviews and Resources.

Olympus E-520 Review at PhotographyBLOG

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PhotgraphyBLOG has published a full review of the Olympus E-520.

On the surface, the new Olympus E-520 looks very similar to the 1-year old E-510 model that it replaces. The E520 retains some key features from its predecessor; the same 10 megapixel LiveMOS sensor, Supersonic Wave Filter, and body-integrated image stabilisation are all present and correct. What have Olympus added then to tempt you to part with £500 / $750 of your hard-earned cash? There’s a bigger 2.7 inch LCD screen, 3.5fps continuous shooting speed, the introduction of Shadow Adjustment Technology, Face Detection and more convenient auto-focus options in Live View, and wireless TTL flash control. Zoltan Arva-Toth finds out if the evolutionary Olympus E-520 has enough new features to survive in the cut-throat world of the entry-level DSLR market.

You can read more about the new camera on Photography Bay’s Olympus E-520 page.

Olympus SP-570 UZ Review at Trusted Reviews

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Trusted Reviews has posted a review of the Olympus SP-570 UZ.

The Olympus SP-570 UZ is a pleasant camera to use, with some nice handling features such as a decent EVF, good zoom ring and plenty of control. It’s Raw capabilities are interesting, but it lacks the finesse of some competitors, particularly when it comes to the images, Apart from exposure, which is easily remedied, the fringing from the lens is appalling, while the noise is average.

Photoshop Express Beta Gets Update

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While Photoshop Express is still in beta, it just picked up a few updates. Adobe AIR has gotten some Photoshop Express action: there’s a now a desktop uploader for Photoshop Express that runs on the Adobe AIR framework that works seamlessly.

Users of Photoshop Express now have the ability to print photos through Shutterfly. While Photoshop Express is still free, Shutterfly sets its own prices for prints.

There have a few changes to the user experience, as well: you can drag and drop photos into Photoshop Express, and resize images with one click.

Photoshop Express isn’t my image editor of choice, but the web application is developing into something very worthwhile.

Nikon 70-200mm VR – New Version Coming

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I’ve seen two different sources indicate the coming of an updated Nikon 70-200mm VR lens at Photokina. Nikon Rumors published a story yesterday regarding word from a Nikon VP. Additionally, I recently read a quote from Graham Watson (renowned Tour de France photographer and Nikon shooter) as he spoke in a matter of fact way that a replacement 70-200mm lens was coming from Nikon.

The 70-200mm will be replaced in September by a newer version, the ‘N’ series – I can’t wait to get hold of one!

(GW via NR)