Photography Bay

Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips

 

CyberLink All-in-One Media Suite 8

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Cyberlink Media Suite 8

CyberLinks All-in-One Media Suite 8 is a software package that covers everything from photos, to videos, music and movies.  One of the key new features is the ability to burn HD video to Blu-ray Discs.  Cyberlink All-in-One Media Suite 8 retails between $80 and $130 depending on the version.  More details in the press release below or on CyberLink’s website. [Read more…]

4 Principles of Photography Marksmanship

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Marksmen use a handful of fundamental principles to take aim, fire and hit their target.  Many of these same principles can also be applied by other kinds of shooters – photographers.

When marksmen fail to abide by those principles, they may miss the bulls-eye.  When photographers fail to follow them, they may end up with a blurry photo. [Read more…]

Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 DC Macro OS HSM

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Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 DC Macro OS HSM

Sigma has announced the 17-70mm f/2.8-4 DC Macro OS HSM lens for Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax and Sigma mounts.  The addition of optical stabilization and HSM focus motor will make the new 17-70mm an attractive carry-around lens for crop-sensor DSLRs.

No word on price or release date yet.  Check availability on Amazon.com.

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

Pentax K-x Firmware Update ver. 1.01

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Pentax has issued a firmware update for the K-x DSLR.  The firmware update version 1.01 address the following issues:

  • Added three kinds of particular effect shooting function (Pre-set 1,2 and 3) on [Cross Processing].
  • Added assignment of Cross Processing function to the green button.
  • Improved accuracy of Battery Level Indicator under specific conditions and improved stability for general performance.

To download or learn more about the firmware update, visit Pentax’s website.

Canon Touchscreen DSLR

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Canon Touchscreen DSLR Patent

DSLRs continue to evolve. And, this evolution will continue.  There’s no stopping it.

A few years ago, purists scoffed at chimping on the preview screen to see how exposures looked.  Then, a loud minority (of probably the same purists) cried afoul when Live View displays began showing up on just about every DSLR released.  The latest purist revolt has come as a result of the inclusion of video capture as a “must-have” feature in almost every DSLR released.

Just hop on about any photo gear forum and you’ll find plenty of critical comments concerning the latest bells and whistles attached to DSLRs.  Many proclaim that they will not buy a given camera because it has a specific feature – again, the latest villain is video.

If you think the above examples of departure from a pure SLR camera are annoying, you may very well consider the addition of a touchscreen on a DSLR to be heresy. Chris posed the question of whether photographers want a DSLR with a touchscreen (among other features) back in July.  The handful of well-reasoned comments brought up issues regarding interaction with the camera and accessibility to its features.  One commenter noted, “Just because it’s possible doesn’t make it desirable. I have one DSLR that only displays the settings on the LCD on the back of the camera; it is bulky and time consuming to take my eye away from the camera, select the setting and walk through a menu to set it.”

While the above image appears to have been produced by my 7-year-old, I can assure you that is not the case.  The image actually appears in US Patent Application No. 12/422,695, which was originally filed by Canon on April 13, 2009 and published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office on October 22, 2009.

The patent clearly exposes Canon’s implementation of a touchscreen DSLR.

[Read more…]