Posts in Digital Cameras
Eye candy for photographing children
Stephen Shankland, CNET.com | Jul 30, 2007
Finally, a camera accessory that won't be doomed to rapid obsolescence: The Pez candy dispenser.
Federico Sartorio recommends some basic modifications to the candy dispenser that will let it slip into the hot shoe atop your camera that otherwise would be used for attaching a flash. Use it to grab the attention of children you're trying to photograph--as long as you have plenty of available light.
Be warned that trimming the dispenser's "feet" could reduce its resale value on eBay.
Via CNET Crave
Panasonic cameras offer auto auto auto mode
Stephen Shankland, CNET.com | Jul 30, 2007
Some subset of photographers would like a compact camera with lots of higher-end features and manual controls. But a vastly larger quantity want their cameras to take photos with the correct focus, exposure, white balance and other factors without having to do more than press the shutter button.
Which is why Panasonic's three newest cameras, the Lumix FX-33, FX-55 and FZ18 are notable. For one thing, Panasonic is catching up with competitors such as Fujifilm and Canon by introducing face detection, which lets the camera guess more intelligently about what the photographer is trying to shoot and adjust settings accordingly. But more novel is what Panasonic calls Intelligent Scene Selector.
Intelligent Scene Selector, if switched on, replaces a common set of broad parameters that otherwise must be manually activated. It lets the camera take its best guess about whether the scene is one of five modes: Portrait, landscape scenery, macro close-up, night scenery and night portrait, said Alex Fried, Panasonic's National Marketing Manager for Imaging in North America. And when the camera is in portrait modes, it uses the face-detection technology for further refinement.
"All that takes place without touching a button," Fried said. "Consumers don't utilize scene modes to their fullest capability. A lot don't go that deep into the manual or into the menus."
All three of the new cameras feature the face detection and automatic scene selection as well as two earlier technologies, Panasonic's Mega OIS, which shifts the image sensor to counteract camera shake, and Intelligent ISO, which increases the camera's sensitivity to try to deal with moving subjects. Boosting ISO lets the camera use a shorter exposure to freeze action better, but it produces more off-color speckles called image noise.
Collectively, Panasonic calls the four features Intelligent Auto Mode. I suppose camera makers can be excused for attaching official names to their features, and now metafeatures, in the effort to distinguish their models from the herd. But I fear it causes brand exhaustion among camera buyers.
As my comrade Will Greenwald noted, the three new cameras are 8-megapixel models due in September and sporting zoom ranges that begin at a nice 28mm wide angle. The FX33 and FX55 are smaller, with 3.6x zoom lenses and LCDs measuring 2.5 inches and 3 inches, respectively. The FZ18 has a huge 18x zoom range, a notch longer than the predecessor FZ8, which began at 35mm and spanned a 12x zoom range. And for control freaks, it offers manual control and raw image support, Fried said.
See more of the latest cameras for this fall
Via CNET Crave
Fujifilm launches seven new cameras
Edvarcl Heng | Jul 26, 2007
Surprise, surprise, Fujifilm has joined the rest of the camera pack with its own showing for the fall season. But for the real big shocker--the Japanese company has finally added an optical image stabilizer into its flagship camera. About time, too.
| Editors' note:
At press time, we have received Asia pricing details on the following cameras:
Fujifilm FinePix A920 (S$369) Fujifilm FinePix F50fd (S$799) Fujifilm FinePix S5800fd (S$459) Fujifilm FinePix S8000fd (S$649) Fujifilm FinePix Z100fd (S$499) Fujifilm FinePix Z10fd (S$399) Fujifilm FinePix F480fd (S$399) All the cameras will be available in Asia by early September. |
The 12-megapixel FinePix F50fd is the upgrade to the FinePix F31fd with a new image-stabilizing system the Japanese firm dubs the Dual Image Stabilizer. It is a combination of Fujifilm's trademark high ISO sensitivity and a new CCD shift system to correct camera shake. The high sensitivity allows the shooter to increase shutter speed to freeze the action, while the CCD shift stabilization compensates for camera shake. It sounds extremely promising.
Most of the new models carry Fujifilm's latest design language--the "Aero", which we believe is short for "aerodynamic". It's minimalist chic with plenty of curves and clean lines. Included on this new design are two new fashion-themed cams, the FinePix Z10fd and the higher-speced FinePix Z100fd which has the new Dual IS feature.
New frills on the Fujifilms consist of a resize-for-blogs mode and an Auction Mode which uses templates to stitch multiple photos into a single image. We tried the latter on the Z10fd and we like the intuitiveness of it. It is also a slap in the face for Casio's eBay mode which is simply a lower-res capture.
Compare them here
FinePix Z10fd video
FinePix F50fd video
See more of the latest cameras for this fall
More images of new Fujifilm cameras:
Panasonic remixes its Lumixes: FX55, FX33 and FZ18
Will Greenwald, CNET.com | Jul 25, 2007
The Lumix DMC-FZ18 is Panasonic's latest contender in the megazoom category. With a 28mm- to 504mm-equivalent 18x Leica zoom lens, the FZ18 looks like Panasonic's answer to the Olympus SP-550UZ. With RAW image support and plenty of manual control, this high-zoom electronic viewfinder (EVF) camera could turn out to be a good choice for aspiring photographers who want lots of zoom power and control without shelling out the money for an SLR and a huge lens.
| Editors' note:
At press time, we have not received details on Asia availability and pricing. We will update as soon as possible.
|
For those of you looking for a more compact camera than the large-lensed FZ18, Panasonic also introduced the Lumix DMC-FX33 and FX55. While they don't have the high-zoom power of the FZ18, these two 8-megapixel shooters both sport 3.6x lenses with the same 28mm-equivalent wide angle as their bigger brother. Only screen size distinguishes the otherwise identical cameras from each other; the FX33 uses a 2.5-inch LCD, while the FX55 has a larger 3-inch LCD. The FX33 and FX55 replace the Lumix FX07 and FX50, respectively.
All three cameras feature Panasonic's Intelligent Auto Mode, an automatic mode that uses face detection, automatic scene selection, and continuous auto-focus to determine various settings. They all also use Panasonic's Mega Optical Image Stabilization system to help reduce the effects of camera shake. Mega OIS will be most useful when working with the FZ18's 18x zoom lens, but it should offer some help even when using the FX33 and FX55's smaller lenses.
The DMC-FX33 will be available in silver, black, blue, and brown versions. The DMC-FX55 will come in silver, black, and pink. Finally, the DMC-FZ18 will come in silver and black variants.
Compare them here
See more of the latest cameras for this fall
More images of new Panasonic cameras:
Via CNET Crave
Olympus could announce top-end SLR in October
Stephen Shankland, CNET.com | Jul 15, 2007
Olympus publicly showed prototypes of its new top-end digital SLR in March, but a leaked document indicates the real thing could be announced in October and on sale in November.
An anonymous person posted a 27-page presentation at the FourThirds Photo discussion site that appears to be from an Olympus marketing presentation in June in Europe on the new camera, called the E-P1. Olympus didn't comment on the presentation Thursday, but the company did request another site,4-3system.com, remove the file.
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