Archive for April, 2008
Posted on April 18, 2008 - by Patrick
Nikon D3, best camera evah!
Well yeah, we knew that already.
DPReview finally gets around do doing the full review for the Nikon D3, and (non)spoiler alert…it’s the best camera of all time, or something like that.
Just looking at the sample shots in low light situations, with the ISO cranked up to all hell, I’m just stunned at the quality. Completely usable ISO 6400 shots. Amazing. Just amazing.
One of the problems I frequently encounter is the low light situation where you want to capture the actual ambience (read: no flash). The D80 is a hit or miss affair, you’ll need some fast glass, but you can’t really count on the ISO to help you out, after 400 noise really creeps in and it’s not the attractive kind. Noise Ninja helps alot, but it doesn’t really help with the motion blur you’ve captured in half the photos taken. Enter the D300 or even better the D3, and presto low light situations are solved, even desired.
This weekend I’m in Newport, RI to tour the amazing mansions here. Last time I was here I only had a point and shoot, and I’m excited about shooting with the D80, but I wonder how many times I’ll be wishing I had a D3?
Posted on April 17, 2008 - by Patrick
Nikon D3x clues found in new D3 firmware
DPReview forum poster AxelR found the following in the newly released D3 firmware:
The following strings are in the D3’s B-firmware file v1.10, starting at offet 3′614′640:
6048×4032 24.4 M
4544×3024 13.7 M
3024×2016 6.1 M
5056×4032 20.4 M
3792×3024 11.5 M
2528×2016 5.1 M
3968×2640 10.5 M
2976×1976 5.9 M
1984×1320 2.6 M
D3x
There doesn’t seem to be much question that the D3 and theoretical D3x would share large portions of software, so this branch off to the D3x makes sense.
The question is, will we see this at Photokina?
Also, can I just say that I already hate the person who receives his D3x from pre-orders.
Posted on April 13, 2008 - by Patrick
Aperture 2, some thoughts
For the love of God, please, please add presets.
I did most of my editing this weekend using Apple’s Aperture. As a huge Apple fanboy, I really want to like Aperture, and in many ways, I do. But, how is it possible after Lightroom’s total domination over them in round one, has Apple not added presets to Aperture? I really don’t get it.
In Aperture’s defense, it does have the ability to take developments from one photo and copy them to others, but you aren’t able to save them, and if you close Aperture, those actions are gone upon re-opening. You could use an image as a kind of preset I suppose, and have a range of images with assorted “presets” applied to them, but it really isn’t the same.
It’s kind of a shame, really, because I like so many things about Aperture 2. It certainly is faster than the first incarnation, at least on my machine. The localized corrections are also nice. By far though, my favorite feature is the tethered shooting. My Nikon D80 worked right of the box, and a simple dialog box allows you to set naming conventions and folder locations prior to capturing photos. You can either take picture as always via the camera, or use the capture button in Aperture. It takes only seconds to import the image (I was shooting RAW and JPEG and didn’t really notice a difference), and you are then able to make adjustments. You can even leave the amazing loupe open, to instantly see fine details on your capture. All in all, very cool.
Which brings me back to the presets. With all these great features, how hard would it be to add presets? It has been the biggest complaint about the first version, and the fact that it is still missing as a feature is really just beyond belief. I haven’t really spent a lot of time with Lightroom 2 Beta, but it is clearly going to be a hearty update to the current workflow champ. To compete Apple had better release a 2.5 with presets before Lightroom finishes beta.
In conclusion, I’m still a huge Lightroom fan, but I’m going to keep and use Aperture 2 as well. For now anyway.
Posted on April 11, 2008 - by Patrick
Updated Updates to Lightroom and Camera Raw
Uh-oh.
Adobe has re-released updates to Camera Raw and Lightroom. Because this:
Camera Raw 4.4 incorrectly modified the EXIF time date field of images that were saved as TIFF or JPEG files from the Camera Raw dialog. This has been corrected in Camera Raw 4.4.1
is kind of bad. Nevertheless…all is well now. Right?
Lightroom 1.4.1: Mac, Win
Camera Raw 4.4.1: Mac, Win
Tom Hogarty at the Lightroom blog has got more on the updates.
Posted on April 11, 2008 - by Patrick
Kalle Gustafsson
Adds to favorites…
What can I say? Swedish photographer Gustafsson does some amazing photos with a distinct seventies style processing, mostly in the fashion genre
I just love her palette. Damn, if things like this don’t send ‘ya back to the drawing board.
Posted on April 9, 2008 - by Patrick
Nikon D90, what will it be?
Let me guess Live View?
Ok yeah, we know the D90 is going to have live view which is now becoming speaking a ubiquitous DSLR camera feature.
Given the fact that the D80 and presumably the D90 are hybrids of the D40/D60 and the D200/D300 what will we be getting from the respective cameras? I noticed Thom Hogan had some thoughts on this, and we’ll assume his sources are a wee bit more extensive than mine (basically Tim, a 17 year old kid at Bestbuy):
D200 viewfinder, D300 color LCD, some creative subset of the D300 AF and metering (e.g., same AF sensor, but fewer AF options, coupled with the use of the 420-cell matrix meter for the Auto Area 3D mode), but with the reduced control set, the shutter, write mechanism, mode dial, and remote controls of the D40/D60/D80. Sensor? It could go either way (10mp or 12mp), but expect an auto cleaning function. Add Active D-Lighting and perhaps one of the Live View modes and you’ve got a new mid-range model that’s competitive.
I feel pretty confident that it’s going to have a 12mp sensor, but given Pentax and Sony playing megapixel wars, there’s an outside chance at using that 14mp sony sensor. Also it’s a definite for me that it’s going to have the D300 LCD, some type of sensor cleaning and hopefully (fingers crossed) a big chunk of the D300’s AF system
What I’m really hoping for is a camera body with more extensive sealing, think D60 body with D300 sealing. The reason this is high on my wish list is I’m getting quite jealous of the the ads for Olympus and Pentax touting their rugged weather proofing. Clearly it’s possible to get some weather sealing on a camera with a D90 type budget. I know I could move up and just get the D300, but I’ve really become fond of my D80’s smaller stature, and I’m pretty sure the specifications of the D90 will be far more relevant to me than the D300.
Of course I can already see what’s going to happen. I’ll be incredibly close to pulling the trigger on the D90 after doing tons and tons of research to make sure that, “yes this is the perfect camera for me”, and then at the last second, I’ll splurge and get the D300.
I should give in now, but I’m really hoping the D90 comes through for me.
For more on the D90, be sure to check out Thom’s thoughts…
Posted on April 9, 2008 - by Patrick
Upgrade underway.
Wordpress 2.5 in the house.
I’ve just upgraded the site to the newest version of wordpress. Unfortunately I seem to have lost some of my sidebar items, so things may look funny for a bit. In the next month or so, the site will get a big overhaul, to bring some more functionality and various other improvements, in effect to “sharpen” the site. This has of course meant learning xhtml and css so I can do my own theme which means lots of time at Lynda.com and reading quite a few books. Fun stuff.
Posted on April 7, 2008 - by Patrick
Canon still king, but just barely
Don’t give up Olympus!
The IDC has released their 2007 report on camera sales, and it has some pretty interesting results. Canon still holds the lead with 43% of the DSLR market, but once again Nikon has made some inroads on that lead, this year gaining 7% from 2005 for a total of 40%. From Cnet:
Canon sold 3.18 million single-lens reflex cameras in 2007 compared with Nikon’s 2.98 million, according to a study released Tuesday by market researcher IDC. That represents a 42.7 percent and 40 percent share, respectively, of the 2007 SLR market. It’s a much narrower margin for Canon than in 2006, when it had 46.7 percent of the market, compared with Nikon’s 33 percent.
Sony clocked in at 6%, with Olympus also at 6%, although slightly less than Sony.
Even better news for DSLR fans in general. DSLR sales are growing faster than compacts, presumably because the compact market is so saturated with product, but also because DSLR’s are becoming more and more affordable.
Imaging Resource has more here and Cnet has some coverage of the IDC report here.
Posted on April 7, 2008 - by Patrick
Sony Alpha DSLR-A350 gets reviewed at Camera labs
14 megapixels, but how’s the noise?
Camera Labs does their review thing of Sony’s cleverly featured camera, the A350. I say clever, because by adding the impressive megapixels on a budget camera, Sony might just be able to peel away consumers from the major camera brands. It is essentially the same camera (body, menus, etc.) as the A300, which itself is essentially the same camera as the new A200, other than the very cool LCD.
In previous reviews it has been mentioned that the A200 has a little noise trouble after ISO 800, and in most reviews, the A300 seems to be following those same footsteps. So its not a real surprise that the A350 has similar troubles, which of course, are further enhanced by the high megapixel sensor. Not helping, the kit lens (Sony DT 18-70mm lens) probably isn’t going to keep up with the sensor’s ability, so potential A350 buyers of the serious amateur kind should just buy the camera body alone, or assume you’ll be making an additional lens purchase sooner rather than later, but here’s how camera labs puts it:
Posted on April 5, 2008 - by Patrick
What to do when you’re bored
Look at good photo blogs.
One I’ve been looking at recently, life in mono.
Not only does Kalon Edser do some real good photographic work, he’s got himself a real spiffy website.
There’s a lot here to like, especially if you have a penchant for the nostalgic look that pervades a good portion of Edser’s work (and yes I have that penchant). I was going to point out some favorites, but really, everything is quite good.
