New technology releases

Mike McCarty · 08-02-2006, 07:25 PM

I'm not sure how this could impact our portrait photo taking but I thought I'd post it just because it's kinda neat and pretty high tech. Here's Sony's release of their latest gadget.

Also, if you haven't tried the Google mapping that they speak of below it's a real handy time saver. Just dial up www.google.com and click on maps. Try typing in your own address and then choose the sattelite image option which may show you standing in your front yard!

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Wednesday, 2 August 2006

Sony GPS tracker for photographers

Sony has today announced a very interesting little device for recording the position where photographs are taken. The GPS-CS1 is a small (9 cm / 3.5 in) cylindrical device which you simply attach to a backback or belt loop and carry with you while you shoot, it records your GPS location and this information can later be synchronized with your digital images to provide a map of where your photos were taken. We assume it does this using date and time information stored in the image header (which obviously requires your camera's clock to be synchronized). Interestingly the mapping solution is an online website with maps provided by Google Maps (it appears that the synchronization software will write the GPS location into JPEG EXIF headers).

Mike McCarty · 08-09-2006, 06:15 PM

Today Nikon introduced the D80, their new 10 mp digital SLR. The body alone will be $999 and the kit (w/lens) will be $1299. This was exactly the pricing of the first D70 which I bought when it was first introduced about two and a half years ago. The kit lens sounds like a dandy: AF-S DX 18 - 135 mm F3.5 - F5.6G ED (27 - 202.5 mm equiv. FOV, 7.5x zoom). It is one of two new lenses being newly introduced. The other being: AF-S 70 - 300 mm F4.5 - F5.6G VR (105 - 450 mm equiv. FOV, 4.3x zoom).

This camera will produce an image of 3872 x 2592 compared to the D70's 3008 x 2000. If you have all your dials pointed in the right direction this should produce a devastating image. Especially considering where we were in the cost / quality equation just five years ago.

So, I wish I had one but I don't and won't. I have another seven and a half years to go on my D70. By then cameras will be an attachment to our contact lenses.

You can get all the details here including a side by side comparison to the D70s:

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/nikond80/

Garth Herrick · 08-10-2006, 03:16 PM

Thanks Mike for the comparison link.

The D80 looks sweet, and my D100 is getting aged (having exceeded the shutter life projections).

I wish Phil Askey would also compare the D80 to the D200. There are many similarities. Strangely, a same size CF card in a D200 holds more shots than an SD card in a D80. Why? (according to the Nikon PDF brochures for each camera)

Garth

Mike McCarty · 08-10-2006, 04:06 PM

Garth,

It would be a sweet set up, and I like the zoom range of the kit lens.

I think for you to get better reference photos would be a criminal act. You paint way to good with what you have. For the sake of the rest of us, stick with what you've got.

But if you persist - you can create your own side-by-side comparisons on the www.dpreview.com site. On their home page from the list on the left you will see "buying guide," if you position on this you will see a listing of all cameras from which you can select to make your comparisons.

I don't know the answer to your storage question. However, when you do your side-by-side look down to the "storage types," just to the right you will see a "?" click on this and you can read up on all the different types of devices. You may find your answer there, maybe not.

Mike McCarty · 08-24-2006, 07:26 PM

For those favoring the Canon brand they have today anounced their newest digital SLR: EOS 400D / digital Rebel XTi.

Ten mega pixel and NO spot metering! Go figure. That alone would break the deal for me.

Mike McCarty · 08-31-2006, 05:55 PM

This week Sigma has anounced that they will anounce, at the big Photokina photography confab in Germany in September, a new digital SLR: The SD14.

They have set up a teaser website here at: www.sigma-sd14.com. They are not giving up much info, but from the name you might conclude that this will be a 14 mp camera. They also say that this will be a "full color capture direct image sensor." I'm not sure just what that means, but from the tease they suggest that all other camera pixels capture just one color per pixel, implying that this new sensor will capture more.

I don't know much about Sigma cameras but it seems that the pixel race has not yet tired. Of course price is always a consideration, but if what they imply comes close to reality then imagine a camera with more than double the horsepower of a Nikon D70, and each of those horses with additional color capture capability. Yikes!

Mike McCarty · 08-31-2006, 06:36 PM

After a little more research regarding the Sigma camera referenced above I have come up with the following:

It appears that this new Sigma camera will employ an updated "Foveon" sensor which was first introduced in 2002 and then improved in '04.

With standard sensors such as the CCD and CMOS, which appear in other digital cameras, each pixel can capture only one color. The cameras logic goes through some algorithms in an attempt to interpret what is the real color. This method will come up with some amount of color artifacts and image blurring. With the Foveon sensor there are three colors per pixel: red, green and blue. It is written that this is pretty much the 'holy grail' of digital image sensors. It should mean ultra sharp, detailed images with full color single pixel resolution. At least that is the claim.

Garth Herrick · 08-31-2006, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike McCarty

This week Sigma has anounced that they will anounce, at the big Photokina photography confab in Germany in September, a new digital SLR: The SD14.

They have set up a teaser website here at: www.sigma-sd14.com. They are not giving up much info, but from the name you might conclude that this will be a 14 mp camera. They also say that this will be a "full color capture direct image sensor." I'm not sure just what that means, but from the tease they suggest that all other camera pixels capture just one color per pixel, implying that this new sensor will capture more.

I don't know much about Sigma cameras but it seems that the pixel race has not yet tired. Of course price is always a consideration, but if what they imply comes close to reality then imagine a camera with more than double the horsepower of a Nikon D70, and each of those horses with additional color capture capability. Yikes!

Hi Mike,

You know, it all depends on how they count those pixels for marketing purposes! The Sigma SD10 is actually more like a 3-1/2 megapixel camera, but since each Foveon pixel captures full color, it is marketed as a virtual 10 megapixel camera. Actually I believe it has the meager imaging resolution of a 3-1/2 megapixel camera compared to your much sharper D70. That said, I would expect about 4-1/2 megapixel resolution from the SD14, which I don't expect to particularly wow me. Thanks for the news anyway.

Julie: Congratulations on your new camera order! Give us some anti-shake test pictures and report when it arrives.

Garth

Julie Deane · 08-31-2006, 06:46 PM

HI Mike -

Thanks for the info. I've been doing a lot of research and have finally ordered my first digital SLR today. I went for the Sony DSLR A100 and I can hardly wait to try it out!

One deciding factor for me was the anti-shake factor. My lower end digital cameras have that feature: it makes all the difference when I'm trying to photograph a child because I don't have to necessarily keep the camera on the tripod for my shots.

It also has a better range lens (18-70 mm) than many kit lens, AND the price is within my reach

.

Once I get a chance to try it out, I hope to report back.

Mike McCarty · 08-31-2006, 07:24 PM

Well Julie, that Sony does sound like a real fine camera. I'll be interested in seeing some of your efforts. You may be the first on our block to post an image from a 10 mp camera.

Things seem to be changing pretty rapidly and as usual whatever you decide on will soon be obsolete. However, I think a camera like yours could serve you well for a very long time. After you get to this level of technology and sophistication it will be pretty hard to make really meaningful advances. At least to the point that you would want to ditch your Sony and make another camera purchase for the additional image quality.