Equipment Reviews
CES Photo Tech Notes
In an attempt to connect everything electronic, this year’s CES/PMA show in Las Vegas was awash in “smart” TVs, tablets, and various and sundry devices that can link to your device—be it phone, tablet, or camera—and allow you to access “image content” anywhere, anytime. There was also a rash of rough cameras, a 3D lens for still and video, new ways to customize your camera, and a major boost in USB storage and memory card speed.
Film & Film Cameras
Here’s another in our series of reports from photokina 2012. As you will have noticed we do not attempt to create a laundry list of new products and companies from the show, but prefer to report on what struck our eye and thought might be of special interest to Shutterbug readers.
SIGMA DP3 Merrill
The Sigma DP3 Merrill is the latest Sigma camera with the new Foveonsensor.
With this sensor, the camera can capture complete RGB information for every single pixel and doesn’t need to interpolate colors like all other digital cameras with Bayer pattern sensors.
Accessories, Albums & Presentation Products
While photokina could be considered a distant memory, we have a number of reports yet to run that deal with products that were new to market and caught our reporter’s eye, and that in many cases are just becoming available now. Here’s a report on useful items filed by Roger Hicks that covers interesting accessories and other products he found at the show.
Techniques
Photo History
In the annals of American photography the images made by Farm Security Administration photographers in the 1930s and 1940s are famous.
Web Profiles
Nicholas Carr, author of The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains, reports that a study of online retailing in 2006 found...
Personal Project
Actor Richard Gere is best known for his roles in over 40 films, but few may be aware he is also an avid photographer and collector.
Pro's Choice
Mark Katzman has been shooting professionally for over 25 years. Originally, he studied filmmaking at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
News
“From Fleeting to Forever” E-Book
Most of us spend endless hours snapping pictures and recording video in an effort to preserve and recall the best moments in life. While smartphones and digital cameras have made it easier than ever to capture every fleeting moment, they’ve also created some unique challenges.
Pelican ProGear
Pelican Products, Inc. has introduced the Pelican ProGear™ S130 Sport Elite Laptop/Camera Divider Pack, the newest addition to its consumer products line, Pelican ProGear.
Hensel International Photo Contest
The prize is a special Hensel Expert D anniversary lighting kit including all accessories. This has a value of $5000.
Shutterbug Reader Wins TIPA Prize
TIPA would like to thank all the readers who took part in the TIPA Readers’ Survey for 2013 that was published in the members’ magazines.
Latest Additions

Pro Techniques
Lou Jacobs Jr. May 24, 2013 Published: Apr 01, 2013 0 comments
In the annals of American photography the images made by Farm Security Administration (FSA) photographers in the 1930s and 1940s are famous. Over a dozen men and women captured a variety of life and work styles during the Great Depression. Their pictures, distributed to news media and other outlets, illustrate how people were dealing with the hard times of the Great Depression, and were used to justify programs for relief and aid.
George Schaub May 24, 2013 Published: Apr 01, 2013 0 comments
In an attempt to connect everything electronic, this year’s CES/PMA show in Las Vegas was awash in “smart” TVs, tablets, and various and sundry devices that can link to your device—be it phone, tablet, or camera—and allow you to access “image content” anywhere, anytime. There was also a rash of rough cameras, a 3D lens for still and video, new ways to customize your camera, and a major boost in USB storage and memory card speed. Following are some photo tech highlights.
News
Press Release May 24, 2013 0 comments
While smartphones and digital cameras have made it easier than ever to capture every fleeting moment, they’ve also created some unique challenges: many of our cherished photographic memories are locked away on computer hard drives or camera memory cards never to see the light of day again. These images are not only gathering virtual dust, they’re alsovulnerable to hard drive crashes that could erase them forever.
Talking Pictures
Staff May 21, 2013 Published: Apr 01, 2013 0 comments
This King Penguin chick, warm in his downy “fur coat,” didn’t seem to mind the snow, cold, or gray skies, but he plaintively called for his parents hoping to be fed. Larger than either parent he seemed to be well cared for, but his full-throated calls and beseeching body language made it clear that he wanted his parents and food now. It’s hard to make your voice heard among so many thousands I’m sure, but it made us smile. He has more in common with human children than he knows.
News
Press Release May 21, 2013 0 comments
Pelican Products, Inc. has introduced the Pelican ProGear™ S130 Sport Elite Laptop/Camera Divider Pack, the newest addition to its consumer products line, Pelican ProGear.
Roger W. Hicks May 21, 2013 Published: Apr 01, 2013 0 comments
Here’s another in our series of reports from photokina 2012. As you will have noticed we do not attempt to create a laundry list of new products and companies from the show, but prefer to report on what struck our eye and thought might be of special interest to Shutterbug readers. In this report Roger Hicks tells us about numerous instances of life in the film arena he found at the show, with special cameras, film, paper, and even processors part of the mix.—Editor
Web Profiles
Joe Farace May 21, 2013 Published: Apr 01, 2013 0 comments
Nicholas Carr, author of The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains, reports that a study of online retailing in 2006 found that a third of online shoppers with broadband connections abandoned a site if its pages took 4 seconds or longer to load; two-thirds quit when the delay reached 6 seconds. Recent studies by Google and Microsoft found that people abandon a site with a page loading delay of 250 milliseconds. If, as is becoming common in some photographers’ web design, there is a prelude before your real content launches or your server is slow, it does not bode well for increasing the number of visitors to your site.
News
Press Release May 20, 2013 0 comments
Hensel is calling on photographers worldwide to send photographs of them with their favorite Hensel product. They are looking for a picture of a Hensel product, either by itself or together with the photographer on the job. Funny, extreme, straight, or just different; it should be likeable. Write them a short statement of 500 words or less and submit it with your picture.
News
Press Release May 17, 2013 0 comments
TIPA (Technical Image Press Association) would like to thank all the readers who took part in the TIPA Readers’ Survey for 2013 that was published in the members’ magazines. The prize draw for the TIPA Award winning cameras took place in Madrid on 29 April 2013 under the supervision of a notary. We're happy to report that Shutterbug reader Randy Johnson won a Panasonic LUMIX GX1 with a Panasonic LUMIX G Vario PZ 14-42mm lens for his participation in the survey.
Edited by Georg... May 17, 2013 0 comments
The Sigma DP3 Merrill is the latest Sigma camera with the new Foveonsensor.
With this sensor, the camera can capture complete RGB information for every single pixel and doesn’t need to interpolate colors like all other digital cameras with Bayer pattern sensors. The APS-C sized sensor offers a resolution of 14.7MP, referred to by Sigma as equivalent to 45MP resolution of a standard sensor ((4704 x 3136 pixel x 3 RGB data per pixel).