LATEST ADDITIONS

The Tour FX features a clamshell access to the main camera carrying compartment. Camera carry dividers in the interior padded compartment facilitate organization. A proprietary triangular webbing Delta Wing Compression system pulls the load onto the waistbelt for better ergonomics of load carry and comfort. The waistbelt tucks away behind the air mesh foam back panel allowing for shoulder bag carry. Highly water resistant PU5000mm, 500d S-Kodra High Tenacity Nylon is used on the exterior fabric panels. Other features include a removable rain cover, detachable shoulder strap with sliding pad, and lens case attachment point.

The Canon M is Canon’s first mirrorless system camera. It uses an APS-C-sized sensor (slightly smaller than APS-C, just like all Canon “APS-C” cameras) with 18MP resolution. The camera doesn’t offer an optical or electronic viewfinder; the photographer has to use the large (3”) LCD screen on the back that offers a remarkably high resolution of 1,040,000 RGB dots. While it offers a very crisp and clear image, an additional viewfinder, for shooting under bright light conditions, would have been welcome. The monitor is “fixed” and does not offer swiveling, or articulation. It is, however, a “touchscreen” type, which is fully integrated into the operational concept of the camera.

WD, a Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC) company, has redesigned its popular My Book® and My Book for Mac lines of external desktop drives to provide as much as 4 TB storage capacity and enhanced data protection for those who create and collect large volumes of data, video, music and photos.

Designed for professionals, enthusiasts, schools, and clubs, the OpticFilm 120 scanner from Plustek ($1999) can handle negative and positive film, including 35mm filmstrips, individual 35mm slides, and medium format film up to 6x12cm format. The scanner contains an eight-element glass lens and can deliver up to 10,600dpi optical resolution, with a claimed 4.01 dynamic range using the supplied SilverFast software’s Multi-Exposure function. The tabletop scanner is about the size of a six-slice restaurant toaster (about 8x14.5x7.5”) and is supplied with a complete set of very well-constructed film holders, an IT8 calibration target, and a full version (not a trial) of SilverFast Ai Studio 8 software.