LATEST ADDITIONS

Press Release  |  Aug 05, 2012  |  1 comments
Leading photography software developer Nik Software (www.niksoftware.com) today released an update to its popular Snapseed® for Mac and Windows desktop computers. Snapseed is an innovative photo enhancement and sharing app with a powerful suite of imaging filters to make any image extraordinary. The 1.2 version update includes new features, bug fixes, and a free demo version option. The update is free to registered owners of Snapseed Desktop. Snapseed Desktop normally retails for $19.99, but until August 16, 2012, customers can purchase the electronic download for $9.99 direct from shop.niksoftware.com/snapseed.
Press Release  |  Aug 05, 2012  |  0 comments
At photokina 2012, two of the trends being explored are taking movies with digital still cameras and photography with mobile telephones or smartphones. A large amount of exhibition space, where trade visitors can get more information, is being dedicated to both of these technological trends, which are having such a significant impact on the imaging sector.

Market observations reveal that most of the digital still cameras sold are capable of taking HD quality movie sequences. This is especially true for single lens reflex (SLR) cameras and system cameras. Today 9% of professional photographers consider the movie function essential, over 50% consider it to be useful, and three quarters of professionals think it's at least relevant. In order to highlight the growing importance of filming with digital SLR (DSLR) and system cameras, photokina 2012 is dedicating a showcase area to this segment in hall 4.1. Under the name "shoot movie", this space offers suppliers an optimal setting for presenting their products to the trade public. Because filming with DSLR and /or system cameras is increasingly becoming a necessity for professionals users, special attention will be given to their needs. The presentation will be supplemented by a stage program that is tailored to the needs of the imaging professional. The program will consist of discussions, lectures, and workshops. Among other things, these activities will address the issue of what today's professionals can and must do in order to win new clients.

Jack Neubart  |  Aug 03, 2012  |  First Published: Jun 01, 2012  |  0 comments

“My dad won a Nikon FM at a company-sponsored event when I was 12, and, the moment he handed the camera over to me, it was love at first sight,” Nels Akerlund recalls. Six months later, he’d built a darkroom in his basement and that love affair with photography has not abated. It carried him through the Rochester Institute of Technology, an internship with a White House photographer in the Reagan administration, and assignments for the National Geographic Society, The New York Times, and photo shoots worldwide. He shares this passion with his wife Anna, who is also his business partner and fellow shooter. Aside from weddings, Akerlund shoots architecture, food, small products, and of course portraits in his studio and on location. He and his wife operate a spacious, two-story, 2000-square-foot studio behind their home in Rockford, Illinois.

Press Release  |  Aug 03, 2012  |  0 comments
OmegaBrandess and Cloud Dome are proud to announce the Nimbus Cloud Dome (patent pending)…. the follow-up to the original Cloud Dome.

As a jeweler, Cindy Lichfield was frustrated with how long it took to take her product shots for her website and online marketing efforts. With help from her father Ernie Lichfield, a meteorologist and inventor of weather-measuring devices and another local inventor, Dave Burchett, she took today’s smart phone technology and one of her previous inventions and shrunk it down to create an innovative way to take quick and easy product photography.

Jack Neubart  |  Aug 02, 2012  |  First Published: Jun 01, 2012  |  2 comments

CES is not a big imaging software show as evidenced by the short list of new products, though we did find a new camera profiling tool, updated monitor calibration tools, an old favorite Raw converter brought back to life under a new name, and software for editing on the fly and sharing photos.

 

ArcSoft introduced a Mac version of Perfect365. This software uses advanced facial recognition technology for one-click portrait touch-ups, letting you effortlessly adjust up to 21 individual facial features. Perfect365 allows you to add creative effects such as eye shadows, blushes, lipsticks, colored contact lenses, under-eye circle removal, and blemish removal. The software is available as a free download (www.perfect365.com) or in a premium edition ($39).

Press Release  |  Aug 02, 2012  |  1 comments
Canon U.S.A., Inc.announced a firmware update for the EOS 7D Digital SLR camera that adds new functionality to improve its performance for serious photographers and semi-professional users. The update, free to all EOS 7D owners, gives the camera more advanced shooting options, including an increase in the maximum number of burst images taken in the RAW file format (from 15 frames to 25 frames) as well as the ability to process RAW image files directly in the camera and the option to set a maximum ISO setting in ISO Auto mode. The firmware also adds the ability to adjust up to 64 audio levels manually prior to recording video, supports custom file naming, and allows for compatibility with Canon’s newly introduced, optional GPS Receiver GP-E2.
Jack Neubart  |  Aug 01, 2012  |  First Published: Jun 01, 2012  |  1 comments

The most recent speed gains have been in SD format cards, making us wonder about the larger CF card. But that concern has been to an extent dispelled by some of the recent developments in this very fast-changing field. One of the newest developments unveiled at the show was a card that sits between those two sizes, the XQD card. The first camera to accept the new memory card is the Nikon D4, although the D4 also features a CF slot.

 

XQD has a smaller form factor than CF, so they’re not interchangeable. Sony, the company that introduced the world’s first XQD card, notes that you can record up to 100 Raw image frames from continuous shooting mode using the card and obtain 125MB/sec read/write speed when using a PCIe port; new XQD card readers are available as well. The casing around the card is “robust,” with contact pins inside the casing itself, which Nikon says helps eliminate problems in the field.

Press Release  |  Aug 01, 2012  |  0 comments
ExpoImaging, Inc. announced availability of three new Rogue Lighting Kits for small strobe lighting enthusiasts.

The Rogue Starter Lighting Kit is an entry-level collection of versatile light modifiers designed to improve the quality and variety of lighting choices available to photographers using speed lights on- or off-camera. The Starter Lighting Kit includes: Rogue Small FlashBender Reflector, Rogue Small Diffusion Panel, Rogue Bounce Card/Flag and Rogue Universal Flash Gel Kit.

The Rogue Portrait Lighting Kit is a larger collection of light modifiers providing greater light control for portrait and event photographers shooting with multiple speed lights. The Portrait Lighting Kit includes: Rogue Large FlashBender Reflector, Rogue Large Diffusion Panel, Rogue Bounce Card/Flag, Rogue Universal Flash Gel Kit and Rogue 3-in-1 Honeycomb Grid.

George Schaub  |  Jul 31, 2012  |  First Published: Jun 01, 2012  |  0 comments

Having worked with numerous types and brands of “metallic” surface papers I have some expectations as to what they can deliver. Metallic is a bit of a misnomer as these papers have a glossy surface on a paper (here acid-free) base with an opalescent sheen diffused throughout the emulsion coating. This gives a spark and edge to a print that glossy shares, but there is an extra kick in the paper surface that works quite well with some images, and not so well with others. It is a particular choice, one that should be part of your printing arsenal but hardly dominated by it.

 

I generally feel it is best to ignore marketing copy, but sometimes it’s fun to see how folks spin their yarn. Moab’s has always been somewhat transcendent, here telling us that the surface is “reminiscent of the ultra-smooth and slick sandstone surface of the famous bike trail that loops through the desert plains of Moab…” Well, never having done the loop that may well be so, but if so the bike’s tires better have crampons, since this surface is quite slick. What is more to the point is that the copy makes a more straightforward claim that “black-and-white images shine on this new paper producing deep blacks and ultra-bright highlights.” That, and other matters, was the subject of my printing tests.

Press Release  |  Jul 31, 2012  |  2 comments
Sun Sniper wowed the photography industry with its innovative camera straps - the Sun Sniper Pro and Compact. Both were a revelation to amateur and professional photographers alike. The ergonomic sling design, anti-theft wire and shock absorber are just a few of the unique design features that have set Sun Sniper camera straps steps above their competition.

Now Sun Sniper is announcing two new products to add to its impressive line of camera straps.

The Back-Pack-Strap allows photographers to transform their current backpack into a complete camera carrying system.

The Strap Surfer allows the same transformation to courier or messenger bags.

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