Shutterbug Staff

Fuji Photo
Film U.S.A. has introduced new Fujicolor True Definition 400 35mm, a premium
ISO 400 35mm color print film featuring Fujifilm's New Fine-Color Film Technology
that is said to deliver extremely accurate color and skin tone reproduction,
wide exposure latitude and precise detail for exceptional prints.



Fujifilm's True Definition 400 film with New Fine-Color Film Technology offers
the following benefits:

Natural Skin Tones

True Definition 400 provides natural skin tones with continuously smooth gradation
from highlights to shadows without washed out flash pictures.



Soft Gradation

True Definition 400 provides rich highlight-to-shadow tone reproduction that
allows for fine details to be reproduced.

High Speed and Wide Exposure Latitude

True Definition 400 is a high sensitivity ISO 400 film with wide exposure latitude
for excellent low-light performance.



Excellent Sharpness

True Definition 400 provides extremely sharp depiction of all aspects of images
including texture details.



www.fujifilm.com.

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Epson America Inc. has announced the the Epson PowerLite 76c. Featuring up to
2,000 ANSI lumens of brightness with XGA native resolution (1,024 x 768) in a
5.7-pound design, the PowerLite 76c is slated to sell for $1,099 (estimated street
price.) Driven by Epson's 3LCD technology, a three-chip engine design that
projects continuous color and vibrant images, the PowerLite 76c is said to display
a wide color gamut with excellent brightness and edge-to-edge consistency. In
addition, the PowerLite 76c comes with a new Instant OffTM feature for immediate
shutdown of the projector. Epson has also equipped the PowerLite 76c with new
lamp technology, E-TORL (Epson Twin Optimized Reflection Lamp), to deliver what
is said to be a superior level of brightness in a compact form factor. E-TORL
efficiently gathers and projects light to reduce light leakage and diffraction.



To get presentations up and running quickly and smoothly, the PowerLite 76c takes
only four seconds between pressing the power button and projection of the start-up
screen. And, with Epson's exclusive Instant Off feature, no cool down time
is necessary. Users can simply press the power button and unplug the power cable
immediately at the end of their presentation.



For added control, the PowerLite 76c features a "Source Search" button
which automatically identifies and displays the connected inputs and changes instantly
between sources. A 1.2x optical zoom lens enables users to easily adjust the display
size to project large images from relatively short throw distances, resulting
in a wide range of set-up possibilities. The unit's 30-degree keystone correction
ensures a high-quality display, even in less-than-ideal environments. Depending
on the presenting environment, the PowerLite 76c allows users to choose a 1,500
ANSI lumens "Low Brightness" mode to increase lamp life.



The included remote control enables PowerPoint and Keynote presentation slides
to be advanced and manipulated without using a PC. The projector also offers several
useful features for ceiling-mount projection, including top-side access for easy
lamp replacement, front-side access for air-filter replacement, easy switch to
ceiling-mount mode (inverted picture) via the remote control, and direct power-on
that is activated automatically when a room's power source is switched on.




The Epson PowerLite 76c will be available through authorized pro audio/visual,
national distribution, catalog, and direct PC dealers in October 2005. Epson's
PowerLite projectors come with a two-year limited warranty that includes three
elite technical support services -- two-year Epson PrivateLine™ availability,
two-year Road Service Program and two-year International Warranty. Through the
PrivateLine, projector owners can directly access an expedited support telephone
line (typically in about one minute) by using a phone card that is included with
the product.

Calumet Photographic has released another original production for its collection
of educational and instructional DVDs, The Essence of Photography with John Upton.

The new compact
Canon EOS 5D digital SLR offers a full-frame CMOS sensor with 12.8 megapixels
of resolution and will be available in October for an estimated selling price
of $3,299. As the world's smallest and lightest full frame digital SLR, the EOS
5D model features Canon's proprietary DIGIC II Image Processor and allows users
to shoot up to 3 frames per second and record up to 60 full-resolution JPEGs and
17 RAW images in a single burst. The camera includes a new 9-point AF system with
six supplemental AF points for fast and precise focusing and a new 2.5-inch LCD/TFT
screen with 230,000 pixels that's viewable even at extreme angles.



The Canon EOS 5D digital SLR has magnesium alloy body weighing just 28.6 ounces
(810 grams. Canon describes the heart of the Canon EOS 5D digital SLR as being
its new, Canon-designed and manufactured CMOS image sensor. The sensor's 35.8
x 23.9mm size means that each pixel can be 8.2um, resulting in what Canon describes
as exceptionally low shadow noise. The sensor's low power consumption is also
said to extend battery life and lower noise. A finer CMOS production process and
optimized photodiode construction increase the light-sensitive area of each pixel
and improve dynamic range as well.



With the full-size sensor, EF lenses - even wide-angle lenses - have the same
look and feel they have with conventional SLR cameras, preserving their optical
signatures. Imaging quality in the EOS 5D is enhanced with the addition of the
DIGIC II image processor, which provides detailed and natural color reproduction
and fast image processing, including a burst performance of 60 Large/Fine JPEGs
or 17 RAW images at 3 fps. DIGIC II also enhances start-up time on the EOS 5D
DSLR, bringing it down to a lightning fast 0.2 seconds.



A new feature called Picture Styles combines processing parameters and color matrix
settings into easy settings designed to obtain the desired effect, almost like
choosing a type of film to obtain a specific result. For users who do not want
to bother with post processing, there is the Picture Style called Standard which
produces images that look crisp and vivid with the sharpness set to mid-scale
and the color tone and saturation set to obtain vivid colors. In the Portrait
setting, the color tone and saturation are set to obtain nice skin tones with
the sharpness set one step weaker than the Standard setting so the skin and hair
look softer. Under the Landscape setting, the color tone and saturation are set
to obtain deep blues and greens, the sharpness is set one step stronger than Standard
so the outline of mountains, trees and buildings look more crisp. The Neutral
setting is the same as the default setting for EOS-1 series cameras where natural
color reproduction is obtained and no sharpness is applied. This is the ideal
setting for post-processing. The Faithful setting is the same as Digital Photo
Professional's Faithful, so when the subject is photographed under a color temperature
of 5200K, the color is adjusted colorimetrically to match the subject's color
with no sharpness applied. Monochrome is the same as the EOS 20D camera's monochrome
setting and with User Defined, the user can create and save their own preferred
settings.



The Canon EOS 5D digital SLR has a new nine point AF system with six Supplemental
AF points, a new AF algorithm and a new AF circuitry. The new AF system improves
subject detection and focusing precision at the center, the most frequently used
area, and is said to significantly enhance subject tracking performance.



On the EOS 5D model, the nine AF points are concentrated at the center, but the
extreme left and right points are located in the same positions as the corresponding
AF points on the EOS-1Ds Mark II. In addition, the six invisible Supplemental
AF points, grouped around the center of the image provide highly accurate focusing
and do a great job of tracking the subject in the AI SERVO AF mode. In addition,
three AF points on the new EOS 5D model work with f/2.8 or faster lenses for enhanced
precision.



The EOS 5D model has a 2.5-inch polysilicon TFT LCD monitor with approximately
230,000 pixels. At 170 degrees, it has an exceptionally wide viewing angle. Brightness
on the monitor is also adjustable in five levels and the screen's backlight feature
uses six LED modules, as opposed to three on previous models, to helps illuminate
the 2.5-inch LCD evenly. Along with the larger monitor, the menu text is also
larger and easier to red. The full-featured INFO screen includes files sizes,
RGB histogram and AF frame displays. In addition, Quick Review images are now
enlargeable.



Because noise is difficult to see on a camera's LCD monitor, even one as large
and detailed as the EOS 5D camera, it is hard to know whether noise reduction
should be turned on or not. Thanks to a new automatic noise reduction feature
on the EOS 5D DSLR, getting rid of unwanted noise has been made even easier that
with previous models. In the C.Fn-02-1 setting, automatic noise reduction occurs
when noise is detected for exposures of 1 second or longer, regardless of ISO.
In the C.Fn-02.2 setting, full-time noise reduction for exposures of 1 second
of longer occurs regardless of whether noise is detected and regardless of ISO.
With these two options, photographers using the Canon EOS 5D DSLR can adjust the
camera's noise reduction capabilities to suit a particular situation.
...