News

It's not the tools that capture the images; it's the photographer's vision that does the job. Nonetheless, here I am at the annual hardware orgy that is PMA, where smiling PR people try to put the best possible spin on the organized chaos that is the photo industry. Everyone has realized that digital imaging is not just another version of the widely...

As part of our coverage each of our reporters were asked to pick out what they considered the Best of Show product, service, or idea. In most cases it is the item that caused them to reconsider how they worked or that sparked their imagination. While each reporter had their beat, this category was open game for all, and most "crossed lines" to find their pick.
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Kingston Technology Company, Inc. has announced that world-class nature and
wildlife photographer John Hyde will be the next participant to share how he
uses Kingston Flash memory on the company's `Look Who's Using
Kingston' microsite. Hyde discusses how he captures the majestic beauty
of Alaska's national parks and the wildlife, including native Alaskan
wolves, birds and orcas. Hyde also offers insightful tips on how consumers can
take their own beautiful photos during visits to national parks and other outdoor
venues.

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Online video and photo sharing service Phanfare (www.phanfare.com) has announced
a special offer for current customers of Yahoo! Photos. Yahoo! Photos recently
informed their customers that their photos stored at Yahoo! Photos will be deleted
at the end of the summer. In response, Phanfare is offering Yahoo! Photos customers
the opportunity to move and save their photos from Yahoo! Photos to their own
Phanfare Web sites, known for family-friendly, private, secure, advertising-free
albums. As an added bonus, current Yahoo! Photos customers will get six months
free service when they move their photos to Phanfare.

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Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE:EK) has introduced a new image sensor technology
that is said to provides a significant increase in sensitivity to light when
compared to current sensor designs. With this new technology, users will realize
a 2x to 4x increase in sensitivity (from one to two photographic stops), which
will improve performance when taking pictures under low light and reduce motion
blur when imaging moving subjects. In addition, this technology enables the
design of smaller pixels (leading to higher resolutions in a given optical format)
while retaining imaging performance.



This breakthrough advances an existing Kodak technology that has become a standard
in digital imaging. Today, the design of almost all color image sensors is based
on the "Bayer Pattern," an arrangement of red, green, and blue pixels
that was first developed by Kodak Scientist Dr. Bryce Bayer in 1976. In this
design, half of the pixels on the sensor are used to collect green light, with
the remaining pixels split evenly between sensitivity to red and blue light.
After exposure, software reconstructs a full color signal for each pixel in
the final image.



Kodak's new proprietary technology builds on the existing Bayer Pattern
by adding panchromatic, or "clear" pixels to the red, green, and
blue pixels already on the sensor. Since these pixels are sensitive to all wavelengths
of visible light, they collect a significantly higher proportion of the light
striking the sensor. The remaining red, green, and blue pixels are then used
to record the color information of the scene.



To reconstruct a full color image, Kodak has also developed new software algorithms
specifically designed to work with the raw data generated from these new image
sensors. These sophisticated algorithms use the more sensitive panchromatic
pixels to act as the luminance channel of the final image, and derive chrominance
information from the color pixels on the sensor. Leveraging over 30 years of
Kodak image science, these new algorithms support the increased sensitivity
provided by these new pixel patterns, while retaining the overall image quality
and color fidelity required by customers.



Kodak is beginning to work with a number of leading companies to implement this
new technology in system-wide solutions and to streamline the design-in process.



Kodak is developing CMOS sensors using this technology for consumer markets
such as digital still cameras and camera phones. As the technology is appropriate
for use with both CCD and CMOS image sensors, however, its use can be expanded
across Kodak's full portfolio of image sensors, including products targeted
to applied imaging markets such as industrial and scientific imaging. The first
Kodak sensor to use this technology is expected to be available for sampling
in the first quarter of 2008.



For more information on Kodak's entire image sensor product line, please
visit www.kodak.com/go/imagers.

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Leica Camera AG has announced that it will provide a free firmware update for
the LEICA DIGILUX 3 on its website www.leica-camera.com.
The new firmware for the LEICA DIGILUX 3 optimizes the functionality of the
camera across many applications. This will include additional exposure functions
and will, for the first time, offer a "Mode 3" for optical stabilization.
Mode 3 will further compensate and correct longitudinal camera movement. This
mode is ideal for panning, a method of taking photographs where the camera follows
a moving object.



Version 2.0 will also include a new mode that facilitates the viewing of the
LCD monitor during use of the LiveView function. This setting will assist the
photographer when the camera is held in a position close to ground level. Further
improvements include the "Auto Review" setting, a Replay Zoom, easier
accessibility to the ISO setting in Auto Exposure (AE) mode, as well as further
improvements to camera operation and user interface.



Detailed information on the firmware update for the LEICA DIGILUX 3 will be
available at www.leica-camera.com in the Photography/D-System/Digilux 3 section
beginning in mid June 2007.

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Extensis has announced Portfolio Server 8.5, a significant upgrade in its Portfolio
Server digital asset management (DAM) product. The Portfolio Server upgrade provides
industrial-strength workflow features to organize and exchange digital files utilizing
visual catalogs and embedded metadata. Portfolio Server is a multi-channel system
that makes it fast and easy to find and share valuable creative assets within
the creative workgroup, across the organization and externally with global partners.
The Portfolio 8.5 product family includes Portfolio Server, Portfolio Client,
Portfolio Express, Portfolio NetPublish and SQL Connect modules, as well as a
Single-User version of Portfolio.



Portfolio Server 8.5 includes new features to automate metadata-driven organization,
tracking, and distribution of digital assets. Additionally, this release includes
Portfolio Project Sync, designed to allow creative users a seamless interface
with familiar Adobe Creative Suite applications. Creative users simultaneously
benefit from Portfolio Server's ability to provide access to other users through
the Portfolio Client, Portfolio Express and websites created with Portfolio NetPublish,
Portfolio Server 8.5 provides unique access points for both internal and external
users.



Portfolio Server 8.5 comes with Project Sync and includes several enhancements,
including improved XMP and file format support, greater performance and stability,
as well as additional features that help automate management of complex metadata.
Portfolio NetPublish 8.5 also includes a number of new features, including advanced
logging for reporting user traffic as well as visual watermarking functionality,
for images, to prevent unauthorized use.



Pricing and Availability

Portfolio Server 8.5 for workgroups will be available for download and
purchase in Summer 2007. Portfolio Server 8.5 and all client components will be
available free of charge for existing customers with Annual Service Agreements
(ASA). Pricing for all other versions, including upgrades, will be announced prior
to product availability in summer 2007.



French, German and Japanese language versions of Portfolio will also be available
in summer, 2007.



For information on where to purchase the Portfolio family of products visit http://www.extensis.com/portfolio.




System Requirements

Portfolio 8.5 will support Windows 2000 SP4, XP SP2 or Vista, Pentium class processor
at 1GHz or faster, 512MB RAM, 500 MB Hard Drive space, Network Interface for server
connection, Apple QuickTime version 7 or higher. Portfolio 8.5 will also support
Mac OS X 10.4.4 or higher, G4, G5 or Intel Core Processor at 1GHz, 512 MB RAM,
500MB Hard Drive space, Network Interface for server connection, Apple QuickTime
version 7 or higher.