George Schaub

“Startlingly sharp” are two words that come to mind after shooting with the Zeiss Touit 12mm and 32mm lenses. I worked with a Fujifilm X-E1 with X-mount Zeiss lenses; they are also available for Sony NEX bodies. The “crop factor,” if you will, is 1.5x, so the effective focal length on these bodies is similar to an 18mm and 48mm, respectively.

Not long ago when you wanted even a modicum of quality with the ability to interchange lenses and control over cameras and functions worthy of the craft you’d mainly have to choose among a variety of D-SLR-type cameras. While they all followed the 35mm SLR form and even modes of operation, the digital differentiator was generally the size and megapixel count on the sensor. While there certainly were variations and competitive technologies within different brands, the major split was between APS-C and so-called “full frame” (larger sensors equaling the 35mm format). Improvements tended to drift “down” from full-framers to APS-C, but there were also a number of concessions, if you will, that moved up from APS-C to the more pro-oriented models, which for some muddied the waters although body construction, shutter cycles, and other matters of concern to pros were retained in the higher-priced cameras.

This is a portrait of my Great-Uncle Syl, taken in the late 1940’s, a print that sat in a storage box until last year. Now Syl’s on the web here, shared with family via an e-mail attachment, and will soon be part of a photo book of the family history. If you’ve got boxes of old photos it’s easy to share them too. For those thinking about such a project, and who haven’t scanned before, here are some basic FAQ’s that might get you started.

The Vanguard ABEO Pro Kit starts out as a solid carbon-fiber tripod but then adds features and functions like a removable and rotatable (vertical or horizontal) center column, a pistol grip with built-in trigger release with cable attachments for many cameras, bubble levels, 80-degree leg spread, three “feet” supports (pads, spikes, and rubber), a quick-release base plate and mechanism, and etched degree settings on the center column for those who want to do precise panoramas.