Piccola Lola
Sunday, December 14th, 2008
Livorno, Italy. Taken by Sarasculli
Source: planetearthdailyphoto.blogspot.com
Archive for December, 2008
Premium Compact Camera Group Test
Saturday, December 13th, 2008
The third of our group tests covers the premium ‘point and shoot’ compacts that sit at or near the top of their respective ranges. With wide lenses, up to 14.7 million pixels and stuffed to the gills with features these cameras command top dollar, but are they all worth it? Follow the link, delve into the reviews and see what we’ve found…
By: www.dpreview.com
Product Review: Digital Foci Image Moments 6 Photo Frame
Sunday, December 7th, 2008The holidays are upon us, and here you are again, not sure what to get that far-away loved one. Want to send someone all the pictures of your vacation, or update the grandparents on what the kids are doing, Kodak-style? Sure, but original photos are fragile and can get bent or damaged during shipping. Instead, pre-load a digital photo frame with the images, ship it off, and you're done. The Digital Foci Image Moments 6 digital photo frame is one such frame you could use for this very purpose.
It should be that easy, at least. Just to get new images into a playlist, you're going to have to spend a good bit of time reading the manual and making sense of the frame's often-inconsistent setup and unreliable buttons.
Full specs on the three different models in the Image Moments product line can be viewed here, but let's cover a few of the bases now. The six-inch (5.7" viewable) frame's brushed two-tone chrome plating and overall small footprint combined with the sharp backlit screen and built-in speakers get it off to a good start.
The frame comes standard with ports for many compact media formats, including Memory Stick Pro/Duo, Compact Flash/Micro Drive, SD/MMC/xD, and a mini-USB port for connecting to a computer for transferring from any other format you might have. However, a computer is not required for operating the frame or importing images. You can transfer them from the memory cards onto the 450MB of internal memory in the frame, or leave the card in the frame and display images directly from there. It also has a tilt sensor inside it to know whether it's oriented horizontally or vertically, and will display pictures accordingly, as well as stretch them to fit or display original size, depending on how you set it up.
Unfortunately, there are a number of drawbacks once you actually start using the frame and managing the content you want to display. Navigating the software within the frame can be confusing, especially for people not comfortable with technology. If you pre-load it for the grandparents and set it so all they have to do is plug it in and turn it on, they should be fine. However, if they hit any buttons on the frame, you might soon be getting a phone call asking how to "make it work again."
From: feeds.blogcritics.org
Interwoven
Thursday, December 4th, 2008
“One of the rare spirit houses painted totally white. Thai people have a devoted respect for the shrines that, they strongly believe, protect them from reincarnated lives with harmful intentions”. Taken by Quimdoporto
Source: planetearthdailyphoto.blogspot.com
Panasonic – new flash and firmware for DMC-LX3
Thursday, December 4th, 2008
Panasonic has announced the launch of the compact FL220 flashgun and will update the DMC-LX3’s firmware to accommodate it. Firmware v1.1 not only allows full compatibility with the DMW-FL220 flash unit, it also promises to improve Auto White Balance performance. Firmware v1.1 will be available for download on 15th December, 2008.
*
*Available from 15th December 2008
Panasonic DMW-FL220 Specifications
| DMW-FL220 specifications | |
|---|---|
| Power requirements |
DC 3.0V |
| Batteries recommended for use | • AA Alkaline dry batteries (LR6) x 2 • AA Rechargeable nickel metal hydride batteries (Ni-MH) x 2 |
|
Charging time |
• Approx. 5.5 s: AA Alkaline dry batteries • Approx. 5.0 s: AA Rechargeable nickel metal hydride batteries |
| Firing period | Approx. 1/20000 s to 1/500 s (Varies depending on the flash intensity) |
| No. of flashes (with full flash) |
• Approx. 140 flashes AA Alkaline dry batteries |
| Flash modes | TTL Auto/Manual |
| Guide Number | Automatically selected |
| Lighting angle | • 60 degrees up/down, 78 degrees left/right • View angle of 24 mm lens covered (35mm film camera equivalent) |
| Dimensions | • 61(W) x 98(H) x 46(D) mm • 2 6/16(W) x 3 7/8(H) x 1 13/16(D) in (excluding the projecting parts) |
| Weight | •Approx.111g / 3.92oz (main unit) • Approx.157g / 5.54oz (including batteries) |
By: www.dpreview.com
Book Review: Digital Infrared Photography By Cyrill Harnischmacher
Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008Infrared Photography is the practice of recording that part of the light spectrum that is referred to as infrared. Infrared light is outside the range of what the human eye can see, but with the digital camera we are now able to not only block the visible part of light, but see the invisible, infrared, part of the light spectrum. Artists have been using infrared film and filter techniques since back in the 1960s, but now with the digital innovations available to us in our new technologies, we have many more opportunities to experiment with this medium.
The goal of Digital Infrared Photography is to not only show you the beauty of infrared photography, but teach you how to shoot this type of photography with your digital camera. Digital Infrared Photography is 112 pages in length and covers five sections.
Section 1, "Theory," examines some of the history of infrared photography and takes a look at how it has been greatly simplified since the introduction of digital cameras. Then you will look at some of the basic principles of infrared and what uses there are for this style of photography.
Section 2, "Equipment," next takes a look at what kind of camera one needs for infrared and what other equipment is necessary. In this section you will learn how to perform a test to determine your camera's suitability for infrared and then you will see what other items are necessary or desirable for pursuing this type of photography.
Section 3, "Specialty Cameras," looks at the aspect of what can be used beyond production cameras. That is, a camera that has had its infrared blocker removed. Canon owners also have the option of using a clip filter system which can also be used for astrophotography. Also discussed are the pros and cons of various optimized infrared cameras.
Section 4, "Practical Aspects," now examines the technical aspects of digital infrared photography. This includes the file types, ISO settings, white balance, aperture and shutter speeds, and hotspots. Also examined is a comparison of infrared filters.
Section 5, "The Digital Darkroom," shows that in just about all cases post processing needs to be done when working in infrared. Here you will work with Black and White conversion, grayscale conversion, color levels, and how to optimize your pictures by using levels. There is even an examination of color infrared photography.
Digital Infrared Photography makes for a very good introduction to the subject of infrared photography. It nicely transitions from the technical topics of what infrared photography is, through what equipment you need, to the last third of the book focusing on the digital darkroom.
Digital Infrared Photography also has a lot of beautifully done images as well. These images serve as examples of what can be accomplished. Is this a complete book of infrared photography? No, this book will only give you an introduction into the field. If you are new to infrared, and are looking for a book that will give you a start into this type of photography, then I can easily recommend this book.
From: feeds.blogcritics.org