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You took that picture with a cellphone?!?!

Jul 30

The death of point-n-shoot cameras is near. Not this year, or next, or even the year after but it is coming. It is inevitable and you can thank Apple for this. One of the most innovative, ground-breaking, ingenious, revolutionary, state-of-the-art, pioneering, cutting-edge, brilliant,… okay okay, enough adjectives but I am talking about the iPhone. It has altered the photography world. It may not seem like it has now to some people but just wait. Give it 5 years, maybe less. The iPhone can take photos better than some point-n-shoot cameras. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles as most of the little cameras but it is steadily getting there and when it does, that will be the untimely death of the beloved point-n-shoot camera.

Yes, there were cameras on cell phones before there was an iPhone but the iPhone has changed the easy side of photography dramatically. Right now, all you can do is turn flash on and off, use digital zoom if you want, and tap on the screen where you want the camera to focus. But soon, white balance control, metering control, TTL flash control, M A S P control zzzzzzZOMG! This is the future, and point-n-shoot cameras are the Dodo bird.

Now, at the moment I own a Droid X. I love the phone. I love everything about it but one thing: the camera. It is unresponsive at times when hitting the shutter button, and then it is sometimes too responsive when hitting the shutter button. The photos look flat in color and contrast. It is horrible in low light. It switches between scene modes too slowly. What else do I have to complain about? Hmmm… “but Mr. Blog Writer, you are going against the whole point of this blog post.”
Keep reading my readers.
On the bright side (and very bright side I must say) the native camera app has more options to change than the iPhone such as changing ISO, effects, scene modes, exposure compensation and……… see my point I am trying to get at. Camera phones are getting there and once they do there will be no need for people to carry around a point-n-shoot camera as well as a camera phone. These camera phones already can shoot Full HD video (and that was the death of Flip video cameras), has face detection, can do HDR photography and it is just going to get better. Even some additional camera apps have become very popular such as Hipstamatic for the iPhone and RetroCamera for the Android. Even Adobe made a Photoshop app for phones now! But when September rolls around and the iPhone 5 is released, I am switching and I am getting it not because I am an Apple fanatic but because of its camera. That sole reason.

I am going on a big trip in September to mid-October. Of course, I am taking my Nikon SLR and a bunch of Lomography cameras but I was also in the market for a small point-n-shoot camera that I can carry with me when I do not want to lug around all my camera gear. But then I got to thinking, I am getting an iPhone soon. The camera on the iPhone 5 will be better than the camera on the 4th generation. And plus it is a PHONE! Done, decision is made! And see what just happened there. The point-n-shoot line just lost a sale.

And here is reassurance on how well the iPhone takes photos… Ahem (clears throat…). Once upon a time in a far away land called Afghanistan, a New York times photojournalist named Damon Winter was documenting the First Battalion, 87th Infantry of the 10th Mountain Division. To best convey those soldier’s story he decided to shoot pictures with his iPhone using an app called Hipstamatic. There was a lot of controversy about his photos being taken with a camera phone but that is a whole other blog post. Back to Damon’s story, with his photos from his iPhone he won third place in POYI international photo contest. iPhone photos… winning in a accredited international photo contest… that is pretty good for a camera phone. Below are some of those winning photographs that he took.

Damon Winter / The New York Times

Here are some camera phone pictures from myself using RetroCamera.

Also, here are some other cool things that have been done with an iPhone

Watch this: iPhone Wedding Video

Nikon and Canon SLR lens mount for the iPhone

Photojojo.com

Now do you see how great camera phones are becoming?

-Brandon-

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The Canon 60D: What’s not to love?

Jul 09

Posted by admin in New Products

I am a Nikon shooter, and I absolutely LOVE the Canon 60D. There. I said it.

With its new in-camera processing, vari-angle LCD screen, Full HD 1920×1080 video at 30, 25 or 24 fps, you can’t go wrong. And don’t forget its electronic level, which is really helpful when shooting landscapes and large groups.

Using in-camera processing, you can edit the exposure, saturation, contrast, and more on your images without even taking the card out of the camera! This works for both jpeg and RAW. Furthermore, using its star-rating system, you can rate your images so when you import them into your photo-editing software, such as Lightroom, you can already have your favorites sorted out.

Now, you can’t talk about the 60D without talking about its video capabilities. It is the first in its class to have video capture. It can shoot up to 60 fps. If you’re shooting in Full HD, it will shoot 30 fps.

It does NOT have autofocus when shooting video. However, if it did have autofocus for video, I’m not convinced it’d make for better video. When the camera is switched to LiveView (it has to be on LiveView in order to shoot video), the autofocus is sluggish. When you manually focus, you can be faster and more precise. Furthermore, at this point in time, the focus motors in these cameras are loud enough for the mic to pick up. So manual focus is quieter, faster, and more precise than autofocus would be.

The autofocus for still photography on this camera, however, is better than the Rebel T3i’s. This is due to its 9-point crosstype autofocus system. The crosstype points detect horizontal and vertical lines, allowing for better, more precise focus.

Another new, useful feature on the 60D is the manual audio control. This gives you better control over the audio than the 7D, for instance, which only has automatic audio capture. The 60D also has wind filters which useful for shooting outside.

A more fun feature on the camera is the use of “creative filters.” My favorite is the “miniature effect” which is fun to use when shooting objects or buildings from far up. It gives the effect of a tilt shift lens. Some of the other filters are grainy b&w, toy camera, and soft focus. (Below are some

This is an example of the miniature effect. Better when used on objects or buildings from high up. (This is straight from the camera, no post-processing)

One of the toy camera filters. (again, straight out of camera, no post-processing)

: “Grainy B&W” (once again, this is straight out of the camera without any post-processing)

The body of the camera is a little different than its predecessors. To me, it’s easier to use. The placement of the buttons on the Canon cameras have never made much sense to me. The 60D has been completely rearranged to where you can use your right hand to press the majority of the buttons. Also, the back dial and the D-pad are now integrated, which again, makes a lot more sense than having two controllers in different places. The body of the camera is a little lighter than the rest in its series due to its polycarbonate shell (it does have an aluminum frame, however).

One of my favorite updates on the body of the camera (as can be seen in the below picture) is the four buttons along the top of the LCD screen. They match up to corresponding settings. (The ISO button is directly above the ISO setting on the top panel screen).

Another cool feature is its aspect ratio simulation. Let’s say you’re shooting an image that you know will be used for a 5×5 print. When in live view, you can set your aspect ratio for whatever size you need, in this case we would use a 1:1 aspect ratio. Red crop lines will appear on the live view screen. You can also set the aspect ratio to 16:9 and 4:3; the camera will automatically shoot with a 3:2 aspect ratio. When shooting in jpeg, your images will be saved with the crop. When shooting in RAW, the files will be saved as 3:2 but will be tagged with crop lines and can be viewed with Canon’s digital photo professional software. This is really a nice feature, especially when shooting with a particular print size in mind.

So, to answer my first question: What’s not to love? Well, not much. This camera is super fast, super smart, and really fun to use. I do have one complaint, however. Canon has removed the option to make lens AF microadjustments to compensate for lenses that aren’t tuned just right. This doesn’t seem to turn too many people away from the 60D, however. I mean, really, how many photographers do you know that sync their lenses? I think this is also Canon’s way of making the camera more user-friendly for entry-level users. Canon has made the 60D more appealing for professionals as well since they’ve added the capability of the pop-up to control external flashes wirelessly. One other complaint is its polycarbonate shell. When I get this level of camera, or anything beyond entry-level really, I’d like a heavy-duty body. They’ve made the 60D fairly light. Even though it still has the aluminum frame, it still feels light, plastic, and almost like a toy. Other than those two complaints, I really REALLY love this camera. Too bad all my lenses are Nikkor…

-Meredith-

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The care and cleaning of underwater cameras

Jul 07

Posted by admin in For Beginners

I have a Panasonic T2 which I can take EVERYWHERE! It goes to the pool, the beach, and mostly is in my pocket. Same for the TOUGH cameras by Olympus. I am now such a big fan of their TOUGH series, they would be my second choice as a walking around camera.

So over the 4th of July weekend, my family and I went to the beach, into the surf and sand. The camera was very dirty after our fun day. After a day like that, how do you safely remove the battery to charge it?

First, don’t skimp when it comes to reading the instructions on maintaining the water seals. There is nothing more important to the integrity of a waterproof camera than its seals. One hair or speck of sand is enough to compromise the seal. With a bit of pressure from the water, the seal can fail and ruin your camera. No, the manufacturers warranty does not cover water damage on water-resistant cameras, mostly because if the seal was maintained it wouldn’t have failed.

So, I rinsed the camera and washed off the salt and sand off the outside of the camera. I dried the camera thoroughly and removed lint and dust that was clinging to the outside, then I removed the battery and charged it. At the same time I inspected the battery door and the seals VERY carefully. There was sand long the edges which I carefully removed and dusted and blew out and dusted until I couldn’t see any more. I let the camera air out and when the charger was finished, replaced the battery and resealed the camera, again checking for hairs and eyelashes and ANYTHING that could get on the seal. Of course, there were a few bits of sand form where I had already cleaned. Once I was sure that everything was clean, I closed and locked the covers, and off I went again!

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What is the hardest part of taking vacation pictures?

Jul 04

Posted by admin in For Beginners

We all take our camera with us to the beach, or the mountains or wherever we take our vacations. But the hardest part of taking good shots is always thinking ahead and being prepared. I carry my camera bag, but arthritis prevents me from carrying it like i did when I was younger (read as: 3 years ago when I didn’t have the flareups) . So I take the bag, but leave it and try to go light, taking only the things I think I need.

I always carry the lens I know I will need. Last night I started with a 50mm f1.4 for low light, walking around. When the fireworks started, I was unprepared since the field of view was so limited. Luckily I could change the lens to a 17-55mm f2.8 for the fireworks. The wide area allowed me to shoot the fireworks that the neighbor was shooting off.

When we are walking on the beach, I tend to carry the 70-200 f2.8 lens for the ability to shoot distance shots, and reasonable macro. Portraits are nice, since I can use the depth of field and compression to get a better shot.

Now, do I take the flash as well? I have to say that overall, I would rather take the equipment and have it if I need it (that includes the cable release, flash cords, filters etc). After all, if the shot is Ok, but not worth hanging on the wall, was it really worth taking the shot in the first place? I will always go for quality over quantity.

Maybe I need to get a backpack…

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Spartan Photo Center

You took that picture with a cellphone?!?!

The Canon 60D: What’s not to love?

The care and cleaning of underwater cameras

What is the hardest part of taking vacation pictures?

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