Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7/TZ10 Review
The super zoom compacts roll on: now with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7 (also known as the TZ10) Panasonic offers a 12x Leica optical zoom that puts into your hands focal range that matches a 35 SLR camera’s 25-300mm lens. Some lens!
Panasonic describes this camera as a Travel Zoom model: compact, pocketable, easy to use but offering a healthy range of exposure options that could handle most photographic challenges, viewed on a 7.6cm LCD screen. To my mind this camera would act as a superb, compact companion to a serious DSLR kit, as it has auto operation, Program AE, shutter and aperture priority and manual exposure as well as a host of scene modes. The iA mode is one that could be useful when shooting video, as it automatically selects the most suitable scene mode and helps correct blurring, focus and brightness challenges.
Capturing 12.1 megapixels, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7/TZ10 can shoot a maximum image size of 4000×3000 pixels, enough to make a 34×25cm print. Using the AVCHD Lite video format, I felt the resolution to be a little disappointing at 1280×720 pixels at 30fps.
Added to this is a GPS feature as well as an optical image stabiliser that as two modes plus auto; you can also switch it off for tripod work.
The GPS feature is a little startling. Take a picture (outside, dummy!) and on preview the location is displayed beneath it. Now I’m trying to think of a use for it in my day to day activities.
A Panorama Assist mode eases the task by taking a series of images to stitch into a panorama shot, while checking the degree of overlap between adjacent shots. You can shoot a series panning left, right, up or down.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7/TZ10 ISO Tests
At ISO 80 everything under control: good sharpness, little noise.
At ISO 400 a slight increase in noise was visible.
At ISO 800 noise up and sharpness down.
At ISO 1600 noise very noticeable and sharpness down: An OK setting if you have to use it!
Distortion
One of the best lenses I’ve seen in a compact, the Leica optic showed no signs of barrel or spherical distortion at either end of the zoom. Excellent!
Startup Time
Not so quick off the mark, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7/TZ10 shots its first shot three seconds after power on; follow on shots came in at about two seconds each.
Comment
Quality: I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but this little camera produced pictures that exceeded any I’ve seen from a compact camera. Very high quality.
The movie mode is also excellent: you begin recording by pressing the dedicated button on the TZ10’s rear; the zoom and auto focus is operable and Panasonic’s excellent optical stabiliser takes care of the bumps. Tops!
Why you would buy it: you want a 12x zoom in a compact.
Why you wouldn’t: cannot think of a no-no!
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7/TZ10 Spcecifications
Image Sensor: 12.1 million effective pixels.
Metering: Multiple zone, centre-weighted and spot.
Sensor Size: 11mm CCD.
Lens: Leica DC Vario-Elmar f3.3-4.9/4.1-49.2mm (25-300mm as 35 SLR equivalent).
Shutter Speed: 60 to 1/2000 second.
Continuous Shooting: 2.3 fps.
Memory: SD, SDHC, SDXC cards plus 15MB internal memory.
Image Sizes (pixels): 4000×3000, 3264×2448, 2560×1920, 2048×1536, 640×480.
Movies: 1280×720, 848×480, 640×480, 320×240 at 30 fps.
LCD Screen: 7.6cm LCD (460,800 pixels).
File Formats: JPEG, Motion JPEG, AVCHD Lite.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 80 to 6400.
Interface: USB 2.0, HDMI, AV.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, DC input.
Dimensions: 103.3×59.6×32.6 WHDmm.
Weight: 218 g (inc battery and card).
Price: get a price on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7/TZ10 at Amazon.
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7/TZ10 Review
Sony Bloggie MHS-PM5 Review
Lift bow and arrow. Load arrow into bow. Take aim. Twang! And Sony hits another bulls-eye!
As with the exceptional Sony DSC-HX5V movie/pano/burst rate camera, I was completely blown away with the Sony Bloggie MHS-PM5!
Even if you already own a DSLR or two, perhaps a compact digicam and maybe an HD camcorder, this one will fire up your acquisitive hormones.
I want one!
Looking more like a mobile phone or iPod, the Bloggie is a digital camera reduced to the absolute minimum, then topped up with a pile of fascinating features.
Colour-styled in pink, blue, violet and white the Bloggie can be turned on by simply rotating the lens turret, as the 6.1cm LCD screen fires up. In reality, the screen is only 4.2cm in size, with data occupying the rest of the LCD’s area. However, in replay mode, the entire screen is full of picture.
With it you can shoot 2592×1944 JPEGs that print out to 22×16cm prints. Movies? How about Full HD 1920×1080 pixel MPEG4 clips?
When it comes time to download your handiwork or recharge, pull out the built-in USB arm and plug into your lap- or desktop. Couldn’t be simpler and so very Web-friendly. And if you like shooting a lot of people, Face Detection is built in.
And that’s not all: the camera rotates through 270 degrees, so shooting yourself, the sky, the front view or down near your feet is a simple act. The rotating lens even has a 4x digital zoom.
Want a fisheye view? Simply clip on a special lens attachment that gives you a crazy 360 degree view set into a circular frame. This fisheye lens ‘bounces’ the view down to the normal taking lens built into the camera and can shoot stills or movies, the latter complete with what audio captured in what sounds to me very much like a 360 degree audio pattern.
Helpfully, Sony has included a 4GB PRO Duo Memory Stick with the camera so you can get shooting straight away, and this will let you capture up to 40 minutes of top res HD footage. The card slot can also take SD and SDHC cards.
Comment
Quality: the camera is very subject to lens flare, so expect do some Photoshopping, post-shoot, to improve the contrast rendition in stills images.
In movies? Flare is part of the fun, especially when you can get the sun itself in frame … to be truthful, it’s very hard to avoid the sun in outdoor shots!
One trap I fell into: when shooting stills or movies and pointing the fisheye straight ahead … the floor will be at the top of the frame. The fisheye is a plastic lens, so you’ll have to live with the lower quality.
Why you would buy a Bloggie: you want a very Web-friendly camera.
Why you wouldn’t: you want more control over the camera, better sharpness and anti-flare performance.
However… this is one of those cameras that will put the fun back in to photography.
Sony Bloggie MHS-PM5 Specifications
Image Sensor: 5.04 million effective pixels.
Metering: Auto.
Sensor Size: 7.3mm CMOS.
Lens: f3.6/7.0mm (42mm as 35 SLR equivalent).
Memory: Memory Stick PRO Duo, SD, SDHC cards plus 26MB internal memory.
Image Sizes (pixels): 2592×1944, 2592×1728, 2048×1536, 1920×1080, 640×480.
Movies: 1920×1080, 1280×720, 640×480.
LCD Screen: 6.1cm LCD (230,400 pixels).
File Formats: JPEG, MPEG4.
Interface: USB 2.0, AV.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery.
Dimensions: 19×108×54 WHDmm.
Weight: 130 g (inc battery and card).
Price: The Sony Bloggie MHS-PM5 comes in a variety of colors. Get a price on Amazon for them at Violet – White – Blue – Pink.
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Which Canon Speedlite Flash Is Right for You?
Looking at buying a canon Speedlite flash but not sure which one is right for you? In this post Phil Steele sheds some light on the topic (PS: if there’s anyone in our readership who’d like to do a similar post on other brands we’d be interested in publishing it).
Investing in a hot-shoe flash can be an intimidating step for many photographers. No one wants to suffer the buyer’s remorse that comes from spending hundreds of dollars only to discover that you made the wrong choice.
To help you avoid this “newbie tax,” I’d like to offer some guidance in discovering which Canon flash is right for you.
As of this writing in 2010, the Canon Speedlite flash lineup consists of three options: the 270EX, the 430EX II, and the 580EX II. (We won’t consider the specialized macro flashes here).
Canon 270EX Speedlite
Starting with the least expensive model, the 270EX is a small, pocket-sized hot-shoe flash powered by two AA batteries. It costs approximately $150. In my opinion this flash is only a marginal improvement over the pop-up flash found on most Canon SLR cameras, and therefore does not make economic sense for most photographers.
Unlike its larger brethren, it cannot be swiveled from side to side, and its angled bounce head, which allows you to bounce light off a ceiling, is pretty wimpy compared to the full-size flashes. Despite a price that is more than half that of the larger 430EX II, it lacks many useful features such as the infrared beam to help you focus in the dark, and the ability to act as a remote slave in multi-flash setups. And of course, it just doesn’t pack the power of the larger flashes.
However, there are a few cases where this little flash makes sense. The 270EX may right for you if:
- You really need a tiny, lightweight, or inconspicuous flash with more power than your camera’s pop-up flash.
- You are shooting with a Canon Powershot G11 or similar hot-shoe-equipped pocket camera that would be absurdly overwhelmed by the weight of a full-size flash.
- You are shooting with one of the Canon professional cameras (such as the 1D or 5D) that lacks a built-in pop-up flash, and you want a small, lightweight device to create on-camera fill flash.
Outside of these conditions (and for anyone shooting with a Canon SLR equipped with a pop-up flash) I don’t recommend the 270EX. If your camera has a pop-up flash, you can emulate the bounce ability of the 270EX with an accessory like the Lightscoop for a small fraction of the price.
Canon 430EX II Speedlite
Moving up to the Speedlite 430EX II, we step into the realm of Canon’s full-size hot-shoe flashes. Powered by 4 AA batteries, the 430EX II sells for about $250 and offers all the features you’d expect in a full-size flash, including the ability to swivel in any direction, to bounce off walls or ceilings, and to help you focus in the dark with an infrared assist beam. This last can be a real life-saver in low-light situations where you can’t get a focus lock with ambient light.
The 430EX II is my preferred flash for most event-photography situations where I am shooting with the flash on the camera. Even though I could use the more powerful 580EX II, I find I usually prefer the lighter weight and smaller size of the 430 when I’m going to be carrying the camera for hours and sometimes shooting one-handed. The larger 580 starts to seem monstrous by comparison.
Canon 580EX II Speedlite
As versatile as the 430EX II is, however, it lacks one crucial feature that may steer you to the larger Speedlite 580EX II, despite the roughly $450 price tag. The 580EX II is the only Canon flash that can act as a Master in multi-flash setups. If you want to experiment with off-camera flash using the built-in Canon wireless flash system (and who doesn’t?), then you will eventually need a 580 as your master control unit.
In the bargain the 580 also offers more power than the 430, and other slightly enhanced capabilities. But the real deciding factor for the 580 is the master control function. So if your only goal is to shoot with the flash mounted on the camera, and if you never intend to do off-camera, multi-flash setups, then I would not suggest spending the extra $200 for the 580EX II. In my opinion, the additional power is not worth the extra cost.
Also note that the both the 430EX II and the 580EX II can serve as remote slaves in multi-flash wireless setups. So I would argue that you never need more than one 580EX II flash. Invest in that mothership one time to get your master unit, and then for any additional slave flashes, I would simply buy the less expensive 430EX II.
So, in summary, I recommend:
(links point to Amazon where you can get a price)
- 270EX – Only if your camera lacks a pop-up flash, or you really need a tiny, pocket-sized flash despite the limitations.
- 430EX II – As your first flash for on-camera use, or as a remote slave.
- 580EX II – As a master control unit when you are ready to try wireless, multi-flash setups.
I hope this helps with your flash purchase decisions.
About the Author: Phil Steele is the founder of SteeleTraining.com where you’ll find free photography tutorials and training.
If you are interested in off-camera flash with Canon Speedlites you may want to check out his online course “How to Shoot Professional-Looking Headshots and Portraits on a Budget with Small Flashes.”
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Which Canon Speedlite Flash Is Right for You?
Nikon Coolpix S8000 [Review]
Compact digicams don’t normally set my bells a-ringing but this one intrigued me, big time.
What on earth is Nikon doing with the Nikon Coolpix S8000? A pocketable picture taker that is just 27mm thin and extends only another 41mm when the stabilised 10x optical zoom pokes its nose into the world. 10x in a compact? Yup.
Then there’s the high megapixel count: 14.2 million of the things, packed into a tiny 11mm CCD. This means its maximum image is 4320×3240 pixels — or, as a print, 37×27cm in size.
While we all know that these mouth-watering specs are driven by the experts in the marketing department and look great in the ads, it doesn’t mean a camera like this can shoot level pegging with a $2000 DSLR.
Despite this, the attractions of a 10x zoom and large image size can have its compensations in educated hands.
For instance: with this lens you can shoot a full shot of a doorway from three metres; then, from the same position you can capture a full head shot. See what I mean?
With an image that could eventually print out to the equivalent of two A4 pages it means you have enormous cropping power well after the shot is downloaded and you’re having second thoughts about what you shot.
Nikon Coolpix S8000 Features
Of course, there is no optical viewfinder and while the rear LCD does have very good definition, it does present a poorly viewable display in bright sunlight.
There is a tiny pop-up flash, poorly sited right under your left finger when holding the camera. This means it has a good chance of avoiding red eye but can be a damned nuisance.
There is only an auto exposure setting, so you cannot twiddle with various aperture or shutter speed settings. The scene modes on offer can be of help when you’re faced with more challenging shots like beach or snow scenes, fireworks etc.
Movies
Maximum image size in movie mode is 1280×720 pixels — not full HD — but still quite presentable on a large screen. Replay is helped by an HDMI output on the camera.
The camera has an unusual method of taking movie clips: there is a dedicated record button right next to the LCD screen; you don’t have to select movie mode — just push movie record!
There is something quite odd with the zoom in movie shooting: it appears to have only a 3x range; move the zoom in tighter before shooting and you appear to access only a 3x range in that area. Auto focus is of course out of action: preset before you shoot.
Nikon Coolpix S8000 ISO Tests
The ISO range is pretty good: 100 to 3200 plus a jump to ISO 6400 — but this is only accessible when you select Sports Continuous mode. The latter mode, however, gains you entry into a continuous shooting which delivers a run of 45 shots, taken at 3fps. Pretty good in my book!
Test shot taken at ISO 100, f4.1 and 1/40 second.
Now we are at ISO 800, f4.1 and 1/80 second: definition still good, noise not a problem.
Surprisingly good quality at ISO 1600: f4.1 and 1/160 second.
At ISO 3200 the picture is starting to break up, noise has risen, definition lower.
Shot of a coloured window taken at ISO 3200 and f3.5 at 1/60 second shows how a high ISO shutter speed can still be used with specific subjects: in this case one that is highly detailed.
Distortion
When checking for optical distortion, I was surprised and delighted to find the Nikkor 10x was straight up and down! No sign of any spherical distortion in the wide or tele ends of the zoom. As far as I can recall, the best performance in any compact I have ever handled. Quite a lens.
Startup Time
From startup to first picture took two seconds, with follow-on shots coming in at a rate of about a second apart. Quite a good performance.
Comments
Quality: an above average compact, this camera will take fine images if you understand its limitations.
Why you’d buy the Nikon Coolpix S8000: high powered zoom in a compact body; high pixel count; small form factor.
Why you wouldn’t: the lens at f3.5 maximum aperture is quite slow.
Nikon Coolpix S8000 Specifications
Image Sensor: 14.2 million effective pixels.
Metering: Centre-weighted (224 segments).
Sensor Size: 11mm CCD.
Lens: Nikkor f3.5-5.6/5.4-54.0mm (30-300mm as 35 SLR equivalent).
Shutter Speed: 8 to 1/2000 second.
Continuous Shooting: 45 pictures (2048×1536) at 3 fps.
Memory: SD, SDHC cards plus 32 MB internal memory.
Image Sizes (pixels): 4320×3240, 4224×2376, 3264×2448, 2592×1944, 2048×1536, 1024×768, 640×480. Movies: 1280×720, 640×480, 320×240 at 30 fps.
LCD Screen: 7.6cm LCD (920,000 pixels).
File Formats: JPEG, WAV, Motion JPEG.
ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 100 to 3200 or 6400xxxx??? sport.
Interface: USB 2.0, HDMI, AV.
Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, DC input.
Dimensions: 103×57×27.3 WHDmm.
Weight: Approx. 183 g (inc battery and SD card).
Price: Get a price on the Nikon Coolpix S8000 at Amazon.
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Canon EOS T2i (550D) Review
Canon describes this DSLR as ‘entry level’. If this is the entry where’s the exit? Boy is it well equipped!
At last look, Canon’s Web site showed nine DSLR models in its range, ranging from entry level to pro: a camera for everyone.
Without even a glance at the 260 page manual, I jumped in at the deep end and shot the ISO tests you see in this posting. Within five minutes I was sailing quite happily through settings to adjust ISO figures, aperture and shutter speed and auto focus. It is an easy camera to settle with and shoot any subject. Easy that is, if you are already a photographer, able to stroll around a DSLR, kick the tyres, jab on the gas and twirl a few buttons. However, compact digicam owners w
ill find an acquaintance-ship with the 550D a fairly steep learning curve.
First thing that will throw the novice will be the mode dial (top surface, right edge). As the control heart of the camera it has settings for auto exposure, Program AE, shutter or aperture priority, manual plus some scene modes to ease the pain when shooting portraits, sports and macro subjects; the movie mode is also here. Get familiar with this dial and you’re half way there.
You change ISO settings with the help of a nearby button so you get to enjoy a range of sensitivity from 100 to 12,800. Controls on the rear give access to the main menu, Live View, white balance, single or continuous shooting (about 3.7 fps), AF zone, exposure compensation …in all, not a daunting array.
Canon EOS T2i (550D) Features
The CMOS sensor has an 18 megapixel capacity, is 22.3×14.9mm in area, so a Canon EF or EF-S lens focal length has to be multiplied by a factor of 1.6x to equate to a 35 SLR lens. The kit lens supplied with the review camera was a stabilised EF-S f3.5-5.6/18-135mm (29-216mm as 35 SLR), not really a wide angle at the shorter end. If you’re shooting much architecture, you will immediately need another, wider optic.
The maximum image size, saved as a JPEG or RAW image is 5184×3456 pixels: as a print it will size up to 43×29cm. That’s a lot of paper!
Movie makers will have a great time, as this baby can shoot the Full HD resolution of 1920×1080 pixels at 24/25/30 fps in MPEG-4 (AVCH.H.264) format. Final recorded file size is 330MB a minute’s running time. It’s best to use a Class 6 SD card or better. The camera will write to SD, SDHC or SDXC cards. I noticed there’s also a stereo microphone input.
The fixed LCD screen is 7.6cm in size with a high resolution of 1.04 million pixels, so gauging focus and other fine detail is a snap. Using it outside in full sunlight I also found the screen surprisingly clear and legible. Good one!
More:
The camera has Face Detection in Live View shooting; the built in flash has a 17mm lens angel of view; the camera has live Face Detection mode in Live View shooting; the camera holds peripheral illumination correction data for 25 lenses.
(insert Canon EOS 550D 3)
Canon EOS T2i/550D ISO Tests
ISO 100, f6.3 and 1/25 second.
ISO 800, f6.3 and 1/200 second.
ISO 1600, f6.3 and 1/800 second.
At ISO 3200, f6.3 and 1/800 second we see an impressive performance, in terms of definition and low noise levels.
At ISO 6400, f6.3 and 1/1600 second we now reach high noise levels and loss of definition.
At ISO 12,800 we now seem to have come too far: a level to use only if you have to!
Startup Time
Banging on the power button I could start shooting within a second, with succeeding shots coming in as fast as I could hit the shutter button.
Comment
Quality: I could not fault the camera. If you are a newcomer to DSLRs, this is where you can start!
Why you would buy the EOS 550D: attractive entry model at a reasonable price.
Why you wouldn’t: you’re not ready for a DSLR!
Canon EOS T2i (550D) Specifications
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Sigma 4.5mm Fisheye – What’s it like?
My friend Sybren A. Stüvel has purchased himself the Sigma 4.5mm f/2.8 EX DC HSM Circular Fisheye Lens and has kindly penned us his thoughts! You can see more of Sybren’s work here, or you can ask me about the time he put bread crumbs on his 10-22mm lens and let birds land on it and eat! Many thanks Sybren for taking the time out to write this and send it to us! –Sime
This lens is insane. It’s the world’s first circular fisheye lens for APS-C sized sensors, and the first fisheye lens that I own. Looking through the viewfinder for the first time was a strange sensation. The view was both very restricted due to the circularness of the lens, and very wide at the same time due to its 180 degree view all around. For those not intimate with fisheye lingo, “circular” means that it projects a circle. Outside of the circle everything’s black, inside the circle you have a 180 degree view from left to right, and top to bottom. So far the best us APS-C shooters could get was a “diagonal” fisheye, which means that you only get a 180 degree view from top left to bottom right. Horizontal and vertical would be less than 180 degrees.
From the first moment I saw the lens I knew that I just had to have it…. the only downside is the price tag. At €650, it’s not the cheapest of lenses, but it’s not that insane compared to other fisheyes. Sigma isn’t known for their good quality control. The shop I bought the lens at had three of them in their magazine, and the first two had uneven coating on the front element. The store personnel told me that it wouldn’t show on photos, but nevertheless they let me inspect all three lenses, and one of them had perfectly even coating. For that price, I wanted to make sure I got the best one.
I used the lens on my Canon EOS 7D, so besides having a high resolution of 18 megapixels I could also give it a go with video. And boy is it fun! I don’t have a professional setup where I can measure things like distortion or colour metrics. Instead I’ll tell you about practical results I got with this lens, and how they look with my two eyes. The photos you see here are also processed a little bit. Unprocessed photos from a digital camera always look a bit flat and soft, so I don’t think that presenting you with such photos would be a true demonstration of the capabilities of this lens.
The lens
The lens feels very sturdy. The build is solid, and with a metal mount it attaches firmly to the camera. At the rear there is a gelatine filter holder, and you even get a small metal plate you can use to cut the filters to size. I feel that this filter holder is of limited use, unless you want to insert ND filters. As the holder doesn’t rotate you can’t really use polarizers or graduate ND filters.
Going further towards the front of the lens, we meet the distance scale. It has three marks: 13.5cm, 20cm and infinity. Remember these distances are measured from the sensor; it can focus really, really close. The hypersonic motor (HSM/USM/whatever you want to call it) does its work quickly and silently. The focus ring is all the way at the front, and rotates smoothly. I would have liked it to be a bit further backward, though. My hands are quite big, and it’s just too easy to get some digits into the frame. Every bit of finger that sticks out from the focus ring will get photographed, so be careful with it.
The front element bulges out of the lens, to be able to capture the 180 degree view. The lens cap comes with a metal ring so that it can fit around it. So, remember to remove the ring as well as the lens cap, or you won’t get the full view.
The maximum aperture is f/2.8, which is a tad slow for a prime but quite good for a lens this wide. Combined with the short minimum focus distance you can even use it to blur the background. A little. The wide aperture is more useful for low-light shots; it also means that the viewfinder is bright, and that your autofocus has more light to work with.
The photos
The center sharpness of this lens is amazing. Even at very close range – which is where you want to be with a lens like this – it is very sharp. Towards the edges it has some serious chromatic aberration and purple fringing in high-contrast areas. As it’s my first and only fisheye lens I can’t tell you whether this is more or less than others. I just know that it’s very difficult to bend light and keep all the colours where they should be, and at the edges that light is bent a lot. The photo below has been corrected, the photo of the Volkswagen van up top hasn’t been.
The lens flare looks really nice, as it doesn’t stick to the circular projection – it breaks the frame, so to speak. Of course if you don’t like it you can always mask it during post processing. The flare shows that the aperture has six blades. I would have liked one more – I like odd flare streaks more than even ones. The aperture makes more noise that I would have expected; more than any other lens that I own. Now this isn’t a lens you can use stealthily anyway, as you’ll have to get right on top of the action or it’ll get really, really small, so a bit more aperture noise isn’t a practical issue.
The Panoramas
The wide view makes this lens very suitable for panorama shots. With only two photos you’ll be able to capture the entire view around you. However, you won’t be able to stitch them together very well; at the edges the quality goes down, and there wouldn’t be much of an overlap anyway. So rather than using the minimum, I used six shots: north, east, south and west, and straight up and straight down. And since I was shooting a library with mostly black architecture and large windows with a bright sun outside, I tripled every shot at -2 EV, 0 EV and +2 EV to merge them later as HDR photos. The 7D with its 7 photos per second just whirred through those three shots per direction.
Before I started stitching the photos I loaded the RAW files into Bibble Pro 5.1 and removed most of the chromatic aberration (C/A). With a few clicks the C/A was as good as gone, and since I had a nice overlap between different shots the remaining C/A woudn’t pose any problems. The 18 RAW files were exported to 16-bit TIFFs (100 MB a pop) and then loaded into Hugin.
In Hugin I manually placed control points, about 5-7 per overlap, optimized the photo and let it do the stitching and HDR processing. Hugin is very good at producing realistic HDRs. Many HDR programs first create a photo with a huge dynamic range and then try to compress this range using tone mapping. This can easily produce those super-saturated, artificial looking photos. Hugin blends between “real” pixels, ignoring ones that are under or over-exposed, blurry, etc. and keeping the good looking ones. This process gives a much more natural result.
After exporting the photo in “equirectangular” projection, I loaded into the Flash application by pan0.net so that you can look around in it. The zenith (look straight up) isn’t perfect yet, but I’m sure I can fix that if I spend enough time on it. Also know that I took those photos without any tripod or panorama head.
The videos
The lens is nearly perfect for video. The video below shows a view from my Renault Twingo. The music is by my band (I’m the drummer) The Soundabout, and the drive is from our practice studios to my home. Click on the cross-like thingy at the bottom of the video to view full screen.
A quick drive through Amsterdam from Sybren A. Stüvel on Vimeo.
So yes, it’s good but just not quite perfect for video. It’s more an issue with my 7D than the lens, to be honest. At those lovely modern and crispy 16:9 HD resolutions the camera crops a few pixels off the bottom of the circle – I would be much happier if we would have gotten a true 3:2 high-resolution video format, so that the entire frame could be captured. So Canon, if you’re reading this, pretty please with sugar on top, add a 1920×1280 or 1620×1080 video format!
As I said, I drum in a band. My girlfriend sometimes records our performances on video, and will of course start using the Sigma fisheye lens for this. Keep an eye on our website!
The verdict
This Sigma 4.5mm Fisheye is a unique lens. The results are very pleasing, and most importantly: it’s great fun. It’s really different from anything else in my photo bag. The price is a bit steep, but given the quality and the fact that they won’t sell that many of them, I think it’s justified. If you want to easily shoot 360 panoramas, record edgy videos or otherwise use an incredibly wide field of view, this lens is for you.
Get a price on the Sigmas 4.5mm Fisheye lens on Amazon (currently 33% off)
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Sigma 4.5mm Fisheye – What’s it like?
ImageRights International offers free service
This is a press release from the guys at ImageRights International, via our friends at Matternow… It’s fair to say that you guys don’t often like press release posts like this one, but I think this one may be something very useful to a lot of us!
**update** I can confirm this service works, as advertised, I did a sneaky test involving “borrowing” one of the co-founder’s photographs from his website and posting it on my blog, he had emailed me in no time to tell me I was “sprung” — I’ve signed up! –Sime
Press Release
ImageRights International offers free service to help professional photographers identify digital image theft
Powerful visual search technology detects photo copyright violations, stock photo piracy
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. June 29, 2010 ImageRights International, Inc., a company that helps professional photographers and illustrators discover the illegal use of their intellectual property on the Web, is offering a free version of its online image recognition and recovery service to further expand efforts against image piracy.
With this new offering, the company’s advanced visual search and crawler technology will continuously scan websites and blogs to protect up to 10,000 images for professional photographers and illustrators. The crawler indexes millions of new images every month and uses powerful image recognition technology to compare customers’ photos and illustrations against images found on the Web. It then detects where the customers’ images have been used, even if the stolen photos have been altered, cropped, rotated or color adjusted. The customer receives a full report, including a picture of the original image, its use online, and the URL and ownership information for the website where it was found.
“As an advocate for photographers and illustrators, our goal is to help artistic professionals monitor how their work is being used on the Internet, and to partner with them to recoup lost profits when it’s being used illegally,” said Maria Kessler, senior vice president of business development at ImageRights and former president of the Picture Archive Council of America (PACA). “Image piracy is rampant online and by making these services more accessible, we’re enabling creatives to have more control over how their images are used, while sending a clear message that we are patrolling for unauthorized uses.”
Customers who take advantage of ImageRights’ free service may also participate in the company’s new, optional Recovery Program, which will launch next month to help photographers and illustrators obtain compensation for the unauthorized use of their images.
ImageRights will continue to offer its Basic, Standard and Pro packages for a monthly fee of $9.95, $19.95 and $39.95, respectively. Customers who select a paid program and opt into the Recovery Program will share 35 percent of their recovered fees with ImageRights; those who select the free service will share 50 percent of their compensation. Users are welcome to opt out of the ImageRights’ Recovery Program to pursue compensation on their own or with the help of their own attorney.
For information about ImageRights or to create your free account and start uploading your images now, go to www.imagerights.com
About ImageRights International
ImageRights International protects professional photographers and illustrators’ intellectual property online by identifying illegal use of images and providing a support system to receive proper compensation. With its industrial strength crawler technology continuously scanning business sites, blogs, news/media sites and more, ImageRights works as an agent to support proper compensation for image use. Founded in 2008, ImageRights International is a global company headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. It is a proud member of the APA (www.apanational.com), CEPIC (www.cepic.org), and PACA (www.paca.org).
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
ImageRights International offers free service
Canon PowerShot SD3500IS (Canon IXUS 210) Review
They keep getting smaller and, in the process, more and more intriguing: Canon’s latest Canon PowerShot SD3500IS (Canon IXUS 210 in some parts of the world) takes the story even further and adopts a touch screen interface.
Optically, the camera is a winner: the lens is a stabilised 5x optical zoom, equivalent to a range of 24-120mm in 35 SLR-talk. Its maximum aperture of f2.8 is useful and will appeal to low light users. The only catch is that, once you zoom out to the 120mm tele setting the aperture drops to f5.9.
The Powershot/IXUS range has many fans: the cameras look stylish, are easy to operate and — all of a sudden — have mighty good specs.
Take the capacity of the CCD: all 14.1 million pixels of picture power, with a maximum image size of 4420×3240 pixels, or as a print — 37×27cm in size. The movie specs are reasonable: 1280×720 pixels at 30 fps and replayable through an HDMI output.
While there’s no optical viewfinder, the large 8.9cm LCD screen serves admirably as a sighting aid, occupying as it does almost the camera’s entire rear surface.
I must warn you that an IXUS camera, and specifically one of these new models, is not for the expert photographer, who will quickly lose his or her temper with the over-simplified controls …or what there are of them. I counted only four: power, zoom, replay, camera mode (still capture/auto/Program AE/movies). Most of the access is via the touch screen menus.
The Touch screen is essentially the operating heart of the camera: here you can choose from a number of scene modes (portrait, night shots, fish eye effect etc) that will help you deal with out-of-the-ordinary situations. Unfortunately these are not available in movie shooting: I loved the crazy ones like fisheye and the ‘creative lighting effect’.
Motor bike shot, taken straight.
Same shot, now with fisheye effect applied. To my eye, a very subtle effect.
Then I dived into the auto focus department and had a great time with the Touch screen’s ability to fix focus with a finger tap: it was incredibly easy and, even if you are used to letting an AF system do the focus for you, I implore you to try the Touch focus aid. It’s really great!
For the casual photographer who seeks a dash of style in their photography, the 22mm thin IXUS 210 Touch would be perfect. And it comes in silver, black and pink. If you want legibility in the controls I would suggest you head for a silver or pink camera.
ISO Tests
Above shot: taken at ISO 80, with f5.0 and 1/13 second setting.
Above: Still good quality at ISO 400, f5.0 and 1/60 second.
Above: Noise up and definition down at ISO 1600, f5.0 and 1/250 second.
Distortion
In terms of distortion, the wide end of the zoom shows a little barrel distortion, while the tele end displays a little pincushion distortion. Better than most, tho’.
Startup Time
The IXUS is ready to shot two seconds after power up and following shots can be taken about two seconds apart.
Comments
Quality: OK for a compact.
Why would buy the Canon PowerShot SD3500IS (Canon IXUS 210): you want a chic camera; large image size, mid range zoom; enjoy the Touch AF mode.
Why you wouldn’t: you want more direct control of the camera’s modes.
Canon PowerShot SD3500IS (Canon IXUS 210) Specs
- Image Sensor: 14.1 million effective pixels.
- Metering: Evaluative, centre-weighted, spot.
- Sensor Size: 11mm CCD.
- Lens: Canon f2.8-5.9/4.3-21.5mm (24-120mm as 35 SLR equivalent).
- Shutter Speed: 15 to 1/3000 second.
- Continuous Shooting: 0.7 images/second.
- Memory: SD, SDHC, SDXC, MMC, MMCplus cards.
- Image Sizes (pixels): 4420×3240, 4320×2432, 3456×2592, 2592×1944, 1600×1200, 640×480. Movies: 1280×720, 640×480, 320×240 at 30 fps.
- LCD Screen: 8.9cm LCD (461,000 pixels).
- File Formats: JPEG, Motion JPEG.
- ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 80 to 1600.
- Interface: USB 2.0, HDMI, AV.
- Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery, DC input.
- Dimensions: 99.3×55.7×22 WHDmm.
- Weight: Approx. 160 g (inc battery and card).
- Price: Get a price on the Canon PowerShot SD3500IS (Canon IXUS 210) at Amazon (currently 30% off).
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Canon PowerShot SD3500IS (Canon IXUS 210) Review
Win a ioSafe 1.5TB from dPS – Simple!
You might have heard some crazy talk about the ioSafe gear before now? “They ran over it with an earth mover” “He sprayed it with a fire hose” That sort of thing? Well it’s all true – see the video below!
So, we’re giving one away, a 1.5TB drive that is fire, water and baby proof!.. To be in with a chance, check out the details in this thread in our forum
The last time we ran a competition to win a 500GB ioSafe, this time the guys at ioSafe have told us to give away a 1.5TB ioSafe! That’s enough room for all of your photos AND you could take it swimming if you really really had to… Make no mistake, this drive is a true brute that will protect your data come rain (Waterproof to 10 feet of fresh water or salt water for 3 full days) hail (see rain) or shine (1550° F for ½ hour)
So, how do you win it?
You need to post a “self portrait” (That means YOU took the photo of YOU!) how you would react if you lost ALL your digital photos – lost, gone, that’s it, game over! in the forum thread here
The winner will be chosen by public vote (I’ve not worked out how yet!)
Entries 24th June to the 2nd of July – As a reply to this post, in this thread. Max 740PX wide. Max 5 Entries per person.
Voting 2nd to the 9th of July – Voting to be by you guys, details to follow!
ioSafe will be shipped to you where postal services and country laws allow.
Winner announced in this thread and on the blog on Saturday July 10th
Check out the awesome ioSafe 1.5TB here and follow them on Twitter and Facebook to show your love!
Get shooting!!
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.
Win a ioSafe 1.5TB from dPS – Simple!
Samsung ST1000 Review
Camera touch screens are all the go in 2010 as I seem to recall Samsung got in early — and elegantly — with their ST550 camera.
Now the company has also poured some pretty impressive comms tricks as well into the ST1000 with GPS and Geo-tagging capabilities, WiFi and Bluetooth.
First the camera…
Samsung ST1000 Features
The ST1000 captures 12.2 million effective pixel pictures via a Schneider-Kreuznach 5x optical zoom lens, viewed on a backlit 8.9cm LCD touch screen.
I have a small problem with some black cameras and this one is an example of my difficulty: it’s all over black, with just four buttons: power, shutter, zoom and replay. All OK and easily found but the descriptive text is etched in tiny grey letters, hard to see even in bright light.
The brilliant LCD touch screen to the rescue: a row of buttons appears on each side and bottom of the screen: AF and focus options, ISO, exposure compensation etc plus the main menu. Press one and you see the options for each. It takes you five minutes to get used to the approach but after that you’re happily at home. I liked it.
In replay you can run an auto slide show; at any point touch the screen and the image pauses. Wipe your fingers (iPod-like) and the image zooms up. Want to crop it? Tap your finger. Apply a special, effect? Same action.
In some ways the camera is a no-brainer: set to Smart Auto, point it to a landscape, portrait or 14 other scenes and it will adjust the settings to maximise exposure and focus. Its Smart Face recognition mode learns up to 20 of your friends and family and auto focuses on them first.
Using an optical image stabiliser you can enjoy steady shooting, but then Samsung goes further and claims it has dual stabilisation, which I can only presume is a digital helper by means of shutter speed juggling.
Another nice touch: the recycle bin stores deleted shots in a temp folder — just in case you discover you really needed that shot later!
And the show stopper: you can set up the ST1000 to fire a self-timed shot of yourself just by standing at a distance and waving your arm at the camera.
ISO Tests
(insert Samsung ST1000 ISO 80 f4.2 1/20 sec)
At ISO 80, f4.2 and 1/20 second the parameters are as they should be.
(insert Samsung ST1000 ISO 400 f4.2 1/90 sec)
At ISO 400, f4.2 and 1/90 second, still OK.
(insert Samsung ST1000 ISO 800 f4.2 1/750 sec)
Reaching ISO 800 f4.2 1/750 second, noise is now apparent and sharpness is down.
(insert Samsung ST1000 ISO 3200 f4.2 1/750 sec)
At ISO 3200 f4.2 and 1/750 second we are far beyond a useable shot — noise and other problems make it impossible.
Image Size
The ST1000 can capture a maximum still image size of 4000×3000 pixels, so you can make a 34×25cm print.
In movie mode expect to shoot a maximum 1280×720 pixels in MPEG4 at 15 or 30 fps.
On the Air
I first tried GPS: sat the camera down on a table outside and within 10 seconds it found the satellites; this was confirmed by a finder signal. I then took a shot which had the GPS data embedded in its metadata as well as the name of the location on screen.
Moving onto WiFI: in Samsung’s showroom in Western Sydney it took a little while for the camera to hook into the network, a move around the room avoided the black spots and once found, I was able to email my picture back to my own email address. This was interesting as the camera obviously must have some file size limitations for WiFI transmission: the ST1000 reduced the original file size of 5 MB and 4000×3000 pixels to 590KB and 1600×1200 pixels.
Using WiFi you can upload pictures to Facebook, Flickr, or Picasa very quickly or share it on YouTube.
Bluetooth: placing the camera about 30cm from a mobile phone it took about 10 seconds to establish a link. Sending the image file took about two seconds.
With TV sets that use the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) technology you can display your images on the home TV.
Having said all of this the system does not allow transmission of video or voice files. Sorry, news cameramen!
Comment
This is a significant camera system and will perfectly suit the global traveler, real estate agents and those who want to geo-tag their pictures and get them back to base quickly.
Picture quality is about average for a digicam. Don’t expect Vogue magazine cover quality.
Why you would buy it: compact size; enjoyable touch screen; GPS, Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity; decent stills capture along with watchable video.
Why you wouldn’t: you don’t like a complex digicam and you wouldn’t get any benefit from the ST1000’s wireless ability.
Some final cautions: the camera will not talk to an iPhone with Bluetooth.
I suggest, if you’re not 110 per cent up on the various wireless protocols and you crave an ST1000, buy it through a dealer who can hold your hand when setting up the links.
Samsung ST1000 Specifications
- Image Sensor: 12.2 million effective pixels.
- Lens: Schneider-Kreuznach f3.6-4.8/6.3-31.5mm (35-175mm as 35 SLR equivalent).
- Metering: Multiple and centre-weighted metering, spot.
- Effective Sensor Size: 7.8mm CCD.
- Exposure Mode: Program AE.
- Shutter Speed: 8 to 1/2000 second.
- Memory: micro SDHC card and 100MB internal memory.
- Image Sizes (pixels): 4000×3000, 3984×2656, 3840×2160, 3264×2448, 2560×1920, 2048×1536, 1920×1080, 1024×768.
- Viewfinder: Backlit 8.9cm touch screen LCD (1.152 million pixels).
- File Formats: JPEG, MPEG4, AAC.
- ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 80 to 3200.
- Flash Modes: Auto, auto/red eye reduction, forced on and off, slow sync.
- Interface: USB 2.0, WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth.
- Power: Rechargeable lithium ion battery.
- Dimensions: 9.8×60.8×18.9 WHDmm.
- Weight: 156 g (body only).
- Price: Get a price on the Samsung ST1000 at Amazon.
Post from: Digital Photography School - Photography Tips.