D300s and D3000 coming soon!

Several sites have "confirmed" the launching of two new Nikon bodies which would be coming to the store near you. These two bodies affirms Nikon direction and focus on the DX market. Here is a quick summary of the two bodies and what it would mean to you.

1. D3000 - The smaller brother to the current D5000 considered as the "real" entry level into DSLR. The main difference between the D5000 is no video mode. Apart from that we will know when the press release happens.

2. D300S - Dual card slots for CF and SD card. Also comes with HD movie capabilities. This body would potentially replace D300 and rival D90.

You are probably wondering what would this mean to you:

1. If you are new to DSLR, the D3000 is a good entry point or you could get a good bargain for second hand D90 when the D300s hits the shelve.

2. If you have outgrown your existing DSLR but do not want to take the jump to FX due to lens invesment the D300s seems like an interesting upgrade.

Nikon D5000 Service Advisory

For those who have not yet heard, Nikon has released a service advisory for D5000 models. According to Nikon, there is an electronic component related to power control in some Nikon D5000 digital SLR cameras which does not meet factory specifications and may, in certain circumstances, prevent the camera from turning on, thus preventing operation of the camera. Indications of such issues are:

1. The camera cannot be operated when the power switch is on, even with a fully-charged battery.
2. The camera cannot be operated with the EH-5a AC Adapter connected through the EP-5 Power Connector and the power switch on.

Details on which camera batch / serial numbers will only be made available on the 23rd of July 2009. Updates would be made available on this page.

RED Camera

Movie camera stills with specific reference to the RED camera, which creates 4K files were big enough to publish across a double page spread in a magazine. Photographer / Director Greg Williams have been using a movie camera to produce stills seen on noted fashion magazines. The still image quality is scary. Have a look at the hi-res images produced by RED camera, you can check out his site here.

Nikon BIG BIG DSLR Comparison Chart

© Photographer: Braendan | Agency: Dreamstime.com

Was looking at Nikon D5000 site here and noticed a link to a pdf file which I have uploaded here for safekeeping. Its a detailed line by line feature comparison of Nikon DSLR product line-up from the D3x to the D40.

P/S: You need to a really really huge monitor to view it hehe.

Nikon D5000 with AF-S DX NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED

Well its official. Nikon today announced Nikon D5000 with AF-S DX NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED. If you missed the announcement you can find it here. This baby is position between the existing D60 and D90. Key features in this body worth high lighting:

• No focusing motor built into the body.
• 2.7 Inch Tilt and Swivel LCD screen how cool it that =)
• Movie capture up to 1280 x 720 with mono sound unlike the D90
• 11 AF points with 3D tracking
• ISO range between 200 - 3200 (I am skeptical about it matching D90 low light performance)
• 4 frames per second

Wacom Intuos 4: Coming to Malaysia in May

Wacom Intuos 4 was recently announced on the 26th of March 2009. If you missed the announcement you can check it out here. I gave a call to Wacom toll free line enquiring on when it will be here in Malaysia and they told me May but they could not give me an exact date. The only words I am hearing from him is May or Middle of this year.

So if you are planning to get Intuos 3 now you may want to hold off your purchase since it’s just around the corner. Who knows you may be able to get Intuos 3 cheaper then or Intuos 4 at introductory prices. So what is the main difference between the current and the new:

The pen now comes with a pressure sensitive tip which provides you more control and precision. The Intuos 3 pen does not have this. I don’t think the new pressure sensitive pen will work with the older Intuos 3. Pressure sensitivity have also been doubled from 1024 on Intuos3 to 2048 on the Intuos4 thanks to this pen.

Speed ring feature which enables you to control up to four different functions such as zooming, scrolling, brush size, canvas rotation etc.

Left handed? No worries. The intuos 4 allows you to maximize productivity of both hands. By just rotating the table 180 degrees and a single control panel setting change you can adjust the tablet from a right handed configuration to a left handed configuration. How cool is that.

Mouse included. Well it comes with a mouse. Looks cool too.

Capture NX 2 (Ver. 2.2) update is now available

Existing Capture NX Versions 2.0 and 2.1.1 users will be entitled to this free update. In addition to providing the features of earlier versions, this version includes more powerful and refined tools to greatly improve image-processing efficiency. Newly added functions include improved speed in batch processing, Intel-approved logo permitted for Core 2 Duo/Core 2 Quad support, NRW (COOLPIX P6000’s RAW data) support, vignette control function utilizing lens information, and axial color aberration correction.

If you are new to post processing and felt that post processing tools like Photoshop makes your knees weak then you should give this a try. The learning curve is easy and the U-point technology is legendary.

Press Release Here. Download Link for Windows Here and Download Link for Mac here.

Imitation or Fake Nikon Batteries

There seems to be a spike of Fake or Imitation Nikon batteries flooding the market. This spike got me worried as well so I decided to do some research on the net and made comparisons with the Nikon batteries I have. From what I know the existence of imitation products has been verified by Nikon for the following Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e, EN-EL8, EN-EL10,EN-EL5,EN-EL1, EN-EL2 and EN-EL3.

Since I have 2 units of the EN-EL3e I shall show the analysis base on that. From my understanding an original EN-EL3e battery must have all of the below criteria (Both samples below should be original batteries):

• Authentic Nikon battery has a bolder font.

• Original seal MUST have 4 notches and gold in color.

• ALL EN-EL3e Batteries are made in Japan and NOT China. (I could be wrong on this)

For more information on the rest of the affected batteries you can check out this site.

Scarlet by Red are you ready for it?

On November 13th, 2008, RED Digital Cinema shocked the world with a new concept camera system. Although sharing the name with the camera introduced at NAB in April '08, Scarlet is part of perhaps the most industrious undertaking in the history of photography and cinematography. Based on a modular system and defined by the moniker DSMC (Digital Still & Motion Camera), Scarlet blurs the line between still and motion capture.

There will be 4 models of Scarlet, one a 2/3" 3K fixed lens 8X camera, the other three being interchangeable lens bodies with 2/3" 3K, S35 5K and FF35 6K sensors. The modular concept of Scarlet allows the user to add handles, battery modules, expansion I/O modules, finders, media and support systems to fit the user's needs, while allowing full upgrade ability for future technologies. 5 months later after the above announcement we got this .......

Above and below are the latest image circulating the net. The prototype of scarlet (looks like a baby terminator no?) and the image which comes with it below.

Shot on Scarlet 2/3" proto with the new RED PRO 85mm PL... shot at 3k@24fps, T5.6

Shot on Scarlet 2/3" proto with proto 25mm mini-RED Prime... shot at 3k @24fps 1/48th

Red Website:

1. Product Link here
2. FAQ on what 3k, 4k, 5k, 6k is all about here
   

Game On: The battle for Crop Sensor (APS-C) market space

Canon EOS 500D

Well looks like the current economic condition is driving both Camera and lens manufacturer to focus on releasing products for the mass market. If Nikon DSLR market statistics are right then Canon should not be far off. This is further reinforce by the press releases from Canon and Tamron. Yesterday and today we saw the release of:

• The EOS 500D from Canon and an entry level 270EX flashgun to go with it.

• Tamron releasing SP AF60mm F/2.0 Di II LD (IF) MACRO lens for APS-C (Crop sensor)

Given this news, there is even more buzz that Nikon would be announcing something soon enough. If last was Full Frame Sensor DSLR year this year will be the year for Crop Sensors DSLR.

Tamron SP AF60mm F/2.0 Di II LD (IF) MACRO

Canon 270EX Speedlite

Press Release here: Canon & Tamron

Viveza for Lightroom 2

Update: This is depressing it only supports TIFF and JPEG. Looks like I have to wait for future releases since I shoot RAW and conversion to TIFF or JPEG is after all adjustments have been done :(

This just came in the news. Viveza is now available for Lightroom 2. This will bring a lot of joy to existing Lightroom 2 users as this plugin is going to speed up your workflow significantly. One of the most powerful feature in Viveza is the U-point which gives user the ability to drop control points on a image to adjust contrast, brightness, saturation etc on specific points as oppose to global adjustments. Users of Capture NX will be familiar with this tool.

Base on the email receive:

Viveza is just the start: Nik Software also announces that all of its remaining photographic products are being updated to support Lightroom and finally the Complete Collection Lightroom edition which is going to be released in a couple of month. Current owners of the Photoshop version will receive updates free of charge.

What's the buzz about Micro Four Thirds System

You may be noticing a lot of posting and buzz on the Internet about the Micro Four Thirds System. There are currently only two systems in production both of which is from Panasonic. Without boring you to death here are some pointers to get your interest going on Panasonic Micro Four Thirds System and why its worth considering. In no particular order:

1. G1 and now the GH1 in 3 months! The frequency in release could mean that they are serious about it. They even added HD recording to it with continuous auto focus.

2. The GH1 comes with a newly designed 14Mp sensor with four different aspect ratios support (4:3, 3:2, 16:9 and 1:1) with a similar pixel count and angle of view. The aspect ratio support is very important especially when it comes to prints.

3. Improved signal to noise ratio because of the new circuit structure, which should translate to better noise levels at even high ISO.

4. Access to any four third system lenses via an adapter e.g. Olympus lenses can use on this body. Not forgetting future released

5. The Panasonic / Leica Relationship. Leica makes one of the best lenses in the industry and also expensive. Panasonic cameras have been using Leica lenses for a long time. Via an adapter you can use Leica lenses on your Panasonic Micro Four Thirds body.

6. The size. Have you seen it as compared to the Leica? When use with micro four third lenses e.g. the newly introduced 7-14mm f/4 it makes it the ideal photojournalist / street shooter tool. G1 size comparison samples here. Note that the GH1 should be similar in size.

7. Price. The MSRP price for G1 is around $500 - $800. We can expect the GH1 to be position 30% - 50% higher than the G1 which still makes it affordable to many.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1

Another Micro Four Thirds was announce by Panasonic recently. The DMC-GH1 feature HD recording and better noise levels at even high ISO (this will be nice). Apparently the signal to noise ratio was improved because of the new circuit structure. You can check out the press release here.


Apart from the new body Panasonic also announced two new lenses; the one which caught my attention was the 7-14mm f/4 which would make it a 14-24mm f/4 given the 2x sensor magnification ratio. I cant wait for the review on this camera.

Nikon D Town

Nikon DTOWN is a weekly show brought to you by Scott Kelby and Matt Kloskowski with KelbyTraining.com. This site is a venue where Scott and Matt share their photography knowledge along with the coolest tips and tricks out there for Nikon’s digital SLR cameras.

Olympus E-620 Worlds Smallest & Lightest DSLR

No news on Olympus Micro 4/3rd Camera Release but this is interesting. Olympus introduced the E-620, which is positioned as the worlds smallest and lightest DSLR. Apart from its size and weight some notable features worth mentioning would be the upgraded AF system and the swivel LCD. You can find more information from Olympus website here.

Ricoh CX1 feautres in camera HDR

I was shocked when I read this especially when such a feature is available on a compact camera. Ricoh recently unveiled CX1 Compact Camera featuring a CMOS sensor with a twist. The CX1 comes with Dynamic Range Double Shot Mode which shoots two still images of different exposures and combines the properly exposed portions of each image. The outcome should be similar to HDR images. Apart from that this baby is capable of shooting at ultra high spees of 120 frames / sec.

Press Release Here.

Specifications Here.

Nikon Prices up 10% - 15%

Well looks like its true, Nikon price increase on a global scale has now reached Malaysia. Prices for Nikon related items have been increase between 10% - 15% to mitigate the appreciation of the Yen. *Sigh* and we were hoping price would come down.

More DX lenses in 2009?

Check this article, its an interview with Nikon. Some statement taken from this article I find very interesting.

1. "The main target is D40/D60/D90 owners. They make up 80% of our DSLR sales and there wasn't really an inexpensive prime lens for them. So far, the lens offering for that market has included some really good zooms, but this offers them something they were missing."

2. "DX is not over," Drean says: "we plan to increase the offering. The prime lenses were definitely something that was missing."

3. "If even 5% of the D40, D50, D60, D80, D90 owners buy this lens, that's a huge number," and, he adds: "this is not the last lens announcement we'll be making this year."

Since we are humans and some of you like me are gear heads, so I am going to speculate (please take it with a grain of salt):

1. No more FX lens in 2009 - Given the current economic condition it does not make business sense for Nikon to invest in releasing or renewing new FX lens as they will release lens for the masses imagine 5% of 80% buying the new lens as oppose to 5% of the 20% FX market.

2. New DX Body - A new DX body possibly called D400 to replace the D300 looks promising.

3. New DX Zoom - Possibly fix aperture DX zoom lenses.

Well only time will tell.

AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G

Well looks like Nikon made it official today but too bad its only on DX. You can obtain the specs from Nikon website. So how will this impact us?

Point 1 - DX is here to stay since the D400 is rumored to be announced during Photokina 2009. What happens when they reach D600? maybe it will end there? who knows.

Point 2 - The DX crop factor would make this lens a 50mm lens and it should also be cheaper than the current 35mm f/2 lens since it should be cheaper to make DX lenses than FX ones.

Point 3 - Given the current market conditions Nikon may place more emphasis on DX segment because of costs and a larger target audience. This could also mean less focus on renewing FX primes.

D3X in comparison with Medium Format

DxOMark has recently compiled data on some of the industry leading medium format cameras. With this data in place we can make comparison against the D3X to see how it faired. Have a look at the comparison below:

Click on image for link

Its interesting to see those technical results don't you think so? How does it actually relate to the real world would be another thing all together.