Photography Blog Talk » News

Nikon Digital SLR camera D4

Cheng — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 05:50:32 +0000

Nikon D4

Nikon announce the release of the Nikon D4, a Nikon FX-format camera.

The primary new features of the D4 are summarised as below :

New Nikon FX-format CMOS image sensor
Support for an incredibly wide range of sensitivities, from ISO 50 to ISO 204800This is a 16Mp camera with ISO range from ISO 100 to ISO 12800. It is possible to decrease the ISO 50 or increase it to 204800. Not sure how is it done and what impact does it has on the image quality.
New EXPEED 3 image-processing engine with superior, high-speed processing capabilitiesThe new EXPEED 3 image-processing engine built into the D4 offers better image quality and even faster processing speeds for vivid yet faithful color reproduction, a broader dynamic range, and rich expression of tones.
91K-pixel RGB sensor for the more accurate Advanced Scene Recognition SystemThe D4 is equipped with the Advanced Scene Recognition System, which supports face recognition* when images are framed using the optical viewfinder. The new 91K-pixel (approximately 91,000 pixels) RGB sensor recognizes human faces for more frequent focus acquisition on human faces when Auto-area AF AF-area mode is used.
The 51 focus point AF system built into the D4 utilizes the new Advanced Multi-CAM 3500FX autofocus sensor module for faster, more accurate autofocusing that performs extremely well under dim lighting.
Multi-area Mode Full HD D-movie with three image area optionsA dedicated movie-record button has been positioned near the shutter-release button for smooth starting and stopping of movie recording with a feel similar to that of still-image shooting. Full-HD movie recording at a frame size of 1920 x 1080 and frame rate of 30 fps is supported, and the H.264/MPEG-4 AVC video compression method has been adopted.
·Other D4 functions and features

Extremely durable shutter that has passed testing for 400,000 cycles
Magnesium alloy adopted for the very strong, durably body that is very resistant to dust and water
Effective sealing using O rings and packing make the camera more resistant to dust and water
Silent shutter-release mode for live view photography that almost completely eliminates the sounds of the mirror and shutter operation
A time-lapse photography feature, with which the camera automatically takes photos at selected intervals to record a time-lapse movie, which can be played back at 24–36,000x normal playback speed
Operation optimized for both horizontal (landscape) and vertical (portrait) shooting
Button backlights (illuminators) for increased visibility when working in dimly lit or dark situations
High-performance viewfinder, utilizing a glass pentaprism, with a frame coverage of approximately 100% (FX format) and magnification of approximately 0.7x
Four image area options for still shooting—FX (36 x 24), 5:4 (30 x 24), 1.2x (30 x 20), DX (24 x 16)—with viewfinder indicator that identifies the current image area
A 3.2-inch, approximately 921k-dot LCD monitor with reinforced glass and wide viewing angle; integration of the glass and panel reduce internal reflections
A virtual horizon that shows the degree to which the camera is tilted sideways (roll), forward or backward (pitch) with display in the monitor and viewfinder
White balance that can be adjusted in units of 10 K; white balance can be specified separately for shooting (white balance applied to images) and monitor display with still-image shooting in live view mode

When will the Nikon D4 be available in Singapore and what will be the street price? Let me know if you have the answer.

Kindle Touch and Kindle Fire

Cheng — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 15:43:00 +0000

Amazon has lighted up the fire on the tablets war and they are going all out to win it.

They introduced 2 Kindles Touch and the color Kindle Fire. The HP Touchpad fire sales price of US$99 has set a new beachmark for tablet prices. So the Kindle Touch will be sold at US$99 while the Kindle Touch 3G will be at US$149 and the Kindle Fire is at USD$199.

The Kindle Fire looks the most interesting.

Here are the main features :

Movies, apps, games, music, reading and more, plus Amazon’s revolutionary, cloud-accelerated web browser
18 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, and books
Amazon Appstore – thousands of popular apps and games
Ultra-fast web browsing – Amazon Silk
Free cloud storage for all your Amazon content
Vibrant color touchscreen with extra-wide viewing angle
Fast, powerful dual-core processor
Amazon Prime members enjoy unlimited, instant streaming of over 10,000 popular movies and TV shows

I like the 7″ size which i think is the optimal size for a tablet. I will be looking forward to buy one. Again as this is only to be sold in US and not tin Singapore, we have to be creative on how to ship it in as what we have done for the original Kindle.

Happy Reading!

Review : Amazon Kindle 2

News : THE ONE COMPETITION

Cheng — Mon, 10 May 2010 15:05:52 +0000

THE ONE COMPETITION

The ONE competition, held in conjunction with the ONE Photography Convention, a festival celebrating the best in medium and large format photography in October, kicks off on April 1, 2010.

Calling for entries worldwide from the best emerging talents, the theme for the competition is ONE – interpret it however you want to. The grand prize is a medium format digital back and camera system worth SGD $20,000, as well as opportunities to be noticed by top industry professionals.

ONE stands for Our Need To Express.

The ONE competition, held in conjunction with the ONE PhotographyConvention, a festival celebrating the best in medium and large formatphotography in October, kicks off on April 1, 2010.Calling for entries worldwide from the best emerging talents, the theme for thecompetition is ONE – interpret it however you want to. The grand prize is amedium format digital back and camera system worth SGD $20,000, as well asopportunities to be noticed by top industry professionals.ONE stands for Our Need To Express.

Submissions can be made online at the One Photography Convention website

www.01photoconvention.com

Submitted images will be featured in an online gallery. Updates of the finalists? progress and experiences from the mentorship program can be viewed online alongside with their profiles. The announcement of the winners for the competition will be held during the Grand Opening of the ONE Photography Convention.

Deadline for open call submission is 31 July 2010.

5th Ngee Ann Photography Exhibition 2010

Cheng — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 03:48:12 +0000

NAPE

The 5^thNgee Ann Photography Exhibition 2010 will be here this week with the official opening happening on 8 April 2010 at 7pm.

Venue:
Ngee Ann Exhibition Hall
Teochew Building
97 Tank Road

Exhibition Date:
9th April 2010 – 19th April 2010

Personal comments:

Well this exhibition has been held for the past 4 yrs. Except for last year where it was held as an competition with selected themes, it has always been an open theme exhibition. I suppose this is to encourage mass participation. However it lacks a focus for visitors . You could be viewing photographs of different genres placed altogether. You could jump from one landscape photos to a portrait photo suddenly.

Nevertheless it is still a good exhibition to visit and learn from other photographers.

Corel PaintShop Photo Pro X3 and VideoStudio Pro X3

Cheng — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:40:17 +0000

VideoStudio Pro X3 and PaintShop Photo Pro X3.

Corel has recently announced 2 new products PaintShop Photo Pro X3 and VideoStudio Pro X3. I also been looking for “lighter” photo editing software and will check out both products soon once I get whole of them.

They have setup a minisite here with some interesting videos. The light painting one is pretty cool. I teach light painting and writing in my Foundation Photography Course but this vido shows how I can create an animated video of the light painting photos. Hope to create one of such video soon

Harper’s BAZAAR & ION Photography Awards

Cheng — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 14:30:36 +0000

Love photography, fashion and shopping ? Then this competition might interest you?

Harper’s BAZAAR will be hosting their first photography awards. Themed along fashion, art or architecture, this project creates an opportunity for new and emerging photographers to showcase their works on an international platform.

You may submit 3-5 digital images and you must shoot on location at ION Orchard (inside or outside). Closing date is 5 April 2010. So start working on your images.

For more information, click on the banner below

Harper's BAZAAR & Ion Photo Award

Olympus PEN EP1

Cheng — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 06:01:16 +0000

I owned a few vintage Olympus rangefinder like the 35 EC and was pleasantly surprised when I read that Olympus is launching a rangefinder style digital camera – the Olympus PEN EP1.

: Olympus PEN EP1

What makes the EP1 different from the other digital cameras is that is interchangeable. From the photos from the Internet, it seems to have a stylish metal finish just like the good old film rangefinders. It weighs only about 335 grams and has a 12 MB pixels sensor.

Hey but it doesn’t come with a optical viewfinder, you will have to shoot through the LCD. Fortunately, you can add on an electronic viewfinder but will means you have to pay for it. The 17mm pancake looks cool with the whole setup but it is only 34mm in focal length as there is a 2x magnification factor.

Estimated street price is S$1488 including the body and 17mm lens and $1298 for the body and 14-42mm lens. But if I intend to get this cam for its vintage feel,I would definitely get it with the 17mm pancake lens.

Great Singapore Sale 2009

Cheng — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 07:48:21 +0000

I blogged about the Great Singapore Sale (GSS) last year focusing on D300 prices. Now the GSS is back! How much has the price change? Well for the D300 body , the price is now S$2,688 compared to last year S$2,999 but last year offer came with a 50mm f1.8 lens. So the price for D300 really have not drop a lot.

Great Singapore Sale 2009

So what about the D700 body ? It is S$3,888 with a 8GB Compact Flash (CF) card and a Nikon branded Lowepro bag. It is really a good offer? You might want to check out the shops listed here to see if they could give you a better offer.

Ngee Ann Photography Competition & Exhibition 2009

Cheng — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 08:58:26 +0000

Well the annual Ngee Ann Photography Exhibition has come back with a twist. It is now a photography competition cum exhibition. From 2005-2008, it was Photography Exhibition where anyone who took the effort to send in entries will get at least one photo exhibited.

This year they have make it into a competition where one has to submit a set of 4 prints consisting of

Participants can submit up to maximum of two (2) sets consisting of 4 pictures per set. The rules is not very clear on this but I believe the 4 pictures has to be made of up any 4 of the following themes:

a) Architecture
b) Nature/Underwater
c) Marco and Close-up
d) People
e) Sports
f) Night Scenes

You also need to mount each of them (8R or S8R size) on a mounting board with a 2.5cm (1in) border. Mounting boards can be bought from ArtFriend or Popular bookstore.

To know more, read the entry form which can be downloaded from here.

Foundation Photography Course

Cheng — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 08:54:29 +0000

Are you still lost after reading all my tips and techniques guides?

If you have spent time and money on a DSLR, why not spend abit more on a photography course? I am happy to be your mentor by guiding you. Join my Foundation Photography Course and start to create amazing photos.

What do you get? 5 lessons including 2 field trips.

Lesson 1 The basic of photography

Knowing your camera equipment
Understanding Aperture, Shutter Speed and ISO
Understanding Focal length
Understanding Composition Rules
Homework Assignment

Lesson 2 Photography Techniques

Review of Homework assignment
Techniques in daylight photography
Techniques in low light photography
Techniques in travel photography

Lesson 3 Morning Field Trip

To practise some of the techniques learnt on lesson 2 at one of the parks in Singapore

Lesson 4 Review and Image Editing

Review photos taken in lesson 3
Basic Image management and editing demostration

Lesson 5 Night Field Trip
To practise some of the low light techniques learnt

What will it cost you : S$200 and your time
Pls send any inquiries to contact@photoblogtalk.com

Take Amazing Portraits

Handle Low Light Photography with ease!