Steve McCurry - My Heroes (cont.)

I've been a big fan of Steve McCurry ever since his coverage of the Russian invasion of Afghanistan, where he disguised himself in native dress and transported his film by sewing it into the lining of his clothes. For the Afghan coverage he was awarded the Robert Capa Gold Medal for Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad. The images in the YouTube video are part of a one man show that traveled extensively a few years ago. If you have the chance to see the prints in person do so.

Enjoy the videos. To learn more about this gifted photographer click here.

Epson Kicks It Up A Notch!

Epson announces a new ink jet printer to add to their already impressive large format group. Information is currently coming from Germany and Australia but make no mistake this new 64" behemoth will be available in the US. Check with your Epson authorized Pro Graphic Dealer to pre-order yours. The Stylus Pro 11880 will be available in October with a recommended price of: $22995.00

Key Specs Include:

Delivers a colour gamut equivalent to conventional 12 colour ink sets
64”
Micro Piezo TFP Print Head Technology
UltraChrome K3 Ink with Vivid Magenta Ink
Advanced Image Processing Technology
9 x loaded individual 700ml ink cartridges
Advanced Image Processing Technology
A.I.D Technology
Active Matte and Photo Black Inks
Barcode Media Tracking System
360 nozzles per colour (Stylus Pro 800 series = 180per colour)
700ml ink cartridge capacity
2880 x 1440dpi maximum print resolution
Automatic Take-Up Reel Standard
Accepts up to 1.5mm thick media
Borderless – 8”, 10”, 300mm, 13”, 16”, B2, A1, 24”, B1, 36”, 44”, 1200mm, 50, 54
Large 2.5” Backlight LCD Control Panel
Pressurised Ink Cartridge Technology
Standard USB2.0 and Gigabit Ethernet

Triops - Too Cool For School!

Triops is a robust digital camera which allows the user to experience new perspectives and perceptions and takes the potential of digital photography to a new level. The camera is equipped with three protected fisheye lenses and allows for an active, spontaneous and playful photography experience. Triops can take images while being thrown, suspended or just being placed in an unusual location. It captures the moment by responding to sound or movement, or by reacting to the manually operated release. Sequentially taken photographs are possible as well as 360 degree panorama images. All working parts are integrated in the robust casing and can be operated easily and intuitively. Pictures can be wirelessly transmitted to a separate display unit for display. This unit functions as a processing and storage device and the camera‘s charging station. To learn more click here.

Eight Special People Remembered - A Repost

It's hard to believe that 911 was six years ago. I want to share with you the story of eight of the 3000 people who perished that Tuesday; eight exceptional people, Joe Ferguson, (photo), Ann Judge (photo), James Debeuneure, Rodney Dickens, Sarah Clark, Asia Cottom, Hilda Taylor and Bernard Brown. This is their 911 story.

"Two staff members of the National Geographic Society, along with three Washington, D.C., teachers and three students they were traveling with, were among the victims of the terrorist attacks in the United States on Tuesday, officials of the Society announced on Wednesday.

Ann Judge, director of the Society's travel office, and Joe Ferguson, director of the Geography Education Outreach Program, were accompanying the three teacher-student pairs on an educational trip to California.

They were all killed along with the other passengers of American Airlines Flight 77 after it was hijacked and crashed into the Pentagon at about 9:45 Tuesday morning.

Teacher James Debeuneure and student Rodney Dickens were representing Ketcham Elementary School; teacher Sarah Clark and student Asia Cottom were from Backus Middle School; and teacher Hilda Taylor and student Bernard Brown were from Leckie Elementary School. All the students were 11-year-old sixth graders.

They had been selected to participate in a program at the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary near Santa Barbara, California, as part of a Society-funded marine research project known as Sustainable Seas Expeditions."

"Through our educational outreach program, Ann and Joe were going to make geography and the environment come alive for these committed, talented teachers and their star students by putting them into the field with scientists and researchers," said John Fahey Jr., the Society's president and CEO.

"The D.C. School District has lost six extraordinary people, and we at the Society have lost two treasured colleagues," he added.

Today our thoughts and prayers are with all the victim's families, and this commitment we make to them, we will never forget.

Kodak Kicks It Up A Notch!

Eastman Kodak Company is introducing an advancement in image sensor technology that will help to make dark, blurry digital photos a thing of the past.

Kodak’s new sensor technology provides a 2x to 4x increase in sensitivity to light (from one to two photographic stops) compared to current sensor designs. Image sensors act as the “eye” of a digital camera by converting light into electric charge to begin the capture process.

Today, the design of almost all color image sensors is based on the “Bayer Pattern,” an arrangement of red, green, and blue pixels that was first developed by Kodak scientist Dr. Bryce Bayer in 1976.

Kodak’s new proprietary technology adds panchromatic, or “clear” pixels to the red, green, and blue elements that form the image sensor array. Since these pixels are sensitive to all wavelengths of visible light, they collect a significantly higher proportion of the light striking the sensor. By matching these pixel arrangements with advanced software algorithms from Kodak that are optimized for these new patterns, users can realize an increase in photographic speed, directly improving performance when taking pictures under low light. Kodak’s new technology also enables faster shutter speeds (to reduce motion blur when imaging moving subjects), as well as the design of smaller pixels (leading to higher resolutions in a given optical format) while retaining performance.

To learn more click here.