Sunday, December 28, 2008
Looking For An After Christmas Deal On A Pocket Camera?
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Nikon Kicks It Up With The D3X And The Beat Goes On!
- 24.5 megapixels!
- 14 bit full rez files captured at up to 5 frames per second!
- Dual CF card slots!
- Virtually noiseless capture at 1600 ISO!
For more in depth info check out Imaginginfo.com by clicking here.
Texas Goes After 2 Online Camera Retailers!
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has charged two well known online camera retailers in an alleged "Bait & Switch" scheme. Broadway Photo and Starlight Camera & Video of Brooklyn, NY could face civil penalties of up to 20,000 per occurrence. To learn more click here.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Toshiba Kicks It Up A Notch!
All of the new SDHC memory cards comply with the SD memory standard Ver. 2.00, and the two new SDHC cards announced today support class 6 ultra fast read/write speed --- a maximum write speed of 20MB per second, delivering high performance for continuous shooting of still images and recording video images. The new microSDHC can be used with an adapter that allows it to be used in SDHC slots.
No word yet on pricing. For more info click here.
Saturday, November 01, 2008
Leica Kicks It Up A Couple of Notches!
The S2's sensor is actually very large. Larger, in fact, than a standard 35mm frame, at 30 x 45 mm. That's 56% bigger. The S2 is essentially a medium format camera shoe-horned into a 35mm DSLR-sized body, and Leica is promoting this idea in its press releases.
The body contains a standard focal plane shutter, but the new lenses also have leaf shutters. allowing for very high flash sync speeds.
The CCD sensor is made by Kodak and the Maestro processing chip produces a very low amount of noise at very high ISOs. The body is acctually smaller than, a Nikon D3.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Sony Kicks It Up A Notch!
The Sony Alpha DSLR-A900 will be available in November and should cost just under $3000. For more info click here.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Eight Exceptional People Remembered - A Repost
"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.
Friday, August 01, 2008
Adobe Releases Lightroom 2.0
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 is available now through the Adobe Store at www.adobe.com/store in English, French and German with the Japanese language version planned to be released at a future date. The estimated street price is USD$299 for new users with an upgrade price of USD$99 for registered users of qualifying Lightroom customers.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
An Interview With PhotographerJay Sauceda
Monday, July 14, 2008
Nik Silver Efex Pro Kicks It Up A Notch!
"Nik Software today announced the new Silver Efex Pro photographic plug-in for use with Adobe Photoshop and Apple Aperture, the most advanced, complete, and straightforward black-and-white solution. Silver Efex Pro uses a range of advanced imaging algorithms that protect against unwanted artifacts, a comprehensive collection of 18 emulated black-and-white film types, and a state-of-the-art grain engine that truly mimics the silver halide process and creates the highest quality black-and-white images possible from scanned or digital color photographs.
With Nik Software's patented U Point technology, Silver Efex Pro provides easy-to-use tools for direct on-image control of tonality, contrast, and structure. Precisely controlling specific areas of a photo can be achieved easily using just a few mouse clicks without the need to create complicated selections and layer masks. Silver Efex Pro combined with U Point technology offers users unprecedented control over selective tonal and contrast adjustment in black-and-white images.
"For many photographers, black-and-white is their preferred outlet for creative expression. Previously available tools often required acceptance of a one-size-fits-all solution or complex conversion techniques and endless fine tuning," said Michael J. Slater president and CEO of Nik Software. "Silver Efex Pro is truly a comprehensive and easy to use software product that is specifically designed to address the challenges that photographers face when converting images to black-and-white."
Working seamlessly within Photoshop and Aperture, Silver Efex Pro begins by presenting photographers with a basic "neutral" conversion of their color image to black-and-white. One-click adjustments can be made from a choice of over 20 preset styles from nostalgic processes like the ambrotype and tintype to classic artistic renderings, trendy high contrast, soft focus or grainy images that emulate the most popular film types and shooting styles.
This initial set of creative options can be used as is or as a starting point for photographers who wish to create and even share their own customized black-and-white styles. In addition, color filters, variable toning controls (includes sepia, selenium, split-toning and user-defined colors for maximum flexibility), vignettes, and more only add to the number of advanced stylistic effects photographers will enjoy with Silver Efex Pro. Additional sliders for global brightness, contrast, and structure, as well as Smart Filter compatibility within Photoshop and multi-image support in Aperture provide the ultimate level of control. With U Point powered Control Points photographers have the flexibility to specifically fine tune tonality, contrast, and structure and create stunning black-and-white images.
Pricing and Availability, & Promotion with Gekko-brand Fine Art Papers--Silver Efex Pro is available now for electronic delivery directly from Nik Software. Boxed versions will be available from Nik Software and through specialty camera retailers in August 2008. A complete list of resellers may be found at http://www.niksoftware.com/resellers.
Through September 15th, 2008, every copy of Silver Efex Pro sold in North America will include a free sample pack of the Gekko Fine Art Collection of papers from Pictorico. Designed especially for black-and-white prints and for use with inkjet printers, the sample pack has a retail value of $15.99 and includes two sheets each of 4 paper types: Gekko Green (Glossy) winner of the 2008 DIMA Award for best black-and-white print from a color inkjet printer; Gekko Blue (Luster); Gekko Red (Cotton); and Gekko Black (Matte)."
The suggested retail price of Silver Efex Pro is $199.95. Silver Efex Pro installs as a plug-in for either Adobe Photoshop or Apple Aperture 2.1 and is available for Windows and Macintosh operating systems, including Vista and Leopard. For more information about Silver Efex Pro, including video tutorials showing the software running within Photoshop and Aperture and a free 15-day fully functional trial version, visit http://www.niksoftware.com/silverefexpro./
Saturday, July 05, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Another Great Week At West Coast School!
Special thanks go out to the WCS Sponsors! Without their generous support the school would not be possible. Thank you Bay Photo Lab, (for sponsoring my class and others), along with FujiFilm, H&H Color Lab, MAC Group, Calumet and Nik Software.
Others deserving special thanks include the incredibly hard working staff and the students who give up a week of their life not to mention some cash in order to improve themselves and our profession.
It's never too early to sign up and next years instructor list is loaded with heavy hitters including Tim Meyer, Suzette Allen & Ken Sklute. For more info click here.
Thanks for another great WCS experience, you guys are the best!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Epson Kicks It Up A Notch!
According to an Epson press release, the R2880 affords photographers and fine artists creative control, allowing the user to explore their creative options. Epson's advanced black-and-white mode, included within the printer driver, enables precise control for neutral or toned black-and-white prints. Photographers can choose from one of four preset menus -- neutral, warm, cool or sepia -- or further fine-tune images with custom slider bars and the color wheel.
The Epson R2880 will be available for an estimated retail price of $799.99. For more information click here.
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Sunday, May 04, 2008
Thursday, May 01, 2008
Richard Avedon & Charlie Rose
Every student of photography should study this interview. You are privileged to spend an hour with Richard Avedon, arguably the most influential photographer of the twentieth century.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Loris Paris Kicks It Up A Notch!
Normally I don't run ads, unless I'm shamelessly self promoting, but in this case I'm making an exception. Pierre Michel ads aren't really ads; He demands total control of the project from concept to output and gets it, probably because he produces truly original and visually spectacular work on a regular basis. For more info on this particular project click here.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Avedon Talks About Kinski And The Snake!
For those who may have missed Richard Avedons' show at the Norton Gallery in the Phoenix Art Museum we'll be running a series of videos that showcase some of his more famous works. Enjoy!
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Data Robotics Kicks It Up A Notch!
Recent events have once again proved the proverb that in the world of digital images redundant archives are the road to restful sleep. If you are looking for an easy and powerful archive solution at a very reasonable price, it doesn't get any better than Drobo. We give it $$$$$, definetly worth the dollars. For more info click here. Install a Drobo and sleep well tonight! As always, Visualville receives no compensation from the companies whose products we review, in this case Data Robotics, although if they wanted to send me one that would be OK, :-)
Is That A Space Bar In Your Pants Or Are You Just Happy To See Me?
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Lightroom 2.0 Beta Now Available!
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Check Out The Short Films of Hillman Curtis!
Hillman Curtis is the Principal and Chief Creative Officer of hillmancurtis.com, inc., a digital design firm in New York City. His design solutions have garnered him and his company the multiple Communication Arts Awards of Excellence, the One Show Gold, Silver and Bronze, the South by Southwest Conference “Best Use of Design” and “Best of Show”, the New Media Invision Bronze, a Web Award, How magazine’s Top 10, and multiple Webby Awards. Hillman was named as one of the top ten designers by the IPPA, included in the “ten most wanted” by IDN magazine, and as one of the “Worlds best Flash designers” by Create Online.
I stumbled onto Hillman Curtis's short film series by chance and was really impressed by what I saw. Most of his films are documentaries of designers and other creatives. While they might be a bit of a detour from the normal fare posted here they give a wonderful insight into the thought processes of many visually creative people. Click here to go to the site and view more of his movies.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Photoshop Express Beta Now Available!
Monday, March 17, 2008
Check Out Lighting Essentials Magazine!
Friday, March 07, 2008
Joe McNally Does It Again!
I think Joe McNally is probably the best all around photographer working today. He works in all areas of our industry, editiorial, portraiture, advertising, name a specialty and Joe has been there and left a very high mark. This video gives you a small glimpse into how he continues to redefine himself as a photographer and in the process set a very high bar for those that follow.
Friday, February 22, 2008
"Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep" - Photographers Who Make A Difference
Maddux Achilles Haggard was born on Feb. 4, 2005, with a condition called myotubular myopathy that prevented him from breathing, swallowing or moving on his own. On the sixth day of his young life, his parents had to make the excruciating decision to take him off life support. But before they did, they called
“That night was the worst night of my life. But when I look at the images, that’s not what I’m reminded of. I’m reminded of the beauty and blessings he brought,” Cheryl Haggard (Maddux's mom) said.Those tender photographs documenting Maddux’s eternal connection with his parents inspired Cheryl Haggard and Sandy Puc' to found a nonprofit organization that has provided thousands of families of babies who are stillborn or are at risk of dying as newborns with free professional portraits with their baby. Sandy and Cheryl founded the organization in April 2005 and called it Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep after the children’s bedtime prayer. To date, The Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation has nearly 3,000 affiliated photographers worldwide.
Check Out Parker Pfister!
Friday, February 08, 2008
Check Out The Seattle Flickr Roundup!
People showing up, setting up equipment and making photographs just because they love photography! How cool is that!
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
PNY Kicks It Up A Notch!
The 32GB SDHC card can keep up with high-definition video captured at 9 megabits per second, and the Optima Pro CompactFlash card, has a 266X transfer speed, or 40 megabits per second, using a UDMA interface.
Both cards will be available in the second quarter of 2008. The SDHC card should street price around $250 and the CompactFlash card about $400. For more info click here.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Eizo Kicks It Up A Notch!
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Check Out "Another Country" by Scott Strazzante
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Richard Avedon - My Heroes Revisited
Phoenix Art Museum Norton Photography Gallery
January 12, 2008 – April 13, 2008
If you live in the Phoenix area and have any interest in photography then you must make time to view the work of Richard Avedon. This exhibition includes his early fashion work for Vogue and Harper's Bazaar as well as later portrait work of actors, politicians, artists, writers and intellectuals. Avedon’s career as a fashion and portrait photographer spanned nearly seven decades in the 20th century and just into the 21st, leaving an indelible impression on American culture. For more Exhibition information click here.
To see my previous Richard Avedon post click here.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Your Invitation To West Coast School! June 15-20
Check out the instructors list. There is something for everyone and with some of the best in our business. Go to the website and sign up early as classes fill quickly. Oh, and plan to have an amazing time!
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Olympus E-3 Begins Shipping!
To learn more check out DPReview.