Focus on Imaging 2009 – 20th Anniversary
We were at Focus on Imaging 2009 today – where numerous manufacturers were showing their latest equipement. We had a look at the latest cameras from Olympus, Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fujifilm, and Kodak, and had a look at the high end Lenovo W700ds, for more details follow these links:
Nikon Coolpix L100 – new 15x optical zoom
Nikon Coolpix P90 – 24x optical zoom from Nikon
Canon Powershot SX200 IS – new 12x optical zoom
Canon Digital IXUS 95 IS – shown here in blue
Canon Digital IXUS 100 IS – Canon’s smallest IXUS in Gold
Canon Powershot D10 – Canon’s first waterproof
Sony Cybershot W270 – New Cybershot Camera
Sony Cybershot T900 – Ultra Slim Camera
Sony Cybershot H20 – Compact 10x zoom
Olympus Mju Stylus 7000 Compact – 7x zoom
Olympus Mju Stylus 9000 Compact Zoom – 10x zoom
Olympus SP-590 Ultra Zoom – 26x optical zoom
Kodak Easyshare Z980 Ultra Zoom – with vertical grip.
Fujifilm F200 EXR Hands On New Super CCD EXR Sensor
Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds Photography Laptop – Ultimate laptop!
To read more about Focus on Imaging 2009 click here.
Garden of Eden Photography? Adam appears to be confused.
The Dawn of Photography – Focus on Imaging were promoting several films available on their website.
Knights were just one of the themes on show – with various people in costumes making for some interesting photo shoots.
Photography in the Future – another Focus on Imaging film poster – promoting another of their films.
Hasselblad photo shoot.
DPNow Video and Gallery of the show. Previous years: Focus on Imaging 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005
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Focus on Imaging 2009 Show
Focus On Imaging starts tomorrow the 22nd of February and runs till the 25th of February at the Birmingham NEC and is a great photography show, giving you the chance to not only look at the latest digital cameras and equipement, but also purchase some great deals, we’ll be there to bring you coverage:
“FOCUS ON IMAGING is Europe’s biggest annual imaging show, covering all your needs from image capture through to output and beyond. Whether you are a professional image maker or processor, a buyer of image making equipment or materials, a manufacturer or distributor of products or a keen hobbyist, a visit to FOCUS ON IMAGING is a must. Over 200 exhibitors and product launches galore – including all the very latest digital cameras and processing equipment – will feature at FOCUS 2009.”
Previous years: DigiCamReview at Focus on Imaging 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005
Fujifilm FinePix Z33WP Announced
Fujifilm USA have announced the new Fujifilm FinePix Z33WP – an ultra compact waterproof camera with a 10 megapixel sensor, 3x optical zoom lens and 2.7″ screen, the camera is available in three colours: black, pink and green, for £133 and takes SD cards:
“Expanding the popular Z-series digital cameras for young-at-heart, trend-savvy consumers, Fujifilm today announced the launch of the FinePix Z33WP, Fujifilm’s first waterproof digital camera. No longer do you need to worry about damaging your camera in less than optimum shooting conditions. The FinePix Z33WP ensures you’ll never miss capturing any of life’s precious moments, any where, any time, under any conditions, and be able to share them easily with your extended network of friends and family members. The 10-MegaPixel FinePix Z33WP is available in three striking colors – green, pink and black – and is ready for any adventure including underwater activity up to 10 feet. The Z33WP uses a Fujinon 3x optical zoom lens, has Fujifilm’s ‘Automatic Scene Recognition’ SR AUTO mode, and features a 2.7”, 230,000 pixel resolution LCD screen.”
Fujifilm FinePix Z30 Announced
Fujifilm USA have announced the new Fujifilm FinePix Z30 – an ultra compact 10 megapixel camera with 3x optical zoom lens and 2.7″ screen, plus Miniature Effect, the camera is available in four colours: Pink, Purple, Black and Orange for £99, and takes SD cards:
“Another addition to this popular line is the FinePix Z30, the third installment of Fujifilm’s Z-series ultra-glam cameras designed specifically for ‘Generation Z’ – the younger, tech-savvy, fashion-conscious consumer. Boasting a 2.7” LCD screen, this 10 MegaPixel camera is available in three hot colors – pink, orange, and black – has a Fujinon 3x optical zoom lens, SR AUTO mode and like its predecessor the FinePix Z20, sports both Face Detection Technology with Automatic Red Eye Correction and Blog Mode, which copies and resizes both stills and movies to a web-friendly size right in the camera.”
Fujifilm FinePix S1500 Announced
Fujifilm USA have announced the new Fujifilm FinePix S1500 – the camera features a 10 megapixel sensor, 12x optical zoom lens, dual image stabilisation (anti-shake sensor), manual controls, 2cm macro mode, and 2.7″ screen:
“In the tradition of the popular and well-received FinePix S1000, Fujifilm presents its successor, the FinePix S1500. This 10-MegaPixel long zoom digital camera offers great range and flexibility with a Fujinon 12x optical zoom (33mm-396mm equivalent) and like all FinePix S-series digital cameras, includes Fujifilm’s Dual Image Stabilization and SR AUTO Automatic Scene Recognition mode to easily provide the best quality picture with increased clarity and sharpness, even in low light conditions. The FinePix S1500 also sports enhanced features like Panoramic mode, a Zoom Bracketing feature and full manual controls insuring the S1500 will keep up as your photographic skills develop.”
Fujifilm FinePix J250 Announced
Fujifilm USA have announced the new Fujifilm FinePix J250 – the compact camera features a 10 megapixel anti-shake sensor, a wide angle 28mm 5x optical zoom lens and 3″ screen:
“With sleek designs and powerful features, the FinePix J20 and FinePix J250 are great digital camera options that both feature the new SR AUTO mode. The FinePix J250 boasts a 3” high resolution LCD and Fujinon 5x wide angle optical zoom which makes it easy to capture distant objects or large groups at close range.”
Fujifilm FinePix J20 Announced
Fujifilm USA have announced the new Fujifilm FinePix J20 – the compact camera features a 10 megapixel sensor, 3x optical zoom lens and 2.7″ screen. The Fuji J20 is available for £88
“With sleek designs and powerful features, the FinePix J20 and FinePix J250 are great digital camera options that both feature the new SR AUTO mode. At only 17.4mm thick, the FinePix J20 is the perfect on-the-go camera fitting easily into a shirt pocket or hand bag. Despite its size, the FinePix J20’s black metal body houses a 10 MegaPixel CCD, a Fujinon 3x optical zoom lens and a brilliant 2.7” LCD which displays images with sharpness and clarity.”
Canon Powershot SX110 IS Review
Imaging Resource have reviewed the new Canon Powershot SX110 IS – an update to the SX100 IS – the new camera features a more compact body, 9 megapixel sensor, larger 3″ screen, 10x optical zoom lens with image stabilisation, Face Detection, Face Select & Track, Auto Red-Eye Correction, Motion Detection, 20 shooting modes including Easy Mode, and ISO 1600. The SX110 IS is available in silver or black for £185
“The Canon SX110 IS manages to pack an optically stabilized 10x zoom lens into a relatively compact body, but its image quality still competes very well with that of full-sized long-zoom cameras. In high ISO shooting, it gives up a little ground to Canon’s own SX10 IS, which uses a more powerful version of Canon’s DIGIC processor, but the Canon SX110 IS’s more compact body is much easier to pack along on outings and trips.”
Read our Canon Powershot SX110 IS Review
View our Canon Powershot SX110 IS Sample Photo Gallery
Hands on with the Canon Powershot SX110 IS at Photokina
Read more Canon Powershot SX110 IS Reviews: DPInterface, Digital Camera Info, Steves Digicams, Cameras.co.uk, Photography BLOG, Trusted Reviews
Sandisk SD Plus USB Cards Discontinued
Sandisk have stopped manufacturing Sandisk Ultra II SD Plus USB memory cards – the memory cards allow you to plug them into your camera, and also straight into any free USB socket and are great when you don’t have an SD card reader or if you’ve left the camera cable at home. The cards are still available while stocks last from Amazon priced at £9.99 for 4GB, or £17.99 in Ducatti form. This is what Sandisk had to say via Twitter:
“We [Sandisk] aren’t manufacturing SD Card Plus any longer but there is inventory out there still available for purchase. I’d check Amazon”
Spyder 3 Pro (PC / Mac) Quick Review
The Spyder 3 Pro, available for £102 from Amazon UK, provides quick and easy monitor calibration as well as an ambient light meter, and is designed for photographers.
“Serious photographers and creative pros require a high degree of color accuracy; from capturing images, to digital editing and printing, Spyder3Pro™ delivers. This third generation colorimeter comes equipped with new state-of-the-art optical design and photo-centric user interface providing accurate, reliable and consistent color. Spyder3PRO™ gives you more precise control over white point and gamma, new ReCAL option cuts re-calibration time in half and SpyderProof™ function brings you a new level of color control to help you save time, money and achieve color excellence.”
Click here to read the full Spyder 3 Pro review.
Installation: This was surprisingly easy, just insert the disk, install the program, connect the Spyder using a free USB socket, then start the program up. This took around 5 to 10 minutes.
What’s in the box? Free screen cleaner! Software CD (and serial key), 4 step quick start guide, 2 year warranty, Spyder3 calibration tool, and a stand for using the ambient light monitor built into the Spyder3.
Calibrating the screen: The program asks you several questions such as screen type (LCD, CRT, Laptop, Projector), what options are available on your screen, and then recommends resetting to factory defaults. It also checks what options you have with your screen, one problem is that the wizard doesn’t allow you to select RGB, these are only available in the advanced mode – using this mode can extend the length of time it takes to calibrate the screen – and the software suggests that you may get better results by not using this feature (once switched on it seemed impossible to switch this feature off). Calibration takes roughly 10 – 15 minutes, and shows a before and after view at the end of calibration.
Results: My monitor on default settings was overly bright and yellow and didn’t show bright gradients very well, as shown above. My own attempts at setting the contrast and brightness manually had made photos appear somewhat harsh and overly cold. The calibration from Spyder 3 appears to have worked well. It’s now possible to view the individual blocks in the grayscale chart used on a lot of websites (eg at the bottom of DPReview) and as shown in the example photos shown. Previously the whites were too bright and the dark shades weren’t dark enough – the results shown below show better contrast as well.
Using the program: The program installs an icon in the taskbar, from this you can launch the main program. In preferences you can select whether you have a reminder about recalibrating your screen, and can switch on auto updates, and advanced options. On the SpyderProof section you can view a number of photos as thumbs or zoom in to view the photos individually and the program will show you before and after results.
Overall: The Spyder 3 is probably one of the default choices when looking for a monitor calibration tool, and it’s easy to see why, as the system is easy and quick to use with some good results. Getting into the advanced options can complicate calibration and it may be best to leave all the settings to the software. The system is priced in the middle compared to the competition, however I can’t help feeling that the Pantone Huey offers almost identical features for a much lower price, and for that reason I find it hard to recommend the Spyder 3.
Pros:
+ Easy and quick to use
+ Sits on the top of your computer as an ambient light meter with glowing blue light
+ Alerts you if you need to recalibrate the monitor
+ Results look good
Cons:
- Suction cup small and device prone to falling off the screen half way through calibration.
- Software recommends you reset brigtness / contrast and everything else to defaults leaving the software to choose the “optimum” settings for you, however, you may find white overly bright if you’re sensitive to screens being too bright.
- Expensive compared to competition? – same features available in the Pantone Huey for £40 less.
Available for £102 from Amazon UK
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