Digital Camera News, Reviews and Tips
Creative Pro has posted a review of the Canon 40D.
Fortunately, a breakthrough allowed Canon to use a larger area on the sensor for each photosite, and the 40D employs the company’s excellent DIGIC III image processor, which does a much better job of handling noise. The practical upshot is that the 40D does achieve higher resolution without a noise penalty.
Get the latest news and reviews on Photography Bay’s Canon 40D page.
Canon retained its #1 spot in Europe for 2007. The increasing competition from Sony, Nikon and Pentax, which is good for all of us photographers, really tightened the group at the top of the food chain though. Will it be enough to dethrone Canon?
We’ll see, but Canon remains the king for now. [Read more…]
Digital Camera Review has posted a review of the Nikon D3.
Unparalleled ISO performance, a 9 fps full resolution shooting rate, exceptional color and image quality, a superb monitor, robust construction, outstanding build quality and a full frame sensor offering wide angle and depth of field lens performance like a 35mm film camera are some of the attributes that makes Nikon’s latest pro model a must-have for serious Nikon shooters.
Get the latest news and reviews on Photography Bay’s Nikon D3 page.
Trusted Reviews has posted a full review of the Nikon D60.
Pictures from the D60 impress, with a lovely smooth tonality and crisp punchy colours. Contrast is generally good, while the Active D-Lighting quickly takes care of those that need a little help to achieve their best. Exposures are generally good, though occasionally the camera underexposes by a quarter to half a stop, especially if there’s a lot of brightness in the image such as a bright sky.
Get the latest news and reviews on Photography Bay’s Nikon D60 page.
The Pentax K20D is in stock and now shipping (as of 8:00 a.m. ET) from Amazon, B&H Photo and Adorama. The K20D is priced at $1299 at all three vendors; however, you can get free shipping with Amazon. These are the only vendors that I shop at online. If you have a preferred place to order from, then it’s probably in stock there as well. However, I can personally recommend the buying experience from each of these trusted vendors.
To learn more about the K20D, check out Photography Bay’s Pentax K20D page.
Do you to add GPS to your DSLR and save some serious cash along the way? Consider Rick Wargo’s Nikon D200 DIY GPS unit.
I’ve had it for quite a while and love it: a new and improved of my original GPS design for my D200. This time it’s smaller, practical and easy; just mount it on the flash shoe, plug it in to the 10-pin connector and turn it on! Within no time at all GPS coordinates will be flowing into the camera.
Cool stuff Rick! Thanks for teaching the rest of us something useful.
NIKON’S NEW INTERACTIVE WEBSITE IS DESIGNED TO EVOLVE WITH USER FEEDBACK
New Website Uses Imagery as a Catalyst for Interaction and Embraces Feedback from Users to Enhance the Browsing Experience
MELVILLE, N.Y. (Feb. 27, 2008) – Nikon Inc. today unveiled a completely redesigned Web site with a new visual user interface that among other features utilizes images to display information about Nikon’s products and services. Visitors to the site will also have an ongoing opportunity to offer feedback and suggestions about the site’s content and usability to help define the evolution of the site over the coming months and years.
Similar to Nikon’s imaging products, which rely on customers’ feedback for development, the new site will be a continually evolving forum thanks to the addition of an innovative blog called “Your Shot” that encourages users to comment and share their ideas to improve the Web site’s design, interface and content. This open environment creates an online space that is better adapted to the needs of consumers and provides an unmatched level of functionality for visitors.
The launch of the newly revamped Nikon Inc. Web site emphasizes a strong commitment to photography. The Web site, www.nikonusa.com, is accessible starting February 27th at 8 p.m. EST. To access the new interactive site blog, please visit http://blog.nikonusa.com.
The Sony DSC-W130 is a 8.1-megapixel compact point and shoot digicam with a 4x optical zoom and 2.5 inch LCD screen. The Sony W120 features a number of powerful features, including: Sony’s D-Range Optimizer to retrieve picture detail in photos with harsh highlights or dark shadows; semi-manual focus that allows you to select the focusing distance based on your subject’s location; an improved auto focus system that includes macro ranges; Super SteadyShot image stabilization; high sensitivity settings up to ISO 3200; and in-camera editing functions such as “unsharp mask” to sharpen images.
The Sony Cybershot W130 is very “point and shoot” friendly – the camera produces great results in almost every situation – and provides features designed specifically for taking photos of friends and family with face detection and smile shutter technology.
It is incredibly easy to use with several automatic shooting modes to assist you in difficult situations (not to mention a very handy Smile Shutter mode). The quality of our images was very good, as was the video.
It has a great selection of useful preset modes and creative shooting tools, and most impressive, it combines its Face Detection technology with a smile detector for an extremely useful Smile Shutter mode, giving you in-focus images of wiggly kids or small groups of people, without resorting to a continuous shooting mode.
The W130’s quick performance and decent image quality make it a solid follow-up to the W90, and a good choice for a pocket point-and-shoot camera.
If you’re buying online, I recommend sticking with Amazon, B&H Photo or Adorama. These three vendors are reliable, trustworthy and generally have the best (legitimate) prices.
The Sony W120 is a 7.2-megapixel compact point and shoot digicam with a 4x optical zoom and 2.5 inch LCD screen. The Sony W120 features a number of powerful features, including: Sony’s D-Range Optimizer to retrieve picture detail in photos with harsh highlights or dark shadows; semi-manual focus that allows you to select the focusing distance based on your subject’s location; an improved auto focus system that includes macro ranges; Super SteadyShot image stabilization; high sensitivity settings up to ISO 3200.
Reviews
Combines design, sturdiness, layout of controls, comfort in use.
The W120, like almost all other “W” models, is a stylish and durable digicam that can be tucked almost anywhere. It offers some appealing features for an ultra-compact, like 7- megapixels of resolution, a versatile Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 4x optical zoom lens, 9 area AF system, 2.5-inch LCD monitor, zoom-coupled optical viewfinder (something you almost never see anymore) as well as an exposure mode for just about everyone in your household or office.
Where to Buy
First off, consider going to your local camera store (and I don’t necessarily mean Wolf Camera at the mall). By going to your local camera store, you’re supporting your community and you just might build a lasting relationship with people you can rely on when you need some help or answers. If you’re buying online, I recommend sticking with Amazon, B&H Photo or Adorama. These three vendors are reliable, trustworthy and generally have the best (legitimate) prices.
The Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens is an easy-to-use standard zoom lens that can cover a large zoom area ranging from 24mm wide-angle to 105mm portrait-length telephoto, and its Image Stabilizer Technology steadies camera shake up to three stops. Constructed with one Super-UD glass element and three aspherical lenses, this lens minimizes chromatic aberration and distortion. The result is excellent picture quality, even at wide apertures. Canon’s ring-type USM gives silent but quick AF, along with full-time manual focus. Moreover, with dust- and moisture-resistant construction, this is a durable yet sophisticated lens that meets the demands of advanced amateur photographers and professional photographers alike. (Canon) [Read more…]