Corel launches upgrades to Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 Ultimate and VideoStudio Pro X2.
Posted on September 21, 2008 - Filed Under News, Photo | Leave a Comment
The latest version of Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 Ultimate offers expanded creative and practical solutions for photo editing including150 new photo frames, patterns and Picture Tubes, a background remover plug-in, as well as photo recovery and painter tools. This edition of Corel’s photo-editing software also offers support for more than 250 RAW camera formats. VideoStudio Pro X2 reflects the changes in video technology and is one of the first editing programs to support Blu-ray Disc Movie Video (BDMV) input and output. HD formats such as AVCHD (Advanced Video Codec High Definition) are also supported and thanks to its use of Smart Proxy Editing, users no longer need a high performance computer to edit HD video. Video can also be imported and output to the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch and uploading to YouTube has been streamlined. Other updates include enhanced performance and ease of use along with the ability to paint, draw or write on videos with a new painting tool, new creative content, and new film effects. Both programs are available individually for a suggested price of $99.99 each or in a $149.99 bundle. Upgrades and trial versions are also available. www.corel.com
LG KS360
Posted on September 20, 2008 - Filed Under Digital | Leave a Comment
LG KS360 mobile phone : LG Mobile announces the launch of the LG KS360, its vibrantly coloured, feature-packed mobile phone specifically designed for messaging on the move. The LG KS360’s sliding QWERTY keypad and high-spec messaging features mean that users can send SMS, IM, email and have the ability to access social networking sites all from one device. In addition, the LG KS360 cell phone comes with touchscreen dialling, a 2MP camera and MicroSD card slot. The LG KS-360 cell phone is available in Titanium and bright blue, White and soft pink, Black and red and Black and silver. LG KS360 Jeremy Newing, head of LG mobile marketing, LG Electronics says, “We recognise that manufacturers need to develop a variety of handsets that cater for different segments of the market. By offering a whole range of handsets - whether it’s premium or prepay, a camera or music device, for example - we’re giving consumers the choice to purchase a phone that’s right for them.” LG KS-360 features - Network: GSM/GPRS/EDGE - Band: GMS 900/1800/1900 - Battery: Li-Ion 800mAh - Dimensions: 101.5×51x16.8mm - Main screen: 2.4″ QVGA (240×320) 262k - Camera: 2 megapixel - Camera feature: Fixed focus - Memory: 15MB/MicroSDTM up to 4GB - Bluetooth: V2.0 - USB: V2.0, Mass Storage - Ringtones: 64 polyphonic - Audio codecs: MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+ - Video codecs: MPEG4/H.263 - Browser: WAP 2.0 - JAVA: MIDP 2.0 - Messaging: SMS, MMS, IM, Email - Other: Touch Screen Dialling LG SMS phone with QWERTY keypad With the KS360’s slider QWERTY keypad, users can write messages quickly and accurately. To make messaging easier, once the full length keypad has been opened, the 2.4″ screen automatically rotates 90 degrees using accelerometer technology. At just 16.8mm thin, this handset has been designed to fit easily into a pocket or handbag, a convenient alternative to lugging a laptop around. LG KS360 mobile phone “With the popularity of social networking sites and instant messaging amongst younger audiences, the LG KS360 handset has been designed so they can access these features when away from their computer. This handset is perfect for this segment of the market. Its vibrant colours, easy-to-use QWERTY keypad and fantastic messaging features offer users a simple and fun device that will enable them to communicate with each other instantly,” says Newing. • Price information & availability : LG KS360.
Video Training Review: Photoshop CS3 Mastering Lab Color With Deke McClelland From Lynda.com.
Posted on September 19, 2008 - Filed Under Culture, Photo | Leave a Comment
Based on the device-independent CIE specification from 1976, Lab color is often thought of as a high tech, labor-intensive color space. In many cases, Lab color performs certain types of color modifications more quickly and with better, more effective results than RGB. In Photoshop CS3 Mastering Lab Color, Deke McClelland explores how to use Lab color "to make bad photographs great and great photographs even better." He demonstrates image manipulations that are best suited to Lab, and walks through a typical, non-destructive Lab correction. Deke also shows how to correct lighting, apply selective color modifications, and reverse the effects of color cast. Your trainer for this library is Deke McClelland. In 1985, Deke McClelland oversaw the implementation of the first personal computer-based production department in Boulder, Colorado. Deke McClelland is a well-known expert and lecturer on Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and the broader realm of computer graphics and design. To date, he has written 85 books that have been translated into 24 languages, with more than four million copies in print. This library is divided into five lessons and runs six and a half hours. Lesson 1, "What Lab Color Is" begins with defining what Lab color is. Designed decades ago, Lab color has been available in Adobe Photoshop for over 10 years. Unlike the RGB and CMYK color spaces, Lab color is an optional color space but is often overlooked or considered too difficult to use but can save time and can make your images look better. Here you will learn not to fear the Lab mode, you will learn why color is 3D, how to mix Lab colors, as well as other explanations of what Lab Color is. You will learn about the hue/saturation color wheel, the Lab color wheel, the different channels between the three color spaces, and how channels blend in Lab mode. Lesson 2, "What Lab Color Can Do", at least according to McClelland, is "blow your mind." It will have a profound effect on your images, it will surprise you with its power, and it will just simply amaze you. This is where you will see how bad becomes great, and great becomes better. You will see how to favor yellow to balance skin tones, drop out the blues, correct a very bad image in Lab, sharpen luminance independent of color, and sharpen for effect and blur away noise. Lesson 3, "A Typical, Nondestructive Lab Correction" now focuses on more realistic problems — not making the bad great or the great better, but rather how to make the okay or average image much better. You know those images where the colors are drab, the contrast is lackluster, or other problems where the image does not live up to what you saw when you pressed the shutter release. Here you will see a more typical scenario in which you convert an image to Lab and apply adjustment layers, turn the image into a smart object and sharpen it and turn that into an RGB image to resolve the chromatic aberrations — all without harming a pixel. page 1 | 2
Press Association celebrates anniversary at St Pancras station Best of British’ photos revealed
Posted on September 15, 2008 - Filed Under Digital, Photo | Leave a Comment
Rarely seen images of Britain have been plucked from the archives of the Press Association (PA) for an exhibition at St Pancras International Station in London starting next week. The free show, which runs from 8-26 September, showcases key moments and heroes from more than a century of photography, according to PA. Forty images from PA’s seven-million-strong archive will be displayed throughout the station. A spokesman added: ‘Many will draw a smile or tell a story they may even include familiar faces or places but most have rarely been in seen in public before now.’ The exhibition marks the 140th anniversary of PA and St Pancras. Picture credit: PA Photos Picture credit: PA Photos
Nikon launches AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR lens
Posted on September 15, 2008 - Filed Under Digital, Reviews, Photo | Leave a Comment
Nikon today has launched the AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105mm F/3.5-5.6G ED VR zoom lens. This lens incorporates features such as Nikon’s Extra Low Dispersion (ED) glass, Silent Wave Motor technology (SWM) and Enhanced Vibration Reduction (VR II) and will be supplied as the kit lens with the Nikon D90. Press Release: NIKON LAUNCHES AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR 27th August 2008: Nikon UK is pleased to announce the introduction of the AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR. The new NIKKOR lens, with a focal length between 18 and 105 mm, is a high performance and cost efficient lens with a focal length equivalent to 27 to 157.5 mm in 35 mm format that has been designed to partner with Nikon’s D90. High Performance – High Reproduction The AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR is useful in a broad range of shooting settings. The wide zoom range makes it suitable for shooting buildings and scenery while the telephoto zoom range is ideal for portraits. The AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR ’s built-in Vibration Reduction II system provides the equivalent of a shutter speed three stops faster than standard lenses, offering an extraordinarily high reproduction capacity. The high-performance optical system features a single ED glass element and one aspherical lens optimized for use for digital SLRs. This allows you to make high resolution, high contrast images, and minimising chromatic aberration. The ultra-compact built-in Silent Wave Motor ensures silent, fast and efficient autofocus operation, and the refined external design with leather-tone texture will appeal to Nikon users as it will match their camera bodies. Extreme Focal Length DX camera owners can have it all. Combined with the AF-S VR Zoom NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED; the two VR lenses cover a focal length of 18-450mm, ensuring you can capture virtually anything, from a close up object to a distant horizon. The AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR is supplied with the Nikon D90 in a special kit AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR Major Features DX-format, high-power 5.8x zoom lens with focal length ranging from 18 to 105mm Broad picture angle range approximates the perspective of a 27-157.5mm lens on a 35mm-format film camera or Nikon FX-format digital SLR Covers diverse shooting situations from wide-angle landscapes and interiors to portraiture and medium-range sports Vibration Reduction assures sharper handheld pictures while shooting at shutter speeds up to three stops slower than would otherwise be possible Built-in Silent Wave Motor delivers quiet, swift autofocus with superior accuracy High-performance optical system featuring an ED glass element and an aspherical lens element realizes superior image reproduction capability The rounded 7-blade diaphragm opening renders out-of-focus elements more naturally Leather texture matches Nikon digital SLR’s body high-quality exterior design AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR specifications Focal length 18-105 mm Max/min aperture f/3.5-5.6 Lens construction 15 elements in 11 groups (with one ED glass and one hybrid a-spherical lens) Picture angle 76° , 15°20’ (DX-format) Minimum focus distance 0.45 m Max. reproduction ratio 0.2x (1/5) No. diaphragm blades 7 (rounded) Focusing Autofocus with built-in SWM and manual focus Filter/attachment size 67mm Diameter x length Approx. φ76-89 mm Weight Approx. 450 g
Mirror Training
Posted on September 14, 2008 - Filed Under Photo | Leave a Comment
“Varanasi, India. A few Kusti wrestlers training… One is training with huge Jhoris”. Taken by Claude Renault
The Life of a Photograph
Posted on September 13, 2008 - Filed Under Art, News, Photo | Leave a Comment
The Life of a Photograph is a new National Geographic book by photographer Sam Abell. Drawing on 40 years of Abell’s fieldwork, the book takes readers on assignment and inside the heart of this master photographer to witness the making of nearly 200 images. Many photographs are complemented by text from Abell, providing background on the photograph and how he crafted the image. The Life of a Photograph will be available at the end of October for $40. THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPH Sam Abell Offers Master Class in Photography with Powerful Images In THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPH (National Geographic Books; ISBN 978-1-4262-0329-9; Oct. 21, 2008; $40), Sam Abell, one of the foremost photographers of our time, shares some of his most powerful and unforgettable images and answers the question, “What gives life to a photograph?” Drawing on 40 years of Abell’s fieldwork, the book takes readers on assignment and inside the heart of this master photographer to witness the making of nearly 200 truly great images. Abell has selected photographs that speak most powerfully to him. They include notable images that he has made for National Geographic magazine and books, as well as photographs from his personal body of work that are published here for the first time. THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPH is organized around Abell’s perspectives on landscape, still life, street scenes and the photography of daily life. Selections cover geography and wildlife from the Arctic to the Amazon, and cultures from Australia to the American West. In an original concept for a photography book, images are displayed in a unique, highly involving way that allows the viewer to be engaged in the photographic process. By showing similar images side by side, or sequences of photographs of the same event, the viewer is placed in the field and in the editor’s chair. Displaying images in this way allows the viewer to see how a setting appears before the subject enters, like an actor on a stage, and how subtle differences in point of view, framing, timing and perspective can lead to strikingly different photographs. By presenting alternative images and clear, compelling text, Abell describes that act of seeking the picture — “a process with no absolute ending, as time and thought continue to shape the life of a photograph.” With each image Abell presents a master class in photographic thinking. Through his lens, even the most mundane sights — a puddle of water, a bathroom faucet, a circle of laundry drying on the line, a plate of baked beans and toast — are transformed into artful, meaningful creations. Many photographs are complemented by text from Abell, providing background on the photograph and how he crafted the image. “As a photographer my intent is to bring the world under my aesthetic control,” he writes. “Making a picture just right takes time even when the thing you’re photographing isn’t moving. Instead you do the moving — closer, not so close, change lenses, commit to a tripod, micro compose some detail, step back, reconsider, recompose, step back. And when it looks right, it also feels right — just so. Therefore it’s not only things that have made their way into my photography, but also the poetics of them in their setting.” THE LIFE OF A PHOTOGRAPH is part of National Geographic Books’ new Focal Point imprint, which draws on National Geographic’s legendary photographic archive of more than 10 million images and the work of distinguished photographers around the world. The imprint will present the finest in documentary photography past and present, and monographs will celebrate individual photographers’ unique style, vision and skill. Abell, who learned his craft from his father Thad S. Abell, has photographed for National Geographic magazine for almost 40 years. He is the author of the National Geographic book “Seeing Gardens” as well as “Stay this Moment,” a mid-career retrospective accompanied by an exhibition at the International Center of Photography, New York. His retrospective “Sam Abell: The Photographic Life” was accompanied by a traveling exhibition that opened at the University of Virginia Art Museum. Abell also collaborated with Stephen Ambrose on two best-selling National Geographic books, “Lewis and Clark: Voyage of Discovery” and “The Mississippi River.”
Sony CyberShot T500
Posted on September 13, 2008 - Filed Under Digital | Leave a Comment
Sony CyberShot T500 digital camera : Everyone’s spoiled for choice with the camera that thinks it’s a camcorder. Now it’s easy to capture your favourite moments as sumptuous stills or HD movie clips with the slim, stylish new Sony Cyber-shot T500. Available in a choice of eye-catching piano black, silver and red finishes, the chic Sony T500 is packed with Sony technology to help everyone take better-looking pictures. Alongside sparkling 10.1 effective megapixel still image quality, the Sony CyberShot T500 is the first digital camera that can capture crisp, clear HD movie clips with stereo sound. New HD movie mode allows up to 60 mins (approx) of video to be stored on the supplied 4GB Memory Stick. Sony CyberShot T500 features movie modes Not sure whether that special moment deserves a photo or a video clip? It’s easy to switch instantly between still and movie modes at the touch of a conveniently placed button on top of the camera. You can even grab crisp still images (1280×720 pixels) without interrupting video shooting. 3.5″ touchscreen LCD included in the Sony T500 The superb Carl Zeiss lens on the CyberShot DSC-T500 features a new ring-type Zoom button, allowing easy adjustment throughout the 5x range while you’re shooting movies. Detail-packed stills and video clips can be viewed on the extra-large wide 3.5-inch touchscreen LCD. As well as giving a beautiful view of your images, the touchscreen also makes operation of camera functions beautifully simple. Touching anywhere on the screen while you’re composing a shot locks focus on that part of the scene. Sony CyberShot DSC-T500 incorporates Face Detection Touching a face turns on Face Detection, ensuring that people’s faces in the scene are in sharp focus and with perfect exposure for fewer spoiled shots. Up to eight faces can be tracked at a time, making the Sony T500 ideal for capturing large groups of friends and family. Sony DSC-T500 digital camera with optical SteadyShot Shooting handheld without flash can mean blurred pictures, especially when light levels are low or with telephoto shots. Optical SteadyShot is teamed with an improved High Sensitivity mode to allow faster shutter speeds. This ‘Dual Anti-blur’ solution is complemented by Clear RAW Noise Reduction for clean, natural images, even in low-light conditions like parties or twilight. HD Slide Shows for all your pictures After you’ve finished shooting, HD Slide Shows add an extra dimension of enjoyment to your collection of photos and videos. Pick from a choice of musical accompaniments, or import your favourite music track from a connected PC. Sony CyberShot T500 price & availability If you want an even bigger picture, still images and HD movie clips can be experienced with extra impact on your HD Ready television. Connected via HDMI to your Sony HD TV, BRAVIA Sync allows on-screen control of Cyber-shot playback functions using the TV’s remote control. Supplied Picture Motion Browser software also makes it easy to upload favourite photos and clips to image sharing sites. The Sony CyberShot DSC-T500 will be available from October 2008. Sony Cyber-Shot T500 Specifications • Effective megapixels : 10.1 effective megapixels • Image sensor : 1/2.3 type Super HAD CCD • Movie mode : MPEG4 AVC/H.264, HD movies 1280×720 pixels at 30fps • Shooting modes : Auto, Program Auto, Scene Selection (High Sensitivity / Soft Snap / Twilight Portrait / Twilight / Landscape / High Speed Shutter /Snow / Beach / Fireworks), Movie • Lens : Carl Zeiss 5x optical zoom lens • Display : 3.5-inch wide Clear Photo LCD Plus with touchscreen • Image stabilisation system : Double Anti-Blur with Optical SteadyShot • Face Detection : Yes
Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery Review
Posted on September 10, 2008 - Filed Under Art, News, Photo | Leave a Comment
Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery is a Windows/Mac compatible software program that recovers lost, deleted and formatted digital pictures from removable media. Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery works with any type of digital card reader or storage media that can mount as a volume. It supports the recovery of 33 different file types, including RAW files from all the major camera manufacturers and some video and music formats too. With a price tag of $39 / €31 + VAT, we find out if Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery is the answer in the event of a photo disaster… Website: Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery Review
Alien Skin Releases Blow Up 2
Posted on September 10, 2008 - Filed Under News, Photo | Leave a Comment
Alien Skin has announced a new version of its image-resizing software plug-in. Blow Up 2 offers a simplified interface, easy batch processing, and improved performance with support for multi-processor and multi-core systems. The plug-in can be used with Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements software, and can handle CMYK images, 32-bit-per-channel HDR images, and output up to 300,000 pixels on a side. Alien Skin has also added a Smart Cropping feature designed to center the crop area over the most interesting part of the photo, sharpening that is automatically optimized for the degree of enlargement and paper type selected, and greater control over simulated textures and film grain to retain a natural look. Blow Up 2 also offers new controls for cleaning up JPEG compression artifacts in images from low-quality sources. Blow Up 2 is available in Windows and Mac versions on the Alien Skin Web site for $249 or as a $99 upgrade for current owners of Blow Up 1. Those who purchased Blow Up 1 who after July 26, 2008 can upgrade for free.
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