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Archive for April, 2013

Canon firmware for 5D Mark III allows uncompressed video and AF at F8

30 Apr

canon_eos5dmkiii.png

Canon has released a firmware update for the EOS 5D Mark III with significant benefits for both stills and video shooters. Firmware version 1.2.1 allows uncompressed video output over the HDMI port as well as cross-type autofocus when working with a maximum aperture of F8. Click through for more details and the download link.

News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Histograms: Your Guide To Proper Exposure

30 Apr
The finished image was a nice, high key portrait. See below for details on the histogram.

The finished image was a nice, high key portrait. See below for details on the histogram.

To many newbie photographers, getting the proper exposure in camera is the biggest challenge they face. While letting the camera do the work for them turns out fine most of the time, there are many times where the camera can require some help.  Knowing just how to give your camera that help is key to getting an image you’ll want to keep.  The best way to judge an exposure (or a potential exposure, when using Live View) is to use your camera’s histogram.

In this high key portrait, the histogram shows a majority of pixels on the right side, representing brighter pixels. This is to be expected due to the white background and outfit worn.

In this high key portrait, the histogram shows a majority of pixels on the right side, representing brighter pixels. This is to be expected due to the white background and outfit worn. The pixels in the middle of the histogram represent the subject’s skin tones, while the small dark peak on the left represents her hair. Notice also, that this histogram does show some highlight clipping. In some images, this may be a problem, but since this is a high key portrait and the background is the bright white area, and the skin tones are good, this is not a problem for this image.

A histogram, in it’s simplest terms, is simply a graph showing the brightness levels of pixels in the image. The right side of the graph represents bright pixels, while darker pixels are shown on the left side.  Pixels representing midtones are in the middle, of course. A histogram runs, from left to right, showing values from 0- black, to 255- white.  The height of the histogram represents how many pixels are recorded at a given brightness level. The primary aspects of the histogram that one should be concerned with are the left and right edges.  Any pixels that recorded as bright white (255) or as pure black (0), would be pushed up against the edge of the graph.

Since a histogram is simply a representation of the tonal range of a given image, there really is no right or wrong histogram. The histogram will change based on the tones in an image. A high-key portrait, for example, would show pixels mainly to the right side of the histogram. A low-key image would show pixels mainly to the left side of the histogram. An image with a wide tonal range would show pixels across the entire histogram.

As I mentioned, when judging exposure, the primary areas of the histogram to be concerned with are the right and left edges. Pixels in these areas are rendering as bright white, or dark black.  Generally speaking, unless an image is intended to show bright white or pure black areas, pixels pushed up to the very edge of the histogram could indicate an exposure problem.  This is also known as “clipping”. For instance, when a large number of pixels are pushed against the right side of the histogram, in essence, being cut off by the edge of the histogram, it is said that the highlights are clipped.

In this image, since the subject is in silhouette, and there are lots of dark tones, we expect to see most pixels on the left side of the histogram.

In this image, since the subject is in silhouette, and there are lots of dark tones, we expect to see most pixels on the left side of the histogram.

When judging the histogram, one must take into account the subject matter of the image. If the image should show bright white areas, yet the histogram shows the pixels as rendering more middle grey, due to the way the camera’s meter sets the exposure, you can then use exposure compensation or adjust your exposure manually to increase exposure and achieve the desired result.  The same is true for darker images that the camera overexposes because the meter is trying to achieve middle grey.  By reducing exposure, either manually by changing your shutter speed, aperture, or ISO, or by using exposure compensation, you can darken the image to achieve the desired image. The histogram of this new image will reflect the change to exposure.

Now, here’s the big secret. If you use Live View on your camera, you can view a live histogram, that will update and reflect changes in exposure when your exposure changes. This means you can judge what your current exposure is, and watch in real time how changes to that exposure will affect your image. It’s a great way to get a feel for how even a slight adjustment in shutter speed, aperture, or ISO can affect your exposure.

This portrait shows more midtones than anything else, so we see more of a classic peak near the center of the histogram, with the pixels falling off as they get to the edges of the histogram. You can see that neither the highlights or shadows are clipped .

This portrait shows more midtones than anything else, so we see more of a classic peak near the center of the histogram, with the pixels falling off as they get to the edges of the histogram. You can see that neither the highlights or shadows are clipped .

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

Histograms: Your Guide To Proper Exposure


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30. April 2013

30 Apr

Ein Beitrag von: Achim Katzberg

8684485803_3cd98c7049_b


kwerfeldein – Fotografie Magazin

 
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NYC by Sally Wanless

30 Apr

When I went over to NYC for the first time back in 2010, I was super excited. I thought I’d be forever taking shots of Times Square and the surrounding well-known landmarks. The funny thing is when i got to New York, once I sussed the city out a bit and got on the bus to head to Central Park; they head along Via Brooklyn Bridge – which is where this shot was taken, just approaching the other side of Brooklyn Bridge. That day it was absolutely baltic, and it wasn’t a hop on/hop off type, so in order to get any shots on the way, you had to be on the top deck, and just be cold. The bus was in pretty tattered condition, but you know what, that made things better (for me!, probably not others trying to get a clear image!) I have always loved the graphic design type of things, and all the scratches on the windows made a dramatic mark onto the buildings when photographed. It was a fairly dingy, dark area, very unlike Times Square and the like. It all added something to it, Even the empty seats, with the Brooklyn skyline in the distance and looking very grey, it emphasised the real grungy, cold look of it all.

nyc

Since this was taken, I recently went back over again, (February 2013) and I have produced a NYC series, check it out at on my website under new york/ongoing.

IMG_3243

New York is certainly a city that excites your imagination and when submerged, you definitely feel the buzz of the place, whether you’re in Times Square, Greenwich Village, Battery Park or Murray Hill. There is always something happening, every area is so completely different and that is one of the reasons i think that i love going there, with a camera in tow to be producing new work because it is generally like an on the go Photography Documentary.

IMG_3212

The two other images below are from the New York Series. All the images are black and white – though i do delve into colour too. There is something about stripping back the colour from the city that is always in colour to give it a more simplistic approach and look.

Scottish born Photographer
http://www.sallywanless.com

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In The Fold: 10 Futuristic Folding + Flexible Computer Ideas

30 Apr

[ By Delana in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

flexible computer concepts

The concept of computers has changed dramatically over the past 50 years. They have gone from room-sized monstrosities to desktop beasts to laptop machines to tiny powerhouses that we can carry in our pockets. But it would be a mistake to think that computers are done evolving. The materials we use to build computers are constantly changing, and their form factors will undoubtedly change rapidly as well. These concepts show just what might be possible in the very near future of computer design.

Napkin PC Concept

napkin computer

Operating on the idea that most great ideas start as napkin sketches, designer Avery Holleman decided to design a computer system that looks just like a group of napkins. A stack of napkin-like screens and a set of “pens” are kept in a handy holder, allowing collaborators to simply grab one of each and sketch out an idea.

napkin pc concept

The holder is actually a base station and computer, allowing all of the processing to be done in the case so that the “napkins” themselves can remain small and easy to handle. A couple of napkins can roll up and be secured with a kind of napkin ring that holds two pens, letting the system go with you to impromptu meetings or anywhere great ideas might strike.

Feno Foldable Notebook

feno foldable notebook concept

Designer Niels Van Hoof had a compelling vision for the modern laptop: why not eliminate wasted space and make the screen itself fold up to make the entire machine smaller? The screen would use OLED technology to let it fold in half without damaging the display.

feno foldable laptop concept

The keyboard could then shrink significantly, allowing just enough room for the keys and eliminating the vast amounts of space under the keyboard that is usually dedicated to the trackpad. A pop-out mouse takes care of that, letting you navigate naturally and then store the mouse inside the laptop’s body when you’re done.

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In The Fold 10 Futuristic Folding Flexible Computer Ideas

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[ By Delana in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

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6 Free Ways to Improve Your Photography [Get More out of dPS]

30 Apr

Over the last few years dPS has grown from being a personal blog where I shared tips for friends about how to get the most out of their cameras into something beyond what I ever expected.

Our readership is now in the millions of visitors a month and to keep it all running we have a number of part time staff, 30+ semi-regular writers and some fantastic forum moderators.

One of the most common questions I get from readers is ‘how can I best get the new stuff you publish?

Over the years we’ve added a number of ways to get our fresh content including:

1. Newsletter

Every Thursday we send a free email to over 700,000 subscribers to our newsletter. It contains a summary of our new posts as well as anything else happening on the site.

To subscribe simply put your email address in the field below:

2. Facebook

We publish links to any new posts that we publish as well as running a few polls and discussions each week on our Facebook page. There’s also some great discussion happening between our 140,000+ Facebook Followers.

3. Twitter

Every time we publish a new post we tweet a link to it on our Twitter Account

4. Pinterest

We use our Pinterest account to not only share our content but also to share links to other photography related tips and tutorials being published around the web – Join over 15,000 other followers here.

5. RSS Feed

If you use an RSS reader (we recommend Feedly) you can add our RSS feed link to it to get updates every time we publish something new (note, if you subscribe via Google Reader please note that Google Reader will stop working in the coming months – it’s time to find another feed reader!)

6. Forum

Our forum area is another great place to connect with other dPS readers – it has over 240,000 members and is a great place to share your photos, ask for and give critique, ask and answer questions and just talk photography. Join our Forum here.

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

6 Free Ways to Improve Your Photography [Get More out of dPS]


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100 Cameras — How to Improve Kids’ Lives Through Photography

30 Apr
Photo by Brooke Schwab

Photography is a solo sport. It’s just you and your camera out there!

You’ve asked yourself a million times how you can make a difference with your photo skills, and 100 cameras figured it out.

This non-profit gives cameras to kids in developing communities around the world. Which is so great!

The kids are then able to sell their own photos giving them educational resources, healthcare, and lifeline supplies. Even greater!

These new photogs also learn about empowerment — they first-hand experience their own talent and skill positively affecting their communities.

Remember the first time you felt you could make a difference? Suddenly you felt like you could do so much! One empowering experience is all it takes.

BTW! 100 Cameras is actually raising funds to launch 100 Cameras 2.0, which will let anyone start their own photo community. Helping kids with photography? Sounds like a no-brainer!

Help Kids via 100 Cameras

p.s. Attention gadget lovers – we’re hiring for a Buyer aka Treasure Hunter. Apply here.

Related posts:

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  2. How Shooting Just One Thing Can Improve Your Photography Chops ~Have a cool photo product or site? Reach 270,000 photo…
  3. See Through Your Kids’ Eyes, Wirelessly Upload from Their Camera to a Flickr Stream The little ones in our lives are fascinating people. They…


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Buildings That Don’t Exist: Fake Facades Hide Infrastructure

30 Apr

[ By Steph in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

Fake Building Facades 1

From the sidewalk, this Paris building looks just like those around it, complete with doors, windows and balconies. but take a look at Google Maps, as Paul of the blog Paris by Cellphone did, and you’ll notice something strange: there’s nothing behind that facade. Like many others all over the world, this ordinary-looking building is just a shell to disguise unsightly infrastructure.

Fake Building Facades 2

Fake Building Facades 3

The building, at 154 Rue La Layette, is hiding a giant ventilation chimney for the metro. The chimney is about as large as one of the real buildings that surround it. In another location in Marais, artist Julien Berthier constructed a false door to go on the side of one of these buildings that wasn’t quite as well-disguised.

Fake Building Facades 6

The facade meets local architectural codes and bears an address plate reading ‘J.B. & S.B. Specalistes.’ Wonder how many people have knocked on it over the years, waiting for someone to answer?

Fake Building Facades 4

BLDGBLOG discovered another such facade, in Brooklyn. The windows of this particular house are blacked out, making it a bit curious. What are those people trying to hide? Upon closer examination, answer is revealed: it’s a ventilator for the subway. Once, it was a real brownstone, built in 1847, but it was gutted in 1908 when subway service was started in Brooklyn. See more photos of the facade at BLDGBLOG.

Fake Building Facades 5

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle explains, “the exit disguised as a brownstone leads to a grimy-lit set of metal stairs that ascend past utility boxes and ventilation shafts into a windowless room with a door. If you opened the door, you would find yourself on a stoop, which is just part of the façade.”

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[ By Steph in Architecture & Cities & Urbanism. ]

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Just Posted: Fujifilm X20 review

30 Apr

front-layered-black.jpg

We’ve posted our 15-page review of Fujifilm’s X20 premium compact camera. This follow-up to the X10 adds a new X-Trans CMOS sensor, Hybrid AF system, and enhanced optical viewfinder, while retaining the fast lens, rangefinder-inspired body, and numerous manual controls of its predecessor. Is this the enthusiast compact camera you’ve been waiting for?  Follow the link to find out.

News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Lens reviews update: 70-200mm lenses added to our test data widget

30 Apr

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As part of our ongoing collaboration with DxOMark we’ve added more lenses to our test data comparison widget. These include a range of 70-200mm zooms from Canon, Nikon, Tamron and Sigma, and the Nikon-mount version of the Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM tested on both the D7000 and D800. Click through for links to view these lenses in our widget, and for the full data on DxOMark.

News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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