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Archive for May, 2019

7 Ideas for Creative Lens Ball Photography [video]

25 May

The post 7 Ideas for Creative Lens Ball Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

In this video by our friends over at Cooph, you’ll learn 7 great ideas for creative lens ball photography to have fun with.

The 7 ideas for creative lens ball photography include:

1. Typography

Type some text and print it out (or find some text you already have) and photograph the lens ball on top. The ball acts as a magnifying glass and distorts the edges of the text.

Look for large letters on signage and displays and photograph the lens ball in front of it for a cool effect.

2. Split World

Look for corners with contrast to create a yin/yang effect.

3. Altering Structure

Find interesting flat structures to photograph the sphere against. The sphere will alter its structure and give it form.

Scan your lawn for flowers and photograph them through the sphere.

4. Inner Circle

Find round shaped objects that support the shape of the lens ball. Crawl into a tunnel (only a safe one, of course), set up your lens ball for the perfect shot.

5. Elements

Fill up a bucket with water. Set up your camera with a high shutter speed and have someone throw the lens ball out of the water bucket. You capture all the action.

Prepare lighter fluid and a spark (Editor note: actually, I don’t fully recommend this one unless you can absolutely do this safely. Fire is dangerous!!)

6. Portraits

Play with nature and your model for capturing cool portraits using the lens ball.

You can also have fun in the studio with this.

7. Abstract Spheres

Create custom backgrounds (cool wrapping paper or printouts will work great). Find interesting patterns too. These make for awesome shots using the lens ball.

Grids also work well. Place your grid in front of a colored wall and light it up. Put your lens ball in front and take some shots.

Bonus Tip:

Use light sabers and your ball for cool effects.

 

You may also find the following helpful:

  • How to Create Glass Ball Landscapes – 6 Techniques
  • Which Size Lensball is Best for Crystal Ball Photography?
  • How to Make Creative Photos with Prism Photography
  • Copper, Prisms, and Orbs, Oh My! – 3 Creative Techniques for People Photography
  • How to Take Unique Crystal Ball Portraits
  • 5 Photography Hacks to Improve Your Creative Photography

 

The post 7 Ideas for Creative Lens Ball Photography appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.


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First of the breed: Inside the GFX 100 pre-production assembly line

25 May

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Back in early March, I had the opportunity to visit Fujifilm’s main Taiwa camera assembly plant in Sendai, Japan. Among other things, the so-called ‘X Factory’ is where Fujifilm’s assembly line staff are currently putting together the company’s new 100MP flagship, the medium format GFX.

But when I visited, mass production was still some way off. Instead, a small dedicated production team was creating the very first working prototypes of the GFX 100, ready for beta testers and Fujifilm’s engineers to start working with. Prototypes are built largely by hand, and the process is time-consuming, expensive and fascinating. While we were shown every step, Fujifilm is understandably protective over some of the details, but has given us permission to publish a small number of images. Click through for a glimpse behind the curtain, and back in time, as the very first GFX 100 prototypes took shape earlier this year.

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Inside this unassuming building is where the magic happens. About 20 miles outside of Sendai, the main assembly building at Fujifilm’s Taiwa plant was quite badly damaged in the major earthquake of 2011. Closed for 7 years, it re-opened in 2018 after a 6-month renovation to both modernize the facility and make it safe for continued use.

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Here’s a finished GFX 100 sat on a table alongside its various components, broken out into the major ‘blocks’ which make up the guts of the camera. At Fujifilm’s request we’ve obscured the details of exactly how many parts make up the key parts of the camera, but to give you some idea of its complexity, the IBIS unit alone is comprised of more than 100 individual parts.

One of the interesting things about the GFX 100 is that its major imaging components are assembled into a single unit, structurally independent to the main body panels which make up the exterior chassis of the camera (i.e., the bits that you can see). Everything is ultimately connected, of course, but by integrating the sensor, IBIS unit and lens mount into a discrete unit, very precise alignment can be achieved – and maintained – even if the main body of the camera is subjected to physical stress or shock.

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

And here’s that IBIS unit in all its glory, with a 100 Yen piece alongside for scale. If you don’t have a sense of how big a 100 Yen piece is, it’s about the same seize as a US quarter and a British 10p piece.

While it’s clear that the IBIS unit takes up quite a bit of space, what’s surprising is that it isn’t larger, given the size of the sensor that it has to stabilize – and of course the weight of that sensor. In fact, four springs are incorporated to absorb sensor movement.

Fujifilm claims that the IBIS system should be effective up to 5.5EV by CIPA standards. While our experience suggests that you can’t rely on that kind of performance with every lens and in every shooting scenario, there’s no doubt that the system adds considerably to the camera’s versatility out of the studio.

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Here, a prototype GFX 100 undergoes one of several automated tests performed after initial assembly. Everything from shutter accuracy to IBIS calibration must be performed on a camera-by-camera basis, to ensure that each GFX 100 performs in exactly the same way. All of this calibration data is saved to a database stored by Fujifilm, and can be looked up by serial number if and when the camera comes in for service in the future.

This particular camera is fully assembled, but still waiting for its textured rubber body coating to be applied.

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Applying the rubberized body cladding is a difficult and very manual process. You can trust me on that, because the managers who gave me this tour let me try doing it myself, and my attempt at covering a section of the X-H1 was considered “very good”, because I only took twice as long as the experienced technician holding the timer and grinning encouragingly.

In fact, unlike final shipping cameras, which will be made on a semi-automated production line, these first prototype GFX 100 bodies are put together almost entirely by hand. We can’t show you pictures of the full process in this article (at Fujifilm’s request) but trust me that watching a human being manually solder every pin on the lens mount’s electronic interface perfectly, in mere seconds, using a single continuous piece of solder is a very humbling experience to a keyboard warrior like me.

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Here, an assembly line worker performs the exacting task of manually applying a section of the GFX 100’s textured rubber coating. Under the fingers of his left hand you can see a clear plastic window built into the camera’s main handgrip. ‘Window’ is a good word for it, because directly underneath this section of plastic is the GFX 100’s WiFi antenna. In contrast to magnesium alloy, WiFi signals can ‘see’ through plastic easily.

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Here’s a closer look at the ‘skeleton’ of the GFX. The chassis is made from magnesium alloy, with polycarbonate employed in various less structurally-critical places, such as the previously mentioned WiFi antenna ‘window’ and the battery tray door, parts of the facia around the vertical grip controls and so on.

Image supplied by Fujifilm and used with permission

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Here’s the skeleton with a little more flesh on its bones. One of the highlights of my tour of the prototyping line was getting my hands on the very first prototype, complete with 3D printed plastic parts and hand-finished buttons. Unfortunately, and for very understandable reasons, Fujifilm would prefer that I don’t show you a picture of it.

Image supplied by Fujifilm and used with permission

First of the breed: GFX 100 prototypes take shape

Here, a fully assembled and cosmetically finished prototype GFX 100 undergoes more testing before being released into the wild, where Fujifilm’s engineers and selected beta testers will put it through its paces.

Of course, hardware is only part of the equation. During the process of pre-release testing, prototype cameras like this might have literally hundreds of major and iterative firmware updates applied to them as features are added, removed and tweaked.

Tragically, like the replicants in Blade Runner, these first hand-built prototype test bodies are destined for a short service life. Once the beta testing program is complete, they’ll be returned to Fujifilm and reduced to their component parts. It’s too bad they won’t live – but then again, who does?

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Lomography announces Petzval 55mm F1.7 lens for full-frame mirrorless systems

25 May

Lomography has announced it’s opened pre-orders for the Petzval 55mm F1.7 MKII, its first lens designed specifically for full-frame mirrorless cameras.

According to Lomography, the lens ‘is created with discerning photographers and filmmakers in mind’ and ‘designed to allow full creative flexibility, with its 7 levels of Bokeh Control and Dual Aperture system.’ Like other Lomography lenses, the Petzval 55mm F1.7 MKII comes with various plates to shape the bokeh in images.

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Below is a gallery sample photos captured with the Petzval 55mm F1.7 MKII and shared by Lomography:

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The lens is available Sony E, Canon RF and Nikon Z mounts and comes in three varieties: black brass, satin-finish brass and black anodized aluminum for $ 499, $ 449 and $ 399, respectively. Pre-orders are open now; the first aluminum units are expected to ship in July 2019 and brass units will follow shortly after in August 2019.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Weekly Photography Challenge – Funny

25 May

The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Funny appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.

This week’s photography challenge topic is FUNNY!

Ben White

Go out and photograph your pets doing something funny, kids laughing or doing something funny, laughter in general, or anything that is funny or quirky at all (as long as it isn’t distasteful). As usual, they can be color, black and white, moody or bright. You get the picture! Have fun, and I look forward to seeing what you come up with!

Jakob Owens

 

Dominik Vanyi

Check out some of the articles below that give you tips on this week’s challenge.

Tips for Shooting FUNNY IMAGES

5 Non-Posed Ideas For Photographing Kids

How to Capture Authentic Photos of Children with These Simple Tips

21 Fun Images of People Laughing

7 Fun Photography Tricks to Try on Your Smartphone

Unposed Posing: Tried and True Tips for Photographing Families in Natural and Fun Ways

6 Tips for Photographing Dogs in Action

How to Shoot a Composite Image

Weekly Photography Challenge – FUNNY

Simply upload your shot into the comment field (look for the little camera icon in the Disqus comments section) and they’ll get embedded for us all to see or if you’d prefer, upload them to your favorite photo-sharing site and leave the link to them. Show me your best images in this week’s challenge.

Share in the dPS Facebook Group

You can also share your images in the dPS Facebook group as the challenge is posted there each week as well.

If you tag your photos on Flickr, Instagram, Twitter or other sites – tag them as #DPSfunny to help others find them. Linking back to this page might also help others know what you’re doing so that they can share in the fun.

The post Weekly Photography Challenge – Funny appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Caz Nowaczyk.


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Birth of the Renaissance: Shooting with the Fujifilm GFX 100 in Florence, Italy

25 May

All of the images in this article were shot with a pre-production Fujifilm GFX 100 and are used with permission. Image quality may not represent exactly the output from final shipping cameras but is likely to be extremely close. Likewise, images of the camera may show minor cosmetic differences compared to final shipping units.

It’s exceedingly rare that I get to feel cool, especially at work. But every now and then an opportunity arises to do something, go somewhere or see something that makes me pinch myself. Just such an opportunity came up recently, when I spent a week shooting with a pre-production sample of Fujifilm’s new GFX 100 in Florence, Italy – the birthplace of the Renaissance.

I’ve been fascinated by the GFX 100 since we got a sneak peek of the camera still under development, earlier this year. And 18 year-old me loved the few days I spent in Florence in 2000, the summer before I went off to waste British taxpayers’ money for four years at university. Nineteen years on, could I recreate the sights and sounds of that heady teenage summer? Unlikely. And probably for the best. But at least this time I wouldn’t have to carry around a bag full of 35mm film.

The camera I was shooting with in Italy would have blown my teenage brain (admittedly not a difficult thing to do). Officially a beta test sample, Fujifilm handed over a pre-production GFX 100, running non-final firmware.

During shooting I did indeed experience occasional glitches, and some aspects of the camera’s performance and operation were very obviously unfinished. As such, this is not going to be a detailed, review-style write up of my experience. It can’t be. So given all of these caveats, what can I actually say about the camera?

Well: It sure does smell nice! Congratulations – you just read the shortest ever shooting experience article on DPReview.

Proud parents rejoice: Finally, a 100MP medium format camera that’s fast and responsive enough for quick grab shots of a toddler. With face and eye-detection and PDAF, the GFX 100 is a powerful portrait camera in autofocus mode.

ISO 160 | 1/320 sec | F2.8 | 45mm F2.8

If you’re still reading this, you either figured out I was joking, or you’re predisposed not to believe what you read on the Internet. Either way, thanks for sticking around.

There’s actually quite a lot I can say about shooting with the GFX 100, predictable pre-production bugs and glitches notwithstanding. Ironically, perhaps my biggest takeaway from using it for a week was just how finished this supposedly unfinished camera felt. In almost all important respects, the prototype GFX 100 camera I was using just worked. It worked so well in fact, and so intuitively, that within a few hours I wasn’t paralyzed by worry over the enormous responsibility of chaperoning a hand-built, embargoed, prototype camera around a foreign country. I was just enjoying the experience of shooting with it. And the pizza. I really enjoyed the pizza.

With its EVF attached, the GFX 100 actually has almost exactly the same ‘footprint’ as a Nikon D5

Compared to the GFX 50S and 50R, the GFX 100 offers a handling and shooting experience that is largely familiar, but in some ways quite different. The most obvious difference is that it’s a lot bigger than either camera. The integrated vertical grip accepts two batteries, and increases the size of the body to roughly that of a professional DSLR. With its EVF attached, the GFX 100 actually has almost exactly the same ‘footprint’ and weighs about the same as a Nikon D5, although of course its mass is distributed within a slightly different form factor. With the EVF removed, the GFX 100 is actually much easier to pack into a bag or hard case than a D5 or Canon EOS-1D X II, since it basically becomes a square slab.

The GFX 100’s EVF is removable, at which point the camera becomes much easier to pack into a bag or case for storage.

The second major difference compared to earlier GFX models is that Fujifilm has ditched the consciously retro styling of the older cameras in favor of a somewhat more severe, push button and dial-driven interface of the kind pioneered back in the 80s by Canon in the T90 and EOS-1 series SLRs.

Much as I respect Fujifilm’s tendency to put big chunky dials on many of their cameras from an aesthetic point of view, I don’t tend to use them in practice. Come to think of it, I haven’t used a shutter speed dial on a multi-mode camera since the Nikon F4. Since these days I tend to shoot using automatic ISO, that dial stays locked to ‘A’, too. I appreciate a physical dial for exposure compensation, but I can live without it.

It’s harder to unintentionally press a button and simultaneously scroll a command dial than it is to knock a dedicated dial out of position

As such, I have no problem with the GFX 100’s more button-driven interface, and in fact in a camera like this I tend to prefer it. When it comes to preventing accidental setting changes, it’s much harder to unintentionally press a button and simultaneously scroll a command dial than it is to knock a dedicated dial out of position against your hip, or when moving the camera in and out of a bag.

A lot of people seem unkeen on how the GFX 100 looks but I actually quite like it. Yes, it resembles an overgrown games console from the early 90s, and the blueish gray finish is very different to any other camera on the market, but it works, and hell, at least it’s different.

The rear screen is partially articulated, which is nice. But the ‘Q’ buttons on the two handgrips are very prone to be accidentally bumped. Here you can also see the lack of rubber coating on the vertical grip.

There are only three aspects of the GFX 100’s handling and operation which I feel could use some work. For starters, the exposure compensation buttons (one on the top plate, one on the vertical grip) are ergonomically different to one another, and both proved rather hard to locate when my eye was to the camera’s EVF. I fully expect that in final shipping cameras, it will be possible to repurpose the rear command dial for ‘quick exposure compensation’ in AE modes, and on that assumption, the exposure comp. button issue isn’t a show-stopper.

Harder to work around is the Q button – especially the one on the vertical grip – which I managed to constantly press by accident when I was handling the camera in preparation to bring it up to my eye. This is pretty much the same issue that has been widely reported with the X-T30, and to Fujifilm’s credit, a firmware update was swiftly issued to address the problem. My final gripe is a fairly minor one – I do wish that the vertical grip was a bit more contoured, and in contrast to the pleasantly textured rubber on the main grip, the bare metal can get a bit slippery after extended handling.

In pretty much every other respect the GFX 100 works very well. If you’ve used the X-T3 or one of its various stablemates, you’ll feel right at home. Even if you’re coming from a DSLR or mirrorless ILC from another manufacturer, the learning curve should be pretty shallow.

This image was shot during the 1/60sec interval in mid-May of this year during which there were no American tourists visible in Florence.

ISO 200 | 1/60 sec | F11 | 45mm F2.8

That’s the externals dealt with, but the real appeal of the GFX 100 lies less in what it looks like, and more in what it can do. And oh boy, it can do a lot. I’ve shot with the GFX 50S quite a bit, and I really enjoy using it, but even if I was a working commercial photographer I would probably never buy one. Files from the 50S are great, but they’re not technically better than the output of the best full-frame DSLRs and mirrorless ILCs. Meanwhile, the 50S’s autofocus performance and viewfinder experience – while usable – compare poorly to competitive full-frame and APS-C cameras. The GFX 50S and 50R are fantastic cameras, no doubt, but not fantastically better than the smaller and lighter alternatives I have at my disposal.

Reading through the spec sheet of the GFX 100, you get the sense that Fujifilm’s engineers were showing off

The GFX 100, on the other hand, blows the 50S and 50R out of the water. The viewfinder is sharper and clearer, the autofocus performance has been hugely improved (Fujifilm claims a more than 200% speed boost compared to the previous GFX models) and in every respect the camera just feels faster and more responsive. Not to mention the fact that it includes sensor-based image stabilization, and powerful 4K video features. In fact, reading through the official spec sheet of the GFX 100, you get the sense that beyond a certain point Fujifilm’s engineers were simply showing off – and who can blame them.

The detail in JPEG files from the Fujifilm GFX 100 is extraordinary, and we’re eagerly awaiting Raw support to really see what those pixels can do.

ISO 640 | 1/160 sec | F10 | 100-200mm F5.6

The fundamentally Big Deal here is that the GFX 100 is the first medium format digital camera to really compete with modern full-frame DSLR or mirrorless ILCs in terms of everyday shooting versatility. Obviously it’s not designed for shooting sports or action, but for portraiture, landscapes, travel and street photography, virtually the only thing that the GFX 100 can’t do is fit into a pocket.

We’re talking here about a 100MP hybrid stills / video camera with usable (in fact very good) autofocus that isn’t intended primarily for use in a studio. And for the first time, thanks to a new back-illuminated CMOS sensor, the GFX 100 should be able to deliver images that are not only bigger than contemporary full-frame cameras, but better. We’re still waiting to dig into the Raw files, but we’re expecting an increase in Raw dynamic range over both the GFX 50S and Nikon D850 at ISO 64.

Smaller sensor formats will probably always win in terms of ultimate versatility (the GFX 100’s sensor readout isn’t fast enough to match the silent shutter shooting abilities of, say, the Nikon Z7, but the GFX 100 gets impressively close. Taking a series of portraits in rapid succession (continuous shooting maxes out at 5 fps in 14-bit Raw mode) with face and eye-detection turned on, I kept forgetting I was shooting medium format.

All of those pixels are lovely, but they don’t come cheap. This JPEG file is 62MB in size, and 14 and 16-bit Raw files are even bigger. This could be a major consideration when it comes to file management and archiving.

ISO 160 | 1/220 sec | F11 | 45mm F2.8

Until I started to download the files, of course. One of the downsides of the GFX 100’s impressive operational speed is that you might find yourself burning through card space rather more quickly than you had anticipated. And with even JPEGs ranging between 30-70MB each, file management on a computer can be a frustrating experience. I wasn’t able to try out the 16-bit Raw mode with the camera we used in Italy, but with those files likely in the hundreds of megabytes each, 16-bit file storage could quickly become a headache.

The GFX 100 now offers phase-detection autofocus, covering almost 100% of the frame

While I don’t want to (and can’t) get into too much detail around specifics, I imagine you’d like to know how well things like autofocus, IBIS and video work on the GFX 100. The short answer in all cases is ‘very well, thanks for asking’. The GFX 100 now offers phase-detection autofocus, covering almost 100% of the frame. AF speed is still to some extent lens dependent (as we’d expect), but on a fast GF lens, like the 23mm F4, focus is acquired very quickly in AF-S mode, with no hunting in normal lighting conditions. I didn’t get the chance to test AF-C performance in any real depth, but I can say that it’s much improved over the GFX 50S/R, as we’d expect from a PDAF system.

The in-body stabilization system is rated according to Fujifilm for up to 5.5EV. In my shooting I didn’t see that kind of performance consistently, but I was able to shoot confidently down to at least 1/10 sec with the 45mm F2.8 prime attached, which allowed me to shoot in lower light and after a couple more glasses of Chianti than I could have done otherwise. Stabilization also gives you the option of introducing movement into images from (say) flowing water or traffic without the need to resort to a tripod.

This shot was taken hand-held using the GF 45mm F2.8 at 1/5sec. While very slight blurring is visible at 100%, the GFX 100’s in-body stabilization system has delivered an acceptably sharp image at well below 1/FL. The IBIS system greatly adds to the camera’s versatility in poor light.

ISO 800 | 1/5 sec | F5.6 | 45mm F2.8

While I was mostly focusing on stills, i did shoot some 4K video with the GFX 100 in Italy, and at its maximum 24p bitrate, footage looks incredibly detailed, with almost no noticeable noise even at ISO 3200. It almost seems surreal to be discussing 4K video shooting with a medium format camera, but video is far from an afterthought in the GFX 100’s feature set, and we’re looking forward to digging into this feature more when we get hold of a final camera.

For now, as you can probably tell, I’m very impressed. Obviously though, the GFX 100 isn’t for everyone. If you’re asking yourself ‘do I need 100MP?’ then the answer is almost certainly ‘no, you don’t – get off the Internet and go and play in the sunshine’. To be honest, I think photographers would be well-advised not to drop $ 10,000 on any camera unless they expect it to make some money back for them.

But if I was a commercial photographer or a professional wedding / portrait shooter, I would seriously consider the GFX 100, despite the substantial initial cost. It offers greater resolution and almost certainly better Raw image quality than any full-frame camera on the market, with none of the limitations or frustrations of previous medium format models. Add in-body stabilization, fast and effective autofocus and a human-friendly interface into the mix (and lest we forget, really good 4K video) and $ 10,000 doesn’t look unreasonable.

Fujifilm GFX 100 pre-production sample images

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Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Sony bumps Nikon from #2 spot as its global ILC market share increases 4% year-over-year

24 May
An illustration in Sony’s financial documents that shows how its Digital Imaging Business is positioned.

In a recent conference call with investors and analysts, Sony broke down the numbers and statistics of its digital imaging business for the 2018 fiscal year (FY2018). While there’s plenty of interesting tidbits to pull out, the most significant is that Sony is now reporting it has 24 percent of the global still camera market based on revenue, an increase in four percent compared to FY2017.

Sony’s global market share, based on revenue, from its FY2017 report.
Sony’s global market share, based on revenue, from its FY2018 report.

According to Sony’s report, its interchangeable lens camera (ILC) market share increased from 19 percent in FY2017 to 23 percent in FY2018, moving them to second place behind Canon and ahead of Nikon. Meanwhile, its compact camera market share increased from 26 percent in FY2017 to 29 percent in FY2018, moving them to the number one spot globally.

Despite Sony’s increase in the global market share, based on revenue, Sony’s report shows the still camera market as a whole decreased from ¥1,400 billion to ¥1,300 billion, a drop of 7.1 percent. Interestingly, this decrease is identical to the 7.1% drop in global digital camera unit sales according to the most recent report from the Camera & Imaging Products Association (CIPA).

Moving away from still images, Sony also reported that while its global market share in the video camera market remained at 29 percent, the overall market size, in revenue, dropped dramatically from ¥390 billion to ¥300 billion, a massive decrease of 23 percent.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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FAA expands LAANC capabilities to 100+ new airports

24 May

At the beginning of this month, the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Acting Deputy Administrator, Carl Burleson, announced that Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) would be made available to an additional 109 contract towers. The government agency has acted quickly since the news broke at AUVSI Exponential’s keynote presentation.

The FAA has expanded LAANC to increase access for commercial drone pilots in controlled airspace. Still in beta, LAANC was introduced to the public in November, 2017. Applications such as Kittyhawk, AirMap, and Skyward give qualifying remote pilots approval in real-time to access controlled airspace. Without LAANC, the process of getting approval via a waiver could take up to 90 days.

Approximately 600 airports are now covered by the LAANC capability. The FAA also mentions that the list of facilities taking part in LAANC will change. Some airports will drop it altogether. The full list airports added today can be viewed here.

Some major Class B, C, and D airports were added today including the following:

  • Austin-Bergstrom International (AUS)
  • Hartfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL)
  • Nashville International (BNA)
  • Bob Hope (BUR)
  • Denver International (DEN)
  • Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW)
  • Detroit Metro Wayne Co (DTW)
  • Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International (FLL)
  • John F. Kennedy International (JFK)
  • McCarran International (LAS)
  • Los Angeles International (LAX)
  • Orlando International (MCO)
  • Chicago Midway International (MDW)
  • Memphis International (MEM)
  • Miami International (MIA)
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul International/Wold-Chamberlin (MSP)
  • Louis Armstrong New Orleans International (MSY)
  • Metro Oakland International (OAK)
  • Ontario International (ONT)
  • Chicago O’Hare International (ORD)
  • Portland International (PDX)
  • Philadelphia International (PHL)
  • Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX)
  • San Diego International (SAN)
  • Seattle Tacoma International (SEA)
  • San Francisco International (SFO)
  • Salt Lake City International (SLC)

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Waterproof camera buying guide updated, Olympus TG-6 wins recommendation

24 May

We’ve updated our waterproof camera buying guide with the latest round of rugged compacts, and we’ve crowned a new winner as the best pick in the category: the Olympus TG-6. That is, unless you happen to find a good deal on the TG-5.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Elderly camera store owner suffers broken arm during violent robbery

24 May

K&R Photographics, located in Crescent Springs, Kentucky, is the latest camera shop to report the theft of expensive camera equipment. According to store co-owner Rob Kumler, who spoke with Cincinnati ABC affiliate WCPO, his 70-year-old wife and shop co-owner Wilma was attacked by masked, armed men who broke into the store on the afternoon of Wednesday, May 22.

According to Kumler, Wilma was thrown to the ground roughly and suffered a broken arm as a result. ‘Tens of thousands of dollars’ in high-end camera equipment was stolen. In addition to harming Wilma and stealing the hardware, the robbers accidentally dropped and destroyed a $ 12,000 camera.

The masked thieves were reportedly armed with a gun and a hammer; they are said to have immediately moved toward the most expensive equipment in the store, indicating that at least one had likely been in the store prior to the robbery. Four security cameras were live in the store at the time of the assault and theft.

Kumler points out that due to the expensive, high-end nature of the stolen equipment, the thieves will likely struggle to find buyers who both need the gear and are willing to purchase it without asking questions about its origins. ‘High-end cameras,’ Kumler said, ‘that’s a small market.’

The store maintains a Facebook Page, but hasn’t yet posted about the robbery; it’s unclear whether police or Kumler plan to publish a list of the stolen equipment’s serial numbers. The public is encouraged to contact Villa Hills law enforcement with any information related to the violent robbery.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Samsung researchers create AI that transforms still images into talking portraits

24 May

Researchers with the Samsung AI Center in Moscow and the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology have published a new paper detailing the creation of software that generates 3D animated heads from a single still image. Unlike previously detailed AI systems capable of generating photo-realistic portraits, the new technology produces moving, talking heads that, though not perfect, are highly realistic.

‘Practical scenarios’ require a system that can be trained using only a few—or even a single —of a person rather than an extensive image dataset, the newly published study explains. To satisfy this requirement, researchers created a system for which ‘training can be based on just a few images and done quickly, despite the need to tune tens of millions of parameters.’

Using generative adversarial networks, researchers were able to animate painted portraits in addition to images, producing, among other things, a talking, moving version of the Mona Lisa. As demonstrated in a video detailing the study (below), final results vary in quality and realism, with some being arguably indistinguishable (at least at low resolutions) from real videos.

The researchers explain in their paper that the use of additional images to train the system results in life-like final results:

Crucially, only a handful of photographs (as little as one) is needed to create a new model, whereas the model trained on 32 images achieves perfect realism and personalization score in our user study (for 224p static images).

Some other issues remain with this type of system, the researchers note, including a ‘noticeable personality mismatch’ between the person featured in the still image(s) and the talking individual used to animate the portrait. The researchers explain, ‘if one wants to create “fake” puppeteering videos without such mismatch, some landmark adaptation is needed.’

The technology remains viable for purposes that don’t necessarily require a personality match, but rather the simple animation of a character that exists only as a small series of still images. Thus far, the technology only works on faces and the upper parts of one’s torso. It’s unclear whether the researchers plan to expand the system to include other body parts.

Samsung’s study joins past AI-based portrait work from NVIDIA, as well as non-portrait AI image generation, including the system NVIDIA debuted earlier this year — one capable of rapidly converting simple sketches into complex landscape images.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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