Photography -- Engadget

photography posts

Leica X1 photo gallery proves that big shots do come in little packages

by Darren Murph posted Nov 8th 2009 at 11:48AM

For those who've never really understood the mystique and allure surrounding Leica's retro-styled cameras (and their stratospheric price tags), here's a gallery of shots that might just lend a little insight into the fixation. The outfit's X1 was announced back in September, though initial shipments aren't expected to begin across the pond until early 2010. That said, the shutterbugs over at dpreview managed to procure one ahead of time, and they've hosted up a cornucopia of sample images from the currently unpriced compact. Go on and give that read link a look if your interest in piqued -- we're guessing you'll come away wishing your SD200 could produce similar results.

Digital camera inventor Steve Sasson collects honorary PhD, Economist award

by Vladislav Savov posted Oct 29th 2009 at 7:04AM

If there's one thing we know about geeks, it's that they hate having nothing to do. Bill Gates has filled his spare time collecting knighthoods and Harvard degrees, and Steve Sasson -- inventor of the first, and assuredly biggest, digital camera -- is now following in his distinguished footsteps. Sasson perfected a microwave oven-sized 0.01 megapixel prototype while working for Kodak way back in 1975, and has now been awarded an honorary PhD for his troubles from the University of Rochester. The man, the geek, and the legend (all the same person) will be in London later today receiving further recognition, in the form of The Economist's Innovation Award, which commends the "seismic disruption" his invention caused in the field of consumer photography. Funny, nobody gives us any awards for being disruptive.

Read - University of Rochester honorary doctorate
Read - The Economist Innovation Award

PhotoTrackr Mini geotagging device shrinks down, adds Mac and RAW support

by Darren Murph posted Oct 25th 2009 at 1:59PM

Looking for a geotagging solution that doesn't discriminate based on what kind of camera you have? Looking for one that can fit snugly into your Fifth Pocket? The PhotoTrackr Mini looks to be that very device, boasting a diminutive thumb drive-esque appearance and the same geotagging technology as found in the original. Put simply, the device works by syncing the time of your camera with bundled software; when you're back from a shoot (a shoot where your device also was), you just allow the application to figure out where a given shot was snapped at what time. There's also Mac and RAW file format support on this model, neither of which were compatible with the prior version. Pre-orders are being accepted now at $69, and the first shipments are expected to go out next month.

Continue reading PhotoTrackr Mini geotagging device shrinks down, adds Mac and RAW support

Epson adds tethering, remote shutter release to P-6000 and P-7000 photo viewers

by Darren Murph posted Oct 22nd 2009 at 3:19PM

Epson's P-6000 ($599.99) and P-7000 ($799.99) Multimedia Viewers were always a bit too rich for our blood, but those hemming and hawing might just have the final bit of motivation they need to pull the trigger. A forthcoming firmware update for the 80GB and 160GB (respectively) photo viewers brings along a hotly-anticipated new feature: tethering. Put simply, pro shooters (and novices, we guess) can now connect select Nikon and Canon DSLRs to their photo viewer via USB, and in real time shots will be simultaneously captured to the camera's memory card and the viewer's hard drive. Moreover, the update includes a remote shutter release function for added convenience, though we're sad to say that the retail pricing of these buggers hasn't budged. If you're a proud owner already, keep your eyes glued to Epson's support site -- the download should go live in "late-October."

[Via Slashgear]

Stanford's open-source camera could revolutionize photography, you'll still use 'Auto' mode

by Darren Murph posted Sep 6th 2009 at 1:10PM

Here's the moment where you pretend that a breakthrough in a given industry would just revolutionize the way you do work, yet you know -- deep down in your heart -- that you'd never take advantage. Okay, so maybe you would, but your friend wouldn't. At any rate, a gaggle of boffins at Stanford have set out to "reinvent digital photography" with the advent of the open-source digital camera. The idea here is to give programmers the power to conjure up new software to teach old cameras new tricks, with the hope being to eliminate software limits that currently exist. In fact, a prototype shooter has already been developed, with the Frankencamera hinting at a future where owners can download apps to their devices and continuously improve its performance and add to its abilities. The actual science behind the concept is stupendously in-depth, so if you're thinking of holding off on that new Nikon or Canon in 2034, you might want to give the read link a look for a little more encouragement.

[Via HotHardware]

Continue reading Stanford's open-source camera could revolutionize photography, you'll still use 'Auto' mode

Horseman VCC Pro adds a bellows and large-format functionality to your DSLR

by Nilay Patel posted Aug 20th 2009 at 3:11PM

Okay, so we don't think Horseman is marketing the $2,000 VCC Pro technical camera movement adapter to people like us who just want to make our DSLRs look fun and old-timey, but hey -- in addition to giving photographers ultra-precise control over depth of field and perspective, it also makes your DSLR look fun and old-timey. Comes in Nikon and Canon versions, as you'd expect, and it'll be available soon at pro photography shops. The rest of us will stick to wearing high-waisted pants and growing comical mustaches.

[Via SlashGear]

RED ONE mounted to UAV, flown around San Juan Island (Update: false alarm, it's a Panasonic)

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Aug 13th 2009 at 1:49PM

Never one to miss a chance to feature action-packed UAV footage on this space, here we have a behind-the-scenes look at the new Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band video for you. While it ain't exactly Hearts of Darkness or Burden of Dreams, sometimes there are more important things than pathos, obsession, and heartbeak -- in this case, up close and personal shots of AerialPan Imaging's custom-built remote control camera rig, complete with mounted RED ONE HD video camera. Not too many technical details for you, but there is enough remote controlled helicopter excitement to make you wish you were on location at San Juan Island with one of these bad boys. Check it out for yourself after the break.

Update: As one of our colleagues (and a couple eagle-eyed readers) so graciously pointed out, the camera mounted to the helicopter has the tell-tale markings (peep the on-board mic) of a Panasonic HVX200. Thanks, kids!

[Via CNET]

Continue reading RED ONE mounted to UAV, flown around San Juan Island (Update: false alarm, it's a Panasonic)

DraganFlyer X4 UAV puts the camera where it needs to be, even when the floor is lava

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Aug 11th 2009 at 8:37PM

It's been a while since we've heard from Draganfly, a name familiar to connoisseurs of unmanned aerial photography. The company's latest outing, the DraganFlyer X4, is a four-rotor UAV that measures only 30.5-inches across and since it ships with your choice of either a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX580, Watec WAT-902H2 Ultimate (for shooting in low light), FLIR Photon TAU (infrared), or the Highg Res 480 Board Camera (analog motion video with an 8GB DVR), we imagine that this thing ain't going to be cheap. That said, if you are a well-heeled creepy stalker, southern border vigilante, or even someone with legitimate military / industrial business, there are plenty of features to make it worth a second look, including: computerized stabilization, altitude hold (maintains its position in the air without user input), and an automatic landing feature that kicks in if the control link is lost. But most importantly for the airborne auteur, this guy sports a wireless video downlink that sends the viewfinder signal that can be displayed either on the device's handheld controller or a pair of video goggles, allowing real-time manipulation of zoom, tilt, and shutter settings. Get a closer look at the thing after the break.

Continue reading DraganFlyer X4 UAV puts the camera where it needs to be, even when the floor is lava

Halo LED spraycan lets you make grafitti the cheap, legal way

by Vladislav Savov posted Aug 10th 2009 at 10:51AM

If you're down with the latest freshness, like we know you are, you'll already be aware of light writing and the radical imagery that can be created through the use of long camera exposures and stop motion animation. Well, get ready to do your thing with even more style, thanks to the Halo LED spraycan -- a DIY project by Aissa Logerot -- which not only looks like the primary tool of al fresco art, it even recharges itself when shaken. While not quite as sophisticated as the Light Lane, this definitely makes our list of light-based paraphernalia we'd like to see more of. You'll find a few more shots after the break, plus a video of a well-known ad campaign featuring the light writing technique.

[Via Cool Hunting]

Continue reading Halo LED spraycan lets you make grafitti the cheap, legal way

Invisible flash produces photos without glares

by Laura June posted Jul 17th 2009 at 6:47AM

Dilip Krishnan and Rob Fergus at New York University have developed a dark or invisible flash which uses infrared and UV light to take photos in dark places without the nasty glare of a standard flash. Their dark flash camera is made by modifying a flashbulb so that it emits light over a wider range of frequencies and filters out the visible light, and removes filters that prevent the silicon image sensor from detecting IR and UV rays. This flash results in a crisp image which does not have correct color balance, and looks like night vision photography. To correct the colors of the image, the camera also takes a quick color image sans flash right after the dark flash image. The image produced in this second image is predictably grainy and unclear, but the colors are correct. Software is then used to combine the information from the photos to produce the final image (an example of which you see above). There are some minor problems with the method -- objects that absorb UV light (such as freckles!) do not show up using this method. The pair will present their work at the Siggraph conference in New Orleans in August.

LP960 UAV flies around, shoots high def photographs, video of its journey

by Laura June posted Jan 26th 2009 at 10:57AM

We've seen drones that do all kinds of things, but this one is on the special side. Lehman Aviation's just debuted its LP960 UAV -- a winged flyer that's just over three feet long, weighing under two pounds. The bot is equipped with a 10 megapixel camera, and its job is to zoom around snapping high resolution aeriel photographs and video of the area, while being controlled remotely. The man on the ground pulling the strings can also see what it looks like up above, making adjustments to the flight path accordingly. Check the video ater the break for a demo of the bird, and some examples of its work -- plus a stunning, moody soundtrack to boot. Oh, and if you were wondering, the LP 960 is priced at around $17,000.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

Continue reading LP960 UAV flies around, shoots high def photographs, video of its journey

President Obama's official portrait: the first ever taken with a digital camera

by Laura June posted Jan 14th 2009 at 3:54PM

You're now gazing at President Barack Obama's just-released official portrait -- the first of a U.S. president ever taken with a digital camera. That means we can peek at the EXIF data -- this fine specimen of portraiture was snapped with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II on January 13th, 2009 at 5:38 pm with no flash, using a 105mm lens stopped to f/10 at a 1/125 exposure, with an ISO of 100 by newly crowned official White House photographer Pete Souza. Nice work, Souza -- but we think it could use a few lens flares.

[Thanks, Penny]

Carl Zeiss combines spotting scope, digital camera with the PhotoScope 85 T* FL

by Samuel Axon posted Oct 20th 2008 at 12:44PM

Esteemed lens manufacturer Carl Zeiss is breaking new ground by releasing the PhotoScope 85 T* FL, a spotting scope that also serves as a seven megapixel digital camera -- just in case "super-zoom" wasn't enough for you. With 15 - 45x magnification, a focal length of 600 - 1800 mm, a flip-out OLED display, and an IR remote for vibration-free release, it's great for birdwatchers but perhaps even better for the paparazzi. Look for it in Spring or Summer 2009 if you're planning to profit off the next Amy Winehouse meltdown.

[Via PhotographyBLOG]

Kodak rolls out new image sensors at Photokina, one for Leica's S2

by Darren Murph posted Sep 24th 2008 at 9:37AM

We noticed that the writeup for Leica's newly unveiled S2 made mention of a new Kodak sensor, but we'll leave it to Kodak to do the boasting. Sure enough, the outfit responsible for this atrocity has rolled out a few new image sensors at Photokina 2008, one of which -- the KAF-37500 -- proudly resides in the aforementioned S2. The company is showcasing sensors for medium format rigs such as the Sinar HY6-65 (KAF-31600) and Hasselblad H3DII-50 (KAF-50100), though quite honestly, it spends more time gloating about what manufacturers it's partnering with than describing the technology. Oh well, so long as it keeps Kodak from focusing on its pathetic point-and-shoot lineup, we'll keep smiling.

Third time's a charm: Jobo re-re-launches photoGPS geotagger

by Darren Murph posted Sep 18th 2008 at 7:45AM

You've got to be kidding us, right? Since February of 2007, Jobo has been dangling this unicorn-like geotagger in our faces and threatening to launch every six months or so, and right on cue, the company is back with yet another claim of "it's almost here." This time at Photokina 2008, the outfit is asserting that its $159 GPS-packing add-on, which automatically geotags images of any camera it's docked on, is just one month away from being released in the US. Or, the Windows version at least -- Mac users will have to wait until the end of this year. Or next. Or the next. Or maybe even the next.

[Via CNET]