dSLR Dad

Douglas Brown over at the Luminous Landscape has posted a field review of the Olympus Evolt E-3 dSLR (Available at Amazon and B&H Photo):

When you look back at the standout photos you’ve taken in a year most of the major thought process and effort that went into them had very little to do with the technology of photography. Joss Stone starts vamping at a press event, turns and shoots a look over her shoulder that’s pure, delicious trouble, then sticks her tongue out at you, and believe me you aren’t thinking shadow noise, sensor size, or dumping your current system because some other maker’s camera would be able to shoot the images 1 frame per second faster. You’ve got that camera up to your eye, unconsciously moving slightly to keep distracting background elements out of the way, while simultaneously thumbing the focus point over the eyes, firing a burst then zooming in closer for a second one (because closer is always better). You are running on muscle memory.

In too many of these kind of photographic moments the E3 stumbles over itself. Awkward positioning of major controls, buttons that are small or flush with the camera surface making it difficult to positively locate them, (more…)

Popularity: 17% [?]

Tags: Digital Photography, Evolt, feature, Luminous Landscape, Olympus, Olympus dSLR, Olympus E 3, Olympus E3, Olympus SLR, report, review, SLR

Canon USA also announced today that the new EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-55.6 IS zoom lens and EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS zoom lenses are now available.

The following is an excerpt from the Canon USA Press Release: (more…)

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Canon announced their new EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS lens back on August 20, 2007 along with new EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Amazon, B&H Photo). It is not yet shipping, but Klaus Schroiff over at PhotoZone.de has already picked up a sample for review.<

Technically the Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS is a tiny lens with a great performance potential. The resolution is very good across the range. Chromatic aberrations are basically a non-issue. The level of distortions remain moderate. The most obvious flaw is, unsurprisingly, vignetting at large apertures. The build quality is fine for a lens in this class and it is one step up from the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS that we’ve seen here recently. Regarding the target market you may surely forgive the plastic mount. The AF (micro-) motor is pretty fast and silent. So’s everything cool here ? Well, the AF accuracy didn’t really convince in the field - specifically at the wide-end of the zoom range - but to be fair this is much better on an EOS 40D (e.g.) with its improved AF capabilities. I had some trouble with the image stabilizer in the field but according to early reader feedback this impression seems to be an exception to the rule. If so the EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS has certainly the potential to be another hot seller.

You can read the full review here.

Popularity: 46% [?]

A Scott Kelby Retrospective

Scott Kelby, the Photoshop master, has written a new year’s retrospective on all things Photoshop for the year 2007.

For my last post of the year, I thought I’d take a quick look back at what has just been an amazing year of change, innovation, and growth for our industry. I’m going to focus on what’s happened in the Photoshop arena, in photography, what’s happened here in my Photoshop Insider blog, and how it’s impacted our lives (and my own work), throughout this year (which seems like it literally just flew by).

You can read the entire article here. You can also view all of Scott Kelby’s Books at Amazon here.

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40D Body only Price of $1,149

Happy Holidays everyone. Nikon ramps up production on the D300, and then all of a sudden, Canon lowers the price on the 40D. Right now, you can get the Canon EOS 40D for $1,149 at B&H Photo. That’s $150 off (more…)

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Is it better than the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens through the same range?

PhotoZone puts Canon’s latest entry level EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens (Amazon and B&H Photo) through the test, and the results are impressive for a kit lens:

The Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS is the next generation budget “kit” lens for Canon EOS APS-C DSLRs. It is a long awaited and, frankly, urgently needed successor for the rather mediocre EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II which was not able to convince anymore ever since the release of EOS 20D. However, Canon did not only improve the optical design - they also added an image stabilizer, changed the finish and introduced circular aperture blades for a better bokeh (out-of-focus blur). (more…)

Popularity: 20% [?]

Nikon’s been getting a lot of the press recently, but Canon has new cameras too. The new 40D was announced the same time, but has been shipping since early fall. With that, I present you dSLR Dad’s with all the information you need to justify spending more money. (more…)

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ThinkTank Photo, maker’s of some of the best camera bags out there (see the dSLR Dad Holiday Gift Guide), is offering a coupon for a free gift with any total purchase over $100. The offer ends December 31, 2007. You can download the coupon here.

Popularity: 6% [?]

(Updated 12/10) As a follow up to yesterday’s post about the Canon IPF5000 17″ Printer for under $800, I have found another great deal for you dSLR Dad’s.

Amazon has the Canon EOS 30D dSLR (Body Only) for $799. That is $100 less than B&H Photo also has it for $799 (a common theme I’ve noticed this Holiday season). Now true, the Canon EOS 40D is a full model change from the 30D, but it’s still $400 more. For those of you dSLR Dad’s who were considering a Canon Digital Rebel XTi for Christmas, this would be a great step up in performance, durability, and resale value for just $250. You can buy it at either the dSLR Dad Amazon Storefront (post comments to let me know what you think of it) or at the regular Amazon site. As always, these links help to support this site. And I would like to thank all of you dSLR Dads who have done so this Holiday season. You have made it possible (more…)

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Amazon has the Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS SLR Lens available now for order. This has Canon’s latest optical Image Stabilizer (IS) technology which provides up to 4-stop compensation for image blur caused by camera shake and slow shutter speeds. (more…)

Popularity: 6% [?]

Sigma has updated their APO 70-200mm F2.8 EX DG Macro HSM Lens. They improved the optical performance and minimum focusing distance to 100cm/39.4in and a maximum magnification of 1:3.5. Two SLD and three ELD glass elements are now used to provide excellent correction for all types of aberrations.

B&H Photo currently has the Canon mount in stock here. For those of you interested, they are available for pre-order in Nikon and Canon mounts over at the dSLR Dad Amazon Store. Of course, they will also be made available in a Sigma SLR mount. (more…)

Popularity: 7% [?]

Sigma has updated their 50-150mm EX DC HSM f/2.8 Large aperture telephoto zoom lens designed exclusively for digital SLR cameras. The new lens design ensures higher image quality at a minimum focusing distance of 100cm/39.4 in.

For those of you interested, they are available for pre-order in Nikon and Canon mounts over at the dSLR Dad Amazon Store. Of course, they will also be made available in a Sigma mount.

(more…)

Popularity: 6% [?]

Tags: canon, Digital Photography, EX DC, EX DG, f2.8, HSM, Lens, lenses, nikon, photography, Sigma, SLR, telephoto, zoom

Moose Peterson, wildlife and landscape photographer extraordinaire, has launched a new section of his site devoted to the Nikon D3. As a Nikon Legend Behind the Lens, he has had the opportunity to shoot extensively with the D3 over the last month.
I really enjoyed shooting with the Nikon D3, know you will as well! This is just a user report based on my first month of shooting with the D3. (more…)

Popularity: 8% [?]

xTrain.com has posted a page of free Classes that are available to those who sign up. Of particutalr note to you dSLR Dad’s:

• Exposure Modes
• Black and White Experiments in Photoshop
• Learn the Good, the Bad and yes, even the Ugly of photo retouching in Photoshop CS3 (more…)
  

  Popularity: 4% [?]

  Tags: Adobe CS3, Ben Willmore, Br. Brown, Digital Photography, google, google compliance, instruction, learn photography, Photoshop, Rick Sammon, search engine, viral videos

For all you new dSLR Dad’s out there, here are some adapted excerpts from Erin Manning’s new book Portrait and Candid Photography Photo Workshop.

1. Turn off your flash and use a fast shutter speed (she recommends 1/250 sec or higher, I recommend at least a 1/2 stop faster for toddlers) to capture the action and produce sharper images. Newborns can move unexpectedly, and older infants and toddlers are always on the move. If the light is too low and you cannot use a fast shutter speed, try increasing your ISO.

2. Focus on the eyes, the eyes are the first place people look when viewing a portrait, so make sure the baby’s eyes are in focus in your image. To ensure sharpness, use the autofocus lock.

3.Use continuous shooting mode. Babies are often in constant movement. This is where you action photography skills come in handy. By using continuous drive mode you won’t miss any moments-between-the moments. Keep taking pictures even after you think the moment has passed.

4. Remember the details. A baby’s fingers and toes are tiny for only a short time, so don’t miss the opportunity to photograph these details. Set your camera to macro mode and get in close to fill the frame.

You can order this wonderful book at the dSLR Dad Amazon Book Store.

via PopPhotoFlash

Popularity: 6% [?]