dSLR Dad

Pentax has released a firmware update for the K-7. According to Pentax, this firmware update, Version 1.01,incorporates the following fixes:

• Added [Operate at AF point “SEL”] on [Custom] menu and it can be selected either [1 Calling Function Preference] or [2 Select AF point Preference].
  When selected [2 Select AF point Preference] and AF point switching dial is set at [SEL], selection of AF point can be operated priority by the four-way controller.
  How to operate additional function, Click Here.
• Improved stability for general performance
  For example: when left- end focus point is selected, function of auto focus may rarely become unstable in particular shooting condition.

You can download firmware version 1.01 from Pentax here.

Canon has released a firmware update for the Canon EOS 50D dSLR Camera. According to Canon, this firmware update, Version 1.0.7, incorporates the following fixes:

1. Corrects a phenomenon where captured images may tend to appear somewhat magenta depending on the shooting scene.
2. Fixes incorrect indications on the Arabic, Romanian, Spanish, and Ukrainian menu screens.

You can download firmware version 1.0.7 from Canon Global.

Canon has released a firmware update for the Canon EOS Rebel XSi/450D dSLR Camera. According to Canon, this firmware update, Version 1.1.0, incorporates the following fix:

• Supports the AF assist beam feature of the new flash, Speedlite 270 EX, which is scheduled to be released in April 2009.

You can download firmware version 1.1.0 from Canon Global.

Canon has released a firmware update for the Canon EOS 50D dSLR Camera. According to Canon, this firmware update, Version 1.0.6, incorporates the following fixes:

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Canon has released a firmware update for the Canon EOS 1D Mark III dSLR Camera. According to Canon, this firmware update (Version 1.2.5) incorporates the following fixes:

1. Corrects a phenomenon in which a displayed image becomes pitch-black if it is zoomed in on during Live View shooting.
2. Corrects a phenomenon in which “busy” may continue to appear on the camera if the USB cable is disconnected during USB communication.
3. Changes the error indications that are displayed on the camera. The error indications are further clarified to make the causes of errors easier to identify, and so that adequate support can be provided to our customers.

You can download firmware version 1.2.5 from Canon Global.

Olympus America has released a firmware update for the Evolt E-3 dSLR Camera. Version 1.3 incorporates the following changes:

• Allow E-3 users to select the AF target by pressing the arrow keys
• Improve AF accuracy when using fast lenses with f2.0 aperture
• Improve C-AF performance
• Improve battery life when using the HLD-4 battery holder

Instructions for how to upgrade your camera using the OLYMPUS Master 2 software can be found here.

Canon has released a firmware update for the EOS 40D dSLR Camera. According to Canon, Version 1.1.1 incorporates the following fixes and improvements:

1. Fixes a malfunction that in rare occurrence causes a low battery indication to be displayed when using the EF 85mm f1.2L II USM Lens. Depending on the battery check timing of the camera, the battery level displayed on the camera’s LCD data panel may shows Battery will be exhausted soon or Battery must be recharged, even though the battery capacity is sufficient.
2. Fixes a malfunction that in rare occurrence causes an Err 06 Self Cleaning Sensor malfunction to appear on the camera’s LCD monitor and LCD data panel, even when the Self Cleaning Sensor Unit is operating normally. This message may appear depending on the timing of when the camera is switch to the ON position.
3. Fixes a malfunction that prevents correct colors from being printed when direct printing. RAW images captured using the camera’s custom Picture Styles (Emerald, etc.), which have been downloaded from Canon’s Web site and registered under User Def. 2 or User Def. 3.
4. Modifies the level of subject brightness that causes the AF-assist beam to fire when using an external Speedlite.
5. Enables an external flash connected to the camera’s synchro terminal to fire even when the camera’s built-in flash is popped up.

You can view the complete instructions and download the latest EOS 40D firmware update from Canon Global.

By the way, the 10.1-Megapixel Canon EOS 40D is selling for well under $879 at Amazon.com right now..  I have pointed quite a few dSLR Dad’s this way on Twitter recently.  It’s a really good value for a camera of this caliber.

Canon has issued firmware update version 1.0.7 for the Canon EOS 5D Mark II dSLR Camera.  This firmware change is supposed to help with both the black dot and banding issues:

It improves and mitigates the following image quality phenomena.

1. “Black dot” phenomenon (the right side of point light sources becomes black)When shooting night scenes, the right side of point light sources (such as lights from building windows) may become black. The phenomenon may become visible if the images are enlarged to 100% or greater on a monitor or if extremely large prints of the images are made. This firmware improves and mitigates this phenomenon.
2. Vertical banding noiseIf the recording format is set to sRAW1, vertical banding noise may become visible depending on the camera settings, subject, and background. The firmware improves and mitigates this phenomenon.

This firmware revision also requires a software update to the Digital Photo Professional and Picture Style Editor software:

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 Critical Update (2008-3-16):  Adobe has yanked the Lightroom 1.4 and Camera RAW 4.4 downloads.  Lightroom users who installed 1.4 should uninstall that update and install Lightroom 1.3.1 (conveniently posted at the 1.4 download page).  There are instructions for dropping back to 1.3.1 at Lightroom Journal. The following major errors are occurring:

• EXIF Time Stamp Error
• DNG Conversion Error (in Windows only).  Something that freaked me out after converting 16GB of RAW files over the weekend.
• Olympus Conversion Error
• There are also reports that certain plugins are broken.

More details are available on the Adobe Lightroom Journal  blog here.

For all of you Adobe Camera RAW and Lightroom dSLR Dads. Adobe has released Camera Raw 4.4 (download available for Windows | Macintosh) and Lightroom 4.4 (Windows | Macintosh) updates.

Both updates support the following new Raw file formats:

• Canon EOS 450D (Rebel XSi/EOS Kiss X2)
• Fujifilm Finepix S100fs
• Nikon D60
• Olympus SP-570UZ
• Pentax K20D, Pentax K200D
• Sony Alpha A200, Sony Alpha A300, Sony Alpha A350

Update for Lightroom 1.4 (Windows | Macintosh):

The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 1.4 update is available for both Windows and Macintosh. It includes corrections for the following issues:

• Compatibility with legacy printer drivers on OS X 10.5 (Leopard) has been updated.
• Previous camera profiles identified in the Calibrate panel of the Develop module may have displayed poor results at extreme ends of the temperature and tint ranges. A new camera profile identified as Camera Raw 4.4 is now available and will be applied by default to all images without existing Camera Raw or Lightroom settings. The creation of new default profiles will also include the updated Camera Raw 4.4 profile. Images edited in Camera Raw or Lightroom with earlier profiles will retain the earlier profile value and visual appearance.
• In previous grayscale conversions the Color Noise setting was disabled and this could result in an image with excessive noise when grayscale channel mixing is applied (which is why I desaturated all of the colors to make a black & white). Both the tool and effect have been enabled in Lightroom 1.4 providing the ability to reduce noise in grayscale conversions. In order to return to the prior visual appearance, Color Noise reduction can be set to zero.

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Sony has released a new firmware revision to their A700 dSLR (Amazon, B&H Photo)

Benefits over firmware version 2:

• Resolves an issue where the Access Lamp remains lit and the camera stops responding when several pictures are taken in rapid succession.
• Resolves an issue where powering the camera off while in “MR” mode may cause some registered settings to carry over to other shooting modes.

Additional benefits over other firmware versions:

• Sharper images for pictures taken under low contrast conditions
• Reduced noise for pictures taken at ISO 3200
• Improved flash control for objects closer than 1 meter with non ADI controlled lenses

You can visit the download page here.