When taking school portraits, the photographer’s job is usually to get each child to smile. This photographer instead tries to get them to stop smiling, with great success until he meets one girl. Of course, I don’t believe the scenes of the girl smiling and the increasingly frustrated photographer are necessarily related but it looks like that. And what with the Mamiya C330 Twin Lens Reflex camera? Nice touch! Another nice touch are the school pictures of the guilty parties.

Source: vimeo.com via Photoxels on Pinterest

Pentax K-01

“The Pentax K-01 is a bulky yet stylish camera that offers excellent image quality when paired with a quality lens. The size and ergonomics are certainly not for everyone, and the autofocus is way too slow for action shooters.“

We’ve added a new Pentax K-01 [QuickPrice Check] Review to our Reviews Matrix.

DCRP (dcresource) has just published their review of the Pentax K-01, with 16.28MP resolution (on a 23.7 x 15.7 mm APS-C CMOS image sensor), sensor-shift Shake Reduction Image Stabilization, 3.0-in. LCD (921k-dot), No Viewfinder, PASM, Digital Filters, Sutter Speed 30-1/4000 sec. plus Bulb, Ultrasonic Vibration Dust Removal, In-camera HDR, RAW, built-in Flash, Hotshoe, Focus peaking mode, Continuous Shooting 6fps, and Full HD Movie 1920x1080p 30/25/24fps with built-in mono (or optional external stereo) microphone.

You can read the Pentax K-01 Review @ DCRP (dcresource).

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Here is this week’s (April 28-May 4, 2012) digital camera review roundup:

• DPReview gives its Gold Award to the Olympus OM-D E-M5 [QuickFact Sheet] since it “is, without question, the most accomplished Micro Four Thirds camera we’ve yet seen and [...] it vies for the title of most capable mirrorless option yet.“
• PhotographyBLOG highly recommends the Nikon COOLPIX S9300 [QuickPrice Check] for “the pictures were lovely and sharp though and the low-level light performance is also pretty good thanks to the lens and a good noise result from the back-illuminated sensor.“
• ePHOTOzine highly recommends the Olympus OM-D E-M5 [QuickFact Sheet] concluding that “for anyone doubting the ability of mirrorless / compact system cameras, this is the camera that should answer a lot of concerns.“
• PhotographyBLOG highly recommends the Nikon D4 [QuickPrice Check] finding that it “is an extremely well built and responsive camera that seems to react instantly to anything you throw at it.“
• CameraLabs reviews the Samsung NX200 and finds that it “has a lot going for it. It’s a serious well-built camera with ample physical controls, some clever features and excellent image quality.“
• DigitalCameraInfo likes the Olympus OM-D E-M5 [QuickFact Sheet] and recommends it for “if you’re looking for a retro-inspired interchangeable lens camera that, like cameras of old, can take some abuse and some great photos at the same time, then the E-M5 is an attractive option.“
• ePHOTOzine recommends the Fujifilm FinePix HS30EXR [QuickPrice Check] as “a camera with a lot of zoom capable of taking bright colourful photos.“
• For more camera reviews, to get a second opinion, and just to read the best reviews on the Web, visit our Reviews Matrix.

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Fujifilm FinePix HS30EXR

“The Fujifilm FinePix HS30EXR is a camera with a lot of zoom capable of taking bright colourful photos.“

We’ve added a Fujifilm FinePix HS30EXR [QuickPrice Check] Review to our Reviews Matrix.

ePHOTOzine has posted their review of the Fujifilm FinePix HS30EXR, a 16MP resolution (1/2-in. EXR CMOS) ultra zoom digital camera with 30x ultra wide-angle optical zoom (24-720mm equiv.), manual zoom lens, Sensor-shift image stabilization, 3.0-in. Tilting LCD display screen (460k-dot), built-in EVF (920k-dot), 8fps high speed continuous shooting (16MP, max. 8 frames), High Speed Movie (320fps), Best Frame Capture Mode, Motion Panorama 360, Auto, Multi Frame Composition (Background Blur), Pro Low-light Mode, Film Simulation Mode, Film Simulation Bracketing, AE Bracketing, Dynamic Range Bracketing, Scene Modes, PASM, RAW file format, hot shoe, and Full HD 1080p movie 1920×1080 pixels at 30fps with stereo sound. An optional Remote Release (RR80) is also available.

You can read the Fujifilm HS30EXR Review @ ePHOTOzine.

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The mirrorless DSLR is steadily gaining ground against traditionally mirrored DSLR. This is not rocket science since the ONLY reason the DSLR came about was to fix the parallax problem inherent in the rangefinder camera design. With the photographer looking through the optical viewfinder while the camera recording what came through its lens, close ups and telephoto shots were very difficult, if not impossible, to frame correctly. The DSLR with its mirror that reflected the lens coming through the lens up into the optical viewfinder solved that problem, allowing the photographer to see exactly what came through the lens — no matter what lens was attached to the camera.

The mirrorless DSLR goes one step better: it allows the photographer to see not only what comes through the lens, but also exactly what will be recorded on the image sensor! You can’t get better than that (for now).

The mirrorless DSLR design is obviously so much better than the traditional mirrored design that it is a mystery (OK, so it isn’t, it’s all about marketing and fear of cannibalizing current DSLR sales and losing lucrative $$$) why manufacturers of traditional DSLR cameras haven’t wholeheartedly joined the mirrorless paradigm shift.

So it is with great interest that I read the article at Luminous Landscape by Richard Sexton titled “A Critique of Contemporary Camera Design.” I quote:

Third, and most importantly, I firmly believe that when we look at mirrorless cameras we are looking at the progenitors of all future digital cameras. The mirror box and pentaprism, which enables us to see what the lens sees before an image is recorded, is no longer the only way to do it. Composing, focusing, and metering directly off the sensor is arguably the best way to do it and it’s what we do every time we use live view on a DSLR. An EVF is merely eye-level live view. So, the entire reflex housing, which is a significant cost of the camera’s design; contributes to additional noise and vibration when a capture is made; and adds to the mass of the camera itself; may very well go the way of the mechanical watch.

Read the article at: Luminous Landscape.

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Is Instagram being polluted with photos shot on DSLRs and post processed in Photoshop? An interesting article over at Imaging Resource asks whether Instagram should remain “pure” or be allowed to host photos post-processed elsewhere, e.g. in Photoshop? A look at the pictures on Instagram’s own blog suggests that some of the staff at Instagram itself probably use DSLRs and other non-smart phone cameras to post photos on Instagram.

You can read more and join in the debate at: Imaging Resource.

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Olympus OM-D E-M5

“If you’re looking for a retro-inspired interchangeable lens camera that, like cameras of old, can take some abuse and some great photos at the same time, then the E-M5 is an attractive option.“

We’ve added another Olympus OM-D E-M5 [QuickFact Sheet] review to our Reviews Matrix.

DigitalCameraInfo has published their review of the Olympus OM-D E-M5, a Digital Interchangeable Lens Compact System Camera with 16.1MP resolution (on a 17.3 x 13.0 mm 4/3 Live MOS Sensor), Sensor-shift Image Stabilization, Dust Reduction, an extra large 3.0-in. Tilt/Touch OLED (610k-dot), Eye-level electronic viewfinder (approx. 1.44M-dot, 120fps refresh rate), Intelligent AUTO (auto scene recognition), PASM modes, Scene Modes, Art Filters, Shutter speed range of 60 – 1/4000 sec. plus Bulb, Continuous Shooting at 9fps, RAW file format, Digital Leveler, MF Assist, a hot shoe, Multiple Exposure, Wireless flash control, and Full 1080 HD Movie (1920×1080/60i) with stereo sound in a Magnesium-alloy and Aluminum construction coupled with advanced splash and dust protection.

Read the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Review @ DigitalCameraInfo.

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Samsung NX200

“The Samsung NX200 has a lot going for it. It’s a serious well-built camera with ample physical controls, some clever features and excellent image quality.“

We’ve added a new Samsung NX200 Review to our Reviews Matrix.

CameraLabs has published their review of the Samsung NX200, a compact mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Camera (ILC) with 20.3MP on an APS-C CMOS (23.5 x 15.7 mm) image sensor, 3.0-in. AMOLED (Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode) display screen (614k-dot), Smart AUTO, PASM, Scene modes, i-Function, Smart Filters, In-Camera Panorama, RAW file, Continuous Shooting 7fps, and HD movie 1920 x 1080 @ 30fps with stereo sound.

You can read the Samsung NX200 Review @ CameraLabs.

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