Blog, Photo, & Tech Updates
November 4, 2009
August 4, 2010
Below is a fantastic piece of equipment from Sinar. What more would you expect from these folks. If you want view camera capabilities without the bulk this is the piece of equipment to buy.
The Sinar p SLR can be used with all digital single lens reflex cameras (Canon, Nikon) that are currently available on the market. Thanks to the quick clamping adapter that is included with the set, the change from vertical to horizontal format can be performed with effortless ease within seconds.
When the single lens reflex cameras is connected directly to the camera via USB or FireWire, the integrated strain relief provides safety while working and protection of the USB / FireWire socket on the camera.
A positioning and centering aid serves for the exact positioning of the digital single lens reflex camera on the optical axis. This ensures that the sensor of the digital camera is positioned perfectly in both the vertical as well as the horizontal format setting. This function is indispensable for the unrestricted use of the advantages of the view camera and for working professionally.
August 4, 2010
Well here I am into the first week in August and way behind on my blog. No excuses at this time but I am taking down my Desktop Calendar Page due to a decrease in file size. Word Press at this time is putting a limit on file size at 2mb which for one photo is OK. My files for the monthly calendars have been over 2mb so it’s a no go for downloading. I will start up a new Desktop Calendar page at the start of 2011. The response and emails have been very positive so I look forward to getting back into producing them again.
May 2, 2010
Head over to my Backyard Captures post for a close look at this image titled Orchard Blooms. Extreme warm weather in south western Michigan about 3 weeks ago brought about many fruit trees to bloom early. Great for photography but not exactly good for the fruit crop. Michigan ranks third in the country for apple production. In the running are Washington and New York. Click on this link to take a look: http://www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/05/26/backyard-captures/
May 27, 2010
Time has really gotten away from me this month due to a power loss at my residence. I have lost power many times without a problem to anything including my computer. This time around the power got knocked out without any signs of loud, cracking thunderstorms. After the power went out and came back on within 2-3 minutes I proceeded to turn my computer back on-Could not get the hard drive to boot up normally. To make a long story short the hard drive was shot-being 75% prepared I have everything backed up on 3 external hard drives. What I did not prepare for properly was a battery backup surge protector. I am not referring to a simple surge protector strip you might waste your money on at your local hardware store or giant retailer that we all patronize. What you want for example is the APC battery backup system. The one I went out and purchased is the APC 550 VA ES Series. Simple but yet very effective for saving your data and equipment
Orchard Blooms
April 26, 2010
The May Desktop/Wallpaper is ready for downloading. Great image from the southwestern part of Michigan and showcasing one of the leading industry’s in the area-which you guessed it is fruit. Go to my Desktop/Wallpaper page and pick your screen resolution. I have made some changes to the sizes I am offering. One size that is the most popular or widely used is 1024 x 768. Over 50 % of individuals worldwide use this screen resolution.
April 1, 2010
The April Desktop/Wallpaper is ready and on time this month. Just head over to my Desktop/Wallpaper page and find your screen resolution. Click on the size you want and it will open in a new window. Right click the image, follow the instructions and your good to go. Hope you enjoy and please feel free to comment on these wallpapers if you like. I would really like to get your feedback so that I can improve on them.
March 1, 2010
New Desktop/Wallpaper for March is ready to make your computer screen that much more enjoyable to look at. Plus you will always know what deadlines are looming over the horizon!
Go to my Desktop/Wallpaper page http://www.dickberryphotography.com/desktop-wallpapers/ and click on the screen resolution that best matches your computer screen. If you don’t see your screen resolution listed feel free to email me and I would be happy to set one up for you. Thanks and enjoy!
Storm clouds over the Atlantic
Added a new image to my blog which can be found in my “North Pier Details” post. The shot is titled “Ice Triplets” and for me it’s a sign that maybe winter is reaching it’s end in our wonderful state of Michigan. Well maybe for us folks in the lower southwest region. You hardened winter people in the UP will still have snow on the ground towards the end of April. You can get to North Pier Details faster by clicking on this link:http://www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/01/20/details/
CBS 60 Minute video “Poisoned”
New video added to my Vidcast post urging all to read my article titled: “Africa without Lions” . Select the link and read the story: http://www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/03/05/vidcast/ . Please follow the link at the end of the article and sign the petition.
Thank you!
New month, new content, and a free desktop wallpaper with calendar so you never loose track of what day it is. If your screen resolution is 1920 x 1200 pixels this will work out just fine. Right click on the image and select “Set as Wallpaper”. Oh almost forgot you Mac people out there-I really don’t think I need to tell you what to do. If you have forgotten how to do so just select “Use Image as Desktop Picture”. Additional sizes to fit your screen can be found by clicking on the link: http://www.dickberryphotography.com/desktop-wallpapers/. Hope you like it and if you have any problems or comments on these new desktop wallpapers please contact me.
1920 x 1200 Resolution Desktop Wallpaper
Jan. 21, 2010
Sigma APO 200-500 F/2.8
Image: Sigma
Perhaps the most “wanted and or “needless” of the items presented in this list, this is one of the biggest telephoto zoom lenses for SLR cameras around. While the zoom range of 200-500mm is nothing new or exciting, it’s the maximum aperture of an incredible f/2.8 throughout the focal range that makes this such a special lens. This little puppy only weighs about 35 pounds so you won’t get too tired hauling this around in the field or maybe your next sport shooting assignment!
While a lot of telephoto lenses have a distinct cannon barrel look, Sigma have apparently done all they can to enhance that trait, giving the lens a green finish. The end result is an extremely fast telephoto zoom lens that could easily be confused with a surface-to-air missile launcher.
Zeiss Apo Sonnar T* 1700 mm F4
Image: Zeiss
For people who have been into photography for a while, the name Carl Zeiss means top of the line optical quality, usually with a matching price tag. While continuing to produce their top-of-the-line optics for various camera systems, Zeiss have more recently also begun cooperating with Nokia and Sony, making optics for their mobile phones and digital cameras.
Two years ago, the company presented a remarkable one-off telephoto lens, reportedly custom built for a wealthy Qatari. Weighing in at about 565 pounds, it’s is a 1700mm f/4 lens designed for medium format (which roughly equals 750mm in 35mm SLR format). The monster bears more than a fleeting resemblance to a jet engine; given the size the ‘super telephoto lens’ labeling on the side seems a little well…. – it isn’t very likely that it would be mistaken for an average 70-200mm, after all.
The little black stump at the end is your average 6×6 medium format camera, in itself a quite bulky piece of equipment, but completely dwarfed by the Zeiss lens. Upon it’s introduction, it was said to be the largest non-military telephoto lens in the world. One wonders what the largest military telephoto lens might look like.
Drawing from their experience in manufacturing large telescopes and instruments for astronomical sciences, Zeiss had to develop an entirely new focusing system, Due to the massive size of the glass elements, the lens had to be equipped with extremely powerful focusing motors, capable of moving all that heavy glass around. The rear end of the lens has a dedicated LCD monitor built in to display focusing distance, aperture etc. No price has been published, but Zeiss hinted at a price of at least several million US dollars.
The intended use for the lens is reportedly “antelope photography”. This doesn’t immediately strike one as the kind of kit you want to bring along on a safari to photograph fast moving and easily startled animals – hiding in the bushes is certainly off the agenda – but the uncompromising construction is said to allow the lens to auto focus as fast as a ‘regular’ telephoto lens.
Polaroid 20×24” Camera
Image: Joyce Vanman / www.mammothcamera.com
The average film camera has for the last 50 years used either 120 rollfilm or so-called 135 film, 135 being by far the most commonly used type. Each frame of 135 film is 36×24 milimeters, while the average consumer dSLR camera today has a sensor size of approximately 60% of this, around 23×15 milimeters. The sensors in digital compacts are much smaller still. Within this tiny space, the camera and its lens has to compress the vast amount of detail visible to the human eye. The resulting replications of reality are far from perfect, they can’t be.
One way of partially overcoming this problem is quite simply to use larger film formats or digital sensors. Within the digital realm, the 48x36mm sensor size available in certain medium format digital backs is pretty much as large as it gets without substantial R&D resources (like what a major corporation, national government or army might have at their disposal).
In film, things are a bit simpler. While constructing huge digital sensors is a challenging task, creating a huge sheet of film or photographic paper is really – simply put – just a matter of making it bigger than usual, and building a camera large enough to house it.
The biggest ‘instant’ camera I know of is Polaroid’s 20×24” behemoth. It’s 1.5 meters tall and weighs about 235 pounds. The Polaroid paper sheets used in this camera is, as the name implies, 20 x 24”, which equals 50×60 cm. Keeping in mind that the aforementioned 135 film is a mere 3.6 x 2.4 cm, it’s easy to see why such a larger-than-life camera would be capable of producing prints of far superior detail compared to smaller formats.
A number of these cameras are available for hire, complete with a dedicated studio space, in San Fransisco, New York and Prague. Following Polaroid’s recent announcement that they will completely cease the production of their signature instant film, there is a certain risk that these cameras will be destined for the museum soon.
Seitz 6×17” digital panoramic camera
Image: Seitz
I have to have this camera were the last words I spoke to my wife as she kicked me out of the house!
Instead of the common digital camera sensor which records the entire scene at once, the Seitz 6×17” uses a scanner to literally scan the view through the lens. The end result is 160 megapixel images in a panoramic format. It does the job a bit faster than your average flatbed scanner though, recording a full-sized frame (21 250 x 7500 pixels) in two seconds. It’s big, it’s heavy, roughly 11 pounds and quite strange looking, but it turns out huge, amazing photos – and it should, costing as it does $42 000. I think I need ….. I mean want 2 of these!
Hasselblad H3DII
Image: Hasselblad
Swedish camera manufacturer Hasselblad (or “‘blad” as they are often called) has for a long time been ranked among the very best when it comes to cameras. Indeed, NASA’s space programme chose Hasselblad as their camera provider, and three Hasseblads where carried aboard the Apollo 11 mission, perhaps the company’s most famous feat.
Priced at around $40 000, a Hasselblad H3DII with a 39 megapixel backpiece is one of the most expensive photo kits available in ordinairy retail sale. It’s fairly large, fabulously expensive and capable of creating huge, extremely detailed image files with its 39 megapixel, 48x36mm sensor.
For photographing your cat, you can probably make do without this camera, but if you’re shooting supermodels for Vogue, you might just need a camera of this caliber. If you ever watch TV shows like “Top Model”, there’s a fair chance you’ll see a ‘blad involved in a shoot every now and then.
Canon EF 1200mm f/5.6L USM
Image: Robert
While the 1700mm lens mentioned earlier is all fine and dandy if you’ve got a truck to mount it onto, some may prefer a more lightweight, nimble sollution. Weighing a mere 16.5 kilos and being only 83 centimeters long (without the bucket-like hood), this delicate little flower will nevertheless magnify faraway objects (or perhaps more relevant, faraway people) to a degree that will leave little to the imagination. To my knowledge, this is the longest focal length available to autofocus SLR cameras without using any extra magnifiers.
Due to its size, limited area of use and robust price tag, it has only been available from Canon built to order, and to date they have apparently produced fewer than 20 samples of this lens. The company recently announced that they would be slashing the 1200mm from their catalogue, so if you want one, better be quick about it.
The suggested price of the lens upon unveiling in 1993, converted to present day money puts it at apx. $120 000, or the cost of “a small sports car” which is the most common price comparison given for the lens.
The Gigapxl Project
Launched by physicist Graham Flint, the Gigapxl Project set about creating a camera system that would allow the creation of photos with billions of pixels (or thousands of megapixels if you like). The Gigapxl Project employs a large format camera with 9×18” film sheets to shoot big panorama photos of places of interest, primarily in the USA.
The film sheets are then scanned using a highly sophisticated technique, resulting in digital files that contain the equivalent resolution of several gigapixels. Though the original aim was to reach a single gigapixel (1000 megapixels), the project website now claims it is able to create images with a resolution of aproximately 6 gigapixels.
Nowadays, camera manufactureres like to stick very dense sensors into tiny consumer cameras with mediocre optics, which results in images that despite the 12 or 14 megapixel resolution aren’t really any better than 4 megapixels. It’s a way of cheating customers who don’t know much about digital photography as most people seem to think that more megapixels equals better photos, which is a truth with great limitations.
It would be easy to think that the Gigapxl Project is much the same, just a whole lot of pixels wasted on creating huge digital files that contain little in terms of actual details. However, at the project website, it’s made very clear that the technology and knowledge put into these photos means that the 2, 4 or 6 gigapixel photos they produce are in fact as detailed as their pixel size suggests. But why take my word for it? Check out the amazing images in their gallery for an idea of what I’m talking about!
Cameratruck
Image: Cameratruck
A pinhole camera is perhaps the simplest kind of camera there is. You make a tiny hole in an otherwise light-sealed container, but in a sheet of film or other photo-sensitive media, point it towards what you want to photograph and let light pass through the hole for a set period of time. The reflected light will, just like the light reflected through the lens of an ordinairy camera result in a photo, be it through a digital sensor or on a piece of film.
Pretty much any container can be made into a pinhole camera; the more outlandish the better – the Pringles Cam,Spam Cam and Trashcan Cam are just a few examles I’ve seen.
But it could also be built out of a box truck, which is exactly what an inventive bunch of spaniards and americans did. By drilling a hole in its side and attaching huge sheets of photographic paper (100×30 cm) to the inside of a truck, they created a huge mobile pinhole camera.
“The Great Picture”
The photographic canvas of “The Great Picture”
Image: The Legacy Project
But why stop at a truck, when you could convert an entire airplane hangar into a pinhole camera? While the Cameratruck above is touted as the world’s largest mobile camera, this hangar is certified by the Guinness Book of Records as the largest camera in existance, albeit immobile.
It’s basically an old hangar building at the disused El Toro Marine Corps Air Station in Southern California, which has been made light tight to ensure no light gets in except through the little pinhole in one of the hangar’s sides. To create the image alluringly described as “The Great Picture”, a huge sheet of made-to-order canvas was suspended inside the hangar and coated in 80 litres of Liquid Light, making it photosensitive.
The exposure time of the world’s largest camera was set to aproximately 35 minutes, after which the canvas was chemically developed (in a pool of 2300 litres of developer – photography at this scale does not come cheap!) into the world’s largest photo, 313 square meters (3375 square feet) in size.
Compare that to a standard 135 film frame, which you might remember from earlier on in the article is 36×24 milimeters, equalling 8.64 square centimeters, or 0.00864 square meters.
Jan. 20, 2010
New addition to my blog is titled Feathers and is completely unconventional compared to other captures I have put up on this site. This image was captured some time ago but I wanted to post it because of the technique I used to achieve the end result.
Feathers
Jan. 11, 2010
Abstract Ice
Just added an image titled Abstract Ice to my Backyard Captures post which you can find by clicking on this link: http://www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/05/26/backyard-captures/
Added a great site dealing with panoramic photography. Check this site out if you want to learn more about shooting panoramics and stitching them together. There is also info on equipment, software, and examples of what people have done with their pano’s. Look for the link titled Panoguide on my right sidebar under Photographic Links or get to it by clicking this link:http://www.panoguide.com/
Jan. 1, 2010
HAPPY NEW YEAR
Dec. 25, 2009
Merry Christmas to all my friends and family. I also want to wish a very Merry Christmas to each and everyone of you who have taken the time to visit my blog, checked out my work, and left a comment or two. Have a great day with your friends and family and check back soon for more photo news and more images!
Dec. 16, 2009
Check this link out for my newest addition to my blog. The image caption is Solitary Pine and you will find it under my Backyard Captures post. Click on the link to view the image. http:/ /www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/05/26/backyard-captures/
Solitary Pine
Dec. 2, 2009
New image titled Catwalk Ice Detail has been added to my North Pier Details post. Let me know what you think or if you have ever been out to the North Pier which is located in Saint Joseph, MI. Link to the image is: http://www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/01/20/details/
Catwalk Ice Detail
Nov. 26, 2009
New NatGeo Vidcast
Go to my Vidcast post below to find out what it’s like to try and capture images of the Leopard Seal!
http://www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/03/05/vidcast/
Photography news for November 25, 2009
Photo District News
Photographers Virtual Trade Show
December 2 & 3, 2009
Photo District News in partnership with B&H will be having what they call their Photographers Virtual Trade Show which will enable anyone to attend a virtual online trade show for professional and serious amateur photographers. I found out about this through Andy Biggs who will be conducting a session on color printing. I highly recommend registering and signing up for this. Andy Biggs is a professional nature/wildlife photographer who also writes printing profiles for Moab. Moab produces some of the best photographic paper on the market today. Follow this link to register- http://vshow.on24.com/event/17/09/02/rt/index.html?&eventid=170902&sessionid=1&key=522AAA6C522974380126D9ADBFA70609&sourcepage=register
This trade show takes place on December 2 & 3, 2009 so don’t procrastinate-Sign Up!
Nov. 3, 2009
Decided to add a new post titled Blog, Photo, & Tech Updates. I will have links to new images I have added, along with current news and photography tech. You will also be linked to other areas of my blog that I have recently updated or added to.
Nov.12, 2009
On Nov. 5th, 2009 I ran a short blurb about Nikon and their new ideas of possibly adding GPS to one of their cameras. There patent is already in the works but Garmin has just come out with a phone with GPS. Not only does this phone have GPS, but it also has a camera. I have been seeing commercials for the new Nuvi phone. Nuvi is a particular GPS model that Garmin produces and they did not waste any time producing a GPS unit with built in camera, video camera, MP3 and MPEG4/AAC and other essential goodies . Not even Nikon can keep up with the competition and technology.You can investigate this on your own or go directly to this link to find out more: http://gizmodo.com/350894/nuvifone-garmin-drops-a-phone-into-the-gps
Nov. 11, 2009
Check out my most recent vidcast upload titled “Masai and the Lion” on my Vidcast post by clicking on this link: http://www.dickberryphotography.com/2009/03/05/vidcast/
Last Days of Fall
Nov. 5, 2009 5:45 EST
Last Days of Fall can be view at my Backyard Captures post by clicking on this link: http://www.DickBerryPhotography.com/2009/05/26/backyard-captures/
Nov. 5, 2009
This news is somewhat old for Nikon but if you haven’t already read about this you might find it interesting. Nikon has applied for some patents recently that could make photography just a little easier . This seems to be the case every month and it’s extremely hard to keep up with the growing technology that will be on the market in 6 months after you read this.
One patent is for built in geotagging and a mapping system like what you would find on a Garmin. I’m surprised it has actually taken this long.
Built in GPS for Nikon
The next little patent is for a built in distortion correction system which is what every consumer needs to correct their fantastic looking architectural shots! I can throw all my large format systems away now-won’t need them!
Distortion Correction System
Another rumor is that Nikon is also working on built in WiFi! Soon you will be holding your DSLR up to your ear and talking into your lens!
Nikon Rumors has all this info and more. Great site which I have on my left sidebar under Photographic Links http://nikonrumors.com/
Lets start off with my first news feed dealing with submitting my blog to a site called AllTop. Now I am not quite sure how difficult it is to get your blog/website accepted with these folks but give it a try, submit your blog, or site and see what happens. I think the changeling aspect is to have your site on their page titled “Whats hot on AllTop” This is a short synopsis of what this site is all about:
The purpose of Alltop is to help you answer the question, “What’s happening?” in “all the topics” that interest you. You may wonder how Alltop is different from a search engine. A search engine is good to answer a question like, “How many people live in China?” However, it has a much harder time answering the question, “What’s happening in China?” That’s the kind of question that we answer.
We do this by collecting the headlines of the latest stories from the best sites and blogs that cover a topic. We group these collections — “aggregations” — into individual web pages. Then we display the five most recent headlines of the information sources as well as their first paragraph. Our topics run from adoption to zoology with photography, food, science, religion, celebrities, fashion, gaming, sports, politics, automobiles, Macintosh, and hundreds of other subjects along the way.
You can think of Alltop as the “online magazine rack” of the web. We’ve subscribed to thousands of sources to provide “aggregation without aggravation.” To be clear, Alltop pages are starting points—they are not destinations per se. Ultimately, our goal is to enhance your online reading by displaying stories from sources that you’re already visiting plus helping you discover sources that you didn’t know existed.
Check out Alltop when you get a chance@- http://photography.alltop.com/ Scroll down to the end of the page and look for Dick Berry Photography!
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