Kodak PlayTouch Zi10: new firmware (press release) 17. November the most comprehensive and informative digital camera source 2010Your examines go to: previous NewsNext ItemCurrent ItemThe here are unedited press release, shown represents the company to have been received.We've elected without editorial comment on the Commission to submit to the publications in such a way as to reach our readers continue to learn more about our editorial without overtaxing the limited resources. [1] [2] Imaging-Resource whenever possible to clearly distinguish the avoid any confusion or conflict of interest, if the company's press releases and your own editorial views and content. Press release: Kodak PlayTouch Zi10: new firmware
Eastman Kodak Co. has released an updated firmware for both Windows and Macintosh users for camcorder PlayTouch Zi10 in Flash.
Firmware update for the two versions are available, depending on whether the PlayTouch-Zi 10 is currently running firmware version 1.02 or earlier, or v1.13 or later installed on your computer.With the v1 Clients. 02, or earlier with their Zi10 is always a good idea to download v1.18-102 update for Macintosh or Windows-based computers, if necessary. V1.18-113-update, the applicable v1.13 + Zi10, which is also available on both platforms.
In both cases, the firmware will make the same changes. Recording a time Remaining indicator on the camera LCD screen should be greater accuracy, microphone, the answer has been improved, and lockups/freezes Zi10 during use has declined.
Further information can be found in the Kodak website.
Tuesday 30 November 2010
Canon G12 posted a review!
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Review by Mike Pasini and Zig Weidelich
Overview by Mike Tomkins
Review Posted: 11/17/2010
Canon's PowerShot G12 digital camera is the company's latest flagship fixed-lens camera, and a direct successor to last year's PowerShot G11 model. The Canon G12 retains the same ten megapixel CCD sensor resolution as its predecessor, coupled to the same DIGIC 4 image processor that featured in both the G10 and G11. The pairing of sensor and processor has now been giving branding, described as the "HS System," with the initials standing for "High Sensitivity."
The Canon PowerShot G12 retains the same 5x optical zoom lens from the PowerShot G10 and G11, which offers 35mm-equivalent focal lengths ranging from a useful 28mm wide-angle to a 140mm telephoto. And as with its predecessor, the Canon G12 includes true optical image stabilization to help combat blur from camera shake.
Also like its predecessor, the PowerShot G12 has a 2.8-inch tilt/swivel LCD display, with 461,000 dot resolution. Other features retained from the G11 include a high-definition HDMI video output connector with Consumer Electronics Control (HDMI-CEC) compatibility, and the ability to save still images not only as compressed JPEGs, but also as Raw files.
So what's new? There's a new control dial on the front of the camera body, mirroring those on Canon's EOS-series DSLRs, and support for an optional FA-DC58B lens filter adapter which extends along with the lens itself, accepting Canon 58mm-threaded filters. The top-panel ISO dial is also finer-grained, allowing adjustment in 1/3 stop increments, and there's also a new user-configurable Auto ISO function. Another addition is tracking autofocus capability.
The addition of an electronic level function will allow photographers to assure themselves of even horizons. The PowerShot G12 also offers a variety of new aspect ratios, including 4:3 (native), 3:2, 16:9, 1:1, and 4:5.
A Smart Auto function automatically selects the appropriate scene mode from among 28 types, depending on subject matter. The Canon G12 is also now certified as Eye-Fi Connected, meaning it provides access to certain management features of the popular WiFi-capable SD cards in-camera.
The Canon PowerShot G12 further adds a new high-definition 720p movie mode, with stereo sound recording -- a significant update from the G11's standard-def, VGA video with monaural audio. A miniature effect function is available during video shooting in the Canon G12, something we've seen in several of Olympus' digital camera models -- and early indications are that, as in those cameras, this will have an effect on framerate.
There's also a new high dynamic range (HDR) shooting mode, which captures three successive photos with varied exposure, and then combines them in-camera to produce a single image with increased dynamic range. Since the function relies on multiple source images, it's only of use for relatively static scenes. It further requires use of a tripod, and hence can't be used handheld, because the Canon PowerShot G12 can't microalign the source images before merging.
Availability for the Canon PowerShot G12 in the US market began early October 2010. List pricing is set at around US$500, the same as that of its predecessor.
by Mike Pasini
When I last looked at Canon's G Series PowerShot, things were a lot simpler. The G10's competition was Panasonic's LX3 and Nikon's P6000.
This time around, it's the Panasonic LX5 and the Nikon P7000 fighting it out with the Canon G12 as each company's flagship digicam. But there's a lot more competition for your camera dollar. Even from Canon, whose much more compact S95 may make you wonder which model is the flagship PowerShot.
And beyond that, there are the mirrorless cameras from Sony, Panasonic, Olympus, and Samsung that are more compact than a dSLR if larger than a digicam, but offer better image quality than a digicam.
Mouse over to extend lens.
The real debate this year isn't Canon, Nikon or Panasonic. It's more a question of how small you want the box to be and how large you need the sensor to be.
On those counts, the Canon G12 would seem to be disadvantaged with a big body and a small sensor. The S95, like the LX5, has a very desirable small body but a small sensor, and the mirrorless cameras are bigger both in form and sensor.
Look and Feel. So size is an issue. And if you're looking for a very small camera with excellent quality and full features, you might just fall in love with the S95. The Canon G12 is going to look too big to you and feel as heavy as a brick in your bag.
I've complained about the G-series size before. And I take the S95 as Canon's excellent answer to my complaint.
But I have to go a little further this time. I compared the Canon G12 to an Olympus E-PL1 and guess which camera was bigger and heavier? The Micro Four Thirds mirrorless E-PL1.
Neither of these cameras is pocketable. I did carry the Canon G12 in my jacket pocket most of the time, but it really pulled the jacket down on that side. It's much more suited to a small camera bag or purse. Or you can just use the included shoulder strap.
I used a wrist strap rather than the Canon G12's included shoulder strap. Riding public transportation, I prefer not to draw attention.
Compared to the G11, the Canon G12 is nearly identical, but Canon has made a couple of nice physical improvements:
A control dial has been added to the front panel just below the Shutter button. Canon calls it the front dial to distinguish it from the control dial on the four-way navigator.A small thumb grip has been added to the back panelThe speaker grill has also been redesignedISO stops in one-third increments
The Canon G12's grip is the same as the G11's and quite adequate. It's the one thing really missing from the S95.
Also retained is the articulating LCD. This makes it easy to see what you're shooting when holding the Canon G12 above your head or below your waist. But it can also be used for self-portraits because it can face forward, too. You can fold it back against the body like any other digicam for ordinary use and protect it by facing it into the body when you're traveling with it.
There's also an optical viewfinder. Some people insist on it. But they are always (very) inaccurate; in this case, it only shows 78% of the scene at wide-angle, and 79% at telephoto in our tests. The Canon G12's viewfinder image is also very small. A dioptric adjustment sits next to it. But the LCD, on the other hand, is accurate and easily seen in bright sunlight.
The Canon G-Series has always been expandable with a range of accessories including a 1.4x teleconverter lens and 58mm filter adapter. A release button on the front frees the Canon G12's bayonet-mount knurled ring for the adapter that accommodates lenses or filters. For some odd reason, Canon also sells different color rings so you can personalize the camera if you've got nothing else on your mind. The Canon RAK-DC2 Ring Accessory Kit ($27 list) includes three rings, black with a gold accent, black with a blue accent, and silver with what looks like a white accent.
The G Series has also been known for its fast lens and the Canon G12 uses the same glass as the G10 and G11, a 5x 28-140mm f2.8-4.5 zoom. It's extended both by a 4x digital zoom and a hybrid image stabilization system that uses both an angular sensor and an accelerometer to suppress both the blur caused by the angle of the camera and the "shift blur" that happens when the camera moves parallel to a subject.
The angular sensor turns out to be pretty handy. In fact, there's a menu option to calibrate level for the Canon G12. You put the camera on a flat, level surface and calibrate it. Then you can press the Display button in Record mode to display an electronic level to help you level the camera.
I found myself bumping over the 5x optical zoom limit into digital zoom quite a bit, but I've been shooting with 20x zooms lately.
While the Canon G12's manual seems to discourage Eye-Fi use ("This product is not guaranteed to support Eye-Fi card functions," it says), I used an Eye-Fi Pro X2 with it with no problems. And there is even some firmware support for Eye-Fi wireless SD cards.
Controls. As you move up the camera quality chain, you find more and more options have a physical control rather than a menu item. That's a welcome thing in my mind because your fingers can remember where things are, leaving your brain free to focus on shooting.
But it can be unnerving.
I was taking a few practice shots in the car one rainy day and the difference between the outdoor light and the inside light was so dramatic that the dashboard was just too dark.
The simple solution was to overexpose the interior by kicking the Canon G12's EV up a bit. I looked through the menu system but couldn't find EV. I thought it was because of the mode I was shooting in, but I was already in Program. I confess I had to give up, shooting in Manual mode before the light changed.
Okay, so I wasn't familiar with the Canon G12. But later I gave it another shot. I was framing a basketball hoop from below with the blue sky above. The sky again was too bright for the scene, so I wanted to use EV to underexpose the scene.
Knowing EV wasn't in the menu system, I gave the obscure buttons a shot. The asterisk button, the user-defined button. Nothing.
"Maybe you should read the manual," my observant friend suggested.
Actually, the solution was a lot simpler than that. There is an EV dial on the Canon G12's top panel. I don't know how it eluded my search but it was in plain sight. That's why this is a confession.
To save you my embarrassment, let's tour the Canon G12's controls.
Smart Shuffle. In Playback mode, use the arrow keys to select which of the smaller images to show in the center next.
On the front of the Canon G12, the new front dial is conveniently positioned just below the Shutter button. The auto-focus assist/self-timer lamp is just to the upper left of the lens ring. Above it to the right is the viewfinder. And right of that is the flash. It's not a popup flash and it is very close to the lens, promising red-eye. Below and to the right of the bayonet lens ring is the Ring Release button, allowing you to replace the Canon G12's ring with an adapter for either a teleconverter or 58mm filters.
The bottom panel has the Memory Card/Battery compartment protected by a nice, large cover that is easy to open and close. At its hinge is a metal tripod socket about the middle of the panel but not centered under the Canon G12's lens.
On the left side panel where the LCD is hinged, you'll find the speaker grill. And on the opposite side, you'll find the HDMI port, Remote Terminal, A/V port all under a plastic cover with a sharp snap to it.
On the Canon G12's top panel, Canon has loaded the important shooting controls. At the far right are the Shutter button and Zoom lever. The Shutter button is as small as Shutter buttons go (and thankfully not chrome) but worked fine. Zoom was smooth and slow enough to compose with precision.
Behind them is the small Power button with a green LED in the center to indicate status. It's nearly flush to the Canon G12's top panel so you can't easily feel for it, but it's easy enough to find and use once you know where it is.
To the left of them is the ISO Speed dial with the slightly smaller Mode dial on top of it. An orange LED just left of the dials indicates which ISO and which Mode is active. ISO can be set in one-third stops.
On top of the optical viewfinder hump is a hot shoe with five electrical contacts. On either side of the hump and a bit forward are two microphones.
On the left side of the top panel is the EV dial set slightly back so it's easy to dial in a different EV setting.
The back panel holds the Canon G12's 2.8-inch LCD with 461,000 pixels. Above it is the optical viewfinder with two status LEDs on the right and a dioptric adjustment on the left. To the left of the viewfinder is the Short Cut/Direct Print button. To the right about an equal distance from the viewfinder is the Playback button.
In the top right corner is the AE Lock/FE Lock asterisk button. Further down and just to the right of the Canon G12's LCD is the four-way navigator ringed by the Control dial and with a Function/Set button at its center. It's surrounded by four other buttons: the AF Frame Selector/Erase and Light Metering/Jump buttons on top with the Display and Menu buttons below.
The arrow positions on the four-way navigator lead double lives, of course. The Up arrow handles Manual Focus, the Right arrow Flash modes, the Down arrow Self-Timer modes and the Left arrow Macro mode.
Slide Show Options. Simple options, nice transitions, but with HDMI output a little fancier show (with music) would have been appreciated.
When I found the Canon G12's controls, I thought they were a bit stiff and a bit sharply knurled. Slightly unpleasant to actually use, that is. And therefore a disappointment in an otherwise nicely appointed camera. They really aren't up to dSLR standards.
You can register different functions to the Front dial, the Control dial, and the Shortcut button. In Manual mode, for example, the Front dial can set the shutter speed while the Control dial can set the aperture. In Aperture Priority, the Canon G12's Front dial controls the aperture and in Shutter Priority, it controls the shutter speed. A menu option lets you change all that to suit your preference.
A menu option lets you assign any of several functions to the Shortcut key. Those include Unassigned, i-Contrast, White Balance, Custom White Balance 1, Custom White Balance 2, My Colors, Bracketing, Drive Mode, Flash Exposure Compensation/Output, ND Filter, Aspect Ratio, Raw or JPEG, Image Size/Compression, Movie Quality, Servo AF, Red-Eye Correction, AF Lock, Digital Teleconverter, and Display Off.
Lens. The Canon G12's 6.1mm to 30.5mm (28mm to 140mm equivalent), is a 5x optical zoom lens. Focusing ranges from 2.0 inches to infinity at wide-angle and 12 inches to infinity at telephoto. Macro at wide-angle focuses between 0.4 inch and 1.6 feet. At telephoto, Macro focuses from 12 inches to 1.6 feet. You can manually focus the lens from 0.4 inch to infinity.
Corner softness is almost low through the focal length range. Chromatic aberration, more noticeable at wide-angle, is well controlled for a small camera. Barrel distortion is slightly higher than average at wide-angle, noticeably distorting straight lines. But that's not unusual for a 28mm equivalent lens.
Modes. The Canon G12 offers a wide range of shooting modes if nothing quite as ambitious as Casio and Sony have cooked up.
Manual. Front dial controls shutter speed and the Control dial handles the aperture.
No G Series PowerShot is worthy of the name, of course, without full Manual control. Aperture and Shutter Priority are not far behind. And I was glad to see the Canon G12 actually offered some aperture options, ranging from f/2.8 to f/8.0 at wide-angle and f/4.5 to f/8.0 at telephoto. Shutter speeds ranged from 15 seconds to 1/4,000 second.
Program mode is pretty tame on any Canon and so it was with the G12. Program Shift is activated by pressing the AE Lock button in the upper right corner of the Canon G12 and turning the rear Control dial. A graphical representation of the available apertures over the available shutter speeds appears onscreen, sliding left and right as you turn the dial.
Auto mode is actually a Smart Auto. The Canon G12 can recognize several shooting situations, optimizing settings for them while detecting and focusing on faces. Canon doesn't document what situations the G12 can recognize but Macro and Portrait were two.
Low Light uses a small image size of 1,824 x 1,368 pixels with a higher ISO to capture natural light images while minimizing the effects of camera shake and subject blur.
Quick Shot. Everything on one screen.
Quick Shot mode continuously adjusts focus and exposure while turning the LCD into a control panel with rows of settings you can scroll through, using the Front dial to change them quickly. To compose the shot, you use the optical viewfinder. Settings include Shutter Speed, EV, White Balance, My Colors, Histogram, Self-Timer, Aperture, Flash EV, AE Lock, FE Lock, Aspect Ratio, ISO Speed, Flash Mode, i-Contrast, Image Type, Image Quality, Image Size, Drive Mode, Camera Orientation, Image Stabilizer, Recordable Shots, Battery Charge, Red-Eye Correction, Date, Eye-Fi transmission. Anything else can be accessed by pressing the Menu button.
Scene modes on the Canon G12 include Portrait, Landscape, Kids & Pets, Sports, Smart Shutter, Super Vivid, Poster Effect, Color Accent, Color Swap, High Dynamic Range (HDR), Nostalgic, Fisheye Effect, Miniature Effect, Beach, Underwater, Foliage, Snow, Fireworks, and Stitch Assist.
Of those I found HDR particularly interesting when used in low light. It takes three shots and composites them in the camera. In most situations where you'd need it, you'll have to use a tripod with HDR. And Fisheye was a lot of fun, too.
HD movie. 720p24 H.264 format with stereo sound. Optical zoom not supported, but digital zoom is. (Click to download 16.9MB MOV file.)
Movie mode options include 1,280 x 720 at 24 frames per second with 640 x 480 and 320 x 240 both at 30 frames per second. Standard, Miniature Effect, Color Accent, and Color Swap effects are available in Movie mode.
Menu System. The Canon G12's menu system will be familiar to any PowerShot owner with only minor variations reflecting the model's advanced capabilities.
Function Menu. Here the i-Contrast dynamic range correction options are displayed.
If what you need can't be found on a button (or dial), press the Function button in the middle of the Canon G12's four-way navigator. If you need more general behavioral modification, use the Menu button.
The Canon G12's Function button uses a totem pole of icons on the left with options appearing across the bottom. The Menu button uses a tabbed set of options that are easily navigated, although to switch tabs you have to go all the way to the beginning or end of each list of options before the tab option is active again.
My Menu can accommodate up to five frequently used menu options. And you can change their order, too. Very handy.
Storage & Battery. The Canon G12 supports SD/SDHC Memory Cards, SDXC Memory Cards, Eye-Fi Cards, MultiMediaCard, MMC Plus Cards, and HC MMC Plus Cards.
At the highest quality setting and a 4:3 aspect ratio, you can store about 1,471 images on a 4GB card, according to Canon. You can record up to 25 min., 8 seconds of 1,280 x 720 HD video on that same 4GB card. Clip sizes are restricted to 4GB in HD and one hour for 4:3 formats. SD Speed Class 4 or higher memory cards are recommended.
The rather bulky lithium-ion Canon battery (NB-7L) is rated for 7.4 volts and 1,050 mAh, providing 370 shots with the Canon G12's monitor on, or a playback time of seven hours, according to Canon, which used CIPA measurement standards.
The battery cover has a slot you can fit over an arrow printed on the battery to indicate it's charged. A depleted battery can be indicated by turning the cover around so the arrow is covered. Clever and very helpful if you use more than one battery.
The Canon G12's battery charger has a convenient folding plug design. And an AC adapter is available.
I found battery life to be extensive, rarely charging the battery between shoots.
DIGIC 4 Image Processor. Using algorithms developed by Canon, the DIGIC image processor facilitates the high-speed processing of tasks like reducing false colors or moire patterns and canceling noise during long exposures. It also reduces noise for high-speed image capture and provides higher resolution signal output to the Canon G12's LCD.
DIGIC 4 is even faster than its predecessors. It incorporates noise reduction technology and Scene Detection technology, along with improved video functionality, Face Detection technology and Motion Detection technology.
It seemed to me I couldn't take a bad shot with the Canon G12. I particularly liked how well it held shadow and highlight detail with a smooth distribution of midtones, not to mention natural color. Even reds held up well, to my surprise.
And the range of the lens from macro to wide-angle at 28mm was encouraging. I was a bit worried about exceeding optical telephoto but I let it fly after I saw the first results. There was pretty good detail (exceeding what I could see with my eyes) and the color held up well, too.
So I took the Canon G12 everywhere with me for a couple of weeks.
Vehicles. I shot a number of vehicles for some reason, all of them instructive.
The dark interior shots on a rainy day really show off the tonal range of the Canon G12's captures. The seat shot has a very shallow depth of field, but I was actually interested in the seat back, not the raindrops. At 1/32 second I really didn't have much room to negotiate a smaller aperture unless I kicked up the ISO.
The dark dashboard shot was taken in Manual mode because I was still hunting around for the EV control. At least there was a Manual mode there so I could get the shot. But again, what I saw in the car was that lovely gradation of tone and it's there in the shot, too.
The red of the Rumbolino looks pretty good, too. Compare to the metallic red of the flower vase in bright afternoon sunlight, which was also well captured.
The Toyota pickup was a study in fall colors, lets say. I was glad the Canon G12 didn't bump up the ISO despite the overcast sky just as it kept it to ISO 80 on the rainy day. The Canon G12 has an option in Auto ISO to limit how high the ISO is allowed to go, but also to slow or accelerate its rate of change, which leans the bias toward slower shutter speeds and wider apertures to keep the ISO low, or else allows it to change more quickly. Settings are Slow, Standard, and Fast.
Fisheye. When you need a little more room on the bus.
Effects. The first shot of the bus was really just a setup for the Fisheye effect shot that follows it. It's a fun effect that still gives you a full frame, unlike a real fisheye lens.
The white JFK rose shows how well highlight detail is captured. There's just the very slightest red blooming on the edges of the largest petals where they meet the dark green background. You really have to pixel-peep to see it.
For some reason it's more fun shooting monochrome than desaturating a color image at the computer. The Canon G12 lets you shoot black and white (and even sepia), showing you the effect as you compose with the LCD. It's right on the Function menu, too.
I shot my logs on Twin Peaks in both color and black and white. Somehow the black and white shot always looks more interesting. And the Canon G12 held onto the highlights very nicely, even though the wood has been bleached by the sun for months.
The shot of the parking lot shows the Miniature effect, which defocuses the top and bottom of the image to make the subject appear toy-like.
Low Light. The dolls in near darkness show what the Canon G12 can do in low light using HDR, Low Light mode, and a range of ISO settings in Program. HDR was the first shot (it seems to always record as ISO 800), not very successful, because as I mentioned HDR mode requires a tripod.
Color is pretty consistent from ISO 400 to ISO 2,500. ISO 400 at 1/4 second suffers camera motion blur, despite Canon's optical image stabilization, which was on for all of these shots. At ISO 2,500, detail is still sharp on the small doll, although not the best we've seen. Still, none of the other shots were as sharp.
Dynamic Range. I took a series of shots of a fire hydrant in the rain to test i-Contrast, Canon's dynamic range optimization. Settings were Off, Auto, 200 percent, and 400 percent. I was particularly concerned in this series with holding highlight detail without using EV to underexpose.
First, I'll point out that the red blooming we saw just a hint of on the rose is a little more evident here at the edges of the hydrant.
Second, I'll point out that it's hard to attribute any real difference to any of these even with the bright sticker on the top of the hydrant as our highlight test. They're all well exposed with very good color (that red curb is very natural) and excellent detail.
More revealing of dynamic range are all the shots taken together. I shot with i-Contrast set to Auto for the most part and none of the images show blown-out highlights.
The row of logs on Twin Peaks is a good example. The bleached logs still have detail and you can see rocks in the dark shadows they cast. That's really a pretty good job with that scene.
Unfortunately, there isn't an Exif tag to reveal the i-Contrast setting. But fortunately, you can change the i-Contrast setting in Playback. You can select between Auto, Low, Medium, or High.
There is a second set of i-Contrast images of a fig tree at the bottom of the gallery that I did label with the setting. The first (DR0) has i-Contrast turned off. The second (DRA) is Auto, the third (DR1) is 100 percent, and the last (DR2) is 200 percent. That's the full range.
I think it's a good idea to set it on Auto and enjoy the feature.
Street Shooting. Even though the Canon G12 isn't a compact digicam, it's a lot smaller than even a small dSLR, and even more compact than most mirrorless cameras. So when the World Series came to San Francisco, I put the Canon G12 in my pocket for a walk around the stadium before Game One.
It was already crowded hours before the game so having a small camera was a decided advantage. And having a large battery capacity was another advantage I appreciated. In that sense it was a lot like having a dSLR rather than a little camera with a thin wafer of a battery. I left the camera on, protecting the lens as I navigated the crowd.
Because it's a 28mm-equivalent wide-angle, I zoomed all the way back and composed my shots casually, sometimes just taking a flying leap of faith by pointing the camera in the general direction of the subject.
This was another situation where having dials and buttons beat the pants off navigating menus. If I needed to adjust exposure, the EV dial was right there, no fooling around with the LCD. That made a big difference.
So did the Front dial when I slipped into Aperture Priority mode to isolate a statue against the busy background. In this case, I was looking at the LCD to compose the image anyway, but the Front dial made it easy to find the widest aperture.
Some things are just impossible to judge on an LCD. The shot through the fence looked as if the players beyond the fence were sharp, but that isn't the case. Having taken that shot more than once, I knew it required manual focus, but street shooting wasn't going to provide the opportunity. It was really a point-and-shoot event.
Still, the overall effect of the 40 shots I took around the stadium was just what I was looking for. Though misfits and discards individually, they were, like the Giants themselves, winners as a group.
Hiking. Another ticket the Canon G12 filled was as a hiking companion. I took a few hikes with the Canon G12 (in fact, I rarely left the house without it).
One hike along Glen Canyon has always been a challenge photographically. The scenes are dramatic but the pictures tend to be rather bland. But with the Canon G12 I was able to capture the hillside in the Fall light framed by the evergreens along the road. Hard to believe that's in the middle of San Francisco, but there you go.
My usual hike up Twin Peaks for the zoom series of shots was on a particularly brilliant and clear day.
At the full telephoto focal length, I took a shot straight down Market St. You can just about make out the time on the Ferry Building (it may help to know it was 12:37). That's not something you can see with the naked eye.
The shot of the Golden Gate Bridge used digital zoom but you can see how well it held detail by examining the thin vertical cables holding up the roadway.
As the zoom series shows, the Canon G12 has a sufficient reach at 20x with digital zoom, although the 5x optical zoom is a little short for distant landscapes. Digital zoom held up very well, though, in both color and detail, so I didn't hesitate to use it.
Aspect Ratios. But the Canon G12 really shined at wide-angle with 16:9 aspect ratio. I shot mostly 4:3 aspect ratio to the largest file sizes, but I preferred 16:9. The Canon G12 also offers 3:2 and even 1:1 aspect ratios. There's a nice macro shot at 1:1 in the gallery.
But the wide-angle shots of the roadway trailing off into the sky on Twin Peaks are dramatic. As is the row of logs and the staircase. They draw you into the shot. And that's partly the wide-angle lens and partly the aspect ratio. On the Canon G12, you get both to play with.
HDR. The last two shots in the gallery were both taken with the HDR Scene mode. In HDR, the Canon G12 takes three shots at different exposures (I heard different shutter speeds for my still life images), compositing them in the camera.
At 1/4 second (more or less, considering there are three shots), camera blur becomes a problem. And the two HDR shots certainly show that. But I had such great results using Sony's Handheld Twilight mode under the same circumstances, I had to try it. Sony clearly wins this round, thanks to their micro-alignment feature, something the Canon G12 lacks. So as I've said, a tripod is necessary.
Before I packed up the Canon G12, I popped it on a tripod and took a series of garden furniture shots. I thought the shadows and bleached wood would profit from multiple exposures and, with the color options, clearly show the alternate renderings.
Which chair would you sit in?
Raw. The Canon G12, like its predecessors, can store Raw captures and even Raw+JPEG captures. There are two in the gallery. Both are high-contrast images of a plant in bright sunlight.
While it took a second to write the Raw data to the card, performance wasn't as sluggish as it is with some digicams that capture Raw data. It really wasn't suitable for quick action or continuous release, however.
It's worth downloading one of the Raw images to see how much range they have. You'll need Lightroom 3.3 or Camera Raw 6.3 to handle them, at least among Adobe products.
GPS. One final confession. All the gallery images were shot with an Eye-Fi X2 Pro card, which put GPS data into the Exif header based on the router the images passed through on their way to the hard disk. Since this isn't at all accurate, I've simply used Phil Harvey's ExifTool to remove the GPS data.
See the test results summary, along with pro/con and our conclusion below. For more detailed test results, see the Optics, Exposure and Performance tabs.
Sharpness: The wide-angle end of the Canon PowerShot G12's zoom shows moderate blurring in the corners of the frame compared to what we see at center, with the strongest instance in the lower left corner. However, blurring didn't extend very far into the frame. At telephoto, performance is a little better, with only very slight softening in the corners. Good results overall.
Geometric Distortion: There is higher than average barrel distortion at wide-angle (0.9%), and almost no perceptible pincushion distortion (less than one pixel) at telephoto. Pretty good results overall.
Chromatic Aberration: Chromatic aberration at wide-angle is moderate in terms of pixel count, though pixels are fairly bright. The effect extends deep into the frame, though width and intensity decrease. Telephoto, however, shows much less distortion, with faint red and blue pixels just visible.
Macro: The Canon PowerShot G12's Macro mode captures a sharp image with strong detail, though with visible softening in the corners that extends far into the frame (a common limitation among consumer digital cameras in macro mode). Chromatic aberration is also visible. Minimum coverage area is 1.22 x 0.92 inches (31 x 23mm), which is quite good. The camera focuses so closely that the flash is blocked almost entirely by the lens.
Viewfinder Accuracy: The Canon PowerShot G12's optical viewfinder showed about 78% coverage at wide-angle, and about 79% coverage at telephoto, a very poor performance, though no surprise for a non-TTL optical viewfinder. The LCD monitor showed about 100% coverage accuracy at wide-angle and at telephoto, which is excellent.
Color: The Canon PowerShot G12 produced good saturation overall, though strong reds, greens, browns and blues showed mild to moderate oversaturation. Bright yellows, aqua and cyan were actually a little muted. Hue performance showed some shifts in color, such as cyan toward blue, red toward orange, and yellow toward green. Lighter skin tones were close to accurate, though slightly cool, while darker skin tones showed a warmer, yellowish cast.
Incandescent: Manual white balance handled our incandescent lighting best overall, despite a slight cool cast. The Auto setting also turned out well, though it was just a bit magenta. Incandescent mode resulted in a strong magenta cast.
Resolution: Our laboratory resolution chart revealed sharp, distinct line patterns down to about 1,500 lines per picture height horizontally, and to about 1,400 vertically. Extinction of the pattern occurred at around 2,200 lines per picture height.
Flash: Our manufacturer-specified testing (shown at right) showed bright results at wide-angle at the rated 23 feet, despite having to move the camera out of the main lab. (The white doorway, panels and ceiling often fool cameras into underexposing the flash target, but not the G12.) The G12 did however boost ISO to 400 to achieve these results. The telephoto test came out well exposed at the rated 13 feet, with an ISO increase to 320.
Auto flash produced bright results in our indoor portrait scene, thanks to an automatic ISO boost to 250. The slower shutter speed of 1/25 second selected by the camera could result in mild blurring from subject movement, though.
ISO: Noise and Detail: Detail is quite good at ISO 80 up to about 200, though smudging becomes more evident at ISO 400. Yellow and purple chroma (color) noise begins to appear in darker areas at ISO 800, and worsens as sensitivity increases. Stronger noise reduction at the higher ISOs decreases detail as well. However, overall results are still better than average. See Printed results below for more on how this affects prints.
Printed: ISO 80 and 100 shots look good at 16x20 inches, if a little soft. Sharpening improves matters. Color and corners look good, but the red swatch is a little soft at this size and ISO setting. 13x19-inch prints look better straight from the camera.
ISO 200 images have good detail at 13x19 inches, but there is some luminance noise in the shadows.
ISO 400 shots are slightly soft printed at 13x19, though still usable. Shadows show a little more luminance noise. Detail looks much sharper at 11x14 inches.
ISO 800 images are softer at 11x14, but not bad. Reds that were soft at 80 are softer now, but still surprisingly show some detail. Printing at 8x10, though, makes a great print.
ISO 1,600 shots look better at 5x7, and though the red swatch is soft, it still looks good. Shadows at this size look quite normal.
ISO 3,200 shots are also quite good at 5x7.
Overall, a very good performance from the Canon G12. Dark areas deepen slightly as we move up the ISO ladder and down in print size, but color and apparent exposure look pretty consistent. It's also a little better image quality than we saw in the Canon S95.
Shutter Lag: Full autofocus shutter lag is slower than average at wide-angle, at 0.66 second, though about average at 0.75 second at full telephoto. Prefocus shutter lag is 0.076 second, not the fastest out there, but still pretty quick.
Cycle Time: Cycle time is slower than average, capturing a large/fine JPEG frame every 2.4 seconds in single-shot mode. Continuous mode captures JPEG frames at 1.97 frames per second, just a little sluggish for its class. RAW+JPEG continuous mode is slower, at 0.96 frames per second.
Flash Recycle: The Canon PowerShot G12's flash recycles in about 4.1 seconds after a full-power discharge, about average.
Low Light AF: The G12's AF system was able to focus down to the 1/16 foot-candle light level without AF assist enabled, and the camera was able to focus in complete darkness with the AF assist lamp enabled.
USB Transfer Speed: Connected to a computer or printer with USB 2.0, the Canon PowerShot G12's download speeds are moderately fast. We measured 6,433 KBytes/sec.
Shipped with the retail version of the Canon G12 are:
PowerShot G12 Lithium Battery Pack NB-7L Battery Charger CB-2LZ Neck Strap NS-DC9 AV Cable AVC-DC400ST USB Interface Cable IFC-400PCU Digital Camera Solution CD-ROM
Articulated LCD screen helps compose from unusual anglesHigh build qualityGood gripDials for ISO and EVNew Front dial very handyExcellent optics with a 28mm start to the 5x optical zoomExcellent Optical Image StabilizationNew hybrid IS system corrects for both lateral and angular shifts Good MacroSupports Raw (and Raw+JPEG) with less speed penalty than mostVery good low light performanceExcellent, familiar menu systemMy Menu for commonly used settings Custom settings on mode dial Good color accuracy Faster JPEG burst mode than G11 (but still sluggish) 720p HD movies with stereo sound Better than average noise performance Lots of accessories including an underwater housing, ring light, off-camera flash, teleconverter, filter adapterOptical viewfinder (but see Con about accuracy)i-Contrast with highlight and shadow adjustments Variable AF frame size AF-point zoom Tracking AF HDR mode (but requires use of tripod) Good flash rangeDecent flash recycling timeFlash hotshoeExcellent battery lifeFace detection, face self-timerSDXC card support Awkward size: heavy and bulkyControls are stiff and roughSmall Shutter button and Zoom ringMediocre cycle times Poor optical viewfinder coverageHigh barrel distortion at wide-angle Moderately high chromatic aberration at wide-angle (when wide open) Moderate corner blurring at wide-angle (when wide open) Autofocus is slower than average at wide-angle, and on the slow side of average at telephoto No noise reduction options Optical zoom not supported during movies Telephoto doesn't go as long as some of the competition Auto flash can use slow shutter speeds Lacking features some competitors have (no hand-held multi-shot modes, no automatic panorama feature, etc.)
The PowerShot G12 manages to improve on the G11 without taking any backward steps. It represents more a refinement than a revision, but that only reflects what a solid camera the G11 was.
Despite that, the G12 is getting squeezed on one side by its own slimmer and nearly-as-capable PowerShot 95 stablemate. And on the other side, it's getting pushed by a handful of small mirrorless cameras that aren't quite as small, but pack larger sensors. It's simply a different landscape in 2010.
I found myself picking up the Canon G12 rather than the Olympus E-PL2 next to it simply because it was slightly smaller and its image quality was always pleasing. I might just have easily picked up an S95 or a Panasonic LX5 if one of those had been sitting on the table, though.
What's clear in this crowded field is that what used to be the top of the mountain, the flagship among digicams, is now something of a compromise. A pleasant compromise, I hasten to add, but not the slam dunk of years past.
On the other hand, compromise is an art, and Canon has delivered such an artful one that it easily merits a Dave's Pick. It's the best G-series PowerShot I've had my hands on.
Review by Mike Pasini and Zig Weidelich
Overview by Mike Tomkins
Review Posted: 11/17/2010
Canon's PowerShot G12 digital camera is the company's latest flagship fixed-lens camera, and a direct successor to last year's PowerShot G11 model. The Canon G12 retains the same ten megapixel CCD sensor resolution as its predecessor, coupled to the same DIGIC 4 image processor that featured in both the G10 and G11. The pairing of sensor and processor has now been giving branding, described as the "HS System," with the initials standing for "High Sensitivity."
The Canon PowerShot G12 retains the same 5x optical zoom lens from the PowerShot G10 and G11, which offers 35mm-equivalent focal lengths ranging from a useful 28mm wide-angle to a 140mm telephoto. And as with its predecessor, the Canon G12 includes true optical image stabilization to help combat blur from camera shake.
Also like its predecessor, the PowerShot G12 has a 2.8-inch tilt/swivel LCD display, with 461,000 dot resolution. Other features retained from the G11 include a high-definition HDMI video output connector with Consumer Electronics Control (HDMI-CEC) compatibility, and the ability to save still images not only as compressed JPEGs, but also as Raw files.
So what's new? There's a new control dial on the front of the camera body, mirroring those on Canon's EOS-series DSLRs, and support for an optional FA-DC58B lens filter adapter which extends along with the lens itself, accepting Canon 58mm-threaded filters. The top-panel ISO dial is also finer-grained, allowing adjustment in 1/3 stop increments, and there's also a new user-configurable Auto ISO function. Another addition is tracking autofocus capability.
The addition of an electronic level function will allow photographers to assure themselves of even horizons. The PowerShot G12 also offers a variety of new aspect ratios, including 4:3 (native), 3:2, 16:9, 1:1, and 4:5.
A Smart Auto function automatically selects the appropriate scene mode from among 28 types, depending on subject matter. The Canon G12 is also now certified as Eye-Fi Connected, meaning it provides access to certain management features of the popular WiFi-capable SD cards in-camera.
The Canon PowerShot G12 further adds a new high-definition 720p movie mode, with stereo sound recording -- a significant update from the G11's standard-def, VGA video with monaural audio. A miniature effect function is available during video shooting in the Canon G12, something we've seen in several of Olympus' digital camera models -- and early indications are that, as in those cameras, this will have an effect on framerate.
There's also a new high dynamic range (HDR) shooting mode, which captures three successive photos with varied exposure, and then combines them in-camera to produce a single image with increased dynamic range. Since the function relies on multiple source images, it's only of use for relatively static scenes. It further requires use of a tripod, and hence can't be used handheld, because the Canon PowerShot G12 can't microalign the source images before merging.
Availability for the Canon PowerShot G12 in the US market began early October 2010. List pricing is set at around US$500, the same as that of its predecessor.
by Mike Pasini
When I last looked at Canon's G Series PowerShot, things were a lot simpler. The G10's competition was Panasonic's LX3 and Nikon's P6000.
This time around, it's the Panasonic LX5 and the Nikon P7000 fighting it out with the Canon G12 as each company's flagship digicam. But there's a lot more competition for your camera dollar. Even from Canon, whose much more compact S95 may make you wonder which model is the flagship PowerShot.
And beyond that, there are the mirrorless cameras from Sony, Panasonic, Olympus, and Samsung that are more compact than a dSLR if larger than a digicam, but offer better image quality than a digicam.
Mouse over to extend lens.
The real debate this year isn't Canon, Nikon or Panasonic. It's more a question of how small you want the box to be and how large you need the sensor to be.
On those counts, the Canon G12 would seem to be disadvantaged with a big body and a small sensor. The S95, like the LX5, has a very desirable small body but a small sensor, and the mirrorless cameras are bigger both in form and sensor.
Look and Feel. So size is an issue. And if you're looking for a very small camera with excellent quality and full features, you might just fall in love with the S95. The Canon G12 is going to look too big to you and feel as heavy as a brick in your bag.
I've complained about the G-series size before. And I take the S95 as Canon's excellent answer to my complaint.
But I have to go a little further this time. I compared the Canon G12 to an Olympus E-PL1 and guess which camera was bigger and heavier? The Micro Four Thirds mirrorless E-PL1.
Neither of these cameras is pocketable. I did carry the Canon G12 in my jacket pocket most of the time, but it really pulled the jacket down on that side. It's much more suited to a small camera bag or purse. Or you can just use the included shoulder strap.
I used a wrist strap rather than the Canon G12's included shoulder strap. Riding public transportation, I prefer not to draw attention.
Compared to the G11, the Canon G12 is nearly identical, but Canon has made a couple of nice physical improvements:
A control dial has been added to the front panel just below the Shutter button. Canon calls it the front dial to distinguish it from the control dial on the four-way navigator.A small thumb grip has been added to the back panelThe speaker grill has also been redesignedISO stops in one-third increments
The Canon G12's grip is the same as the G11's and quite adequate. It's the one thing really missing from the S95.
Also retained is the articulating LCD. This makes it easy to see what you're shooting when holding the Canon G12 above your head or below your waist. But it can also be used for self-portraits because it can face forward, too. You can fold it back against the body like any other digicam for ordinary use and protect it by facing it into the body when you're traveling with it.
There's also an optical viewfinder. Some people insist on it. But they are always (very) inaccurate; in this case, it only shows 78% of the scene at wide-angle, and 79% at telephoto in our tests. The Canon G12's viewfinder image is also very small. A dioptric adjustment sits next to it. But the LCD, on the other hand, is accurate and easily seen in bright sunlight.
The Canon G-Series has always been expandable with a range of accessories including a 1.4x teleconverter lens and 58mm filter adapter. A release button on the front frees the Canon G12's bayonet-mount knurled ring for the adapter that accommodates lenses or filters. For some odd reason, Canon also sells different color rings so you can personalize the camera if you've got nothing else on your mind. The Canon RAK-DC2 Ring Accessory Kit ($27 list) includes three rings, black with a gold accent, black with a blue accent, and silver with what looks like a white accent.
The G Series has also been known for its fast lens and the Canon G12 uses the same glass as the G10 and G11, a 5x 28-140mm f2.8-4.5 zoom. It's extended both by a 4x digital zoom and a hybrid image stabilization system that uses both an angular sensor and an accelerometer to suppress both the blur caused by the angle of the camera and the "shift blur" that happens when the camera moves parallel to a subject.
The angular sensor turns out to be pretty handy. In fact, there's a menu option to calibrate level for the Canon G12. You put the camera on a flat, level surface and calibrate it. Then you can press the Display button in Record mode to display an electronic level to help you level the camera.
I found myself bumping over the 5x optical zoom limit into digital zoom quite a bit, but I've been shooting with 20x zooms lately.
While the Canon G12's manual seems to discourage Eye-Fi use ("This product is not guaranteed to support Eye-Fi card functions," it says), I used an Eye-Fi Pro X2 with it with no problems. And there is even some firmware support for Eye-Fi wireless SD cards.
Controls. As you move up the camera quality chain, you find more and more options have a physical control rather than a menu item. That's a welcome thing in my mind because your fingers can remember where things are, leaving your brain free to focus on shooting.
But it can be unnerving.
I was taking a few practice shots in the car one rainy day and the difference between the outdoor light and the inside light was so dramatic that the dashboard was just too dark.
The simple solution was to overexpose the interior by kicking the Canon G12's EV up a bit. I looked through the menu system but couldn't find EV. I thought it was because of the mode I was shooting in, but I was already in Program. I confess I had to give up, shooting in Manual mode before the light changed.
Okay, so I wasn't familiar with the Canon G12. But later I gave it another shot. I was framing a basketball hoop from below with the blue sky above. The sky again was too bright for the scene, so I wanted to use EV to underexpose the scene.
Knowing EV wasn't in the menu system, I gave the obscure buttons a shot. The asterisk button, the user-defined button. Nothing.
"Maybe you should read the manual," my observant friend suggested.
Actually, the solution was a lot simpler than that. There is an EV dial on the Canon G12's top panel. I don't know how it eluded my search but it was in plain sight. That's why this is a confession.
To save you my embarrassment, let's tour the Canon G12's controls.
Smart Shuffle. In Playback mode, use the arrow keys to select which of the smaller images to show in the center next.
On the front of the Canon G12, the new front dial is conveniently positioned just below the Shutter button. The auto-focus assist/self-timer lamp is just to the upper left of the lens ring. Above it to the right is the viewfinder. And right of that is the flash. It's not a popup flash and it is very close to the lens, promising red-eye. Below and to the right of the bayonet lens ring is the Ring Release button, allowing you to replace the Canon G12's ring with an adapter for either a teleconverter or 58mm filters.
The bottom panel has the Memory Card/Battery compartment protected by a nice, large cover that is easy to open and close. At its hinge is a metal tripod socket about the middle of the panel but not centered under the Canon G12's lens.
On the left side panel where the LCD is hinged, you'll find the speaker grill. And on the opposite side, you'll find the HDMI port, Remote Terminal, A/V port all under a plastic cover with a sharp snap to it.
On the Canon G12's top panel, Canon has loaded the important shooting controls. At the far right are the Shutter button and Zoom lever. The Shutter button is as small as Shutter buttons go (and thankfully not chrome) but worked fine. Zoom was smooth and slow enough to compose with precision.
Behind them is the small Power button with a green LED in the center to indicate status. It's nearly flush to the Canon G12's top panel so you can't easily feel for it, but it's easy enough to find and use once you know where it is.
To the left of them is the ISO Speed dial with the slightly smaller Mode dial on top of it. An orange LED just left of the dials indicates which ISO and which Mode is active. ISO can be set in one-third stops.
On top of the optical viewfinder hump is a hot shoe with five electrical contacts. On either side of the hump and a bit forward are two microphones.
On the left side of the top panel is the EV dial set slightly back so it's easy to dial in a different EV setting.
The back panel holds the Canon G12's 2.8-inch LCD with 461,000 pixels. Above it is the optical viewfinder with two status LEDs on the right and a dioptric adjustment on the left. To the left of the viewfinder is the Short Cut/Direct Print button. To the right about an equal distance from the viewfinder is the Playback button.
In the top right corner is the AE Lock/FE Lock asterisk button. Further down and just to the right of the Canon G12's LCD is the four-way navigator ringed by the Control dial and with a Function/Set button at its center. It's surrounded by four other buttons: the AF Frame Selector/Erase and Light Metering/Jump buttons on top with the Display and Menu buttons below.
The arrow positions on the four-way navigator lead double lives, of course. The Up arrow handles Manual Focus, the Right arrow Flash modes, the Down arrow Self-Timer modes and the Left arrow Macro mode.
Slide Show Options. Simple options, nice transitions, but with HDMI output a little fancier show (with music) would have been appreciated.
When I found the Canon G12's controls, I thought they were a bit stiff and a bit sharply knurled. Slightly unpleasant to actually use, that is. And therefore a disappointment in an otherwise nicely appointed camera. They really aren't up to dSLR standards.
You can register different functions to the Front dial, the Control dial, and the Shortcut button. In Manual mode, for example, the Front dial can set the shutter speed while the Control dial can set the aperture. In Aperture Priority, the Canon G12's Front dial controls the aperture and in Shutter Priority, it controls the shutter speed. A menu option lets you change all that to suit your preference.
A menu option lets you assign any of several functions to the Shortcut key. Those include Unassigned, i-Contrast, White Balance, Custom White Balance 1, Custom White Balance 2, My Colors, Bracketing, Drive Mode, Flash Exposure Compensation/Output, ND Filter, Aspect Ratio, Raw or JPEG, Image Size/Compression, Movie Quality, Servo AF, Red-Eye Correction, AF Lock, Digital Teleconverter, and Display Off.
Lens. The Canon G12's 6.1mm to 30.5mm (28mm to 140mm equivalent), is a 5x optical zoom lens. Focusing ranges from 2.0 inches to infinity at wide-angle and 12 inches to infinity at telephoto. Macro at wide-angle focuses between 0.4 inch and 1.6 feet. At telephoto, Macro focuses from 12 inches to 1.6 feet. You can manually focus the lens from 0.4 inch to infinity.
Corner softness is almost low through the focal length range. Chromatic aberration, more noticeable at wide-angle, is well controlled for a small camera. Barrel distortion is slightly higher than average at wide-angle, noticeably distorting straight lines. But that's not unusual for a 28mm equivalent lens.
Modes. The Canon G12 offers a wide range of shooting modes if nothing quite as ambitious as Casio and Sony have cooked up.
Manual. Front dial controls shutter speed and the Control dial handles the aperture.
No G Series PowerShot is worthy of the name, of course, without full Manual control. Aperture and Shutter Priority are not far behind. And I was glad to see the Canon G12 actually offered some aperture options, ranging from f/2.8 to f/8.0 at wide-angle and f/4.5 to f/8.0 at telephoto. Shutter speeds ranged from 15 seconds to 1/4,000 second.
Program mode is pretty tame on any Canon and so it was with the G12. Program Shift is activated by pressing the AE Lock button in the upper right corner of the Canon G12 and turning the rear Control dial. A graphical representation of the available apertures over the available shutter speeds appears onscreen, sliding left and right as you turn the dial.
Auto mode is actually a Smart Auto. The Canon G12 can recognize several shooting situations, optimizing settings for them while detecting and focusing on faces. Canon doesn't document what situations the G12 can recognize but Macro and Portrait were two.
Low Light uses a small image size of 1,824 x 1,368 pixels with a higher ISO to capture natural light images while minimizing the effects of camera shake and subject blur.
Quick Shot. Everything on one screen.
Quick Shot mode continuously adjusts focus and exposure while turning the LCD into a control panel with rows of settings you can scroll through, using the Front dial to change them quickly. To compose the shot, you use the optical viewfinder. Settings include Shutter Speed, EV, White Balance, My Colors, Histogram, Self-Timer, Aperture, Flash EV, AE Lock, FE Lock, Aspect Ratio, ISO Speed, Flash Mode, i-Contrast, Image Type, Image Quality, Image Size, Drive Mode, Camera Orientation, Image Stabilizer, Recordable Shots, Battery Charge, Red-Eye Correction, Date, Eye-Fi transmission. Anything else can be accessed by pressing the Menu button.
Scene modes on the Canon G12 include Portrait, Landscape, Kids & Pets, Sports, Smart Shutter, Super Vivid, Poster Effect, Color Accent, Color Swap, High Dynamic Range (HDR), Nostalgic, Fisheye Effect, Miniature Effect, Beach, Underwater, Foliage, Snow, Fireworks, and Stitch Assist.
Of those I found HDR particularly interesting when used in low light. It takes three shots and composites them in the camera. In most situations where you'd need it, you'll have to use a tripod with HDR. And Fisheye was a lot of fun, too.
HD movie. 720p24 H.264 format with stereo sound. Optical zoom not supported, but digital zoom is. (Click to download 16.9MB MOV file.)
Movie mode options include 1,280 x 720 at 24 frames per second with 640 x 480 and 320 x 240 both at 30 frames per second. Standard, Miniature Effect, Color Accent, and Color Swap effects are available in Movie mode.
Menu System. The Canon G12's menu system will be familiar to any PowerShot owner with only minor variations reflecting the model's advanced capabilities.
Function Menu. Here the i-Contrast dynamic range correction options are displayed.
If what you need can't be found on a button (or dial), press the Function button in the middle of the Canon G12's four-way navigator. If you need more general behavioral modification, use the Menu button.
The Canon G12's Function button uses a totem pole of icons on the left with options appearing across the bottom. The Menu button uses a tabbed set of options that are easily navigated, although to switch tabs you have to go all the way to the beginning or end of each list of options before the tab option is active again.
My Menu can accommodate up to five frequently used menu options. And you can change their order, too. Very handy.
Storage & Battery. The Canon G12 supports SD/SDHC Memory Cards, SDXC Memory Cards, Eye-Fi Cards, MultiMediaCard, MMC Plus Cards, and HC MMC Plus Cards.
At the highest quality setting and a 4:3 aspect ratio, you can store about 1,471 images on a 4GB card, according to Canon. You can record up to 25 min., 8 seconds of 1,280 x 720 HD video on that same 4GB card. Clip sizes are restricted to 4GB in HD and one hour for 4:3 formats. SD Speed Class 4 or higher memory cards are recommended.
The rather bulky lithium-ion Canon battery (NB-7L) is rated for 7.4 volts and 1,050 mAh, providing 370 shots with the Canon G12's monitor on, or a playback time of seven hours, according to Canon, which used CIPA measurement standards.
The battery cover has a slot you can fit over an arrow printed on the battery to indicate it's charged. A depleted battery can be indicated by turning the cover around so the arrow is covered. Clever and very helpful if you use more than one battery.
The Canon G12's battery charger has a convenient folding plug design. And an AC adapter is available.
I found battery life to be extensive, rarely charging the battery between shoots.
DIGIC 4 Image Processor. Using algorithms developed by Canon, the DIGIC image processor facilitates the high-speed processing of tasks like reducing false colors or moire patterns and canceling noise during long exposures. It also reduces noise for high-speed image capture and provides higher resolution signal output to the Canon G12's LCD.
DIGIC 4 is even faster than its predecessors. It incorporates noise reduction technology and Scene Detection technology, along with improved video functionality, Face Detection technology and Motion Detection technology.
It seemed to me I couldn't take a bad shot with the Canon G12. I particularly liked how well it held shadow and highlight detail with a smooth distribution of midtones, not to mention natural color. Even reds held up well, to my surprise.
And the range of the lens from macro to wide-angle at 28mm was encouraging. I was a bit worried about exceeding optical telephoto but I let it fly after I saw the first results. There was pretty good detail (exceeding what I could see with my eyes) and the color held up well, too.
So I took the Canon G12 everywhere with me for a couple of weeks.
Vehicles. I shot a number of vehicles for some reason, all of them instructive.
The dark interior shots on a rainy day really show off the tonal range of the Canon G12's captures. The seat shot has a very shallow depth of field, but I was actually interested in the seat back, not the raindrops. At 1/32 second I really didn't have much room to negotiate a smaller aperture unless I kicked up the ISO.
The dark dashboard shot was taken in Manual mode because I was still hunting around for the EV control. At least there was a Manual mode there so I could get the shot. But again, what I saw in the car was that lovely gradation of tone and it's there in the shot, too.
The red of the Rumbolino looks pretty good, too. Compare to the metallic red of the flower vase in bright afternoon sunlight, which was also well captured.
The Toyota pickup was a study in fall colors, lets say. I was glad the Canon G12 didn't bump up the ISO despite the overcast sky just as it kept it to ISO 80 on the rainy day. The Canon G12 has an option in Auto ISO to limit how high the ISO is allowed to go, but also to slow or accelerate its rate of change, which leans the bias toward slower shutter speeds and wider apertures to keep the ISO low, or else allows it to change more quickly. Settings are Slow, Standard, and Fast.
Fisheye. When you need a little more room on the bus.
Effects. The first shot of the bus was really just a setup for the Fisheye effect shot that follows it. It's a fun effect that still gives you a full frame, unlike a real fisheye lens.
The white JFK rose shows how well highlight detail is captured. There's just the very slightest red blooming on the edges of the largest petals where they meet the dark green background. You really have to pixel-peep to see it.
For some reason it's more fun shooting monochrome than desaturating a color image at the computer. The Canon G12 lets you shoot black and white (and even sepia), showing you the effect as you compose with the LCD. It's right on the Function menu, too.
I shot my logs on Twin Peaks in both color and black and white. Somehow the black and white shot always looks more interesting. And the Canon G12 held onto the highlights very nicely, even though the wood has been bleached by the sun for months.
The shot of the parking lot shows the Miniature effect, which defocuses the top and bottom of the image to make the subject appear toy-like.
Low Light. The dolls in near darkness show what the Canon G12 can do in low light using HDR, Low Light mode, and a range of ISO settings in Program. HDR was the first shot (it seems to always record as ISO 800), not very successful, because as I mentioned HDR mode requires a tripod.
Color is pretty consistent from ISO 400 to ISO 2,500. ISO 400 at 1/4 second suffers camera motion blur, despite Canon's optical image stabilization, which was on for all of these shots. At ISO 2,500, detail is still sharp on the small doll, although not the best we've seen. Still, none of the other shots were as sharp.
Dynamic Range. I took a series of shots of a fire hydrant in the rain to test i-Contrast, Canon's dynamic range optimization. Settings were Off, Auto, 200 percent, and 400 percent. I was particularly concerned in this series with holding highlight detail without using EV to underexpose.
First, I'll point out that the red blooming we saw just a hint of on the rose is a little more evident here at the edges of the hydrant.
Second, I'll point out that it's hard to attribute any real difference to any of these even with the bright sticker on the top of the hydrant as our highlight test. They're all well exposed with very good color (that red curb is very natural) and excellent detail.
More revealing of dynamic range are all the shots taken together. I shot with i-Contrast set to Auto for the most part and none of the images show blown-out highlights.
The row of logs on Twin Peaks is a good example. The bleached logs still have detail and you can see rocks in the dark shadows they cast. That's really a pretty good job with that scene.
Unfortunately, there isn't an Exif tag to reveal the i-Contrast setting. But fortunately, you can change the i-Contrast setting in Playback. You can select between Auto, Low, Medium, or High.
There is a second set of i-Contrast images of a fig tree at the bottom of the gallery that I did label with the setting. The first (DR0) has i-Contrast turned off. The second (DRA) is Auto, the third (DR1) is 100 percent, and the last (DR2) is 200 percent. That's the full range.
I think it's a good idea to set it on Auto and enjoy the feature.
Street Shooting. Even though the Canon G12 isn't a compact digicam, it's a lot smaller than even a small dSLR, and even more compact than most mirrorless cameras. So when the World Series came to San Francisco, I put the Canon G12 in my pocket for a walk around the stadium before Game One.
It was already crowded hours before the game so having a small camera was a decided advantage. And having a large battery capacity was another advantage I appreciated. In that sense it was a lot like having a dSLR rather than a little camera with a thin wafer of a battery. I left the camera on, protecting the lens as I navigated the crowd.
Because it's a 28mm-equivalent wide-angle, I zoomed all the way back and composed my shots casually, sometimes just taking a flying leap of faith by pointing the camera in the general direction of the subject.
This was another situation where having dials and buttons beat the pants off navigating menus. If I needed to adjust exposure, the EV dial was right there, no fooling around with the LCD. That made a big difference.
So did the Front dial when I slipped into Aperture Priority mode to isolate a statue against the busy background. In this case, I was looking at the LCD to compose the image anyway, but the Front dial made it easy to find the widest aperture.
Some things are just impossible to judge on an LCD. The shot through the fence looked as if the players beyond the fence were sharp, but that isn't the case. Having taken that shot more than once, I knew it required manual focus, but street shooting wasn't going to provide the opportunity. It was really a point-and-shoot event.
Still, the overall effect of the 40 shots I took around the stadium was just what I was looking for. Though misfits and discards individually, they were, like the Giants themselves, winners as a group.
Hiking. Another ticket the Canon G12 filled was as a hiking companion. I took a few hikes with the Canon G12 (in fact, I rarely left the house without it).
One hike along Glen Canyon has always been a challenge photographically. The scenes are dramatic but the pictures tend to be rather bland. But with the Canon G12 I was able to capture the hillside in the Fall light framed by the evergreens along the road. Hard to believe that's in the middle of San Francisco, but there you go.
My usual hike up Twin Peaks for the zoom series of shots was on a particularly brilliant and clear day.
At the full telephoto focal length, I took a shot straight down Market St. You can just about make out the time on the Ferry Building (it may help to know it was 12:37). That's not something you can see with the naked eye.
The shot of the Golden Gate Bridge used digital zoom but you can see how well it held detail by examining the thin vertical cables holding up the roadway.
As the zoom series shows, the Canon G12 has a sufficient reach at 20x with digital zoom, although the 5x optical zoom is a little short for distant landscapes. Digital zoom held up very well, though, in both color and detail, so I didn't hesitate to use it.
Aspect Ratios. But the Canon G12 really shined at wide-angle with 16:9 aspect ratio. I shot mostly 4:3 aspect ratio to the largest file sizes, but I preferred 16:9. The Canon G12 also offers 3:2 and even 1:1 aspect ratios. There's a nice macro shot at 1:1 in the gallery.
But the wide-angle shots of the roadway trailing off into the sky on Twin Peaks are dramatic. As is the row of logs and the staircase. They draw you into the shot. And that's partly the wide-angle lens and partly the aspect ratio. On the Canon G12, you get both to play with.
HDR. The last two shots in the gallery were both taken with the HDR Scene mode. In HDR, the Canon G12 takes three shots at different exposures (I heard different shutter speeds for my still life images), compositing them in the camera.
At 1/4 second (more or less, considering there are three shots), camera blur becomes a problem. And the two HDR shots certainly show that. But I had such great results using Sony's Handheld Twilight mode under the same circumstances, I had to try it. Sony clearly wins this round, thanks to their micro-alignment feature, something the Canon G12 lacks. So as I've said, a tripod is necessary.
Before I packed up the Canon G12, I popped it on a tripod and took a series of garden furniture shots. I thought the shadows and bleached wood would profit from multiple exposures and, with the color options, clearly show the alternate renderings.
Which chair would you sit in?
Raw. The Canon G12, like its predecessors, can store Raw captures and even Raw+JPEG captures. There are two in the gallery. Both are high-contrast images of a plant in bright sunlight.
While it took a second to write the Raw data to the card, performance wasn't as sluggish as it is with some digicams that capture Raw data. It really wasn't suitable for quick action or continuous release, however.
It's worth downloading one of the Raw images to see how much range they have. You'll need Lightroom 3.3 or Camera Raw 6.3 to handle them, at least among Adobe products.
GPS. One final confession. All the gallery images were shot with an Eye-Fi X2 Pro card, which put GPS data into the Exif header based on the router the images passed through on their way to the hard disk. Since this isn't at all accurate, I've simply used Phil Harvey's ExifTool to remove the GPS data.
See the test results summary, along with pro/con and our conclusion below. For more detailed test results, see the Optics, Exposure and Performance tabs.
Sharpness: The wide-angle end of the Canon PowerShot G12's zoom shows moderate blurring in the corners of the frame compared to what we see at center, with the strongest instance in the lower left corner. However, blurring didn't extend very far into the frame. At telephoto, performance is a little better, with only very slight softening in the corners. Good results overall.
Geometric Distortion: There is higher than average barrel distortion at wide-angle (0.9%), and almost no perceptible pincushion distortion (less than one pixel) at telephoto. Pretty good results overall.
Chromatic Aberration: Chromatic aberration at wide-angle is moderate in terms of pixel count, though pixels are fairly bright. The effect extends deep into the frame, though width and intensity decrease. Telephoto, however, shows much less distortion, with faint red and blue pixels just visible.
Macro: The Canon PowerShot G12's Macro mode captures a sharp image with strong detail, though with visible softening in the corners that extends far into the frame (a common limitation among consumer digital cameras in macro mode). Chromatic aberration is also visible. Minimum coverage area is 1.22 x 0.92 inches (31 x 23mm), which is quite good. The camera focuses so closely that the flash is blocked almost entirely by the lens.
Viewfinder Accuracy: The Canon PowerShot G12's optical viewfinder showed about 78% coverage at wide-angle, and about 79% coverage at telephoto, a very poor performance, though no surprise for a non-TTL optical viewfinder. The LCD monitor showed about 100% coverage accuracy at wide-angle and at telephoto, which is excellent.
Color: The Canon PowerShot G12 produced good saturation overall, though strong reds, greens, browns and blues showed mild to moderate oversaturation. Bright yellows, aqua and cyan were actually a little muted. Hue performance showed some shifts in color, such as cyan toward blue, red toward orange, and yellow toward green. Lighter skin tones were close to accurate, though slightly cool, while darker skin tones showed a warmer, yellowish cast.
Incandescent: Manual white balance handled our incandescent lighting best overall, despite a slight cool cast. The Auto setting also turned out well, though it was just a bit magenta. Incandescent mode resulted in a strong magenta cast.
Resolution: Our laboratory resolution chart revealed sharp, distinct line patterns down to about 1,500 lines per picture height horizontally, and to about 1,400 vertically. Extinction of the pattern occurred at around 2,200 lines per picture height.
Flash: Our manufacturer-specified testing (shown at right) showed bright results at wide-angle at the rated 23 feet, despite having to move the camera out of the main lab. (The white doorway, panels and ceiling often fool cameras into underexposing the flash target, but not the G12.) The G12 did however boost ISO to 400 to achieve these results. The telephoto test came out well exposed at the rated 13 feet, with an ISO increase to 320.
Auto flash produced bright results in our indoor portrait scene, thanks to an automatic ISO boost to 250. The slower shutter speed of 1/25 second selected by the camera could result in mild blurring from subject movement, though.
ISO: Noise and Detail: Detail is quite good at ISO 80 up to about 200, though smudging becomes more evident at ISO 400. Yellow and purple chroma (color) noise begins to appear in darker areas at ISO 800, and worsens as sensitivity increases. Stronger noise reduction at the higher ISOs decreases detail as well. However, overall results are still better than average. See Printed results below for more on how this affects prints.
Printed: ISO 80 and 100 shots look good at 16x20 inches, if a little soft. Sharpening improves matters. Color and corners look good, but the red swatch is a little soft at this size and ISO setting. 13x19-inch prints look better straight from the camera.
ISO 200 images have good detail at 13x19 inches, but there is some luminance noise in the shadows.
ISO 400 shots are slightly soft printed at 13x19, though still usable. Shadows show a little more luminance noise. Detail looks much sharper at 11x14 inches.
ISO 800 images are softer at 11x14, but not bad. Reds that were soft at 80 are softer now, but still surprisingly show some detail. Printing at 8x10, though, makes a great print.
ISO 1,600 shots look better at 5x7, and though the red swatch is soft, it still looks good. Shadows at this size look quite normal.
ISO 3,200 shots are also quite good at 5x7.
Overall, a very good performance from the Canon G12. Dark areas deepen slightly as we move up the ISO ladder and down in print size, but color and apparent exposure look pretty consistent. It's also a little better image quality than we saw in the Canon S95.
Shutter Lag: Full autofocus shutter lag is slower than average at wide-angle, at 0.66 second, though about average at 0.75 second at full telephoto. Prefocus shutter lag is 0.076 second, not the fastest out there, but still pretty quick.
Cycle Time: Cycle time is slower than average, capturing a large/fine JPEG frame every 2.4 seconds in single-shot mode. Continuous mode captures JPEG frames at 1.97 frames per second, just a little sluggish for its class. RAW+JPEG continuous mode is slower, at 0.96 frames per second.
Flash Recycle: The Canon PowerShot G12's flash recycles in about 4.1 seconds after a full-power discharge, about average.
Low Light AF: The G12's AF system was able to focus down to the 1/16 foot-candle light level without AF assist enabled, and the camera was able to focus in complete darkness with the AF assist lamp enabled.
USB Transfer Speed: Connected to a computer or printer with USB 2.0, the Canon PowerShot G12's download speeds are moderately fast. We measured 6,433 KBytes/sec.
Shipped with the retail version of the Canon G12 are:
PowerShot G12 Lithium Battery Pack NB-7L Battery Charger CB-2LZ Neck Strap NS-DC9 AV Cable AVC-DC400ST USB Interface Cable IFC-400PCU Digital Camera Solution CD-ROM
Articulated LCD screen helps compose from unusual anglesHigh build qualityGood gripDials for ISO and EVNew Front dial very handyExcellent optics with a 28mm start to the 5x optical zoomExcellent Optical Image StabilizationNew hybrid IS system corrects for both lateral and angular shifts Good MacroSupports Raw (and Raw+JPEG) with less speed penalty than mostVery good low light performanceExcellent, familiar menu systemMy Menu for commonly used settings Custom settings on mode dial Good color accuracy Faster JPEG burst mode than G11 (but still sluggish) 720p HD movies with stereo sound Better than average noise performance Lots of accessories including an underwater housing, ring light, off-camera flash, teleconverter, filter adapterOptical viewfinder (but see Con about accuracy)i-Contrast with highlight and shadow adjustments Variable AF frame size AF-point zoom Tracking AF HDR mode (but requires use of tripod) Good flash rangeDecent flash recycling timeFlash hotshoeExcellent battery lifeFace detection, face self-timerSDXC card support Awkward size: heavy and bulkyControls are stiff and roughSmall Shutter button and Zoom ringMediocre cycle times Poor optical viewfinder coverageHigh barrel distortion at wide-angle Moderately high chromatic aberration at wide-angle (when wide open) Moderate corner blurring at wide-angle (when wide open) Autofocus is slower than average at wide-angle, and on the slow side of average at telephoto No noise reduction options Optical zoom not supported during movies Telephoto doesn't go as long as some of the competition Auto flash can use slow shutter speeds Lacking features some competitors have (no hand-held multi-shot modes, no automatic panorama feature, etc.)
The PowerShot G12 manages to improve on the G11 without taking any backward steps. It represents more a refinement than a revision, but that only reflects what a solid camera the G11 was.
Despite that, the G12 is getting squeezed on one side by its own slimmer and nearly-as-capable PowerShot 95 stablemate. And on the other side, it's getting pushed by a handful of small mirrorless cameras that aren't quite as small, but pack larger sensors. It's simply a different landscape in 2010.
I found myself picking up the Canon G12 rather than the Olympus E-PL2 next to it simply because it was slightly smaller and its image quality was always pleasing. I might just have easily picked up an S95 or a Panasonic LX5 if one of those had been sitting on the table, though.
What's clear in this crowded field is that what used to be the top of the mountain, the flagship among digicams, is now something of a compromise. A pleasant compromise, I hasten to add, but not the slam dunk of years past.
On the other hand, compromise is an art, and Canon has delivered such an artful one that it easily merits a Dave's Pick. It's the best G-series PowerShot I've had my hands on.
Monday 29 November 2010
Ricoh firmware available for the G700: new
Ricoh firmware available for the G700: new (press release) 17. November the most comprehensive and informative digital camera source 2010Your examines go to: previous NewsNext ItemCurrent ItemThe here are unedited press release, shown represents the company to have been received.We've elected without editorial comment on the Commission to submit to the publications in such a way as to reach our readers continue to learn more about our editorial without overtaxing the limited resources. [1] [2] Imaging-Resource whenever possible to clearly distinguish the avoid any confusion or conflict of interest, if the company's press releases and your own editorial views and content. Press release: Ricoh G700: new firmware available
Japan, Ricoh Co., Ltd. today announced the release of the updated firmware for its G700 digital camera.
Firmware update contains an audio recording of the credit memo, that occurs in Ricoh G700, in particular, one instance of the problem correction if you saved a voice memo and the No. 2-item, or greater, then play on the memo back, after you try to register a new memo and the No. 1-item a new recording to prove unsuccessful. [1] [2] this issue is now fixed. other changes are listed in the new firmware.
Ricoh G700, as well as information on how to check your camera's current firmware version and a firmware update, if necessary, the new firmware can be found on the Ricoh website.
(First posted, Friday, November 12, 2010 at 12: 42 EST)
Japan, Ricoh Co., Ltd. today announced the release of the updated firmware for its G700 digital camera.
Firmware update contains an audio recording of the credit memo, that occurs in Ricoh G700, in particular, one instance of the problem correction if you saved a voice memo and the No. 2-item, or greater, then play on the memo back, after you try to register a new memo and the No. 1-item a new recording to prove unsuccessful. [1] [2] this issue is now fixed. other changes are listed in the new firmware.
Ricoh G700, as well as information on how to check your camera's current firmware version and a firmware update, if necessary, the new firmware can be found on the Ricoh website.
(First posted, Friday, November 12, 2010 at 12: 42 EST)
Sunday 28 November 2010
Nik Software offers 64-bit updates
Nik Software offers 64-bit updates17. November the most comprehensive and informative digital camera source 2010Your examines go to: previous NewsNext ItemCurrent item Nik Software offers 64-bit updates
By Michael r. Tomkins, the imaging resource
(Tuesday, 16 November 2010-23: 34 EST)Nik Software Inc. has released its plugins that extend the various updates, a 64-bit compatibility to cover its Photoshop Lightroom is a product line and Aperture completely.
All updates are of Dfine 2.0, Viveza-2, Color Efex Pro 3.0 and silver Efex Pro, as the case may be, and the newspaper Pro 3.0 and in each case, as well as adding a 64-bit compatibility, unspecified, minor defects are different in previous versions have been corrected. HDR Efex Pro is not included in the today, because it had already 64-bit compatible.
Nik's plugins, the following are the current versions, both Windows and Macintosh versions of download pages links:
Color Efex Pro 3.0: v3.110 (Standard, select, or full versions) Dfine 2.0: v2.107 Pencil Sharpener Pro 3.0: Silver Efex Pro v3.005: v1.007 Viveza 2: v2.003
Further information can be found in the Nik Software site.
Original source-press release:Nik Software products now 64-bit compatible Suite completely
Workflow efficiency improved compatibility with 64-bit
San Diego, CA – 15.November 2010-Nik Software announces today a 64-bit compatibility throughout the Nik Software product line gives photographers workflow efficiency at the highest level for registered customers may download the. free Dfine ® 2.0, Viveza ® 2 Color Efex Pro ™, 3.0, Silver Efex Pro ™, and Pencil Sharpener Pro ™ 3.0 www.niksoftware.com/downloads.
"Photographers using a 64-bit workflow can now take advantage of much faster and more efficient memory management system, all of our plug-ins," said Michael j. Slater, President and CEO of Nik Software."I am confident that customers will not be able to take advantage of the opportunities offered by this update only our architecture, but also to future products that take advantage of this."
64-bit compatibility, to complement all the Nik Software plug-ins feature the company's own U point ® technology, accurate images without complicated selections or layer masks need to enable the selective fine-tune. for more information about Nik Software products, watch the training videos, download free trials or to join the live online training sessions, visit the following www.niksoftware.com.
Pricing and availability of the
Free updates for 64-bit compatible versions are now available for registered owners of Dfine 2.0, Viveza-2, Color Efex Pro 3.0 and Silver Efex Pro, as the case may be, and the newspaper Pro 3.0 via the company's website: www.niksoftware.com.Customers who have purchased Complete Collection Ultimate Edition or Complete Collection Lightroom and Aperture can also get the updates free of charge.
All products are now both 32-bit and 64-bit image editing applications such as Adobe ® Photoshop ®, Photoshop ® Elements, Photoshop Lightroom ® and Apple Aperture ®-compliant.View the full system requirements, please visit www.niksoftware.com/support.
About Nik Software
Nik Software, Inc. is a privately owned company that develops software solutions and offers award-winning educational programs, a digital imaging and photography markets. established in 1995, Nik Software has become a recognized leader in digital photographic filter development and produces award-winning technologies and software products for digital photography and imaging professionals including U point ®, HDR Efex Pro ™, Dfine ®, Viveza, Color Efex Pro ®, ™, Silver Efex Pro ™, and the newspaper Pro ™ software.For more information, visit the following www.niksoftware.com.
By Michael r. Tomkins, the imaging resource
(Tuesday, 16 November 2010-23: 34 EST)Nik Software Inc. has released its plugins that extend the various updates, a 64-bit compatibility to cover its Photoshop Lightroom is a product line and Aperture completely.
All updates are of Dfine 2.0, Viveza-2, Color Efex Pro 3.0 and silver Efex Pro, as the case may be, and the newspaper Pro 3.0 and in each case, as well as adding a 64-bit compatibility, unspecified, minor defects are different in previous versions have been corrected. HDR Efex Pro is not included in the today, because it had already 64-bit compatible.
Nik's plugins, the following are the current versions, both Windows and Macintosh versions of download pages links:
Color Efex Pro 3.0: v3.110 (Standard, select, or full versions) Dfine 2.0: v2.107 Pencil Sharpener Pro 3.0: Silver Efex Pro v3.005: v1.007 Viveza 2: v2.003
Further information can be found in the Nik Software site.
Original source-press release:Nik Software products now 64-bit compatible Suite completely
Workflow efficiency improved compatibility with 64-bit
San Diego, CA – 15.November 2010-Nik Software announces today a 64-bit compatibility throughout the Nik Software product line gives photographers workflow efficiency at the highest level for registered customers may download the. free Dfine ® 2.0, Viveza ® 2 Color Efex Pro ™, 3.0, Silver Efex Pro ™, and Pencil Sharpener Pro ™ 3.0 www.niksoftware.com/downloads.
"Photographers using a 64-bit workflow can now take advantage of much faster and more efficient memory management system, all of our plug-ins," said Michael j. Slater, President and CEO of Nik Software."I am confident that customers will not be able to take advantage of the opportunities offered by this update only our architecture, but also to future products that take advantage of this."
64-bit compatibility, to complement all the Nik Software plug-ins feature the company's own U point ® technology, accurate images without complicated selections or layer masks need to enable the selective fine-tune. for more information about Nik Software products, watch the training videos, download free trials or to join the live online training sessions, visit the following www.niksoftware.com.
Pricing and availability of the
Free updates for 64-bit compatible versions are now available for registered owners of Dfine 2.0, Viveza-2, Color Efex Pro 3.0 and Silver Efex Pro, as the case may be, and the newspaper Pro 3.0 via the company's website: www.niksoftware.com.Customers who have purchased Complete Collection Ultimate Edition or Complete Collection Lightroom and Aperture can also get the updates free of charge.
All products are now both 32-bit and 64-bit image editing applications such as Adobe ® Photoshop ®, Photoshop ® Elements, Photoshop Lightroom ® and Apple Aperture ®-compliant.View the full system requirements, please visit www.niksoftware.com/support.
About Nik Software
Nik Software, Inc. is a privately owned company that develops software solutions and offers award-winning educational programs, a digital imaging and photography markets. established in 1995, Nik Software has become a recognized leader in digital photographic filter development and produces award-winning technologies and software products for digital photography and imaging professionals including U point ®, HDR Efex Pro ™, Dfine ®, Viveza, Color Efex Pro ®, ™, Silver Efex Pro ™, and the newspaper Pro ™ software.For more information, visit the following www.niksoftware.com.
Friday 26 November 2010
The future is here!
The future is here! (Press release) 17. November the most comprehensive and informative digital camera source 2010Your examines go to: previous NewsNext ItemCurrent ItemThe here are unedited press release, shown represents the company to have been received.We've elected without editorial comment on the Commission to submit to the publications in such a way as to reach our readers continue to learn more about our editorial without overtaxing the limited resources. [1] [2] Imaging-Resource whenever possible to clearly distinguish the avoid any confusion or conflict of interest, if the company's press releases and your own editorial views and content. Press release: the future is here!
The first image ever edit using Pixel Bender Technology in Adobe Photoshop ® CS4 and PSKiss launched CS5 filters.
Tel Aviv, 15.Nov 2010-PSKiss informs a new packet Pixel Bender, the professional image editing named Pixel Gear Suite filters. each filter takes advantage of the Pixel Bender technology enabled directly using the GPU full acceleration, creating exceptional image quality, the eye precessing time * blink rate cutting edge algorithms for the video card.
Each filter has been delivered by using the Free Adobe Photoshop, for quick and easy worfklow. "Us with Pixel Gear Panels easily users start Pixel Gear filters create pre-configured settings, best Pixel Bender workflow tool, "says Tal PSKiss Ninio, CEO, and leading a Vice President of product management.
Enabled PSKiss edge Gear-Panel.
Screenshot provided by PSKiss.
The first Pixel Gear filters are: Skin retouching filter unique gear in the skin, S/H audio Gear-tone and contrast in a way, as well as standard and Pro versions, and edge Gear-the most effective edge enhancement tool in the best way and.
"These filters should take ages to act on the algorithms for THE CPU," says Max Penson, PSKiss Co-owner and the world's leading provider of product development. "Thank you for using Pixel Bender technology, we are able to run our original edge cutting algorithms, directly on the GPU to shorten processing time blink rate, eye *".
Pixel filters now offered in Gear for a limited period of time, especially with a 25 percent discount.
For more information about PSKiss Pixel Gear Suite, visit the following http://pskiss.com/pskiss-pixel-gear-suite/
Enabled PSKiss Skin Gear Pro Panel.
Screenshot provided by PSKiss.
About PSKiss
PSKiss founded the Tal Ninio and Max Penson.
Tal Ninio has Adobe Photoshop Certified Expert more then 16 years of experience in image processing, digital pre-press and digital Photography.Mentor College, Tel Aviv, author of 10 books and Photoshop Visual Guide 2 Photoshop step-by-step instructions on how to use the founder and former owner of books.
Max Penson at Zoran Corporation, Image-Quality expert.The former Application Specialist magazine, Kodak at.(D)-the owner, the Israeli Chief spot.co.il digital photography website.
* Performance may vary depending on the properties of the graphic card.
Adobe, Photoshop and Pixel Bender are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in other countries.
PSKiss SH sound Gear Pro Panel enabled.
Screenshot provided by PSKiss.(First posted on Monday, 15 November 2010, at 20: 46-EST)Go to: previous NewsNext ItemCurrent ItemResourcesDigital CamerasBy PriceBy ManufacturerBy MegapixelDigital Camera ReviewsDave n PicksCheck price comparison model ImagesCompare ModelsFind Best Camera For YouCamera ForumsCamera DriversSupport on this site
(Our links)AccessoriesCamera Lens ReviewsBatteriesCamera AccessoriesPrintersScannersSoftwareTutorialsGetting StartedBetter PicturesHow ToNewsBreaking NewsRSS feed RSSWhat's new RSSNewsletterForumsMain ForumsCamera ForumsCanon TalkNikon TalkOlympus TalkSony TalkSearchSearchSiteMapLink DirectoryAbout SiteMastheadAdvertisingPress KitPrivacy UsAbout this policy include, but are not limited
The first image ever edit using Pixel Bender Technology in Adobe Photoshop ® CS4 and PSKiss launched CS5 filters.
Tel Aviv, 15.Nov 2010-PSKiss informs a new packet Pixel Bender, the professional image editing named Pixel Gear Suite filters. each filter takes advantage of the Pixel Bender technology enabled directly using the GPU full acceleration, creating exceptional image quality, the eye precessing time * blink rate cutting edge algorithms for the video card.
Each filter has been delivered by using the Free Adobe Photoshop, for quick and easy worfklow. "Us with Pixel Gear Panels easily users start Pixel Gear filters create pre-configured settings, best Pixel Bender workflow tool, "says Tal PSKiss Ninio, CEO, and leading a Vice President of product management.
Enabled PSKiss edge Gear-Panel.
Screenshot provided by PSKiss.
The first Pixel Gear filters are: Skin retouching filter unique gear in the skin, S/H audio Gear-tone and contrast in a way, as well as standard and Pro versions, and edge Gear-the most effective edge enhancement tool in the best way and.
"These filters should take ages to act on the algorithms for THE CPU," says Max Penson, PSKiss Co-owner and the world's leading provider of product development. "Thank you for using Pixel Bender technology, we are able to run our original edge cutting algorithms, directly on the GPU to shorten processing time blink rate, eye *".
Pixel filters now offered in Gear for a limited period of time, especially with a 25 percent discount.
For more information about PSKiss Pixel Gear Suite, visit the following http://pskiss.com/pskiss-pixel-gear-suite/
Enabled PSKiss Skin Gear Pro Panel.
Screenshot provided by PSKiss.
About PSKiss
PSKiss founded the Tal Ninio and Max Penson.
Tal Ninio has Adobe Photoshop Certified Expert more then 16 years of experience in image processing, digital pre-press and digital Photography.Mentor College, Tel Aviv, author of 10 books and Photoshop Visual Guide 2 Photoshop step-by-step instructions on how to use the founder and former owner of books.
Max Penson at Zoran Corporation, Image-Quality expert.The former Application Specialist magazine, Kodak at.(D)-the owner, the Israeli Chief spot.co.il digital photography website.
* Performance may vary depending on the properties of the graphic card.
Adobe, Photoshop and Pixel Bender are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in other countries.
PSKiss SH sound Gear Pro Panel enabled.
Screenshot provided by PSKiss.(First posted on Monday, 15 November 2010, at 20: 46-EST)Go to: previous NewsNext ItemCurrent ItemResourcesDigital CamerasBy PriceBy ManufacturerBy MegapixelDigital Camera ReviewsDave n PicksCheck price comparison model ImagesCompare ModelsFind Best Camera For YouCamera ForumsCamera DriversSupport on this site
(Our links)AccessoriesCamera Lens ReviewsBatteriesCamera AccessoriesPrintersScannersSoftwareTutorialsGetting StartedBetter PicturesHow ToNewsBreaking NewsRSS feed RSSWhat's new RSSNewsletterForumsMain ForumsCamera ForumsCanon TalkNikon TalkOlympus TalkSony TalkSearchSearchSiteMapLink DirectoryAbout SiteMastheadAdvertisingPress KitPrivacy UsAbout this policy include, but are not limited
Thursday 25 November 2010
Microsoft gesture/voice controlled Kinect for Xbox
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Kinect for Xbox 360 goes on sale in North America Thursday, bringing with it a new era of controller-free gaming and entertainment.
Once it meets you, Kinect recognizes you. With just a wave of the hand or a voice command, Kinect comes to life, bringing games, movies, TV, music, exercise, dancing and sports to your fingertips.
No, it's not a space-age movie; it's your living room.
“We see the future being about computers and sensors learning how to respond to you, instead of you having to learn how to respond to them,” said Don Mattrick, senior vice president of Interactive Entertainment at Microsoft.
Kinect removes the “wands, gadgets, and gizmos” that sometimes act as a barrier, making Xbox games and entertainment more approachable, social and interactive so everyone can enjoy them, he said.
“With Kinect, you are the controller,” Mattrick said. “All you have to do is step in front of the sensor and it instantly recognizes you and tracks your movements with no experience required.”
Retailers around the world are gearing up for Thursday's Kinect launch, as are consumers. Some shoppers even plan to line up at one of thousands of stores opening at midnight to get first crack at buying Kinect at 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 4.
The launch of Kinect will be accompanied by 17 games especially built for the platform, four of which were developed in-house at Microsoft.
For Microsoft, and especially the Xbox team, Thursday marks the end of one “remarkable” journey and the beginning of another, Mattrick said.
“It was just three years ago that we had a $30,000 prototype, and now this week we are launching Kinect with a full retail game for a great value at just $149,” Mattrick said. “What we have accomplished in this short period of time is transformative and will change the way people experience games and entertainment.”
Mattrick said Microsoft has sold 45 million Xbox 360 consoles, but Kinect has the potential to bring Xbox games and entertainment to millions more.
“It is an exciting time for our company and we are pleased to see the reaction and enthusiasm for Kinect from the media, consumers and our partners,” he said.
Moms, Grandparents and Kids Among Kinect Testers
In one of Microsoft's Game User Research labs on the company's campus in Redmond, Wash., Matt Walters watches as his daughter, 9-year-old Morgan Walters, pets a virtual snow leopard cub she's just named “Ducati” (after the family's real cat at home).
Morgan is playing the game Kinectimals, in which players befriend, train, and frolic with exotic cat cubs while simultaneously exploring the mysterious island of Lemuria.
“Play dead,” Morgan tells the on-screen cub, who obeys, rolling over on his back with his paws sticking straight up in the air. This makes Morgan and her father giggle.
The lab looks essentially like a living room, except for the large pane of glass through which Microsoft researchers observe families like the Walters playing Kinect games.
“I thought it was really, really cool,” Morgan, a fifth grader, said afterwards. “I think it's really different from other games, but that's a good thing. I think people will really like it because it doesn't have a controller.”
Kinect is also much easier to learn than other video game consoles, she said.
“Other games take you a while to adapt to it. It takes you a long time, but this goes really fast; just a couple of minutes and you already know what to do,” Morgan said.
It's science fiction made real and a “leap” above other video game experiences, said her father Matt, a land surveyor and longtime video game enthusiast.
“I'm 40, so I've hit on the whole range of video games from Space Invaders on,” he said. “Playing Kinect was one of those surreal moments – seeing that you're manipulating the game with no other object than your hand, and it's so accurately depicting what you're doing. There really isn't a learning curve; you're simply walking through the game.”
Such feedback helped Microsoft make Kinect what it is, said Kudo Tsunoda, creative director for Kinect. .
More than 1,000 Microsoft employees have been working on Kinect and more than 1,200 volunteers like the Walters have tested it, all with the aim of making it so anyone from children to grandparents could “jump in” and play Kinect.
“It really takes playing video games and changes it into something that is very natural and allows you to do things that you would do in your regular life,” Tsunoda said. “In Kinect sports, you kick a soccer ball like you would kick a real ball.”
You Already Know How to Use Kinect
Not everyone has grown up familiar with a 16-button video game controller, which has been somewhat of a barrier in sharing Xbox with a much broader audience, Mattrick said.
Solving that challenge is “key to not only the growth of our industry but critical to the future success of our business as well,” he said. “Kinect creates new growth opportunities for everyone. We believe it will serve as a catalyst for the entire industry and can push the limits of creativity for interactive entertainment.”
Tsunoda said he's particularly pleased to see people with “super high levels of excitement” no matter their gender or age group. In his own family, his brother likes to play the car racing game “Kinect Joy Ride” and his mother is “fired up” about watching movies through Zune Video without the need for a remote.
“She really was having a great time, not watching the movie, but showing off that she knew how to use the Xbox voice commands,” Tsunoda said. “It's one of the very few things in the world that can get the same level of enjoyment from a 30-year-old friend of mine and from my mom, both of whom are really just having a great time.”
The magic of Kinect is that Microsoft was able to make sophisticated, complex technology into a simple experience, he said.
“We spent a lot of time and effort working on and perfecting both the technology and the experience so the people playing can have simple fun without having to be aware of how the technology works,” Tsunoda said. “I think that's what makes Kinect such a blast.”
Tsunoda also said Kinect is a great way to get people up off the couch and interacting with each other and technology. It's not hard to break a sweat playing Kinect, especially with no controller to get in the way of the activities the games offer such as jumping, running, throwing, kicking, serving, or even customized personal training.
Why Go Controller-Free?
Xbox 360 has evolved over time, from being very gaming focused in its early years to adding other forms of entertainment such as Netflix, Zune video and music, ESPN, Twitter, Facebook and Last FM, Tsunoda said.
“We have all these great experiences that anybody can enjoy, but for some people, the controller made it hard to be able to get in and enjoy that entertainment,” Tsunoda said. “We knew since we already had a great controller that we wanted to do something that was controller-free.”
In three years, the Kinect team incorporated technology from all over Microsoft, and even looked outside the company, to be able to make a device that could recognize a user, track his or her body, and recognize speech.
“The fun thing about being a creative person working at Microsoft is there are really so many incredibly smart people,” Tsunoda said. “In Microsoft Research, there are a bunch of scientists doing technology experiments and inventing. We ended up discovering they'd been working on things that could enable voice recognition and human recognition … that we were able to bring over to Xbox.”
Tsunoda said as a creative process, the development of Kinect was the “method acting version of designing entertainment.”
“If an actor is playing a role as a fireman, he'll go work as a fireman for a few months,” Tsunoda said. “I think with Kinect we really took that kind of immersive design approach.”
The team consulted all kinds of experts in creating Kinect, and not just technological experts. Tsunoda said they talked to actors, artists, consumers, and language, gesture, and movement experts.
“The way we built the technology, anybody – no matter what their gaming experience is, can jump in without any kind of learning curve,” Tsunoda said. “This is the thing I love most about watching people play Kinect. It really puts the focus on having fun. I love seeing that really big smile light up their face as they see the stuff they're doing with their bodies and their voice. That's what makes Kinect magical.”
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Kinect for Xbox 360 goes on sale in North America Thursday, bringing with it a new era of controller-free gaming and entertainment.
Once it meets you, Kinect recognizes you. With just a wave of the hand or a voice command, Kinect comes to life, bringing games, movies, TV, music, exercise, dancing and sports to your fingertips.
No, it's not a space-age movie; it's your living room.
“We see the future being about computers and sensors learning how to respond to you, instead of you having to learn how to respond to them,” said Don Mattrick, senior vice president of Interactive Entertainment at Microsoft.
Kinect removes the “wands, gadgets, and gizmos” that sometimes act as a barrier, making Xbox games and entertainment more approachable, social and interactive so everyone can enjoy them, he said.
“With Kinect, you are the controller,” Mattrick said. “All you have to do is step in front of the sensor and it instantly recognizes you and tracks your movements with no experience required.”
Retailers around the world are gearing up for Thursday's Kinect launch, as are consumers. Some shoppers even plan to line up at one of thousands of stores opening at midnight to get first crack at buying Kinect at 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 4.
The launch of Kinect will be accompanied by 17 games especially built for the platform, four of which were developed in-house at Microsoft.
For Microsoft, and especially the Xbox team, Thursday marks the end of one “remarkable” journey and the beginning of another, Mattrick said.
“It was just three years ago that we had a $30,000 prototype, and now this week we are launching Kinect with a full retail game for a great value at just $149,” Mattrick said. “What we have accomplished in this short period of time is transformative and will change the way people experience games and entertainment.”
Mattrick said Microsoft has sold 45 million Xbox 360 consoles, but Kinect has the potential to bring Xbox games and entertainment to millions more.
“It is an exciting time for our company and we are pleased to see the reaction and enthusiasm for Kinect from the media, consumers and our partners,” he said.
Moms, Grandparents and Kids Among Kinect Testers
In one of Microsoft's Game User Research labs on the company's campus in Redmond, Wash., Matt Walters watches as his daughter, 9-year-old Morgan Walters, pets a virtual snow leopard cub she's just named “Ducati” (after the family's real cat at home).
Morgan is playing the game Kinectimals, in which players befriend, train, and frolic with exotic cat cubs while simultaneously exploring the mysterious island of Lemuria.
“Play dead,” Morgan tells the on-screen cub, who obeys, rolling over on his back with his paws sticking straight up in the air. This makes Morgan and her father giggle.
The lab looks essentially like a living room, except for the large pane of glass through which Microsoft researchers observe families like the Walters playing Kinect games.
“I thought it was really, really cool,” Morgan, a fifth grader, said afterwards. “I think it's really different from other games, but that's a good thing. I think people will really like it because it doesn't have a controller.”
Kinect is also much easier to learn than other video game consoles, she said.
“Other games take you a while to adapt to it. It takes you a long time, but this goes really fast; just a couple of minutes and you already know what to do,” Morgan said.
It's science fiction made real and a “leap” above other video game experiences, said her father Matt, a land surveyor and longtime video game enthusiast.
“I'm 40, so I've hit on the whole range of video games from Space Invaders on,” he said. “Playing Kinect was one of those surreal moments – seeing that you're manipulating the game with no other object than your hand, and it's so accurately depicting what you're doing. There really isn't a learning curve; you're simply walking through the game.”
Such feedback helped Microsoft make Kinect what it is, said Kudo Tsunoda, creative director for Kinect. .
More than 1,000 Microsoft employees have been working on Kinect and more than 1,200 volunteers like the Walters have tested it, all with the aim of making it so anyone from children to grandparents could “jump in” and play Kinect.
“It really takes playing video games and changes it into something that is very natural and allows you to do things that you would do in your regular life,” Tsunoda said. “In Kinect sports, you kick a soccer ball like you would kick a real ball.”
You Already Know How to Use Kinect
Not everyone has grown up familiar with a 16-button video game controller, which has been somewhat of a barrier in sharing Xbox with a much broader audience, Mattrick said.
Solving that challenge is “key to not only the growth of our industry but critical to the future success of our business as well,” he said. “Kinect creates new growth opportunities for everyone. We believe it will serve as a catalyst for the entire industry and can push the limits of creativity for interactive entertainment.”
Tsunoda said he's particularly pleased to see people with “super high levels of excitement” no matter their gender or age group. In his own family, his brother likes to play the car racing game “Kinect Joy Ride” and his mother is “fired up” about watching movies through Zune Video without the need for a remote.
“She really was having a great time, not watching the movie, but showing off that she knew how to use the Xbox voice commands,” Tsunoda said. “It's one of the very few things in the world that can get the same level of enjoyment from a 30-year-old friend of mine and from my mom, both of whom are really just having a great time.”
The magic of Kinect is that Microsoft was able to make sophisticated, complex technology into a simple experience, he said.
“We spent a lot of time and effort working on and perfecting both the technology and the experience so the people playing can have simple fun without having to be aware of how the technology works,” Tsunoda said. “I think that's what makes Kinect such a blast.”
Tsunoda also said Kinect is a great way to get people up off the couch and interacting with each other and technology. It's not hard to break a sweat playing Kinect, especially with no controller to get in the way of the activities the games offer such as jumping, running, throwing, kicking, serving, or even customized personal training.
Why Go Controller-Free?
Xbox 360 has evolved over time, from being very gaming focused in its early years to adding other forms of entertainment such as Netflix, Zune video and music, ESPN, Twitter, Facebook and Last FM, Tsunoda said.
“We have all these great experiences that anybody can enjoy, but for some people, the controller made it hard to be able to get in and enjoy that entertainment,” Tsunoda said. “We knew since we already had a great controller that we wanted to do something that was controller-free.”
In three years, the Kinect team incorporated technology from all over Microsoft, and even looked outside the company, to be able to make a device that could recognize a user, track his or her body, and recognize speech.
“The fun thing about being a creative person working at Microsoft is there are really so many incredibly smart people,” Tsunoda said. “In Microsoft Research, there are a bunch of scientists doing technology experiments and inventing. We ended up discovering they'd been working on things that could enable voice recognition and human recognition … that we were able to bring over to Xbox.”
Tsunoda said as a creative process, the development of Kinect was the “method acting version of designing entertainment.”
“If an actor is playing a role as a fireman, he'll go work as a fireman for a few months,” Tsunoda said. “I think with Kinect we really took that kind of immersive design approach.”
The team consulted all kinds of experts in creating Kinect, and not just technological experts. Tsunoda said they talked to actors, artists, consumers, and language, gesture, and movement experts.
“The way we built the technology, anybody – no matter what their gaming experience is, can jump in without any kind of learning curve,” Tsunoda said. “This is the thing I love most about watching people play Kinect. It really puts the focus on having fun. I love seeing that really big smile light up their face as they see the stuff they're doing with their bodies and their voice. That's what makes Kinect magical.”
Sony NXCAM HD camcorder to feature is lenses
Sony Corporation announced today that it is developing a new type is for mounting the coupling lens camcorder for professional use, equipped with a CMOS sensor Super 35 mm equivalent wide format. This new addition to deal for "NXCAM" Sony will be available in mid-2011.
Already a key player in digital cinematography business 35 mm with an extremely "CineAlta" F35 and SRW-9000PL for the production of high-end digital cinema, Sony has just increased its staff in this category with the most recent PMW F3 announcement. in addition, with this new HD camcorder NXCAM "now (still under development), Sony shall examine further strengthening its position in the segment of entry-level by providing an affordable yet highly capable professional solution for many applications, including independent film, music, video and corporate communications all search for a cinema.
This "NXCAM" HD camcorder applications developed will be equipped with Super 35 mm equivalent sensor, widely used film stock size in the film industry, is perfect for capturing movies. This new sensor will have an exceptional performance in terms of picture quality and sensitivity and is able to create rich "Bokeh" (beautiful defocused image), which is ideal for Art history-says in the film.
Thanks to the adoption of the system is to be mounted on the interchangeable lens, which is identical with the series "a" NEX-5, 3 and "Handycam" NEX-VG10 is for mounting the lens will be compatible with this new professional camcorder. Furthermore, the very short flange back distance (the distance between the lens and the sensor surface mounting surface) Let "a" (a) for mounting the lens Mount adaptor is mounted (LA EA1). Furthermore, it is also possible to attach many other lenses, using third party Mount adaptors * 1.With this flexibility users will be able to experiment with the various expressions of creativity through the use of the characteristics of the different optics.
* 1: not all types of camera and lenses are guaranteed.
Recording format for this new HD camcorder will be AVCHD format are widely supported by many linear editing software vendors and the same format as HXR-NX5 "NXCAM" camcorder. There is also a plan to implement 1080p (60 p/30 p/24 p * 2 or 50 p/25 p) recording modes.(MPEG4-AVC/h.264 compression will be used for these systems).
* p 2: 59.94 29.97 p/23.98 p respectively
Already a key player in digital cinematography business 35 mm with an extremely "CineAlta" F35 and SRW-9000PL for the production of high-end digital cinema, Sony has just increased its staff in this category with the most recent PMW F3 announcement. in addition, with this new HD camcorder NXCAM "now (still under development), Sony shall examine further strengthening its position in the segment of entry-level by providing an affordable yet highly capable professional solution for many applications, including independent film, music, video and corporate communications all search for a cinema.
This "NXCAM" HD camcorder applications developed will be equipped with Super 35 mm equivalent sensor, widely used film stock size in the film industry, is perfect for capturing movies. This new sensor will have an exceptional performance in terms of picture quality and sensitivity and is able to create rich "Bokeh" (beautiful defocused image), which is ideal for Art history-says in the film.
Thanks to the adoption of the system is to be mounted on the interchangeable lens, which is identical with the series "a" NEX-5, 3 and "Handycam" NEX-VG10 is for mounting the lens will be compatible with this new professional camcorder. Furthermore, the very short flange back distance (the distance between the lens and the sensor surface mounting surface) Let "a" (a) for mounting the lens Mount adaptor is mounted (LA EA1). Furthermore, it is also possible to attach many other lenses, using third party Mount adaptors * 1.With this flexibility users will be able to experiment with the various expressions of creativity through the use of the characteristics of the different optics.
* 1: not all types of camera and lenses are guaranteed.
Recording format for this new HD camcorder will be AVCHD format are widely supported by many linear editing software vendors and the same format as HXR-NX5 "NXCAM" camcorder. There is also a plan to implement 1080p (60 p/30 p/24 p * 2 or 50 p/25 p) recording modes.(MPEG4-AVC/h.264 compression will be used for these systems).
* p 2: 59.94 29.97 p/23.98 p respectively
Wednesday 24 November 2010
Nikon launches Coolpix S1100pj special website
Nikon is pleased to announce the worldwide launch of a digital camera, equipped with projector website COOLPIX S1000pj S1100pj/, the "COOL PROJECTION" on November 11, 2010
COOLPIX S1100pj expanded model COOLPIX S1000pj, the world's first digital camera with built-in projector, released in 2009, the New COOLPIX S1100pj respond even better to the needs of the users of the projector equipped cameras. By increasing the brightness of the projection by 40% *, the projection is larger and clearer. In addition, the adoption of monitor 3-inch TFT LCD touch panel allows intuitive camera operation. COOLPIX S1100pj also supports the projection of computer data when connected to a computer, increasing ways, built-in projector can be used for personal and business application.COOLPIX S1100pj, with its projection of brighter and clearer, simpler operation and support to a wider range of applications, continues to offer the necessary camera functions for recording images and movies is a model that offers new ways to enjoy digital camera with the ability to record and shall immediately exchange the memories and lasting impressions anywhere and at any time.
For COOL PROJECTION
Launched is cool PROJECTION site to propose and implement a way to share new and fun use projector function of COOLPIX S1000pj S1100pj/with people around the world. Be famous projection mapping artists and designers of the image will be participating in this website to the challenge and opportunity in the artistic expression for documentary execution plan, moving in the hearts of the audience, its function unique projector.Will also provide opportunities for users to experience the benefits of the new camera and to detect use of COOLPIX S1000pj S1100pj/, everyone can enjoy.
The site will use mainly SNS. projection of COOL channel on YouTube will be established, the largest video site in the world and posting will be title tool that interfaces with Twitter and Facebook for the dissemination of information in the world.Web site content will be generated projection, released on YouTube. This will be the basis for the dissemination of information about the world and SNS will become a place for the dissemination of information.
Projection of COOL will extend the fun of capturing and design of images of the world.
Throughout its long history of the development and use of optical and other modern technologies for use in the development and manufacture of products and services has taken over the role in Nikon Capture special moments, regardless of age or situation, very serious. Nikon will continue to propose means to save and share moments which are special to persons by means of flexible products and services for all users of digital cameras.
COOL overview of PROJECTION
• Site launch: November 11, 2010
• Languages: Japanese, English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese
* Chinese exclusive SNS will be developed separately and will start at the end of November 2010
• Some contents are only available in Japanese and English.
Access to (URL): http://nikon.coolprojection.com
The contents of the primary-phase 1
• Small video art
• Complete original image content produced using COOLPIX S1100pj of worldly known projection mapping on the movement of artists and graphic designers will be implemented at the site for a demonstration of the possibilities for capturing x extrapolation.
The participating artists
Masaru Ozaki
Pioneer of the creator of the art, it is able to design motion graphics, synchronized in pursuance of the scene and live sounds. it is projection artist/video artist, graphic designer representing Japan.
Thonik
Created by Nikki Gonisen of Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Thomas Widdershoven of Maastricht, Netherlands.
It has been involved in the works for the Collection of the Museum, Vinice Biennale 2008, Socialistische Partij from Netherlands, Centraal Museum Utrecht, Amsterdam and spiral (Wacoal Art Center, Japan)In 2009 was held personal exhibition in the coil.
Other 6 artists from around the world are expected to participate.
Try projection
Projection works from general users of the COOLPIX S1000pj will adopt S1100pj/entry and posted on the Web site to give a sense of fun, that are rooted in the normal daily scenes.
Summary:
"Capture. It project. sending it.
Submit your projection ability. "
Period: 11 November 2010 to the end of 2011, Jan.
Business postal address: contact@nikon.coolprojection.com
• Mails must be written in English or Japanese.
• Screening results will be posted on the website, COOL PROJECTION.
Interview:
Phase 2 (scheduled for release in December)
Emotional content in documentary style will be posted to communicate and to demonstrate the capabilities of the projection in the daily situation.
Praktica introduces 14 Mp 14 Z4 digital camera
Praktica luxmedia 14-Z5 introduces compact digital camera that contains 14 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CCD, 5 x zoom lens and a 2.7 inch (6, 9 cm) TFT color monitor. The Chamber offers the usual set of features, such as the smile detection, face tracking, digital antishake, blink detection, intelligent scene mode, built-in 64 MB of memory, SDHC support and 720 x 400 video in 30 fps. In the field will find the camera, USB cable, cable TV, image software, Pocket, strap, manual, Li-ion battery and charger ...
5.0-25.0 mm (35 mm equivalent: 28-140 mm)
Normal: 80 cm-infinity macro (width): 10-100 cm
14-m 3: 2, 8 m, 5 M, 3 m, 16: 9, VGA
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200
normal, sepia, black and white, RGB
aout mode, automatically reducing red eye, Flash off mode, Flash mode, slow sync.
6,9 cm (2,7) TFT LCD color monitor (960 x 240)
720 x 400, 640 x 480, 320 × 240 pixels, 30 fps
64 MB Built-in memory, SDHC support, smile detection, tracking, digital antishake face, blink detection
64 MB Built-in memory, SD/SDHC card
Li-ion battery NP-45
USBcable, TV cable, a CD with driver and image software, Pocket, strap, manual, Li-ion rechageable battery charger
5.0-25.0 mm (35 mm equivalent: 28-140 mm)
Normal: 80 cm-infinity macro (width): 10-100 cm
14-m 3: 2, 8 m, 5 M, 3 m, 16: 9, VGA
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200
normal, sepia, black and white, RGB
aout mode, automatically reducing red eye, Flash off mode, Flash mode, slow sync.
6,9 cm (2,7) TFT LCD color monitor (960 x 240)
720 x 400, 640 x 480, 320 × 240 pixels, 30 fps
64 MB Built-in memory, SDHC support, smile detection, tracking, digital antishake face, blink detection
64 MB Built-in memory, SD/SDHC card
Li-ion battery NP-45
USBcable, TV cable, a CD with driver and image software, Pocket, strap, manual, Li-ion rechageable battery charger
Tuesday 23 November 2010
Nikon releases firmware S6000/S8000 version 1.1
Go to the page to download the firmware Nikon Coolpix:
United States-Nikon Coolpix S6000 firmware update 1.1-Win & Mac
EU-Nikon Coolpix S6000 firmware update 1.1-Windows
EU-Nikon Coolpix S6000 firmware update 1.1-Macintosh
United States-Nikon Coolpix S8000 firmware update 1.1-Win & Mac
EU-Nikon Coolpix S8000 firmware update 1.1-Windows
EU-Nikon Coolpix S8000 firmware update 1.1-Macintosh here
United States-Nikon Coolpix S6000 firmware update 1.1-Win & Mac
EU-Nikon Coolpix S6000 firmware update 1.1-Windows
EU-Nikon Coolpix S6000 firmware update 1.1-Macintosh
United States-Nikon Coolpix S8000 firmware update 1.1-Win & Mac
EU-Nikon Coolpix S8000 firmware update 1.1-Windows
EU-Nikon Coolpix S8000 firmware update 1.1-Macintosh here
Monday 22 November 2010
Olympus Japan released special PEN Lite E-PL1s
Below is the Google translation of Japanese Olympus website
Olympus PEN E-Lite PL1s
Compact, lightweight standard zoom lens is in the world, on which the ? for the lightest 454 g 1 achieved. 644 g in weight and to improve the portability Daburuzumukitto.In addition, as a kit lens is the first MSC (compatible with movie & process) with the mechanism.Now you can be flexible and quiet autofocus. in addition, you can easily set the blur in the background and intuitive, allowing highly original expression "Live guide are also included. combination of ease and ease PEN Lite E-PL1 improved Lite's PEN, E-PL1s.
M. ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42 mm F3.5-5.6 II
MSC (compatible with movie & process) mechanism, by adopting the AF (auto focus) to achieve faster and quieter and still images you can enjoy comfortable Camera picture quality in film.In addition, while maintaining the optical performance of conventional standard zoom lens (m. ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42 mm F3.5-5.6) 25% lighter than just 112 g in weight which are achieved.Transportable standard zoom lens.
M. ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 40-150 mm, F4.0-5.6.
MSC is equipped with a mechanism for the zoom lens. high performance Imaging is reserved, weighs only 190 g and small, light and portable Excellent. sports and athletic, it is recommended that when the lens and camera distance away from the school play.
Olympus PEN E-Lite PL1s
Compact, lightweight standard zoom lens is in the world, on which the ? for the lightest 454 g 1 achieved. 644 g in weight and to improve the portability Daburuzumukitto.In addition, as a kit lens is the first MSC (compatible with movie & process) with the mechanism.Now you can be flexible and quiet autofocus. in addition, you can easily set the blur in the background and intuitive, allowing highly original expression "Live guide are also included. combination of ease and ease PEN Lite E-PL1 improved Lite's PEN, E-PL1s.
M. ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42 mm F3.5-5.6 II
MSC (compatible with movie & process) mechanism, by adopting the AF (auto focus) to achieve faster and quieter and still images you can enjoy comfortable Camera picture quality in film.In addition, while maintaining the optical performance of conventional standard zoom lens (m. ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42 mm F3.5-5.6) 25% lighter than just 112 g in weight which are achieved.Transportable standard zoom lens.
M. ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 40-150 mm, F4.0-5.6.
MSC is equipped with a mechanism for the zoom lens. high performance Imaging is reserved, weighs only 190 g and small, light and portable Excellent. sports and athletic, it is recommended that when the lens and camera distance away from the school play.
Samsung NX road map for the lenses I-function
There are many people who would like to know about NX glass composition. Let's introduce the lens will be made available soon.
As you know, 5 types of NX lenses have been launched so far.
Pan cake lens 30 mm standard zoom Lens 18-55 mm zoom Lens and the 50-200 mm Telephoto were released with the first NX10 debut. Broad Pan cake 20 mm lens and compact zoom Lens 20 ~ 50 mm with I-function made of NX100 release.
I-function of the lens there is only one button to set the shutter speed, exposure or white balance with ring value. You can use the NX10 with I-function lens if you upgrade firmware (to version 1.20 for NX10).
In the first half of 2011 between 3 other types of lenses, will be released Pro film lens 18-200 mm.
This lens can be used in many ways for portraits of landscapes. As you can guess from the name, is fully capable of recording videos because of its smooth motor and fast AF speed for fast focusing more on the subject.
16 Mm wide Pan cake glass is the lowest setting is in F2.8. This lens is also particularly thin, making it very portable.Very attractive feature for NX users.And not to mention taking landscape pictures with that lens.
Here is the 60 mm macro lens, that many people have been waiting for.It is F2.8, OIS and motor ultrasonic waves by a noise with glass in full manual focus is possible to take some very extreme near photos without too much distance from the camera to the subject matter.
As of now in the second half of 2011, there are two types of lenses. Home movie Lance and another portrait in a little-known details may change as the dates.
Movie «Lance is 16-80 mm F3.5 ~ 4.5 and it is optimized for recording.
Lance portrait considered lens premium for professionals, it is 85 mm F1, 4 is really a lens for portraits.
Will want to know more details when I Learn more information about these lenses.
Anyone can take pictures as a professional photographer, since all upcoming lenses are I-function.
Samsung always strides to make better lenses.
As you know, 5 types of NX lenses have been launched so far.
Pan cake lens 30 mm standard zoom Lens 18-55 mm zoom Lens and the 50-200 mm Telephoto were released with the first NX10 debut. Broad Pan cake 20 mm lens and compact zoom Lens 20 ~ 50 mm with I-function made of NX100 release.
I-function of the lens there is only one button to set the shutter speed, exposure or white balance with ring value. You can use the NX10 with I-function lens if you upgrade firmware (to version 1.20 for NX10).
In the first half of 2011 between 3 other types of lenses, will be released Pro film lens 18-200 mm.
This lens can be used in many ways for portraits of landscapes. As you can guess from the name, is fully capable of recording videos because of its smooth motor and fast AF speed for fast focusing more on the subject.
16 Mm wide Pan cake glass is the lowest setting is in F2.8. This lens is also particularly thin, making it very portable.Very attractive feature for NX users.And not to mention taking landscape pictures with that lens.
Here is the 60 mm macro lens, that many people have been waiting for.It is F2.8, OIS and motor ultrasonic waves by a noise with glass in full manual focus is possible to take some very extreme near photos without too much distance from the camera to the subject matter.
As of now in the second half of 2011, there are two types of lenses. Home movie Lance and another portrait in a little-known details may change as the dates.
Movie «Lance is 16-80 mm F3.5 ~ 4.5 and it is optimized for recording.
Lance portrait considered lens premium for professionals, it is 85 mm F1, 4 is really a lens for portraits.
Will want to know more details when I Learn more information about these lenses.
Anyone can take pictures as a professional photographer, since all upcoming lenses are I-function.
Samsung always strides to make better lenses.
Sunday 21 November 2010
ViSUS shows giga pixel images for small screens
Software Edits Huge Images in Seconds Instead of Hours
University of Utah computer scientists developed software that quickly edits "extreme resolution imagery" - huge photographs containing billions to hundreds of billions of pixels or dot-like picture elements. Until now, it took hours to process these "gigapixel" images. The new software needs only seconds to produce preview images useful to doctors, intelligence analysts, photographers, artists, engineers and others.
By sampling only a fraction of the pixels in a massive image - for example, a satellite photo or a panorama made of hundreds of individual photos - the software can produce good approximations or previews of what the fully processed image will look like.
That allows someone to interactively edit and analyze massive images - pictures larger than a gigapixel (billion pixels) - in seconds rather than hours, says Valerio Pascucci, an associate professor of computer science at the University of Utah and its Scientific Computing and Imaging (SCI) Institute.
"You can go anywhere you want in the image," he says. "You can zoom in, go left, right. From your perspective, it is as if the full 'solved' image has been computed."
He compares the photo-editing software with public opinion polling: "You ask a few people and get the answer as if you asked everyone. It's exactly the same thing."
The new software - Visualization Streams for Ultimate Scalability, or ViSUS - allows gigapixel images stored on an external server or drive to be edited from a large computer, a desktop or laptop computer, or even a smart phone, Pascucci says.
"The same software runs very well on an iPhone or a large computer," he adds.
A study describing development of the ViSUS software is scheduled for online publication Saturday, Oct. 30 in the world's pre-eminent computer graphics journal, ACM Transactions on Graphics, published by the Association for Computing Machinery.
The paper calls ViSUS "a simple framework for progressive processing of high-resolution images with minimal resources … [that] for the first time, is capable of handling gigapixel imagery in real time."
Pascucci conducted the research with University of Utah SCI Institute colleagues Brian Summa, a doctoral student in computing; Giorgio Scorzelli, a senior software developer; and Peer-Timo Bremer, a computer scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, where co-author Ming Jiang also works.
The research was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation. The University of Utah Research Foundation and Lawrence Livermore share a patent on the software, and the researchers plan to start a company to commercialize ViSUS.
From Atlanta to Atlantis - and Stitching Salt Lake City
Pascucci defines massive imagery as images containing more than one gigapixel -which is equal to 100 photos from a 10-megapixel (10 million pixel) digital camera.
In the study, the computer scientists used a number of images ranging in size from megapixels (millions of picture elements) to hundreds of gigapixels to test how well the ViSUS software let them interactively edit large images, and to show how well the software can handle images of various sizes, from small to extremely large.
In one example, they used the software to perform "seamless cloning," which means taking one image and merging it with another image. They combined a 3.7-gigapixel image of the entire Earth with a 116-gigapixel satellite photo of the city of Atlanta, zooming in on the Gulf of Mexico and putting Atlanta underwater there.
"An artist can interactively place a copy of Atlanta under shallow water and recreate the lost city of Atlantis," says the new study, which is titled, "Interactive Editing of Massive Imagery Made Simple: Turning Atlanta into Atlantis."
"It's just a way to demonstrate how an artist can manipulate a huge amount of data in an image without being encumbered by the file size," says Pascucci.
Pascucci, Summa and colleagues also used a camera mounted on a robotic panning device and placed atop a University of Utah building to take 611 photographs during a six-hour period. Together, the photos covered the entire Salt Lake Valley.
At full resolution, it took them four hours to do "panorama stitching," which is stitching the mosaic of photos together into a 3.27-gigapixel panorama of the valley that eliminated the seams between the images and differences in their exposures, says Summa, first author of the study.
But using the ViSUS software, it took only two seconds to create a "global preview" of the entire Salt Lake panorama that looked almost as good - and had a relatively low resolution of only 0.9-megapixels, or only one-3,600th as much data as full-resolution panorama.
And that preview image is interactive, so a photo editor can make different adjustments - such as tint, color intensity and contrast - and see the effects in seconds.
Pascucci says ViSUS' significance is not in creating the preview, but in allowing an editor to zoom in on any part of the low-resolution panorama and quickly see and edit a selected portion of it at full resolution. Older software required the full resolution image to be processed before it could be edited.
Uses for Quick Editing of Big Pictures
Pascucci says the method can be used to edit medical images such as MRI and CT scans - and can do so in three dimensions, even though their study examined only two-dimensional images. "We can handle 2-D and 3-D in the same way," he says.
The software also might lead to more sophisticated computer games. "We are studying the possibility of involving the player in building their own [gaming] environment on the fly," says Pascucci.
The software also will be useful to intelligence analysts examining satellite photos, and researchers using high-resolution microscopes, for example, to study how the eye's light-sensing retina is "wired" by nerves, based on detailed microscopic images.
An intelligence analyst may need to compare two 100-gigabyte satellite photos of the same location but taken at different times - perhaps to learn if aircraft or other military equipment arrived or left that location between the times the photos were taken.
Conventional software to compare the photos must go through all the data in each photo and compare differences - a process that "would take hours. It might be a whole day," Pascucci says. But with ViSUS, "we quickly build an approximation of the difference between the images, and allow the analyst to explore interactively smaller regions of the total image at higher resolution without having to wait."
How it Works: Catching Some Zs
Pascucci says two key parts of the software must work together delicately:
• "One is the way we store the images - the order in which we store the pixels on the disk. That is part of the technology being patented" because the storage format "allows you to retrieve the sample of pixels you want really fast."
• How the data are processed is the software's second crucial feature. The algorithm - a set of formulas and rules - for processing image data allows the researchers to use only a subset of pixels, which they can move efficiently.
The image processing method can produce previews at various resolutions by taking progressively more and more pixels from the data that make up the entire full-resolution image.
Normally, the amount of memory used in a computer to edit and preview a massive image would have to be large enough to handle the entire data set for that image.
"In our method, the preview has constant size, so it can always fit in memory, even if the fine-resolution data keep growing," Pascucci says.
Data for the full-resolution image is stored on a disk or drive, and ViSUS repeatedly swaps data with the disk as needed for creating new preview images as editing progresses. The software does that very efficiently by pulling more and more data subsets from the full image data in the form of progressively smaller Z-shaped sets of pixels.
Pascucci says ViSUS' major contribution is that "we don't need to read all the data to give you an approximation" of the full image.
If an image contained a terabyte of data - a trillion bytes - the software could produce a good approximation of the image using only one-millionth of the total image data, or about a megabyte, Pascucci says.
The computer scientists now have gone beyond the 116-gigapixel Atlanta image and, in unpublished work, have edited satellite images of multiple cities exceeding 500 gigapixels. The next target: a terapixel image - 1,000 gigapixels or 1 trillion pixels.
University of Utah computer scientists developed software that quickly edits "extreme resolution imagery" - huge photographs containing billions to hundreds of billions of pixels or dot-like picture elements. Until now, it took hours to process these "gigapixel" images. The new software needs only seconds to produce preview images useful to doctors, intelligence analysts, photographers, artists, engineers and others.
By sampling only a fraction of the pixels in a massive image - for example, a satellite photo or a panorama made of hundreds of individual photos - the software can produce good approximations or previews of what the fully processed image will look like.
That allows someone to interactively edit and analyze massive images - pictures larger than a gigapixel (billion pixels) - in seconds rather than hours, says Valerio Pascucci, an associate professor of computer science at the University of Utah and its Scientific Computing and Imaging (SCI) Institute.
"You can go anywhere you want in the image," he says. "You can zoom in, go left, right. From your perspective, it is as if the full 'solved' image has been computed."
He compares the photo-editing software with public opinion polling: "You ask a few people and get the answer as if you asked everyone. It's exactly the same thing."
The new software - Visualization Streams for Ultimate Scalability, or ViSUS - allows gigapixel images stored on an external server or drive to be edited from a large computer, a desktop or laptop computer, or even a smart phone, Pascucci says.
"The same software runs very well on an iPhone or a large computer," he adds.
A study describing development of the ViSUS software is scheduled for online publication Saturday, Oct. 30 in the world's pre-eminent computer graphics journal, ACM Transactions on Graphics, published by the Association for Computing Machinery.
The paper calls ViSUS "a simple framework for progressive processing of high-resolution images with minimal resources … [that] for the first time, is capable of handling gigapixel imagery in real time."
Pascucci conducted the research with University of Utah SCI Institute colleagues Brian Summa, a doctoral student in computing; Giorgio Scorzelli, a senior software developer; and Peer-Timo Bremer, a computer scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, where co-author Ming Jiang also works.
The research was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation. The University of Utah Research Foundation and Lawrence Livermore share a patent on the software, and the researchers plan to start a company to commercialize ViSUS.
From Atlanta to Atlantis - and Stitching Salt Lake City
Pascucci defines massive imagery as images containing more than one gigapixel -which is equal to 100 photos from a 10-megapixel (10 million pixel) digital camera.
In the study, the computer scientists used a number of images ranging in size from megapixels (millions of picture elements) to hundreds of gigapixels to test how well the ViSUS software let them interactively edit large images, and to show how well the software can handle images of various sizes, from small to extremely large.
In one example, they used the software to perform "seamless cloning," which means taking one image and merging it with another image. They combined a 3.7-gigapixel image of the entire Earth with a 116-gigapixel satellite photo of the city of Atlanta, zooming in on the Gulf of Mexico and putting Atlanta underwater there.
"An artist can interactively place a copy of Atlanta under shallow water and recreate the lost city of Atlantis," says the new study, which is titled, "Interactive Editing of Massive Imagery Made Simple: Turning Atlanta into Atlantis."
"It's just a way to demonstrate how an artist can manipulate a huge amount of data in an image without being encumbered by the file size," says Pascucci.
Pascucci, Summa and colleagues also used a camera mounted on a robotic panning device and placed atop a University of Utah building to take 611 photographs during a six-hour period. Together, the photos covered the entire Salt Lake Valley.
At full resolution, it took them four hours to do "panorama stitching," which is stitching the mosaic of photos together into a 3.27-gigapixel panorama of the valley that eliminated the seams between the images and differences in their exposures, says Summa, first author of the study.
But using the ViSUS software, it took only two seconds to create a "global preview" of the entire Salt Lake panorama that looked almost as good - and had a relatively low resolution of only 0.9-megapixels, or only one-3,600th as much data as full-resolution panorama.
And that preview image is interactive, so a photo editor can make different adjustments - such as tint, color intensity and contrast - and see the effects in seconds.
Pascucci says ViSUS' significance is not in creating the preview, but in allowing an editor to zoom in on any part of the low-resolution panorama and quickly see and edit a selected portion of it at full resolution. Older software required the full resolution image to be processed before it could be edited.
Uses for Quick Editing of Big Pictures
Pascucci says the method can be used to edit medical images such as MRI and CT scans - and can do so in three dimensions, even though their study examined only two-dimensional images. "We can handle 2-D and 3-D in the same way," he says.
The software also might lead to more sophisticated computer games. "We are studying the possibility of involving the player in building their own [gaming] environment on the fly," says Pascucci.
The software also will be useful to intelligence analysts examining satellite photos, and researchers using high-resolution microscopes, for example, to study how the eye's light-sensing retina is "wired" by nerves, based on detailed microscopic images.
An intelligence analyst may need to compare two 100-gigabyte satellite photos of the same location but taken at different times - perhaps to learn if aircraft or other military equipment arrived or left that location between the times the photos were taken.
Conventional software to compare the photos must go through all the data in each photo and compare differences - a process that "would take hours. It might be a whole day," Pascucci says. But with ViSUS, "we quickly build an approximation of the difference between the images, and allow the analyst to explore interactively smaller regions of the total image at higher resolution without having to wait."
How it Works: Catching Some Zs
Pascucci says two key parts of the software must work together delicately:
• "One is the way we store the images - the order in which we store the pixels on the disk. That is part of the technology being patented" because the storage format "allows you to retrieve the sample of pixels you want really fast."
• How the data are processed is the software's second crucial feature. The algorithm - a set of formulas and rules - for processing image data allows the researchers to use only a subset of pixels, which they can move efficiently.
The image processing method can produce previews at various resolutions by taking progressively more and more pixels from the data that make up the entire full-resolution image.
Normally, the amount of memory used in a computer to edit and preview a massive image would have to be large enough to handle the entire data set for that image.
"In our method, the preview has constant size, so it can always fit in memory, even if the fine-resolution data keep growing," Pascucci says.
Data for the full-resolution image is stored on a disk or drive, and ViSUS repeatedly swaps data with the disk as needed for creating new preview images as editing progresses. The software does that very efficiently by pulling more and more data subsets from the full image data in the form of progressively smaller Z-shaped sets of pixels.
Pascucci says ViSUS' major contribution is that "we don't need to read all the data to give you an approximation" of the full image.
If an image contained a terabyte of data - a trillion bytes - the software could produce a good approximation of the image using only one-millionth of the total image data, or about a megabyte, Pascucci says.
The computer scientists now have gone beyond the 116-gigapixel Atlanta image and, in unpublished work, have edited satellite images of multiple cities exceeding 500 gigapixels. The next target: a terapixel image - 1,000 gigapixels or 1 trillion pixels.
New Panasonic GF2, the smallest camera never ILS
World's Smallest and Lightest Digital Interchangeable Lens System Camera DMC-GF2 - Featuring Ultimate Ease of Operation and High Picture Quality in Both Photo and Full HD Movie Recording
Panasonic is pleased to announce the new interchangeable lens system camera DMC-GF2 from LUMIX G Micro System based on the Micro Four Thirds standard. With a dramatic downsizing from the predecessor, the DMC-GF2 features an outstanding compactness and ease of operation while pursuing high image quality.
The world's smallest and lightest* DMC-GF2 is reduced approx. 19% in size and approx. 7% in weight compared with the DMC-GF1. The DMC-GF2 is equipped with a built-in flash which adopts new pop-up mechanism to prevent vignetting effect due to short distance between the flash unit to the interchangeable lens.
Featuring 12.1-megapixel high speed Live MOS sensor and high performance Venus Engine FHD, the DMC-GF2 boasts high picture quality not only in photo but also in movie, which has been upgraded in resolution to full HD 1920 x 1080 at 60i (NTSC) / 50i (PAL) in AVCHD**.
The operation is extremely easy to understand for any level of users with the adoption of touch control and the new GUI (Graphic User Interface) designed for DMC-GF2. The focus is immediately set to the subject by just touching it on the large, 460,000-dot LCD and you can even release the shutter. The Touch Q-menu can be customized by the user only with those used often. Together with the simple button components including the dedicated buttons for movie recording and iA (Intelligent Auto) mode that lights during activation, users can operate the camera intuitively with ease and comfort.
The chassis is made of aluminum to realize rigid impression of quality. The grip is designed to assure good hold even the camera is slim and compact. Available in black, silver, white, red and pink, the tiny, pocket-sized DMC-GF2 brings users huge surprise of photographic enjoyment.
* For an interchangeable lens system camera with a built-in flash as of November 4, 2010.
** Full HD (1920 x 1080) movies are output by the image sensor at 30p (NTSC) / 25p (PAL), and recorded at 60i (NTSC) / 50i (PAL). HD (1280 x 720) movies are output by the image sensor at 30p (NTSC) / 25p (PAL), and recorded at 60p (NTSC) / 50p (PAL).
1. The intuitive touch-control shooting in a world's smallest and lightest body*
The DMC-GF2 is dramatically reduced approx. 19% in size and approx. 7% in weight compared with the predecessor DMC-GF1 to make the body world's smallest and lightest*. It is made possible by various innovative approaches including the downsizing of mount unit and a reduced number of internal parts by integrating electrical circuits. The DMC-GF2 is equipped with a built-in flash which adopts new pop-up mechanism to prevent vignetting effect due to short distance between the flash unit to the interchangeable lens. Even step-up users will not be bewildered by the absence of the flash which has been taken for granted with compact cameras. The use of flash expands the photographic opportunity in shooting people at nighttime or indoors.
The operation is extremely easy to understand for any level of users with the touch control and the new GUI (Graphic User Interface) designed for DMC-GF2. The focus is immediately set to the subject by just touching it on the large, 460,000-dot LCD and you can even release the shutter. Once you lock on the subject by a touch, the camera tracks the subject with the AF tracking function even if it moves. Just a touch on the screen lets you select the part and the size of AF area with the 1-area AF. The 1-area AF in Face Detection even allows you to set finer focus on the eyes while capturing human face bright and clear. The Multi-area AF with 23 AF areas allows setting a group of AF point according to the composition. With the Intelligent Scene Selector in the iA mode, the camera automatically switches to the appropriate mode according to the subject touched. For example, a touch on a human face switches to the portrait mode and a touch on the background or scenery to the scenery mode while a touch on the subject close to the camera to the close-up mode. With the MF assist mode in the manual focusing, you can enlarge the part by just a touch to select 1x, 5x or 10x and smoothly move the part by dragging it on the screen. With the defocus control function in iA mode and the My Color mode, the range of defocus can be adjusted by just moving the slider by a finger.
The touch operation dramatically shortcuts the action of setting in the menu, too. The Touch Q-menu can be customized by the user only with those used often. Together with the simple button components including the dedicated buttons for movie recording and iA mode which lights in use, users can operate the camera intuitively with ease.
The touch-screen operation excels not only for shooting but also for playing back images with outstanding visibility. You can play back the image you want out of hundreds of stocks by touching them in the thumbnails. To play back images one by one in order, you can drag the image over the screen with a finger to browse the collection of photos as you flip over the pages of a book. Max. 16x of enlargement is also operated easily with touches.
* For an interchangeable lens system camera with a built-in flash as of November 4, 2010.
2. High image quality as an interchangeable lens system camera
While achieving breakthroughs in compactness of design and outstandingly high usability, the DMC-GF2 assures high picture quality in both photo and movie thanks to the best-balanced performance of an imaging engine and a sensor.
For the image processor, the Venus Engine FHD is incorporated that features exceptionally high performance signal processing capabilities in both photo and movie recording. With the advanced noise reduction system employing the 3D NR and CNR (Chromatic Noise Reduction), you can capture clear, naturally-balanced images even when shooting at high ISO sensitivity levels preventing the color bleeding due to the chromatic aberration and deterioration of the resolution. The Intelligent Resolution technology is another feature of the Venus Engine FHD. With the Intelligent Resolution technology, 3 areas - outlines, detailed texture areas and soft gradation areas are automatically detected. The outline parts are enhanced effectively to give edges more clearness while giving a moderate accentuation to the texture areas to look more finely detailed. To the soft gradation part, superior noise reduction system of the Venus Engine FHD is applied to make it smoother. Apart from the uniform enhancement of sharpness, the innovative technology Intelligent Resolution precisely performs signal processing pixel by pixel in the most effective way for it. As a result, images are naturally clear and crisp in both photo and movie recording.
The 4/3-type 12.1-megapixel Live MOS sensor featured in the DMC-GF2 offers the best of both worlds — the superior image quality of a CCD sensor, and the lower power consumption of a CMOS sensor. Advanced technology that makes it possible to read 4 channels of data simultaneously also helps the DMC-GF2 deliver 60 frames-per-second Full-time Live View images, while faithfully reproducing high-resolution images with fine detail and rich gradation. Linking smoothly with the Live MOS sensor, the Venus Engine FHD records stunning high-resolution 12.1-megapixel images with exceptional accuracy. Signals containing a large amount of image data are sent from the Live MOS sensor to the optional Live View Finder at 60 fps, resulting in clear, smooth live view. The Venus Engine FHD also supports an extensive range of functions, including HDMI output.
The contrast AF system adopted by the LUMIX DMC-GF2 is not only accurate and easy to use, but also very fast. Users can choose from a wide range of AF modes, including multiple-area AF with up to 23 focus areas, 1-area AF with a selectable focus area, Face Detection, and AF Tracking.
Cameras of LUMIX G Micro System are equipped with highly efficient Dust Reduction System. If dust or other foreign matter gets inside the camera when you're changing lenses, it could cling to the image sensor and show up as a spot in your photos. The Dust Reduction System in the DMC-GF2 helps eliminate this possibility by placing a supersonic wave filter in front of the Live MOS sensor. Vibrating vertically around 50,000 times per second, the filter repels dust and other particles effectively.
3. High quality image recording in 1920x1080 AVCHD full HD movie
The LUMIX DMC-GF2 is an advanced photographic tool for recording not only great photos but also beautiful full HD movies. The DMC-GF2 can record high-resolution full HD 1920 x 1080 movies at 60i (NTSC) / 50i (PAL), or smooth HD 1280 x 720 movies at 60p (NTSC) / 50p (PAL) in AVCHD (MPEG-4/H.264) format**. The HD Motion JPEG in 1280 x 720 can also be selected as an alternative movie recording format in addition to QVGA, VGA and WVGA, which is more compatible with PCs. A special, separate button on the back lets the user instantly start recording movies while shooting photos without any having to make any extra settings. High quality sound can be recorded with the stereo microphone for Dolby® Digital Stereo Creator. A Wind Cut function is also available to block out most of the noise from background wind.
Even video beginners can record excellent movies with the DMC-GF2 because the popular iA mode is also available in movie recording. Optical Image Stabilizer (O.I.S.) helps prevent handshake when using high-powered zoom. Face Detection automatically detects a face in the frame and adjusts focus, exposure, contrast, and skin complexion on it, so it always turns out beautiful. The Intelligent D-range Control offers natural looking by optimizing the exposure for each part of an image, preventing blocked shadows and blown highlights and helping ensure that gradation and details are reproduced beautifully including the blue color of the sky. And Intelligent Scene Selector automatically switches between Portrait, Scenery, Close-up and Low Light modes according to the situation to optimize various parameters for higher visual quality.
The Touch AF in movie recording also lets users enjoy professional-like rack focusing. Just by pointing the subject, the focus is shifted to it and let it stand out to attract attention. The DMC-GF2 can save a frame of movie as photo during playback. The Video Divide function lets you split a video into two at the point you desire. This makes it possible to delete the unwanted part by cutting it off.
4. A pallet of options to stimulate photographers' creativity
The DMC-GF2 is artistic not only in form, but also in function. It provides an array of features that let users capture precisely true-to-life images and create their own beautifully expressive images. The DMC-GF2 features a new My Color mode which is integrated with the conventional Film mode. It offers a total of 8 preset effects — Expressive, Retro, Pure, Elegant, Cinema, Monochrome, Dynamic Art, Silhouette, plus Custom mode, which lets users manually set the color, brightness, saturation and contrast levels. With the Full-time Live View function, users can see how these settings will affect the images before they shoot, which makes it easier to capture the exact mood or atmosphere desired. The DMC-GF2 also provides a total of 17 Scene modes. Most of these modes can be used when shooting motion images too, letting users create movies with dramatic, theatrical effects without having to edit after they shoot.
The exposure meter can be displayed in the P/A/S/M shooting modes for entry-level users to learn the correlation between shutter speed and aperture visually to enhance their photography skills.
5. Enjoy watching high quality photos and movies on large HDTV - VIERA Link networking even in 3D
Both still images and motion images in AVCHD recorded on SD Memory Cards are easy to view on a Panasonic VIERA TV with dynamic HD resolution. The user simply inserts the card into the VIERA Image Viewer (SD Memory Card slot) on a VIERA TV or DIGA Blu-ray DiscTM Recorder / Player* to play the content. Alternatively, an optional HDMI mini cable can be used to output still and motion images recorded with the DMC-GF2 directly to the TV for easy VIERA Link operation. This makes it possible to take maximum advantage of the camera's playback functions, including slideshows in which both still and motion images are played sequentially, or calendar displays and so on. All control is possible using only the TV's remote control.
Especially, the pictures taken with the interchangeable 3D lens LUMIX G 12.5mm / F12 can be viewed in 3D via the 3D Image Viewer offering users a whole new exciting experience. In addition, with the included software PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.0 HD Edition, it is easy to view and edit your recorded contents. You may also choose to upload your videos to YouTube or burn them onto a DVD disc for archiving.
* AVCHD motion images recorded onto an SD Memory Card or a DVD cannot be played on a device that does not support the AVCHD standard.
6. Rich options for expandability
The Micro Four Thirds System products are joining today's Four Thirds System products to provide customers with even higher levels of performance in a digital interchangeable lens camera. In addition to LUMIX G lenses, the LUMIX DMC-GF2 and LUMIX G Micro System can use any interchangeable lens that complies with the Four Thirds standard via an optional mount adaptor DMW-MA1 and with the prestigious Leica M/R Lenses via DMW-MA2M or MA3R. This gives the user access to the unlimited number of lens properties.
With the LUMIX G Micro System and the growing assortment of lenses becoming available, the expressive possibilities are unlimited. The LUMIX DMC-GF2 system camera offers a wide variety of options to choose from to match every shooting situation and shooting style. Notably, the hot shoe on the top lets you attach the optional tilt-shift Live View Finder (DMW-LVF1) of 1.04x (0.52x*), 202,000-dot, 100% field of view.
7. Just shooting is not the goal - Included software
With the DMC-GF2, PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.0 HD Edition for easy organization of photos and movies, the SILKYPIX® Developer Studio 3.1 SE for RAW file development and Super LoiLoScope (trial version) come bundled.
The PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.0 HD Edition makes it possible to sort and organize photos not only of those newly taken but also of those stored in your PC with quick start-up and fast read-in of images. The Face Recognition function that recognizes the faces in the picture automatically sorts the photos by the registered faces without picking out each photo one by one when you only want pictures of a specific person. You can also enjoy slideshows with a variety of effects and use your iTunes music library as background music and burn it onto a DVD disc in MPEG2. Motion pictures can be uploaded directly to YouTube.
The original image data in RAW file format recorded with the DMC-GF2 allows images to be developed according to your intention using highly advanced functions of the SILKYPIX® Developer Studio 3.1 SE software utility. It features unique combination of high resolution and extraordinary color separation performance. The Super LoiLoScope lets you experience high speed HD movie editing.
Panasonic is pleased to announce the new interchangeable lens system camera DMC-GF2 from LUMIX G Micro System based on the Micro Four Thirds standard. With a dramatic downsizing from the predecessor, the DMC-GF2 features an outstanding compactness and ease of operation while pursuing high image quality.
The world's smallest and lightest* DMC-GF2 is reduced approx. 19% in size and approx. 7% in weight compared with the DMC-GF1. The DMC-GF2 is equipped with a built-in flash which adopts new pop-up mechanism to prevent vignetting effect due to short distance between the flash unit to the interchangeable lens.
Featuring 12.1-megapixel high speed Live MOS sensor and high performance Venus Engine FHD, the DMC-GF2 boasts high picture quality not only in photo but also in movie, which has been upgraded in resolution to full HD 1920 x 1080 at 60i (NTSC) / 50i (PAL) in AVCHD**.
The operation is extremely easy to understand for any level of users with the adoption of touch control and the new GUI (Graphic User Interface) designed for DMC-GF2. The focus is immediately set to the subject by just touching it on the large, 460,000-dot LCD and you can even release the shutter. The Touch Q-menu can be customized by the user only with those used often. Together with the simple button components including the dedicated buttons for movie recording and iA (Intelligent Auto) mode that lights during activation, users can operate the camera intuitively with ease and comfort.
The chassis is made of aluminum to realize rigid impression of quality. The grip is designed to assure good hold even the camera is slim and compact. Available in black, silver, white, red and pink, the tiny, pocket-sized DMC-GF2 brings users huge surprise of photographic enjoyment.
* For an interchangeable lens system camera with a built-in flash as of November 4, 2010.
** Full HD (1920 x 1080) movies are output by the image sensor at 30p (NTSC) / 25p (PAL), and recorded at 60i (NTSC) / 50i (PAL). HD (1280 x 720) movies are output by the image sensor at 30p (NTSC) / 25p (PAL), and recorded at 60p (NTSC) / 50p (PAL).
1. The intuitive touch-control shooting in a world's smallest and lightest body*
The DMC-GF2 is dramatically reduced approx. 19% in size and approx. 7% in weight compared with the predecessor DMC-GF1 to make the body world's smallest and lightest*. It is made possible by various innovative approaches including the downsizing of mount unit and a reduced number of internal parts by integrating electrical circuits. The DMC-GF2 is equipped with a built-in flash which adopts new pop-up mechanism to prevent vignetting effect due to short distance between the flash unit to the interchangeable lens. Even step-up users will not be bewildered by the absence of the flash which has been taken for granted with compact cameras. The use of flash expands the photographic opportunity in shooting people at nighttime or indoors.
The operation is extremely easy to understand for any level of users with the touch control and the new GUI (Graphic User Interface) designed for DMC-GF2. The focus is immediately set to the subject by just touching it on the large, 460,000-dot LCD and you can even release the shutter. Once you lock on the subject by a touch, the camera tracks the subject with the AF tracking function even if it moves. Just a touch on the screen lets you select the part and the size of AF area with the 1-area AF. The 1-area AF in Face Detection even allows you to set finer focus on the eyes while capturing human face bright and clear. The Multi-area AF with 23 AF areas allows setting a group of AF point according to the composition. With the Intelligent Scene Selector in the iA mode, the camera automatically switches to the appropriate mode according to the subject touched. For example, a touch on a human face switches to the portrait mode and a touch on the background or scenery to the scenery mode while a touch on the subject close to the camera to the close-up mode. With the MF assist mode in the manual focusing, you can enlarge the part by just a touch to select 1x, 5x or 10x and smoothly move the part by dragging it on the screen. With the defocus control function in iA mode and the My Color mode, the range of defocus can be adjusted by just moving the slider by a finger.
The touch operation dramatically shortcuts the action of setting in the menu, too. The Touch Q-menu can be customized by the user only with those used often. Together with the simple button components including the dedicated buttons for movie recording and iA mode which lights in use, users can operate the camera intuitively with ease.
The touch-screen operation excels not only for shooting but also for playing back images with outstanding visibility. You can play back the image you want out of hundreds of stocks by touching them in the thumbnails. To play back images one by one in order, you can drag the image over the screen with a finger to browse the collection of photos as you flip over the pages of a book. Max. 16x of enlargement is also operated easily with touches.
* For an interchangeable lens system camera with a built-in flash as of November 4, 2010.
2. High image quality as an interchangeable lens system camera
While achieving breakthroughs in compactness of design and outstandingly high usability, the DMC-GF2 assures high picture quality in both photo and movie thanks to the best-balanced performance of an imaging engine and a sensor.
For the image processor, the Venus Engine FHD is incorporated that features exceptionally high performance signal processing capabilities in both photo and movie recording. With the advanced noise reduction system employing the 3D NR and CNR (Chromatic Noise Reduction), you can capture clear, naturally-balanced images even when shooting at high ISO sensitivity levels preventing the color bleeding due to the chromatic aberration and deterioration of the resolution. The Intelligent Resolution technology is another feature of the Venus Engine FHD. With the Intelligent Resolution technology, 3 areas - outlines, detailed texture areas and soft gradation areas are automatically detected. The outline parts are enhanced effectively to give edges more clearness while giving a moderate accentuation to the texture areas to look more finely detailed. To the soft gradation part, superior noise reduction system of the Venus Engine FHD is applied to make it smoother. Apart from the uniform enhancement of sharpness, the innovative technology Intelligent Resolution precisely performs signal processing pixel by pixel in the most effective way for it. As a result, images are naturally clear and crisp in both photo and movie recording.
The 4/3-type 12.1-megapixel Live MOS sensor featured in the DMC-GF2 offers the best of both worlds — the superior image quality of a CCD sensor, and the lower power consumption of a CMOS sensor. Advanced technology that makes it possible to read 4 channels of data simultaneously also helps the DMC-GF2 deliver 60 frames-per-second Full-time Live View images, while faithfully reproducing high-resolution images with fine detail and rich gradation. Linking smoothly with the Live MOS sensor, the Venus Engine FHD records stunning high-resolution 12.1-megapixel images with exceptional accuracy. Signals containing a large amount of image data are sent from the Live MOS sensor to the optional Live View Finder at 60 fps, resulting in clear, smooth live view. The Venus Engine FHD also supports an extensive range of functions, including HDMI output.
The contrast AF system adopted by the LUMIX DMC-GF2 is not only accurate and easy to use, but also very fast. Users can choose from a wide range of AF modes, including multiple-area AF with up to 23 focus areas, 1-area AF with a selectable focus area, Face Detection, and AF Tracking.
Cameras of LUMIX G Micro System are equipped with highly efficient Dust Reduction System. If dust or other foreign matter gets inside the camera when you're changing lenses, it could cling to the image sensor and show up as a spot in your photos. The Dust Reduction System in the DMC-GF2 helps eliminate this possibility by placing a supersonic wave filter in front of the Live MOS sensor. Vibrating vertically around 50,000 times per second, the filter repels dust and other particles effectively.
3. High quality image recording in 1920x1080 AVCHD full HD movie
The LUMIX DMC-GF2 is an advanced photographic tool for recording not only great photos but also beautiful full HD movies. The DMC-GF2 can record high-resolution full HD 1920 x 1080 movies at 60i (NTSC) / 50i (PAL), or smooth HD 1280 x 720 movies at 60p (NTSC) / 50p (PAL) in AVCHD (MPEG-4/H.264) format**. The HD Motion JPEG in 1280 x 720 can also be selected as an alternative movie recording format in addition to QVGA, VGA and WVGA, which is more compatible with PCs. A special, separate button on the back lets the user instantly start recording movies while shooting photos without any having to make any extra settings. High quality sound can be recorded with the stereo microphone for Dolby® Digital Stereo Creator. A Wind Cut function is also available to block out most of the noise from background wind.
Even video beginners can record excellent movies with the DMC-GF2 because the popular iA mode is also available in movie recording. Optical Image Stabilizer (O.I.S.) helps prevent handshake when using high-powered zoom. Face Detection automatically detects a face in the frame and adjusts focus, exposure, contrast, and skin complexion on it, so it always turns out beautiful. The Intelligent D-range Control offers natural looking by optimizing the exposure for each part of an image, preventing blocked shadows and blown highlights and helping ensure that gradation and details are reproduced beautifully including the blue color of the sky. And Intelligent Scene Selector automatically switches between Portrait, Scenery, Close-up and Low Light modes according to the situation to optimize various parameters for higher visual quality.
The Touch AF in movie recording also lets users enjoy professional-like rack focusing. Just by pointing the subject, the focus is shifted to it and let it stand out to attract attention. The DMC-GF2 can save a frame of movie as photo during playback. The Video Divide function lets you split a video into two at the point you desire. This makes it possible to delete the unwanted part by cutting it off.
4. A pallet of options to stimulate photographers' creativity
The DMC-GF2 is artistic not only in form, but also in function. It provides an array of features that let users capture precisely true-to-life images and create their own beautifully expressive images. The DMC-GF2 features a new My Color mode which is integrated with the conventional Film mode. It offers a total of 8 preset effects — Expressive, Retro, Pure, Elegant, Cinema, Monochrome, Dynamic Art, Silhouette, plus Custom mode, which lets users manually set the color, brightness, saturation and contrast levels. With the Full-time Live View function, users can see how these settings will affect the images before they shoot, which makes it easier to capture the exact mood or atmosphere desired. The DMC-GF2 also provides a total of 17 Scene modes. Most of these modes can be used when shooting motion images too, letting users create movies with dramatic, theatrical effects without having to edit after they shoot.
The exposure meter can be displayed in the P/A/S/M shooting modes for entry-level users to learn the correlation between shutter speed and aperture visually to enhance their photography skills.
5. Enjoy watching high quality photos and movies on large HDTV - VIERA Link networking even in 3D
Both still images and motion images in AVCHD recorded on SD Memory Cards are easy to view on a Panasonic VIERA TV with dynamic HD resolution. The user simply inserts the card into the VIERA Image Viewer (SD Memory Card slot) on a VIERA TV or DIGA Blu-ray DiscTM Recorder / Player* to play the content. Alternatively, an optional HDMI mini cable can be used to output still and motion images recorded with the DMC-GF2 directly to the TV for easy VIERA Link operation. This makes it possible to take maximum advantage of the camera's playback functions, including slideshows in which both still and motion images are played sequentially, or calendar displays and so on. All control is possible using only the TV's remote control.
Especially, the pictures taken with the interchangeable 3D lens LUMIX G 12.5mm / F12 can be viewed in 3D via the 3D Image Viewer offering users a whole new exciting experience. In addition, with the included software PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.0 HD Edition, it is easy to view and edit your recorded contents. You may also choose to upload your videos to YouTube or burn them onto a DVD disc for archiving.
* AVCHD motion images recorded onto an SD Memory Card or a DVD cannot be played on a device that does not support the AVCHD standard.
6. Rich options for expandability
The Micro Four Thirds System products are joining today's Four Thirds System products to provide customers with even higher levels of performance in a digital interchangeable lens camera. In addition to LUMIX G lenses, the LUMIX DMC-GF2 and LUMIX G Micro System can use any interchangeable lens that complies with the Four Thirds standard via an optional mount adaptor DMW-MA1 and with the prestigious Leica M/R Lenses via DMW-MA2M or MA3R. This gives the user access to the unlimited number of lens properties.
With the LUMIX G Micro System and the growing assortment of lenses becoming available, the expressive possibilities are unlimited. The LUMIX DMC-GF2 system camera offers a wide variety of options to choose from to match every shooting situation and shooting style. Notably, the hot shoe on the top lets you attach the optional tilt-shift Live View Finder (DMW-LVF1) of 1.04x (0.52x*), 202,000-dot, 100% field of view.
7. Just shooting is not the goal - Included software
With the DMC-GF2, PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.0 HD Edition for easy organization of photos and movies, the SILKYPIX® Developer Studio 3.1 SE for RAW file development and Super LoiLoScope (trial version) come bundled.
The PHOTOfunSTUDIO 6.0 HD Edition makes it possible to sort and organize photos not only of those newly taken but also of those stored in your PC with quick start-up and fast read-in of images. The Face Recognition function that recognizes the faces in the picture automatically sorts the photos by the registered faces without picking out each photo one by one when you only want pictures of a specific person. You can also enjoy slideshows with a variety of effects and use your iTunes music library as background music and burn it onto a DVD disc in MPEG2. Motion pictures can be uploaded directly to YouTube.
The original image data in RAW file format recorded with the DMC-GF2 allows images to be developed according to your intention using highly advanced functions of the SILKYPIX® Developer Studio 3.1 SE software utility. It features unique combination of high resolution and extraordinary color separation performance. The Super LoiLoScope lets you experience high speed HD movie editing.
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