Manfrotto Targets Booming Consumer Camcorder Market With New 585 MODOSTEADY Three-in One Stabilization System
Stabilizer is the Latest Addition to Manfrotto’s Popular MODO Family of Consumer Supports

Ramsey, NJ (October 18, 2007) – The digital revolution has given consumers the ability to expand their creativity in ways never before possible. Whether it’s a family video, a child’s winning goal at a soccer game or budding videographer experimenting with creating his or her own movies, consumers of all skill levels and ages have fully embraced digital imaging. To enhance their imaging experience and improve the look and feel of their videos, consumers can turn to Manfrotto, a world leading manufacturer of support products, and its new, versatile stabilization system – the 585 MODOSTEADY. A three-in-one, hybrid camera stabilizer, MODOSTEADY is the latest addition to the popular Manfrotto MODO family of support products for compact point and shoot digital cameras and camcorders.

Featuring a unique, patented design, MODOSTEADY is compact and folds flat for effortless portability, ensuring that it will fit in any bag or case. Essentially a hybrid support accessory MODOSTEADY offers three different methods of stabilization. Thanks to its innovative design concept, MODOSTEADY can serve as a counterbalance stabilizer, provide shoulder support, and double as a table top tripod.

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SONY’S LATEST CAMERA HOLDS A WHOPPING 40,000 PHOTOS

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 23, 2007 – It will be easy to keep this season’s holiday photos in one convenient location with Sony’s new mega-capacity Cyber-shot DSC-T2 digital camera.

The 8-megapixel model features 4GB of internal memory and can store up to 40,000 VGA-quality photos or 1,000 8-megapixel pictures, eliminating the need to manage multiple media cards. And, you won’t spend hours trying to find your pictures on this camera.

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NIKON D SERIES RANKS HIGHEST IN CUSTOMER SATISFACTION WITH DIGITAL SLR CAMERAS IN J.D. POWER AND ASSOCIATES 2007 DIGITAL CAMERA SATISFACTION STUDY

MELVILLE, N.Y. (October 18, 2007) - Nikon D Series Cameras rank “Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Digital SLR cameras,” according to the latest J.D. Power and Associates 2007 Digital Camera Satisfaction Study. On a 1,000-point scale, Nikon’s D series digital SLR cameras earned a score of 822 index points, making them the highest-ranked camera line among digital SLRs in four areas of customer satisfaction: picture quality, performance, operation, and appearance and styling.

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Spitfire Photo Pro Launches Spitfire Design Studio

Innovative new product extends Spitfire Photo services to allow photographers creative control of their e-commerce websites

PHOTOPLUS EXPO (BOOTH #143), NEW YORK – October 18, 2007 - Spitfire Photo Pro (www.spitfirephoto.com), the foremost image management provider developed by Virtual Moment, LLC, today announced the release of Spitfire Design Studio ^TM (SpitfireDS), a groundbreaking new set of tools and templates to create stunning and highly individualized photography websites.  This powerful extension to the Spitfire Photo online image management, distribution, and sales platform provides unparalleled flexibility in integrating the photographer’s brand and unique style into their online presence.

“With Spitfire Photo, photographers have access to cutting-edge technology solutions for managing and selling their images online; from integrated e-commerce and professional print lab services for event photographers, to advanced image search and distribution capabilities for editorial and sports photographers,” says Jody Vandergriff, VP of Marketing at Spitfire Photo Pro.  “With the addition of SpitfireDS, these powerful features are now packaged in a professionally and distinctively designed website.” 

In a matter of minutes, photographers can now completely customize their websites by selecting one of the many uniquely designed Spitfire Themes, thereby applying different colors, styles, and borders to most effectively feature their photos.  Additionally, varying layout options allow users to customize the way photos are displayed on their sites to support the presentation of all types of photography from online portfolios to event shoots.  SpitfireDS also integrates Web 2.0 technologies for a more interactive, user-friendly approach to browsing, sharing, and purchasing photos online.

Heidi Lee, a destination-wedding photographer based in Wisconsin, says of the new Design Studio, “I don’t have the technical know-how to design my own website.  I loved how easy it was to individualize my site to make it both visually striking while also simple for my clients to navigate and purchase my photos.  It looks fantastic!” 

For a greater level of control over the website design, Spitfire Design Studio comes complete with a set of advanced features for customizing the HTML and CSS of the platform. Using these powerful capabilities, photographers can achieve a seamless integration with their existing web template.  Design changes can be applied to any of the Spitfire Themes as well to simplify the customization process and provide photographer’s with a design framework to build their site, thereby minimizing the amount of coding expertise required to accomplish a completely custom look. 

David Gonzales, Director of Photography at Stanford University, manages an online database of over 18,000 current sports images as well as an archive of past imagery documenting the history of Stanford Athletics.  With Spitfire Photo and the new Spitfire Design Studio, Gonzales has access to the advanced tools of a major photo agency from a fully branded website.  “Spitfire Photo effectively manages our digital workflow and allows us to efficiently service internal and external clients 24-hours a day, all within a website that maintains the Stanford brand,” says Gonzales. 

Pricing and Availability

The Spitfire Design Studio Beta is available immediately at www.spitfirephoto.com and is included for free with a subscription to Spitfire Photo during this beta release.  Examples of the Spitfire Design Studio can be found at: http://www.spitfirephoto.com/spitfireds.php.  Sign up for a free 14-day trial of Spitfire Photo at www.spitfirephoto.com/signup.php.  Subscriptions start at only $99/year. 

 Leica Summarit-M Lenses Offer a Lower Pricepoint And Increased Lens Availability

An unexpected result of the new Leica M8 digital rangefinder is that M rangefinder lenses are becoming hard to get. Not only are new lenses backordered, M rangefinder lenses are even becoming scarce on the used market. The M8 has attracted a lot of photographers to Leica and probably reinvigorated many long-term Leica users’ passion for shooting with their Leica gear. More Leica rangefinders in use means more lenses are needed. Leica’s answer to the lens shortage is a new line of four Summarit-M rangefinder lenses, which they showed at the 2007 PhotoPlus Expo in New York City. The Leica Summarit-M 35mm f2.5, Summarit-M 50mm f2.5, Summarit-M 75mm f2.5, and Summarit-M 90mm f2.5 all have a maximum aperture of f/2.5 and 6-bit coding for complete M8 compatibility. The new lenses offer a lower price point and increased lens availability for Leica M rangefinder owners. In order to speed production, Leica has increased the number of optical production workers and created a separate production line for the new lenses.  Leica Summarit-M lenses should be available from authorized Leica dealers in November.

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Leica Summarit-M Lens Press Release >>
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Leica M8 Digital Rangefinder Pro Review >>
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Leica Web Site >>

I had a meeting with Canon at the PhotoPlus Expo today. They showed me the new 21-megapixel EOS-1Ds Mark III pro DSLR and told me a little more about it. The meeting was short but I did get to play with the camera a bit and since I’ve been using the EOS-1D Mark III I was already familiar with a lot of the features and functionality.

Basically, the EOS-1Ds Mark III is a 1D Mark III with a 21-megapixel full-frame sensor with a bigger brighter viewfinder, larger buffer, UDMA CompactFlash compatibility, and the new sRAW format for multiple RAW resolution options. The larger buffer makes it possible for the camera to capture 5 frames-per-second, making it a viable sports camera and not just for studio or landscape photographers anymore.  Thanks to the larger buffer, the EOS-1Ds Mark III can also shoot 21.1-megapixel files continuously for up to 56 JPEG or 12 RAW images.

One of the most immediately impressive features of the 1Ds-Mark III is the new viewfinder. It has a larger pentaprism than the 1D Mark III, with all new optics, higher magnification and a higher eyepoint. Anyone who’s used to using previous Canon DSLR will appreciate the new viewfinder. It’s noticeably larger and brighter than anything I’m used to.

Canon also introduced new software with the EOS-1Ds Mark III. Picture Style Editor allows photographers to create their own custom curves that can be loaded into the camera for in-camera processing. And the new Digital Photo Professional 3.2 software converts the EOS-1Ds Mark III RAW files and can make optical corrections for 29 Canon lenses, with more to follow.

The Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III includes Live View, the EOS Integrated Cleaning System, a 3-inch LCD display, a 45-point AF system with 19 cross-type sensors, and 14-bit color capability – all valuable features introduced earlier this year in the EOS-1D Mark III. The Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III should be available in November for $7,999, although it’s already backordered and is sure to be sold out for a while.

Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III Press Release >>
PhotoPlus Expo Tradeshow Coverage Page >>
PhotoPlus Expo Photo Gallery >>
All 2007 PhotoPlus Expo Articles >>
Read and Write Canon Camera & Lens Reviews >>
Canon Cameras Forum >>

I had a meeting with Nikon yesterday and had my first chance to see and handle the D300 and D3. I didn’t really get enough time with the cameras to form a real impression. But I did get to play with the D3 a bit and they showed me the camera’s Liveview LCD display and two of the new Nikkor lenses, the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED Zoom and the AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED Zoom.  My first impression of the D3 is BIG. It’s not too big or heavy, but it did surprise me. For a pro body, mass is usually a good thing, adding stability. However, at 2.73 pounds the D3 is about two-tenths of a pound heavier than the newest Canon EOS-1D bodies. Add a pro telephoto Nikkor lens and you’re going to need some muscles to carry this thing around.

One thing I’ve always liked about Nikon DSLRs is the big, bright, sharp LCD display. The new D3 is no different, and it now has Liveview. The D3 has two Liveview modes, Handheld and Tripod. The display is big and beautiful and had a useful composition grid overlay when they showed it to me.

I didn’t get to shoot any samples with the D3, and shooting conditions at tradeshows are always very poor, anyway. But they shared some interesting image quality-related tech details with me. Pixel size is one of the main issues with digital camera image quality. And while Nikon has done a wonderful job with the smaller, DX sensor, you can only do so much. As the size of the pixels decrease, image quality becomes a challenge and there are theoretical limits to how small pixel size can go before image quality becomes too much of a problem. Currently, a lot of software noise reduction is used to improve image quality with the APS-sized sensors on most digital SLRs. But the D3 uses a full-frame sensor, the same size as a 35mm film frame. Nikon calls this the FX format. The result is a 12-megapixel sensor with pixels that have over 50% more surface area than the D2X had. And the new camera also has noise reduction that happens right on the sensor, before the data reaches the processor, as well as optional 14-bit processing.

I tried the new Nikkor AF-S 14-24 and 24-70 AF-S lenses on the D3 and both are very nice. There was no perceptible distortion with either one and the AF performance was quick and accurate. And remember, the D3 is a full-frame sensor camera with no digital crop factor. So a 24-70mm lens is really a 24-70mm lens. For everyone that owns old Nikkors, you can rest assured now that your lenses will still have the coverage that you bought them for.

My time with the D3 was very limited but I am impressed with the professional feel of the body. Actually, I wouldn’t expect anything less. I’m more impressed with the image quality details they shared with me. Of course, we need to do a full test and review of the D3, and they assured me we will be getting one for review. I’m looking forward to getting it in the studio to shoot tests and playing with it in the field to see how the real world performance is.

Nikon D3 Press Release >>
Nikon D3 Specs >>
Nikon Cameras Forum >>
PhotoPlus Expo Tradeshow Coverage Page >>
PhotoPlus Expo Photo Gallery >>
All 2007 PhotoPlus Expo Articles >>

New Canon Telephoto Prototype Lenses At PhotoPlus Expo 

Canon is showing two prototype professional telephoto lenses at the 2007 PhotoPlus Expo in New York City. I was planning to smuggle the 800mm lens out in my pants, but they had it under glass and people kept looking when I tried to lift the glass. So we’ll all just have to wait to learn more. What we know now is they’re both L-Series lenses with Canon’s optical image stabilization and Ultrasonic motor technology. The EF200mm f/2L IS USM lens will be great for portrait, sports, and news photographers and anyone else who needs a very high speed lense for low light photography. The EF800mm f/5.6L IS USM lens will become Canon’s longest telephoto lens and will be coveted by all sports and wildlife photographers. It will no doubt replace Canon’s 600mm L lens as the weapon of choice for big wave surf photographers, bird photographers, and wealthy private investigators who need to get in really close for infidelity evidence photos.

Canon 200mm and 800mm L-Series IS Prototype Lens Press Release >>
PhotoPlus Expo Tradeshow Coverage Page >>
PhotoPlus Expo Photo Gallery >>
All 2007 PhotoPlus Expo Articles >>
Read and Write Canon Camera & Lens Reviews >>
Canon Cameras Forum >>