Friday, September 28, 2012

Weekly Email - 9-28-12 - Radio City Heads Up

This week I went to a DJ show at Radio City Music Hall.
Billed as the first time a DJ has headlined at the famous venue, I had never heard of Avicii when Todd called with the invite.

Doing a little research into this performer he is ranked #6 in the world by DJ Magazine - who knew!  Avicii has a few hits we've all probably heard at some point if you've been to Vegas or a club recently.  The mix called Levels had the house literally rockin

g when he "spun" it.  It has a nice chorus remix of Etta James's 1963 Somethings Got a Hold on Me.  The Who's Teenage Wasteland was a great mix.

I tried to take in the light show and he has an interesting stage look since he performs inside a large head which is painted with a myriad of lights.  Here is the before and after of how much can be triggered with color and light.

The images were shot with the Fujifilm X-E1 with the 18-55mm lens and Canon 5DIII with several lenses.  Most at ISO's 1250-2500.   














 











I am an employee of FUJIFILM North America Corporation.
The statements, comments and opinions expressed here represent my own, personal views and are not endorsed by, or affiliated in any way with, FUJIFILM North America Corporation or its affiliates.
bremler@fujifilm.com 

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Fujifilm XF1 First Look

When the buzzer rang I jumped with excitement to meet the delivery guy at the elevator.  I anxiously opened the box and found three XF1 cameras ready to take a quick tour of NYC.

The camera is unique in many ways.  Styling, operation, design and overall handling is definitely different than a "regular" point n shoot.  Similar to the X10, the XF1 has a manual zoom lens - but this model takes it a step further - or should I say back a step into the body to create a slimmer camera.


Without fail people new to the camera are struck by its beauty.  Then they are confused by how to turn it on.  Then they are wowing at the process and the sharp, bright screen.  

I've asked 10 people now which is their favorite color and tan is leading (male audience 7 to 3) by a smidge, then red, then black.  The feeling is the tan just oozes that retro feel.


Now because these are pre-production models I am not here to give pixel peeping images.  As I've mentioned several times before I feel there are many way more qualified bloggers and reviewers to handle that task.  I just want to be able to share some features and a quick look.  Just like with the X-E1, I wasn't trying to make an exclamation, I feel judging the image quality wasn't really an issue since the X-E1uses the same sensor as the X-Pro1, and thus with that lineage, to me it is going to make astounding images.  That's what I saw.

I love having XF1 F/1.8 lens at 25mm.  I know that most of the time I will be using the lens at 25mm for my street shooting and social situations.  Party shooting is where I'll get into the zooming and yes the aperture does close down a bunch.  All the specs are down below the images here.

http://www.fujifilmusa.com/products/digital_cameras/x/fujifilm_xf1/index.html  
I look forward to reading the reviews when the camera ships!  Until then it looks like a winner to me.











The NEW E-Fn button allows quick access to popular functions and can be programmed as you like for several camera operations.







Model Name FUJIFILM XF1
Number of effective pixels*1 12.0 million pixels
Image sensor 2/3-inch EXR CMOS with primary color filter
Storage media
  • Internal memory (approx. 25 MB)
  • SD / SDHC / SDXC(UHS-I) memory card*2
File format
still image
JPEG (Exif Ver 2.3)*3, RAW (RAF format), RAW + JPEG
(Design rule for Camera File system compliant / DPOF-compatible)
movie
H.264 (MOV) with Stereo sound
Number of recorded pixels L : (4:3) 4000 x 3000 / (3:2) 4000 x 2664 / (16:9) 4000 x 2248 / (1:1) 2992 x 2992
M : (4:3) 2816 x 2112 / (3:2) 2816 x 1864 / (16:9) 2816 x 1584 / (1:1) 2112 x 2112
S : (4:3) 2048 x 1536 / (3:2) 2048 x 1360 / (16:9) 1920 x 1080 / (1:1) 1536 x 1536

<Motion Panorama>
360° Vertical 11520 x 1624 Horizontal 11520 x 1080
180° Vertical 5760 x 1624 Horizontal 5760 x 1080
120° Vertical 3840 x 1624 Horizontal 3840 x 1080
Lens
name
Fujinon 4 x optical zoom lens
focal length
f=6.4 - 25.6 mm, equivalent to 25 - 100 mm on a 35 mm format.
full-aperture
F1.8 (Wide) - F4.9 (Telephoto)
constitution
6 groups 7 lenses (4 aspherical glass molded lenses included)
Digital zoom Intelligent digital zoom approx. 2x (up to 8 x when combined with optical zoom)
Aperture F1.8-F11(Wide)
F4.9-F11(Telephoto) 1/3EV step (controlled 6-blade aperture diaphragm)
Focus distance
(from lens surface)
Normal
Wide : Approx. 50 cm / 1.6 ft. to infinity
Telephoto : Approx. 80 cm / 2.6 ft. to infinity
Macro
Wide : Approx. 3 cm - 3.0 m / 1.1 in. - 9.8 ft.
Telephoto : Approx. 50 cm - 3.0 m / 1.6 ft. - 9.8 ft.
Sensitivity Auto / Equivalent to ISO 100 / 200 / 250 / 320 / 400 / 500 / 640 / 800 / 1000 / 1250 / 1600 / 2000 / 2500 / 3200 / 4000* / 5000* / 6400* / 12800* (Standard Output Sensitivity)
  • * ISO4000 / 5000 / 6400 : M mode or lower, ISO12800 : S mode
Exposure control TTL 256-zones metering, Multi / Spot / Average
Exposure mode Programmed AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE, Manual
Shooting modes
SP
Natural Light, Natural Light & Flash, Portrait, Portrait Enhancer, Landscape, Sport, Night, Night (Tripod), Fireworks, Sunset, Snow, Beach, Party, Flower, Text, Underwater
MODE DIAL
EXR, AUTO, P, S, A, M, C1, C2, Movie, SP, Adv.
Image stabilizer Lens shift type
Exporsure compensation -2.0EV - +2.0EV 1/3EV step
Shutter speed (Auto mode) 1/4 sec. to 1/2000* sec., (All other modes) 30 sec. to 1/2000* sec.
* 1/2000 sec. at small aperture, 1/1000 sec. at full aperture
Continuous shooting
TOP
Super High : approx. 10 fps (Size M, S)
High : approx. 7 fps (Size L, M, S)
Middle : approx. 5 fps (Size L, M, S)
Low : approx. 3 fps (Size L, M, S)
*SD memory card with a class 4 write speed (4 MB/sec.) or better is recommended.
*The frame rate varies depending on the shooting conditions or numbers of frames in continuous shooting.
others
Best Frame capture :
Super High : approx. 10 fps 8 / 16 frames (Size M, S)
High : approx. 7 fps 8 frames (Size L, M, S) / 16 frames (Size M, S)
Middle : approx. 5 fps 8 frames (Size L, M, S) / 16 frames (Size M, S)
Low : approx. 3 fps 8 frames (Size L, M, S) / 16 frames (Size M, S)
Auto bracketing AE Bracketing : ±1/3EV, ±2/3EV, ±1EV
Film Simulation Bracketing : PROVIA / STANDARD, Velvia / VIVID, ASTIA / SOFT
Dynamic Range Bracketing : 100%, 200%, 400%
ISO Sensitivity Bracketing : ±1/3EV, ±2/3EV, ±1EV
Focus
mode
Single AF / Continuous AF,
Manual AF (One-push AF mode included)
type
TTL contrast AF, AF assist illuminator available
AF frame selection
Multi AF, Area AF, Tracking AF
White balance Automatic scene recognition
Preset : Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light (Daylight), Fluorescent light (Warm White), Fluorescent light (Cool White), Incandescent light, Underwater, Custom, Color temperature selection
Self-timer 10 sec. / 2 sec. delay
Flash Auto flash (super intelligent flash)
Effective range : (ISO AUTO (800))
Wide : Approx. 50 cm - 7.4 m / 1.6 ft. - 24.2 ft.
Telephoto : Approx. 80 cm - 2.7 m / 2.6 ft. - 8.8 ft.
Flash modes Red-eye removal OFF : Auto, Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Slow Synchro.
Red-eye removal ON : Red-eye Reduction Auto, Red-eye Reduction & Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Red-eye Reduction & Slow Synchro.
Hot shoe -
Viewfinder -
LCD monitor 3.0-inch, approx. 460,000 dots, color LCD monitor, approx. 100% coverage
Movie recording 1920 x 1080 pixels / 1280 x 720 pixels / 640 x 480 pixels (30 frames / sec.) with stereo sound
Optical zoom (manual) can be used.
Photography functions EXR mode (EXR Auto / Resolution priority / High ISO & Low noise priority / Dynamic range priority), Face recognition, Face Detection, Auto red-eye removal, Film simulation, Framing guideline, Frame No. memory, Histogram display, Best frame capture, Advanced mode (Advanced filter, Motion panorama360, Pro focus, Pro low light, Multiple exposure, Individual shutter 3D), High Speed Movie (70 / 120 / 200 frames/sec.), Electronic level, Advanced Anti Blur, Recording movie in the EXR Auto mode:Automatic Scene Selection. (Auto,Macro,Landscape,Night,Portrait,Portrait+Night,Backlight Portrait), E-fn (extended function) BUTTON CUSTOM SETTING
Playback functions Face Detection, Auto red-eye removal, Multi-frame playback (with micro thumbnail), Protect, Crop, Resize, Slide show, Image rotate, Voice memo, Histogram display, Exposure warning, Photobook assist, Image search, Favorites, Mark for upload, Panorama, Erase selected frames, RAW conversing
Other functions PictBridge, Exif Print, 35 Languages, Time difference, Silent mode
Terminal
Video output
NTSC / PAL selectable with Monaural sound
Digital interface
USB 2.0 High-Speed
HDMI output
HDMI Mini connector
Power supply NP-50A Li-ion battery (included)
CP-50 with AC power adapter AC-5VX (sold separately)
Dimensions 107.9(W) x 61.5(H) x 33.0(D) mm / 4.2(W) x 2.4(H) x 1.2(D) in.
Weight Approx. 225 g / 7.9 oz. (including battery and memory card)
Approx. 204 g / 7.1 oz. (excluding battery and memory card)
Operating Temperature 0°C - 40°C
Operating Humidity 10% - 80% (no condensation)
Guide to the number of available frames for battery operation approx. 300 frames CIPA standard
Accessories included Li-ion battery NP-50A
Battery charger BC-50B
Hand strap
Lens cap
USB cable
CD-ROM
Owner's manual
Optional accessories Li-ion battery NP-50
Battery charger BC-45W
A / V cable AV-C1
Soft case SC-XF
DC coupler CP-50
AC power adapter AC-5VX
  • *1 Number of effective pixels: The number of pixels on the image sensor which receive input light through the optical lens, and which are effectively reflected in the final output data of the still image.
  • *2 Please see the Fujifilm website to check memory card compatibility.
  • *3 Exif 2.3 is a digital camera file format that contains a variety of shooting information for optimal printing.

I am an employee of FUJIFILM North America Corporation.
The statements, comments and opinions expressed here represent my own, personal views and are not endorsed by, or affiliated in any way with, FUJIFILM North America Corporation or its affiliates.
bremler@fujifilm.com 

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Fujifilm FinePix 800EXR Arrives


The new F800EXR is part of the F-series of digital cameras in the FinePix line-up.  Known for impressive image quality and great features - the F-series has a long history of innovative performance.

The F800 is the first F series camera to include WLAN and GPS functions.  These allow you to easily transmit your images from your camera to a smart-phone or iPad, as well as utilize your position to find notable landmarks and geo-tag your photo travels.  Great for some - eh for others.  I took it for a spin this week and found it to be interesting and at times helpful.


Here is the link to full specs and descriptive features - 
http://www.fujifilmusa.com/products/digital_cameras/f/finepix_f800exr/index.html

There really are some neat new features in this camera - 

Let's look at the most obvious one first - the powerful 20x zoom which in addition has a 69x zoom with digital enhancement.  This zoom range covers from 25-500mm optically and then stretches way out to 1725mm!!  But is it useful you ask?  You're prob thinking what use will it be if the images look like smears of pixels?  Check them out here and see if they are worthy - considering this is once again a 1725mm shot with a small point n shoot camera!  Note the distance of the clock and the Empire State Building is about a half-mile away.






The camera also has the usual "prosumer" features such as RAW shooting and easy access exposure compensation which I love using.  The GPS data can be imprinted onto the image if you want, which can be seen in some shots here.

This worker is shot at 500mm on the side of the building.


Note the imprint of the Flatiron Building

In camera flash with leaf shutter high speed shooting allows for daylight fill flash!



Exposure compensation allows you to expose as you like with a simple twist of the control wheel.











  



























The camera has some neat built in filters for some creative photo capture.  Here are some quick snaps I did with the internal filters. Descriptions of the filters are online, but they are - Toy Camera, Pop Color, Minature (blurs top and bottom half of image), High Key, Partial Color and Dynamic Tone:










  There is also a neat double exposure mode.  Sure limited application - but nice to have since it is left out on many high end cameras.
 Virtually every camera has a pano sweep mode and the F800 has several choices for your pano from 120 - 180 - 360 angles of view.  Click to enlarge.


The F800 has a retail price of $349.95.  Check it out if you are in the market for a camera.














Model name FinePix F800EXR
Number of effective pixels *1 16.0 million pixels
Image sensor 1/ 2-inch EXR CMOS with primary color filter
Storage media
  • Internal memory (approx.30MB)
  • SD/SDHC/SDXC(UHS-I) memory card*2
File format
still image
JPEG (Exif Ver 2.3)*3,
(Design rule for Camera File system compliant / DPOF-compatible)
RAW
3D still image
MPO compliant
movie
H.264(MOV)
Number of recorded pixels
Still image
L : (4:3) 4608 x 3456 / (3:2) 4608 x 3072 / (16:9) 4608 x 2592
M : (4:3) 3264 x 2448 / (3:2) 3264 x 2176 / (16:9) 3264 x 1840
S : (4:3) 2304 x 1728 / (3:2) 2304 x 1536 / (16:9) 1920 x 1080
<Motion Panorama>
360° Vertical 11520 x 1624 Horizontal 11520 x 1080
180° Vertical 5760 x 1624 Horizontal 5760 x 1080
120° Vertical 3840 x 1624 Horizontal 3840 x 1080
Lens
name
Fujinon 20x optical zoom lens
focal length
f=4.6 - 92mm, equivalent to 25 - 500mm on a 35mm camera
full-aperture
F3.5(Wide) - F5.3(Telephoto)
constitution
11 groups 14 lenses
Digital zoom EXR Auto mode: Intelligent digital zoom approx. 2x (up to approx. 40x, with 20x optical zoom)
Other than EXR Auto mode: Intelligent digital zoom approx. 3.4x (up to approx. 68x, with 20x optical zoom)
Aperture F3.5 / F7.1 / F10(Wide)
F5.3 / F11 / F16(Telephoto) with ND filter
Focus distance
(from lens surface)
Normal
Wide : Approx. 45 cm / 1.4 ft. to infinity
Telephoto : Approx. 2.5 m / 8.2 ft. to infinity
Macro
Wide : Approx. 5 cm - 3.0 m / 1.9 in. - 9.8 ft.
Telephoto : Approx. 1.3 m - 3.0 m / 4.2 ft. - 9.8 ft.
Sensitivity Auto, Equivalent to ISO 100 / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 / 3200 / 6400* / 12800* (Standard Output Sensitivity)
  • * 6400 : M mode or lower, ISO12800 : S mode
Exposure control TTL 256-zones metering, Multi / Spot / Average
Exposure mode Programmed AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE, Manual
Shooting modes
SP
Natural Light, Natural Light & with Flash, Portrait, Portrait enhancer, Dog, Cat, Landscape, Sport, Night, Night (Tripod), Fireworks, Sunset, Snow, Beach, Underwater, Party, Flower, Text
MODE DIAL
EXR, P, S, A, M, SP, Adv, AUTO
Image stabilizer CMOS shift type
Exposure compensation -2.0EV - +2.0EV 1/3EV step
Shutter speed (Auto mode) 1/4 sec. to 1/2000 sec., (All other modes) 8 sec. to 1/2000 sec.
Continuous shooting
TOP
Super High : approx. 11fps (Size M,S)
High : approx. 8fps (Size L,M,S)
Middle : approx. 5fps (Size L,M,S)
Low : approx. 3fps (Size L,M,S)
  • * SD memory card with a class 4 write speed (4 MB/sec.) or better is recommended.
  • * The frame rate varies depending on the shooting conditions or numbers of frames in continuous shooting.
Best Frame capture
L : 8 frames (3/5/8frames/sec. )
M, S : 8/16 frames (3/5/8/11frames/sec. )
Auto Bracketing AE Bracketing : ±1/3EV, ±2/3EV, ±1EV
Film Simulation Bracketing : PROVIA / STANDARD, Velvia / VIVID, ASTIA / SOFT
Dynamic Range Bracketing : 100% / 200% / 400%
Focus
Mode
Single AF / Continuous AF (EXR AUTO, Movie)
Type
TTL contrast AF, AF assist illuminator available
AF frame selection
Center, Multi, Tracking
White balance Automatic scene recognition
Preset
Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light (Daylight), Fluorescent light (Warm White), Fluorescent light (Cool White), Incandescent light, Underwater, Custom
Self-timer 10 sec. / 2 sec. Delay / Auto release / Auto release (Dog, Cat)
Flash Auto flash (super i-flash)
Effective range: (ISO AUTO)
Normal
  • Wide: Approx. 15 cm - 3.7 m / 5.9 in. - 12.1 ft.
  • Telephoto: Approx. 90 cm - 2.4 m / 2.9 ft. - 7.8 ft.
Flash modes
Red-eye removal OFF
Auto, Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Slow Synchro.
Red-eye removal ON
Red-eye Reduction Auto, Red-eye Reduction & Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Red-eye Reduction & Slow Synchro.
Hot shoe -
LCD monitor 3.0-inch, approx. 460,000 dots, TFT color LCD monitor, approx. 100% coverage
Movie recording 1920 x 1080 pixels / 1280 x 720 pixels / 640 x 480 pixels (30 frames / sec.) with stereo sound.
Optical zoom function can be used.
Photography functions EXR mode (EXR Auto/Resolution priority / High ISO & Low noise priority / Dynamic range priority), Face recognition, Face Detection, Auto red-eye removal, Film simulation, Auto release, Auto release(Dog,Cat), Framing guidline, Power management, Frame No. memory, Advanced mode (Motion panorama360, Pro focus, Pro low light, Multiple exposure, Individual shutter 3D), High Speed Movie (80 / 160 / 320 frames/sec.), Advanced Anti Blur, Date stamp, Monitor Sunlight mode, Connect to Smartphone and Tablet Devices. (Geotagging setup), Recording movie in the EXR Auto mode:Automatic Scene Selection. (Auto, Macro, Landscape, Night, Portrait, Portrait+Night, Backlight Portrait), Advanced Filter (Toy camera, Miniature, Pop color, High-key, Dynamic tone, Partial color : red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple)
Playback functions Face Detection, Auto red-eye removal, Multi-frame playback (with micro thumbnail), Crop, Resize, Slide show, Image rotate, Voice memo, Exposure warning, Auto rotate playback, Photobook assist, Image search, Favorites, Mark for upload, Panorama, Erase selected frames, Photo navigation, Histogram display, Connect to Smartphone and Tablet Devices (Uploading Pictures : Individual images, Selected multiple images, View & Obtain Images)
Other functions Landmark Navigator, PictBridge, Exif Print, Print Image Matching II, 35 Languages, Time difference, Silent mode
Terminal
Video output
NTSC / PAL selectable with monaural sound
Digital interface
USB 2.0 High-Speed
HDMI output
HDMI Mini connector
Power supply NP-50A Li-ion battery (included) / CP-50 with AC power adapter AC-5VX (sold separately)
Dimensions 105.1(W) x 63.3(H) x 36.0(D) mm / 4.1(W) x 2.4(H) x 1.4(D) in.
(Minimum depth: 24.9mm / 0.9in.)
Weight Approx. 232g / 8.1oz. (including battery and memory card)
Approx. 212g / 7.4oz. (excluding battery and memory card)
Operating Temperature 0°C - 40°C
Operating Humidity 10% - 80% (no condensation)
Guide to the number of available frames for battery operation Approx. 300 frames (AUTO mode)
Accessories included Li-ion battery NP-50A
Battery charger BC-50B
Plug Adapter
Hand strap
USB cable
A/V cable
CD-ROM
Owner's manual
Optional accessories Li-ion battery NP-50
Battery charger BC-45W
DC coupler CP-50
AC power adapter AC-5VX
3D Digital Viewer FINEPIX REAL 3D V3
  • *1 Number of effective pixels: The number of pixels on the image sensor which receive input light through the optical lens, and which are effectively reflected in the final output data of the still image.
  • *2 Please see the Fujifilm website to check memory card compatibility.
  • *3 Exif 2.3 is a digital camera file format that contains a variety of shooting information for optimal printing.

I am an employee of FUJIFILM North America Corporation.
The statements, comments and opinions expressed here represent my own, personal views and are not endorsed by, or affiliated in any way with, FUJIFILM North America Corporation or its affiliates.
bremler@fujifilm.com 

A Quick Look at the 1972 Hasselblad 500C/M

Just a few snaps of the awesome and durable 500C/M.