Photoclub Alpha

LONDON UK, June 22, 2009 – Eastman Kodak Company announced today that it will retire KODACHROME colour film this year, concluding its 74-year run as a photography icon.

Sales of KODACHROME Film, which became the world’s first commercially successful colour film in 1935, have declined dramatically in recent years as photographers turned to other, newer KODAK films or to the digital imaging technologies that Kodak pioneered. Today, KODACHROME Film represents just a fraction of one percent of Kodak’s total sales of still-picture films.

All of Icon’s professional Master Photo Digital magazines can be read free on line. The latest, June 2009, has just been published:

This magazines uses the same Flash Reader format as the 19 editions of Photoworld and – NEWLY ADDED! – five editions of Minolta Image from the 2002-4 period just before Konica moved in. We have been able to find complete, or very nearly complete, original archive files for these issues and create PDFs to convert for our subscription service.

Photoclub Alpha’s Photoworld quarterly magazine is now available as an on-line subscription without printed paper issues (you can print any pages you want from the Flash-viewable ‘book reader’ format editions, read on-line, or download to read when you like). The cost is just £10.00 per year and gets you the latest issue before it even reaches our susbcribers!

The five editions of MINOLTA IMAGE from 2002-2004 take the archive back to December 2002 with 23 past editions of the club magazine available to read. Your £10 now gets you over 800 pages right away.

You don’t even have to keep checking the site, you are sent an email anytime we add a new edition – or add to our archive of back issues. Already there are 19 issues of Photoworld covering from Spring 2004 to Spring 2009 – the entire history of the Alpha digital system from the Konica/Minolta merger onwards. That’s over 500 A4 pages of reviews, news, tests, portfolios, galleries, how-to-do-it and inspirational articles. To preview what’s on offer (see the covers, contents page and first couple of pages of each magazine free) click the link then click any cover thumbnail. You’ll get a preview of four pages, and the choice of a full subscription or the single issue price of £3. If you pay for the full digital subscription all the issues are unlocked including the next year’s new issues, and each archive edition as we add them.

PW Subscribe

You can also subscribe, worldwide, to both printed and digital editions – this subscription for £25 means you will get the next four printed magazine delivered to your door:

PW Digital + Printed

Here are two comments from readers:

“The current Photoworld copy I received yesterday again is of outstanding quality. It is easily the thinnest magazine I read in terms of mm width, yet content and printing quality are reason for great delight. The printing is so much better then any of the magazines for sale in Germany, it is breathtaking every time.” - Markus Spring

“The best ten quid of any Minolta/Sony owner’s money has to be on YUDU, right now. I have just paid (through PayPal) and have access to every copy (it seems) of Photoworld magazine from early 2004. That’s 19 editions and the on-screen presentation is fantastic, not to metion the opportunity to download and read offline. I love magazines, I especially love photography magazines, and to be able to read the back catalogue of Photoworld is an absolute steal for that price.” - Brian Young

Postal subscription only Paypal options

You can subscribe to the printed edition only (no digital edition access) using our online Paypal subscription service.

Have Sony decided their own software is not up to the mark – and gone for the same third party Japanese developer who are behind the Pentax software?

New A380 pre-orders from Warehouseexpress in the UK show the following included accessories:

Included accessories: PHOTOfunSTUDIO 3.1 HD Edition / SILKYPIX® Developer Studio 3.0 SE / USB Driver, Battery Charger / AC Adapter / Battery Pack / Body Cap / AV Cable / USB Connection Cable / AC Cable / DC Cable / Shoulder Strap / CD-ROM

See: http://www.warehouseexpress.com/product/default.aspx?sku=1032073

Well, you can miss me out on PHOTOfunSTUDIO 3.1 HD – I’m into PHOTObloodymiserableRAININGINSOMEGODFORSAKENLANDSCAPE 3.1 HD instead.

But Silkypix, that’s an excellent raw developer without big blotch NR, watercolour JPEG rendering or other common vices of the breed.

- DK

OnOne Software has made available an entire free download including Lite versions of 14 of their PhotoTools plug-ins for Photoshop. All you have to do to obtain the download is visit their website using the link below and provide a valid email address for verification. We have tested the entire OnOne software range – including the full PhotoTools 2 package – with excellent performance on CS4/MacOSX 10.5+.

A post on Dyxum.com shows that – thanks to Sony Canada’s website management – there are to be models called the 500 and 550.

http://www.dyxum.com/dforum/a500-a550_topic47003.html

Nothing more can be said, though of course there will now be worldwide hacking sorties to find photos and details hiding on other Sony sites.

Further information from the Canada SonyStyle shop database includes:

VG-B50AM  – presumed to be vertical grip for DSLR-A500/DSLR-A550
HVL-F40AM – a flashgun code
SAL-1024 – not the best news, as this means the Tamron 10-24mm is almost certainly ported to Sony, and that lens while impressive in range and maximum aperture is not an optical match for the existing 11-18mm. Nikon’s 10-24mm is NOT releated in any way to the Tamron, and there is just a chance that the new Sony might also be an original design. Even if Tamron makes all of them…
SAL-70300SAM – almost certainly the in-lens motor derivative of the Tamron 70-300mm f/4-5.6, an excellent lens which has needed an in-lens motor update for Nikon and will presumbly get one for Sony, making it natural for Sony to buy this design in as it is significantly better than the existing 75-300mm budget lens

With the Nikon and Canon video-capable DLRS dropped in price to under £700 UK this week – barely over £600, and less before tax – Sony either has to join this game, or retire to the bar and let the others gamble on how the public receives VDSLRs.

- DK

Adobe has released its Photoshop Camera Raw 5.4 Release Candidate, available immediately as a free download from Adobe Labs at http://labs.adobe.com. The “release candidate” label indicates that this update is well tested but would benefit from additional community testing before it is distributed automatically to all customers.

We have just published the latest edition of the MPA magazine, Master Photo Digital, on-line at YUDU. This format is the same as the Flash Reader format used for the subscriptions to Photoworld on-line (digital subscription).

MPA’s magazine is free. Only full-time professional photographers are eligible to become members, but you can all read the mag.

- DK

PENTAX UK is pleased to announce the launch of the PENTAX K-7 lens-interchangeable digital SLR camera. The K-7 combines a variety of advanced functions and user-friendly features to ensure outstanding reliability and capability within a compact, lightweight body (says the press release from Pentax in the UK).

The K-7 joins the current PENTAX K digital SLR camera series as a high-end model in the range. True to its series concept, it has been designed to deliver outstanding image quality combined with ease of use, to benefit photo enthusiasts of all levels, including advanced amateurs. The K-7 also includes revised and upgraded features including viewfinder, shutter unit, continuous-shooting capacity, and exposure and autofocus systems.

Protected by a durable, high-quality metallic body, the K-7 is extremely compact and functional — as with all other K-series models — delivering enhanced portability and manoeuverability. The model includes several new user-friendly features, including video recording, high dynamic range (HDR), and automatic horizon correction. All of these features serve to deliver a highly effective photographic tool, perfect for all discerning digital SLR photographers.

As the generation of Alpha 200, 300 and 350 reaches early retirement age it may be the time to grab bargains. The new Alpha 230, 330 and 380 have plenty of bonus points to win over new users despite the critical lack of video capture. But the older generation has some very tangible benefits.

The most obvious changes in the ‘Plus-30′ range are the use of a new smaller battery (NP-F50AM) shared with Cyber Shot consumer models, a dual MS ProHG Duo and SD card interface, substantial reduction in weight and size, improved rear LCD screen with auto brightness adjustment (only on the A330 and A380), and a radical overhaul of the graphical user interface to include sample picture tips (pioneered by Nikon).

The new Alpha 230, 330 and 380 models are radical ergonomic redesigns of the existing 200, 300 and 350 series. There is a 15% reduction in size (volumetric) and weight, an update to the styling, and a completely revised user interface with graphic representation of setting adjustments – with a built-in ‘handbook’ to accompany the modes and options. They also have mini-HDMI image output, compatible with Bravia TVs and with interactive software inside the camera to allow the Bravia’s own remote control to change, orient and zoom into images (Bravia Sync). Twin card storage is MS ProHG Duo/SD and only one card is usable at a time, with a hardware switch to change slots. A smaller battery type (shared with the HX1 Cyber Shot) is used. A new self-timer drive mode grabs a quick burst of 3 or 5 frames, cutting the chances of spoiled portraits and groups shots when someone blinks at the wrong moment.

The new flashgun HVL-F20AM operates as a wireless flash controller for the full-frame α900. “While Sony’s flagship DSLR does not have its own integrated flash, the HVL-F20AM can be used as an inexpensive trigger for wireless remote flash heads” according to Sony UK.

Gustav Kiburg has done an extensive test between these two lenses, posted in a Dyxum.com forum thread:

http://www.dyxum.com/dforum/comparision-test-sony-70-400-vsminolta-400mm-f4_topic46212.html

It’s well worth checking out.

- DK

Latest update May 7th:

Sony Style pages are starting to show this header picture, which shows three new models all sharing an unusual handgrip design and using the new lenses:

Note – the new models have handgrip sensors or appear to – maybe the nickel problem has been conquered. Also note the radical shift in position of the front control wheel and shutter release. The A380 is next to the A900, followed by the A330, and then the A230 at the end. All are smaller than the current A200-300 series. The A330 and A380 have what look like Live-View switches next to the prism, the A230 does not. This indicates that the viewing method has not changed, and we will almost certainly not get off-sensor live view or video. This does not rule out some kind of improved 720p LV of the focus screen, combined with electronically switched markings that could be turned off for recording video ‘off the groundglass’.

True to promise, the Nikon D5000 did become available on May 1st in the UK, and my review camera turned up mid-day in time to be photographed and have its battery charged. Taking it out on my walk to the post (regrettably, to send in large sums of VAT and tax…) the sun came out though it was a very cold and windy day. With the sun, the breeze dropped to a reasonable level and on the way back I was struck by the motion of the trees, leaves and flowers.

My first tests with the Canon EOS 500D were posted on dphotoexpert.com, but given the number of search engines now flagging up this site for Canon 500D searches, I’m putting this post here as well.

This is an edited selection, shot in a mixture of 1080 and 720 modes, assembled using iMovie and written as a 720p final project for YouTube. Please feel free to link directly to the YouTube vid or to this page.

It’s been a marathon exercise – all 18 editions of Photoworld, from the time of the Konica Minolta merger to our last (January) back issue, have been converted to a really great readable format (using Flash Player) which you can view via your web browser, print out or download for off-line reading. We have now added five more earlier editions of MINOLTA IMAGE, taking the archive back to December 2002 – plus two compendiums of reviews and articles from our other magazines.

The cost to access all these back issues – over 750 pages, fantastic portfolios, technical reports and tests covering the entire history of the Alpha digital system – is just £10 (by Paypal) and also gets you a full year of new Photoworld issues in advanced of the mailed copy. Or instead of it, if you prefer to subscribe this way. £25 now buys the postal magazine subscription plus the e-version and archives, worldwide.

We are now accepting images for entry to the Summer edition Photoworld magazine Gallery pages. Non-subscribers may submit via this email address up to three images per quarter/issue only (subscribers to the magazine may submit an unlimited number). Images should be no larger than 2000 x 3000 pixels or the equivalent data size for panoramas (6 megapixels). They should saved as AdobeRGB or sRGB JPEG files, with embedded ICC profile and intact EXIF data, to level 8 quality (High) or better. Your details, caption, copyright information, website URL, email address etc should be written into the file EXIF/IPTC fields – use ‘File Information’ in Photoshop File Menu to view and edit these text fields.

You may also put caption, website, etc information in a separate text document attachment or in the body of your email.

The picture/s must have been taken on Minolta, Konica Minolta, Sony or Sony Alpha equipment. Scans from slides, negatives or prints are accepted and full details must be provided of equipment used. EXIF data will be used to confirm the origin of digital entries.

Do not use ‘Save for Web’ as this will strip out your colour profile, EXIF camera data and IPTC caption data!

gallery@photoclubalpha.com

The terms are single use in the publication, website and on-line PDF edition. One year’s subscription will be given to the photographer for each image chosen for use (if you already have a subscription, you may nominate a friend or family member to receive this as a gift, starting with the issue featuring your photo). One extra copy of the magazine featuring your image will also be supplied. A byline and web link to your URL (live in the PDF edition) will be printed.

Gallery is an edited competition, not a judged competition. Pictures are chosen which work well as pages, spreads, pairs or fit a theme chosen by the editors. Images may be filed and carried over to future issues if they are of merit and may fit in with future theme.

The closing date for the Summer issue is June 30th.

- David Kilpatrick

OBERKOCHEN/Germany, 15.04.2009.

Carl Zeiss today announced that its Camera Lens Division will extend their successful collaboration with Sony Corporation for a further 5 years. Taking full advantages of their competence both companies agreed to cooperate even closer in developing and commercializing new imaging devices in the future.

Nikon has announced a May 1st launch for a competitor to the Canon EOS 500D, in their D5000. This camera has the first articulated screen (only 230,000 pixels) to be designed by Nikon. See:
http://www.dphotoexpert.com/2009/04/14/nikon-d5000-live-view-hdv-articulated-screen/

Canon has announced a consumer level EOS 500D camera, with 1080p resolution video limited to 20 frames per second, and 15.1 megapixels but a maximum shooting rate of 3.4 frames per second:

http://www.dphotoexpert.com/2009/03/25/canon-eos-500d-151-mp-plus-hd-video/

This continues the trend for all new DSLRs to have HD movie shooting in addition to live view modes, something which Sony to date shows no sign of catching up on. However, the obvious compromises present in the 500D would be criticised harshly if they were to have appeared first in a Sony model, so this is good news. Canon has made it acceptable for others to follow with 20fps instead of the required 24fps, and still claim true 1080p video.

- DK

Tamron Co., Ltd (Mr. Morio Ono, President), a comprehensive manufacturer of optical products with its head office in Saitama City, has announced the development of the SP AF60mm F/2.0 Di II LD (IF) MACRO 1:1 (Model G005), a life-size macro lens designed exclusively for digital SLR cameras with APS-C size image sensors* that offers a fast maximum aperture of F/2.0. (Text here is directly from their press announcement).

EDINBURGH PHOTOWORLD DAY

A Photoworld Day has been arranged for Sunday 22nd March in the premises of the Edinburgh Photographic Society at 68 Great King Street, Edinburgh. Athough primarily aimed at subscribers to Photoworld, former Minolta Club members and users of Sony digital cameras, the meeting is open to others interested in photography.

There is no need to dismantle the mount of the original series Sigma AF TELE 400mm f/5.6 lens, to bring non-functional versions (old chip) up to speed with later film and current digital SLRs. The whole process takes under five minutes, and requires two tools – a small Philips screwdriver, and a precision end cutter.

There is a white paper by Sony Semiconductor on the imaging processing which I think is in the HX1, http://www.sony.net/Products/SC-HP/cx_news/vol55/pdf/featuring55.pdf. I assume it is the IMX-032 CMOS sensor (http://www.sony.net/Products/SC-HP/cx_news/vol55/np_imx032cqr.html) mated to a CXD4109AGG image processing chip. There seem to be some interesting techniques employed, multi-plane synthesis to combine several frames for low light and HDR capture.

With the IMX-032, it is interesting to note that the on-board programmable gain amplifier has a gain value of up to 18dB or a factor of 8, so if base ISO is 80, then maximum “analogue” ISO is 640. If we compare the IMX-032 versus Sony’s first column ADC CMOS chip (IMX-017), the IMX-32 has an 11.8% better photo-electron efficiency per unit area (2300e per 1.75 micron square pixel compared to 4500e per 2.5 micron square pixel). Might be a sign that Sony is improving the process and design used to make their CMOS chips.

The backside illuminated chip is called the IMX-061, http://www.chipworks.com/uploadedFiles/Aliased_Pages/CMOS_ImageSensors_Spotlight/Chipworks%20-%20Sony%20IMX061%20EXR-0902-813.pdf
6MP and 1.75 micron pixels in ClearVID (45 degree) layout with a 1:6:1 RGB Bayer filter array, sacrificing colour resolution for spatial resolution.

The Nikon D90 chip is called the IMX-038 (not the IMX-021 as for the A700), so this suggests it has significant revisions compared to the IMX-021 (possibly linked to LiveView and HD Video?).

– Dr Daniel K. L. Oi

Adobe has released Photoshop Lightroom 2.3 and Camera Raw 5.3, available immediately for download at www.adobe.com/downloads/updates/. The Lightroom 2.3 and Camera Raw 5.3 updates, originally posted as release candidates for community testing on Jan. 23, provide raw file support for the newly-released Nikon D3X and Olympus E-30 cameras.

The Lightroom 2.3 update also provides support for eight additional languages including Dutch, Italian, Portuguese (Brazilian), Spanish, Swedish, Korean, Chinese (simplified) and Chinese (traditional). Additionally, it addresses several issues including a solution to a memory leak that affected some customers of the Lightroom 2.2 release.

Lightroom has received tremendous support from the photography community, and companies have released plug-ins that further extend Lightroom 2’s capabilities. Today, Nik software announced that its Viveza plug-in for colour refinement and light control is now compatible with Lightroom 2, and Photomatix recently updated its Lightroom HDR plug-in to work smoothly with Lightroom 2. To discover more plug-ins compatible with Lightroom 2 visit the Lightroom Exchange home page: http://www.adobe.com.

Pricing and Availability

The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2.3 update is available as a free download for existing Lightroom 2 customers and the Photoshop Camera Raw 5.3 plug-in is available as a free download for existing customers of Photoshop CS4, Photoshop Elements 7, Premiere Elements 7 and Photoshop Elements 6 for Mac. Both updates can be downloaded at www.adobe.com/downloads/updates/.

Press release from Sony, March 3rd 2009 – important bits highlighted in bold, uncalled-for comments in italics:

The Cyber-shot HX1 by Sony, teams stunning picture quality, lightning-fast shooting and powerful creative features in a stylish, supremely easy to use camera. The new flagship of the Cyber-shot range showcases a range of sophisticated image sensing, optical and processing technologies that offer unrivalled creative possibilities.

Tamron’s new ultra wide angle zoom for APS-C/DX is getting a bit of a blasting from reviewers. Now, when I see this happen, I get curious. Lens testing is often badly designed for such zooms, involving test chart targets at distances which are extremely close and result in very bad figures caused mainly by a strong curvature of field (dished, ‘cap’ shape relative to the camera) when gets worse in effect the closer you focus.

SONY’s stand was a real brightener for Focus. Gone were the black and orange colours I criticised at photokina, which for two successive years created a black hole compared to Canon’s oasis of light. Instead, huge white silks extended to the roof with bright spots and floods creating an inviting zone of pure light. White and orange rules!

Stock library Getty Images has added the Sony Alpha 900 to its rather restricted list of approved cameras – a very recent move, as it happened between the writing/research for my article appearing in the British Journal of Photography on February 18th, and publication. See: http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPage.html?page=840375

Sony has announced another release of Cyber-shot pocket cameras, without giving any price indications at this stage. 720p movie mode is present in the three of the camera types, and a new GPS tracking unit is separate, not built-in.