Photography Magazine

Pentax corporation once more proved itself to be a distinguished photo equipment producer. Pentax has announced about a new DSLR camera Pentax K20D.

The new camera is not just an upgrade of the previous model K10D. K20D has included in itself the newest technologies.
Specially for this camera a 14,6 mega pixel matrix was developed with a size of 23,4×15,5 mm. The main advantage of such matrix is a much better ability to perceive diagonal light rays. It will allow getting better results when shooting with a wide-angle lens and also when using film camera lens that are so popular about Pentax.

New camera is equipped with a Pentax SR (Shake Reduction) system that in many cases will spare photographer from using a tripod or flash. The most valuable thing is that the built-in stabilization system works with all types of Pentax lenses and with all types of threaded lenses attached through lens adapter.

The absolute novelty of Pentax is the Dynamic Range Enlargement technology is used in K20D. It optimizes the dynamical range that allows achieving details clearness in light and shady areas of the picture. The brightness range has grown one EV-level up in the new camera. This will sometimes free a photographer from making doubles in the search of best exposure compromise.

Most photographers really appreciate a possibility of shooting without paying too much attention to the camera. They would be excited to know that Pentax equipped K20D with a LCD screen with the Live View feature. Now you can frame the picture using not only pentaprism viewfinder.

All these features and newest technologies are “packed” into the famous Pentax dust and moisture protected box. Pentax K20D is a camera that will help a photographer to get a high quality picture with a possibility to add some effects in a rather unhurried mode of shooting. Although the speed of Pentax K20D – 3 frames per second – is quite enough for most of professional reporter needs too.

The photographers using the digital equipment sometimes get really disappointed when in some very hot moment they get the “Memory Card Full” message on their LCD display.

Such a situation is almost impossible if you become an owner of the new professional digital camera - NIKON D3. For the first time, leaving behind the rivals, Nikon offered to its admirers a new camera (full-format) that is equipped with 2 slots for Compact Flash memory cards. For press photographers and those who take many photos in a very high pace this option is a must.

And now, here is some information about technical parameters of the new camera. D3 is equipped with full format (36 x 23.9 mm) 12.1 mega pixel CMOS matrix. The speed range is from 200 to 6400 ISO. The speed of shooting is also very high – 9 shots per second and camera can even perform faster, shooting 11 shots per second when working in DX (24 x 16 mm) format.

The camera start up time is also very low. It takes D3 only 12/100 of a second. This option is much faster than in its predecessor D2Xs for 8/100 of a second. Also camera is equipped with a HDMI interface, high quality 3-inch LCD monitor that allows using a Live View mode.

NIKON D3 is produced inside of a strong body made from magnesium alloy and has a very good protection from dust and moisture. In other words the camera is a very reliable and fast photo device that is created for a demanding and straight-out professional. With appearing on the market of a full-format DSLR the professionals received an alternative to the full matrix Canon 5D camera. The Nikon D3 is a modern and very fast camera but of course at a higher price. The comfort and speed always cost money, doesn’t it!?

The digital camera revolution has changed the entire process of photography and has in fact made it easier for even amateurs to enjoy wildlife or nature photography to the fullest. One of the salient points is that a digital camera can take still photographs as well as record movement through its video capability.

There are different types of digital cameras available in the market and some are for amateurs while others are for purely professionals. Most of the digital cameras in the DSLR (Digital single lens reflex) range are for professionals. Some of the amateur digital cameras are available in compact body offering high resolution like 10MP (mega pixel), 6X digital Zoom and up to 14x optical zoom. Amateur digital cameras like the Canon S3IS or S5IS offers almost 12x (36-432mm equivalent) optical zoom, Optical Image Stabilizer, 6.0 Megapixel CCD, 30fps VGA movies with stereo sound and photo in movie feature, DIGIC II, iSAPS and Flexizone AF/AE for fast, precise results and 2.3 fps continuous shooting, High ISO Auto and ISO 800 for low light flexibility and Widescreen (16:9) recording. These features make it almost a PRO digital camera that has been marketed for amateurs who want to take pictures like professionals do.

The main difference between a professional digital camera and an amateur one lies in the performance. Most of the professional cameras like the Nikon D40, the Canon EOS400D, Olympus E510 etc. The performance depends on the lens of the camera, which can be changed according to the requirement in a professional camera as opposed to an amateur camera. In a professional camera you can change the lens from a 18-55mm standard lens to a 35-350mm zoom lens for wildlife or sport photography. This is not possible in amateur cameras as they don’t support multiple lenses.

Other differentiating factors include the various technical aspects of the professional or amateur cameras. Professional cameras have a high burst rate, vertical grip, and even a direct plug for attaching studio lights and all this can be used without an adapter. The amateur camera is not as detailed and is mostly for photography that is restricted within a boundary like the streets, close-ups, portraits, family photos etc. Due to the high technical ability of the professional camera, they are available with a high-end price tag as opposed to an amateur camera, which you can buy for as less as $150.

Most professional high-end cameras range from 8 MP to 16 mega pixels. For example, the Canon EOS 400D has a 10.1 Megapixel CMOS sensor and DIGIC II processor that renders colors to images with a high precision, speed and accuracy thus making the photograph look almost life-like. This component is missing in amateur digital cameras.

Amateur digital cameras are known as multipurpose cameras, which you can slide into your pocket and carry anywhere you want and click pictures almost anytime. The difference is that you might not get the same amount of clarity and quality as in professional cameras. Even at a higher ISO, your amateur digital camera will click an image with grains. This is not the case with a pro digital camera like the Nikon D40X.

There is one last differential element between the amateur digital camera and the professional digital SLR and this is the capability of metering. Metering is an option that you will find only in PRO cameras and this enables a photographer to choose the color, the intensity of light, shadows, darkness etc while taking an image of the subject. The truth is that if you are planning to become a professional photographer then start with an amateur digital camera or a analog SLR and then learn the ropes slowly before diving into the PRO or the big league.

If you are taking photos using Pentax photo equipment then you surely mentioned an important event: the market entrance of the DSLR camera Pentax K10D. The new camera has a new image processing unit, a quality screen, built-in camera stabilization system. The last thing is especially important for those people that have Pentax lenses including the middle format ones. They can be used with the new camera through the original adapter and stabilization system will work in that case properly.

One more advantage of the Pentax K10D – a very serious dust and moisture protection of the camera. And it is a good surprise that this option that is rather expensive in the concurrent cameras didn’t make K10D much more expensive. What is also interesting is an option of turning camera into the mode of RAW format photo. It is performed by simply pushing a button that is very conveniently situated on the camera body. The new camera seems to be able to give back to the producer its previous high reputation on the photo equipment market. The proof for it is the high prizes, that Pentax K10D received. In the nomination “Best SLR of 2007” Pentax K10D got “Oscar” in the photo market of the European press-association version TIPA (Technical Image Press Association). The camera also attracted the publishing house of the American Photo Magazine that called Pentax K10D a best digital SLR camera for experienced amateurs. The experts and employees of the magazine approved the camera to be “Camera of the year” and gave their preference to it against to Nikon D80 and Olympus EVOLT E-510. But not only in Europe and US the K10D had a great success. In its native country, in Japan, it received a Camera Grand Prix prize. This very honorable prize was given to Pentax K10D by 10 best photo journalists of Japan under aegis of the professional magazines club of the country.

The first ever photograph was taken by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in 1826 and he used a sliding wooden box camera. Photography has come a long way since then. The first camera was called Daguerreotypes created by Louis Jacques Daguerre and was followed by the Calotype created by William Fox Talbot. In that era, photography was a luxury but today, due to the technological innovations, photography is one of the most generic hobbies.

The Early Years
If we take a walk back into history, we will find that the first ever photographic film was developed by George Eastman, a man who was considered a pioneer in the world of photographic films and equipments. In 1888, he gave the world a camera called Kodak and in 1900 he created Brownie, which allowed him to enter the mass-market for camera. Today Kodak is a brand name that offers photographic films as well as digital cameras.The 35mm format, which any digital, SLR or point and shoot photographer uses as the benchmark became a popular format in 1925. The introduction of the Leica I (short for Leitz camera) brought about a revolution, and prompted Kodak to join the legion of the 35mm. Almost a decade later, the Japanese entered the worldwide camera market with the launch of Canon 35mm rangefinder and this was just the beginning of a new era in photographic equipments and precision photography.

Digital Photography Age
The development of a digital camera caused quite a stir in the industry and results point out the fact that today the digital camera has achieved higher sales within a short period of time as compared to its predecessor, the 35mm camera. The concept of a digital camera came to the forefront when Steven Sasson of Eastman Kodak who developed the camera using CCD image sensor chips. The drawback was that the camera weighed almost 8lbs and could take only Black & White images with a resolution of 0.01 megapixels. The first image was captured in 1975 by Steven Sasson’s camera.

The first truly digital camera was the Fuji DS-1P with a built-in 16MB memory card although it was never really sold commercially. It was in 1990 that the first commercial digital camera was launched and it was the Dycam Model-1 also known as Logitech Fotoman and it had CCD image sensors. Some of the top digital camera’s today include the Nikon D40x, Canon Digital Rebel, Olympus FE-130 and the Olympus E-510, Fuji F6000 etc.

Processors & Digital Camera Equipments
The performance of a digital camera is dependent on several factors like resolution, which is governed by different parameters like aspect ratio, actual pixel count etc. But the most important component of the Digital camera that assists in digital photography is the processor. Most of the top digital camera firms or manufacturers develop and manufacture their own processors like Canon’s DIGIC chip, which is an all-in-one processor. The DIGIC processor enhances different functions of a digital camera to enable faster AF, improvement in image quality, quick JPEG compression, longer battery life and even rapid continuous shooting. Zoran is another company who has launched a digital camera processor that is capable of supporting DivX Video.

Although internal processors are an integral part of a digital camera but there are several external enhancers that can influence the overall performance and is mostly used by professional photographers using DSLR’s (Digital Single Lens Reflex). The external enhancers sometimes defined under camera equipments will include different type of lens like macro, shift lens, AF lens (can be mounted on both DSLR and SLR), tele-zoom, wide angle etc. Some of the top camera firms develop/manufacture their own lens like the Canon EF200mm f2.8L II USM, which is a tele-zoom lens used mostly by sports photographers. Some of the other popular or commercial digital camera lenses and filter manufacturers include Asahi/Pentax, Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Tamron, Sigma, Fotoman, Fujifilm, Hasselblad, Horseman, Kodak, Leica, Marumi, Panasonic, Samsung etc.

The world of digital camera has become bigger, wider and more competitive as firms vie with each other to develop and manufacture compact equipments, which are easier to handle and can create a perfect digital photography experience for both amateurs and professionals.

This blog is going to be a resource for people interested in photography.
The brain of the author for now imagines such sections to be created: …
You know what… I am not going to describe all my ideas. Let it be a surprise.

Millions of people all over the world take photos, buy cameras, visit photo museums and exhibitions.
What is photography? How can we define the meaning of the word and phenomenon itself.

Lets see..
The word photography comes from the two greek words: light (φως) and paint, write (γραφη).
Thus we see the real sense of photography that is “painting with light”.
That very much proves the photography to be one of the fine arts.