I've
had my eye on Bibble for a while, now it's gone version 1 I thought I'd
bring it to the attention of any D1 owners out there. Eric Hyman wrote Bibble
to explore the 16-bit .NEF RAW image format from the Nikon D1 (and to save
money on having to buy Nikon's Capture software), he's progressed it to
an amazing level, it'll now browse and import .NEF files straight into Photoshop,
it'll also do conversions, magenta fix, batch conversions and extract EXIF
exposure information. (It's even claimed to give better colour reproduction
than Nikon Capture!)
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March 2000
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May 2000
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April 2000 news and reviews
April 29
The
latest digicam in house for our review treatment is the Olympus C-3030Z.
It's a production model (NTSC). Having only had the camera for a day it's
a little early to draw any major conclusions suffice to say I really like
it, feels more solid and complete than the C-2020Z and produces image
quality which puts it right up there with the 990.
We tracked Mike Rubin down to a small deserted island somewhere
in the Caribbean (testing the next Coolpix no doubt) to bring these answers
communicated over an old Morse network.. Instead of asking Mike to dig up
the old messages and answer them directly on the newsgroup we've pulled
them togther as a whole.. So here they are, answers to the questions you've
asked!
April 27
April 26
Following
similar action in Europe, FujiFilm Japan are now shipping the 4700Z without
the 4.3M label on the front of the camera, they've also backed down in their
catalogues and sales material clearly stating 2.4 megapixels. Perhaps they'll
do the same for the 3.2 megapixel S1 Pro. This is clearly a victory for
the consumer. Remember, don't believe the sales hype!
Another
piece of news we've heard rumours about has today been made official by
Sony. Today they announced the 3.34 megapixel DSC-F505V and DSC-F55V.
Essentially upgraded versions of their popular Cybershot digicams these
cameras now complement their (extensive) range of digicams. DSC-F505V
will be available in Japan in June @ 125,000 YEN (US$1100), DSC-F55V will
be available in Japan in July @ 88,000 YEN (US$830)
April 25
Every month Impress Group of Japan publish their printed
Digital Camera magazine, they also publish a webpage with downloadable
sample images associated with various articles in the magazine. This month
there are samples from the following cameras: Nikon Coolpix 990, Olympus
C-3030Z, Sony DSC-S70, FujiFilm FinePix 4700Z, Toshiba M70, Casio QV-3,
Casio QV-3000EX, Epson CP-900Z, Canon S20, Sony DSC-S50, Fuji FinePix
1400Z, Sanyo DSC-SX550, Olympus C-960Z, Olympus C-860L and Panasonic LK-RQ132S.
There's also a 3 megapixel vs. 2 megapixel comparison.
April 24
We've
not heard much from Minolta since their EX-1500 diigcam, the camera which
offered upgradable CCD's due to its removable lens portion (that never came
to anything did it?). Today they announced an alliance with Konica in an
attempt for both companies to gain ground on competitors such as Canon and
Ricoh in the "digital equipment" sector (read: digital cameras).
Watch this space...
April 21
Wim
Pollet, a regular poster on our Canon
Talk forum has put together a page exploring the possibilities of macro
shots using the Canon S10 (or S20 for that matter) and a 10x Peak Scale
Loupe. His results are outstanding and show that you don't always have to
work within the limitations of your particular camera. The Loupe he uses
is of high quality, it has a 20mm eyepiece and adjustable focus ring.. Cheap
at about $60. He's got over 76 sample shots in the Albums section of his
site.
Steve,
happily living in the land of NTSC managed to get his hands on a C-3030Z
way before me and has now completed his review. I'm receiving about ten
emails a day requesting my own C-3030Z review which will come as soon as
Olympus UK supply me with one, apparently there aren't any PAL C-3030Z's
around (I don't really care what Video output it has...). Steve says "Bottom
Line is that this is an excellent camera. As I said at the beginning, it
will be one of the cameras that I'll recommend without hesitation to those
seeking the "best" of the Y2K consumer digicams. "
April 19
Camedia
Master 2 lets you download images directly from the camera over USB or Serial,
has better printing support, support for slide shows, wide-screen panoramas,
360 degree panoramas and QuickTime VR and emailing support directly for
Microsoft Outlook, Netscape Mail and Eurdora. It'll be shipped with the
C-3030Z and C-3000Z, upgrades can be purchased for $19.95.
In
a very interesting piece of news Lexar have received $2 million equity investment
from Sony, in conjunction with a strategic partnership to apply their high-speed
flash memory controller technology to Sony's Memory Stick. Sony wants their
Memory Stick to be able to download 64MB of data in 10 seconds (that's 6.4MB/s
boys...) As a part of the agreement Lexar has received license to manufacture
and market Memory Stick under their own brand. Memory Sticks for the masses?
Anyone else notice that the recently announced "Duo" Memory Stick
would fit inside the CF form factor?
April 18
Here's
a nice alternative to the supplied digital camera software, Ulead Photo
Explorer will thumbnail and sort images, it's got download facilities for
digital cameras and a TWAIN interface for scanners. Supports lossless JPEG
rotation (without destroying the essential EXIF/CIFF data), batch resizing
and file conversion. Sharing and Printing facilities. Best of all in it's
Beta form it's a free download.
Nikon have launched a new toll free number for their US
customers, 1-800-NIKON-UX which has been setup for exclusive support for
their Digital Customers to answer questions about Nikon Coolpix Digital
Cameras, Scanners and D1 professional system and software."By devoting a
separate set of resources for digital information, we can ensure that Nikon
customers will have a rewarding experience as they learn about using their
digital Nikon products."
April 17
It's here. We've worked doubly hard this last week to ensure the most detailed and comprehensive review we've ever carried out. The Nikon Coolpix 990 is probably the most eagerly awaited digital camera of 2000, riding on the success and high praise of its now older brother the 950, Nikon had a high standard to upkeep (and lots of little niggles to fix).
Hats
off to David over at Imaging Resource for pumping out regular reviews, this
time he's completed a review of Canon's S20 he says "...They also gave
it an exceptionally sharp lens to match the sensor's resolution (producing
the highest resolution we've measured on a digicam to date, as of late March,
2000). We found its color to be very good as well, both hue-accurate and
properly saturated. (Neither over-bright nor dull.) While it lacks traditional
aperture- and shutter-priority metering modes, much the same effects can
be achieved through the "Fast Shutter" and "Slow Shutter" exposure modes.
Overall, a great camera and a great extension of Canon's "Elph-like" digicam
line. Highly recommended!"
April 14
Sony
have developed a new sized MemoryStick tentatively called "Duo"
measuring just 20 x 31 x 1.6 mm it comes with a detachable cartridge which
makes it the same size as a Memory Stick. Developed primarily for the PDA
/ telephone / portable AV markets. It's purely a develpoment and aimed for
production in 2001.
We
have just been told that State Street Direct is offering a special price
on the Canon Powershot S10 - that is so low - we are not allowed to quote
it here. When you visit their site (via
this link) you will need to enter your e-mail address in - and the
special price and buy link will be e-mailed to you. This offer is ONLY
for online orders and will end as soon the current inventory is depleted.
April 12
Agfa
today announce their palm-sized "dual use" digital camera it's
only VGA (640 x 480) and has a built-in 2MB memory (enough for 32 images)
or it can be used as a webcam with ArcSoft VideoImpress or Microsoft NetMeeting.
Available end of May 2000, priced at US$149. "made on earth by man"
- uh huh.
April 11
We've
just posted our review of Casio's QV-3000EX, a camera which packs a lot
of features into a very well priced bundle. Add to that a high quality
Canon lens and a 3.3 megapixel CCD and you've got a camera capable of
churning out some excellent images. I was impressed. If you're in the
US (or if you don't mind importing) then the $999 Microdrive bundle is
a steal.
Lucky
chap Steve managed to get his hands on a Coolpix 990 a long time before
me, and now he's finished off his Coolpix 990 review. So what does he think?
"The Coolpix 990 turns out some of the sharpest images I have seen
yet from a three megapixel digicam. The color balance and saturation is
very good and the exposure control is what we have come to expect from Nikon's
best cameras. Just as the Coolpix 950 was one of the top selling cameras
of 1999 I have no doubts that the new 990 is going to do the same in 2000.
It's everything the 950 was and more, a whole lot more! "
April 10
April 7
April 5
Probably
one of the most eagerly expected digital cameras of 2000. At last we've
got a production Coolpix 990 in house, it's got version 1.0 firmware and
is fresh off the production line (Ser no. 5000070). Here's a quick first-look
article and some sample images which I'm sure you're all dying to see.
Dave
Etchells has just posted a review of Fuji's FinePix 4700z he says "It's
neither as good nor as bad as it's been made out to be: We'd place its resolution
as plainly better than the current crop of 2.1 megapixel cameras, but equally
plainly not as high as the 3.3 megapixel units now hitting the market. "
April 4
Interesting
news release from FlashPoint, the developers of the Digita operating system
for digital cameras. Although the release doesn't make it clear which cameras
and indeed which mobile phones their new "Digita Post" system
is compatible with, it is an interesting step forward for truely portable,
connected digital imaging devices.
April 3
The
monthly Canadian digital camera websize megapixel.net have published their
April edition (available in both English and Francais), this month they
review the Canon Powershot S20, HP C500, Sony DCR-PC100 and interesting
Minolta RD-3000 (a camera which uses two 1.5 megapixel CCD's to produce
a 2.7 megapixel image). They also have articles on digital vs. film, HP
P1000/P1100 Ink Jet printer and inexpensive digital cameras.
April 2
Thanks to all those people who took my story about the Canon
CCD seriously. It's a completely fictitious if mildly convincing article.
April Fool! A couple of interesting discussions errupted on the news forums
after this posting. The concept for the CCD was all mine, although I'm sure
it's beyond practical manufacture. (Manufacturers who think it's viable...
email me ;)
April 1
OK,
this time the guys are really gonna blow us all away because they've posted
a comparison of the latest and hottest digicams, not only that but they've
used the PIMA / ISO 12233 standard digital camera resolution test chart...
an excellent way to directly compare the resolution of digicams. My best
picks were the Sony S70, Nikon Coolpix 990, Olympus C-3030Z and Canon PowerShot
S20.
This
news leaked to me last night, I've just verified it with another industry
source. Canon, in association with an undisclosed partner are developing
a totally new class of CCD which will revolutionize digital cameras. Their
so called multi-layer CCD uses the properties of a specially developed glass
membrane which spreads the light equally to each layer.
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