Fujifilm announced the introduction of the X-Pro1, which sports a new CMOS sensor that is supposed to provide resolution that is equal to, if not better than, a full size sensor. Three lenses, the “XF18mmF2 R”, “XF35mmF1.4 R” and “XF60mmF2.4 R Macro” will be available immediately. Techradar has done a full hands-on review that you should check out if you’re interested in this little gem. (Photo courtesy of Fujifilm.)

Sigma Photo revealed the APO Macro 180mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM lens, which is the first lens of this focal length that maintains a 1:1 ratio with a constant f/2.8 aperture. It’s designed for full-frame cameras, but can also be used on crop sensor cameras for an effective focal length of 260mm. It also has optical stabilization for hand-held shots. I will be VERY interested to try one of these babies out. (Photo courtesy of Sigma Photo.)

Nikon revealed its new flagship D4, and is one of the few products to come out around the CES to state a price – a whopping $5,999.95 (why can’t they just make it $6k, really?). The ISO expands to 204,800. You read that right, TWO HUNDRED AND FOUR THOUSAND, EIGHT HUNDRED. You could find your way out of cave when your flashlight battery runs out, shot by shot. Other perks include an MP FX-format CMOS sensor, and 10 fps continuous shooting. (Photo courtesy of Nikon.)

Has anyone heard of Lytro? Yeah, me either. But they are releasing the world’s first light field camera, which has got the photography industry buzzing madly. As it is explained on the Lytro website, “…the Lytro camera captures the entire light field, which is all the light traveling in every direction in every point in space.” I am very, VERY interested in this camera. It’s currently retailing at $399 ($499 if you want red). (Photo courtesy of Lytro.)

So, friends! What neat gadgets came out of this year’s Consumer Electronics Show that you’re particularly excited about? Share with us in the comments, or over on our Facebook Page!

* All pictures, trademarks and brand names owned by corporations and entities as noted.

Related posts:

1. Depth-of-Field In Depth
2. Photography in the News: Charging Friends for Services
3. Photography in the News: Make me a memory

As many of you are probably already aware, Scott Kelby’s (free!) Fourth Annual World Wide Photo Walk is taking place on October 1st and 2nd 2011 (the first year that the event is being held on two days). The purpose of the Photo Walk is to bring together photographers of all skill levels, in locations all over the world. Participants walk around their city or chosen location, photographing their environment and sharing their experiences with fellow walkers, and they can also participate in various contests hosted by the Kelby gang. The groups generally conclude their day by sharing a meal or a beverage, comparing the results of their walk and growing their network of friends. The event really supports the feeling of creativity and comradeship within the photographic community.

Whether you’ve participated every year in this event, you are joining in for the the first time this year, or you’re planning on hosting your own photo walk in the future, keep these tips in mind to make the most of your day.

1. Choose a light lens. The key word in the term “photo walk” is “walk”, so keep in mind that you’re going to be lugging around anything you choose to take with you, and a heavy lens is misery to walk around with for any length of time. Choose a light zoom lens in a flexible focal range – I’m fond of my 17-55mm (Canon/Nikon), many folks choose a 24-70mm (Canon/Nikon), or go with a longer lens such as a 70-300mm (Canon/Nikon). Be brave. Take just one lens. You can do it!

2. Streamline your camera. I’m of Jay Maisel’s school of thought – take a camera, take a lens. Tuck an extra battery or two, and an extra memory card, in your pocket. Leave off the lens hood (I choose to keep the UV filter on), and take off the battery grip. You want to be nimble with your camera. You’re going to be walking around in a group of people. Streamlining your camera will minimize your footprint and reduce the occurrences of lens fencing. It’s very liberating to leave off all of the accouterments we tend to collect.

3. Leave it in the car. Now, to completely oppose what I mentioned in #1 and #2, bring other options with you and leave them in your car. You may find the lens that you chose completely unacceptable for your surroundings. The bright sunlight may be causing wicked lens flare which would be helped by a lens hood. You may have mistakenly grabbed the batteries with no juice. Having some backup gear will give you some peace of mind. Now, don’t bring everything you own. Be thoughtful in your selection. Just don’t plan on carrying it around all day. And lock it in your trunk, don’t leave it in plain view on your back seat.

4. Dress for the weather and for the activity. Comfortable shoes are a must, and non-confining clothing is recommended. Pick pants or a jacket with plenty of pockets! Layer if you need to, to accommodate changing temperatures throughout the day.

5. Be open, and be polite. We’re all grown-ups. Be open to the opinions, advice, and feedback of the other photographers with you. Use common courtesy and manners. Reject obnoxious behavior – your own and others. It is always a good reminder for everyone to just mind their manners and play nice. So, be aware that while you’re trying to get “the” shot, so are all of the other folks in your group. Be mindful of where other folks are framing their pictures, so you don’t accidentally commit a photobomb. Be a good photo walk citizen.

6. Share. If you see a really cool angle or unique perspective, point it out. If some action is going on down the street that no one else has seen yet, let folks know. Keep your head on a swivel and hone your observational skills, but don’t “hog” the shot just because you want to be the only one cool enough to have spotted it.

7. Shoot in burst mode, or bracket your shots. For busy surroundings or areas with a lot of action, shooting in burst mode helps ensure that you capture the moment before it’s gone. If you’re unsure of the required exposure, bracket your shots to guarantee you get the right one.

8. Stand in one spot and look in EVERY direction. A photo walk implies that you will automatically keep moving along. Pause for a few moments every now and then. “Stand in the place where you are.” Let the group move ahead of you a bit so you can have an unfettered view of your surroundings. Look up, look down, turn 360 degrees to absorb every vantage available to you. Stand on something to give yourself an elevated view. Kneel and get your eyes level to the ground. Photograph the people as well as the place.

9. Keep mental notes for a second trip. There may be shots that would benefit all the more for being shot at another time of day than the one you found yourself in during your walk. Maybe some traffic trails on a specific corner would be especially cool. Perhaps some upcoming festival or celebration would provide a unique opportunity for inspired street photography. A photo walk is often a great opportunity to become familiar with a place, so that you can go back there and know exactly what you’d like to shoot.

10. Have fun. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Allow yourself to make mistakes. Relax. Enjoy the opportunity to surround yourself with fellow enthusiasts in person (says the blogger tied to her computer). Give constructive feedback to walk leaders or the Kelby gang so that they can help improve upon the experience for next year.

Are you planning on joining the World Wide Photo Walk? Have you ever participated in a photo walk, Kelby’s otherwise? Do you have some great advice to share? Feel free to speak up in the comments, or head on over to our Facebook page!

Photo credits (in order of appearance):
- Photo Walk Penang by Ishak J. on Flickr Creative Commons.
- Windmills @ Worldwide Photo Walk 2009 by Jiaren Lau on Flickr Creative Commons.

Related posts:

1. Worldwide Photo Walk 2010
2. Five Tips for Great City Shots
3. Street Photography

In honor of Selina Maitreya’s August 10th-12th blog tour (kind of like a virtual book tour) we are giving away one FREE COPY of “How To Succeed In Commercial Photography: Insights from a Leading Consultant”. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post expressing your interest in receiving this book. On Wednesday August 17th the winner will be randomly selected and announced on our Facebook page!

Following is an article, reprinted with permission, that provides an example of the excellent advice and perspective that Maitreya offers.

———-

The Mix
© 2009 Selina Maitreya

Photographers have asked me for years for the magic formula for success in business. I’ve said there was none. I was wrong. When I look closely at the steps taken by photographers who have achieved successes, I see a different variation of the same process; I call the formula, THE MIX.

First of all, let me be clear, the successful photographers I am talking about are not the Annie Leibovitz’s, of the world. I am talking about photographers you may never hear of, or read about in PDN. They may sit next to you at an APA and ASMP meetings. You might have seen their post on a photoeditor.com but most likely you’ll never even know they exist. However, they are successful, as each one at different times in their career has reached their creative and financial goals. They have achieved their success, by employing not one or two steps of the MIX but by putting all of the essential steps needed into place. They went for the full Monty they worked the complete mix. That’s the key.

You don’t need every sales option, but some components can’t be left out and you will need to choose one option from each section of the process.

Here’s the formula: (*= Must be included)

* A talent based body of work ready to sell, (this means a defined visual approach around a specific subject with enough samples to build trust in potential clients.)

* A deep database of appropriate contacts (and a smaller more researched group of contacts for in person visits)

* 4-5 different marketing/sales channels (including direct sales see below for options)

* Marketing materials that are visually branded to move the visual message forward

*Perseverance

*Faith

*Patience (allowing for a 2-4 year timeline before seeing consistent results)

Notice that I wrote that those who were successful worked ALL of the steps above not just one or two of them. While there are 8-10 options for sales and marketing tools, you will need to employ at least 4-5 of them.

Effective marketing for any business, starts with branding and style combined with an up-to-date database. Marketing is a simple equation and is effective when diversified and done consistently.

Notice the words “diversified” and “consistent”?

For years I have met photographers who get a piece of the MIX but don’t jump in completely. Maybe they get the vision piece and then decided to send direct mail out to promote themselves. That’s it, direct mail. Maybe 4 to 6 times a year, period.

Then there are Creatives who believe in sending out visual email once a month. End of story. Of course if they just came back from PHOTO in NYC and heard a panel of art buyers talk about how much email they get, they decide to no longer send email, now they are onto social networking.

Get the drift? Photographers may now understand that they need to market but most have not yet embraced the concept of incorporating the MIX.

•

Selina Maitreya has been a highly regarded consultant to commercial photographers for the last 30 years. She is the author of “How to Succeed In Commercial Photography: Insights From a Leading Consultant”, available now at selinamaitreya.com.

“How to Succeed In Commercial Photography”, speaks through Selina’s voice and the voices of photographers, clients and other consultants all who share information and inspiration with photographers on how to have a life in photography. It is sold worldwide.

Related posts:

1. Book Giveaway – Winner
2. Your Weekend Photography Project
3. Commercial love day right around the corner

The May 2011 issue of National Geographic magazine, on newsstands April 26th.

(Click on all photographs to enlarge and enjoy.)

There was a time, in the not-too-distant past, when photography seemed like magic. Given what we know now, with concepts taught to us by our high-school science teachers, we understand the photographic process much better than our historical compatriots. That understanding has in no way removed the wonder of the process, and the sheer amazement that we feel for those inventors of the past who, through experimentation and imagination, created the fledgling tools that evolved into the photographic technology of today.

Duplicating the real thing, a ghostly upside-down image of a lightbulb appears inside a wine box converted to a pinhole camera. In his classic photograph, Morell demonstrates how a camera obscura (dark chamber) image forms.

In this excerpt of “Rooms With A View”, an article in the May 2011 issue of National Geographic, writer Tom O’Neill discusses the ancient phenomenon of “camera obscura” and the modern-day talents of photographer Abelardo Morell:

Something strange and wonderful happens when light enters a dark space through a tiny opening. Aristotle described the phenomenon back in the fourth century B.C. Leonardo in Renaissance Italy sketched the process. In Coney Island and other 19th-century seaside resorts, tourists lined up to see the magical results. Shift to a Boston classroom, the year 1988. Cuban-born Abelardo Morell, teaching an introductory photography course at an art college, was curious to step back in time. On a sunny day, he covered the classroom windows with black plastic, making the space as dark as a cave, cut a dime-size hole in the material, and told his students to watch. Almost instantly the back wall came alive like a movie screen, its surface covered with a fuzzy image of people and cars moving along Huntington Avenue outside. Then the double take: The image was upside down, sky on floor, ground on ceiling, the laws of gravity seemingly gone haywire.

Morell had turned his classroom into a camera obscura, a dark chamber, the Latin name for perhaps the earliest known imaging device and the ancestor of the photographic camera.

Colors, shapes, and perspectives run amok in a playful mind-bender devised by Morell in a Venice sitting room. "I want people to wonder, What belongs to what?" says Morell, who projected a view of the Grand Canal onto a wall painted in a jungle motif. The shadow of a chandelier adds to the image's hypnotic mayhem.

Camera obscura is one of the earliest imaging methods known to man. What was initially a teaching tool for Morell’s introductory photography course became a passion, and his pursuit of perfecting this method created some of the most visually-stunning contemporary photographs of the modern era. Morell went from using simple household materials to create the effect, to engineering the technique which allowed him to manipulate brightness, focus, and the use of digital sensors.

As vivid as a dream, a hyper-sharp image of the Brooklyn Bridge and lower Manhattan materializes above tousled sheets. To make the surreal picture, Morell essentially put his camera inside a room serving as a camera and kept his shutter open for five hours to expose on film the incoming image. He used a prism to flip the projection right-side up.

Morell’s fascinating combination of ancient technique and modern composition have created an incredibly unique body of work. His exhibitions have been featured in galleries and museums in New York, San Francisco, and Boston. Read Tom O’Neill’s excellent article in National Geographic’s May Issue, and click on the link to the left of the article to watch a fascinating video of the camera obscura process.

All photographs provided by National Geographic, copyright Abelardo Morell/National Geographic.

Related posts:

1. YOUR Photo Challenge Contributions
2. Happy Animals! Smile for the camera!
3. Gems – Black and White

The buzz and excitement surrounding the discovery of Vivian Maier’s vast collection of photographs has generated a renewed interest in, and curiosity about, street photography.

Street photography reveals a candid look at a city’s population, architecture, and events. It can also be used to deliver a personal, social, political, or environmental message. Photographs are taken on city streets, in parks, along sidewalks, in shops, and from buildings. It becomes a no-holds-barred documentary into the life and times of a specific locale during a specific time-frame, and can be incredibly revealing with respect to the “feel” or “personality” of a particular place. It can generate within the viewer a sense of happiness, outrage, sympathy, and awe. Moments are caught in time – for better or for worse, flattering or condemning. A good street photographer will shoot their chosen subject with a non-judgemental eye, searching for accuracy in representation. The result is a photograph that draws the viewer directly into that place, directly towards that person, or directly into that moment in time.

To become a good street photographer, you must be willing to shoot every day. Shoot often, shoot a lot. Shoot at all times of the day and night, in all kinds of weather. The best shots come from those fleeting moments that occur randomly and without warning, so walk the streets and view your surroundings with a long eye. Observe details and colors, movement and patterns. Look for emotion and the interaction between people. Find a story within the shot and be aware of that story as you are composing the photograph.

The chosen photographic format is a very personal decision for the photographer. Some swear by wide angle lenses that capture an overall scene, whereas others choose a telephoto lens which allows them to get into a person’s space without them even knowing they are being photographed. Many choose a black and white format to portray a sense of drama or isolation, where others treat the color of a city as its own subject.

Whatever your chosen format, the flexibility of street photography makes it one of the most popular genres throughout photographic history. To learn to become an excellent street photographer, observe other people’s work to gain inspiration (I encourage you to view Vivian Maier’s extraordinary work, linked above), and practice as much as you can to gain experience. You will soon find your own rhythm; one that flows with the city as you explore, and reveals a vibrancy unique to your own vision.

Photo credits (in order of appearance):
- “Street Photography in NYC” by Flickr 4 Jazz on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “Another street photography” by Regel Zamora on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “Street Photography Glasgow” by Maria Bowskill on Flickr Creative Commons.

Related posts:

1. 10 Tips for a Great Photo Walk
2. Curing Photographer’s Block
3. Food Photography

Hello, friends! First, let me wish you all a very happy Valentine’s day. I hope that you all will spend it in the exact way that will make you the happiest.

Secondly, I wanted to share with you all some links of things that are being talked about in the realm of photography, elsewhere:

- All you all have probably heard by now, Canon announced the newest in its line of Rebel cameras, the Rebel T2i. This camera is meant to provide many of the features of the new 7D, to a more entry-level clientele. (Article provided by canonrumors.com).

- Nikon has also announced a new lineup of Coolpix cameras fresh for 2010, which also incorporate the HD-video recording feature that is quickly gaining popularity as a DSLR camera feature.

- Nikon also announced the release of two highly anticipated lenses – the AF-S NIKKOR 24mm f/1.4G ED ultra-fast wide-angle lens, and the AF-S NIKKOR 16-35mm f/4G ED VR, which is the widest FX-format focal range lens that Nikon offers.

- The 2010 World Press Photographer of the Year award has been given to Italian photographer Pietro Masturzo. Check out the article for the winning shot and runner-up details.

- If you’re not already reading Scott Bourne’s blog, you should start! Great expertise and advise. I especially like his recent article on taking better portraits.

- Photographer and author Dave Cross wrote an article about the debate over HDR. Scott Kelby then posted a resonse on his own blog. I find the ongoing debate about the benefits and detriments of HDR to be quite interesting!

That’s it! Thanks, and have a great weekend, everyone!

Photo credit: “Holding On To Love” by Pink Sherbet on Flickr Creative Commons.

Related posts:

1. Upcoming and Elsewhere
2. Lens Nomenclature Decoded
3. Black Friday Deals on Digital Photography Gifts

Photo District News reports that Digital Photo Pioneers Win Nobel Prize. Willard S. Boyle and George E. Smith were awarded the prize for developing a digital sensor that revolutionized photography and made digital cameras what they are today.

DC Views reports that Nikon announces flagship D3s digital SLR camera. The D3S is the next step up for their popular D3. With ISO settings from 200 to 12800, video capability, FX and DX formatting, and a Live View mode, this camera is sure to be a hit with Nikon enthusiasts.

Kelby Training is kicking off The Photoshop for Digial Photographers Tour next week in Boston, MA. From there the tour visits Philadelphia, PA, and Tampa, FL. In the seminar, participants will learn about working in Camera Raw, Portrait Retouching, Photoshop Tips, Printing Techniques, and Editing Workflow. Fees are $99 for regular admission, or $79 for NAPP members.

Photo.net offers a Lensbaby Compser, Muse, and Optic Swap Review. Step outside of your routine, and your comfort zone – have a little fun with the unique results and perspectives of the Lensbaby collection.

Photo credit: “Bless Me Father For I Have Sinned” by Prudence Brown on Flickr Creative Commons.

Related posts:

1. Photography in the News: Make me a memory
2. Black Friday Deals on Digital Photography Gifts
3. Nikon D300 – My week to review

Click on each photo to read the story behind the image.(*)

Photo Credits (in order of appearance):
- “Sabrina, Street Performer” by DMahendra on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “Opposition Protest at Azadi Square, Tehran June 15, 2009″ by Arasmus on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “The Rower’s Progress” by True False Film Festival on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “I Am Not A Terrorist” by Monaxle on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “An Oxfam activist showing a “Stop Harming – Start Helping” Christmas card delivered to UN Climate negotiators in Poznan” by Oxfam International on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “Documenting the pollution” by Magnus Franklin on Flickr Creative Commons.
- “Always Faithful, Doberman, Military Working Dog, MWD, World War II Memorial, War Dog Cemetery located on Navel Base Guam” by BL1961 on Flickr Creative Commons.

(*) The views expressed by the contributing photographers in this entry do not necessarily reflect those of the employees and management of Beyond Megapixels.

Related posts:

1. Honoring Our Soldiers
2. Masters of Photography – Mathew Brady
3. Masters of Photography – W. Eugene Smith

I mean, there really is a limit to things. There was a time when I used to spend a lot of time thinking about this very issue… whether the extent of digital photo manipulation that exists today is ethical. My mentor convinced me that Photoshop is what can be called the Digital Darkroom, with RAW being the digital negative. It is very important in the field today, and not post processing your images using Photoshop (or other programs like GIMP for example) is absolute stupidity. Fine, agreed. Post processing is needed, and ethical. But to what extent?

With the kind of capability that Photoshop puts into the hands of anyone who knows how to use a computer, is the art of Photography turning into the art of post processing? I’m sure all of us have at one time or the other taken a picture with the thought in mind that this or that flaw can easily be corrected in PS, so why bother trying to correct it now. But what when that thought stays for every picture you take? What when you frame pictures keeping in mind the extent of adjustments you can make later, and so don’t bother with them while clicking?

Photography is an art… an art that has the power to bring people face to face with the raw realities of life. And at the crux of every art is a creative thinking process. When we become dependent on PS to such an extent that the creativity that goes into taking the picture starts getting overshadowed by the effort put in PS, that is when the line is crossed. Of course there are some concepts that require extensive use of PS, but those are clearly not being talked about here. I am simply referring to correction of pictures.

I myself often had the same thought process as stated above, of taking pictures keeping in mind the adjustments that would need to be done later. There isn’t anything wrong with that unless you do it all the time. And I used to wonder why some people are always ranting about getting the photo as perfect as possible while clicking it. But today, I somehow feel a lot more respect for all those wonderful photographers who have the spirit of practicing the art as it is meant to be practiced.

My thoughts at the moment are mixed, as might be apparent from the construction of this post. And I really don’t know if Photoshop is a blessing or a curse. It may be a blessing for those who can use it to overcome their lack of talent in the actual process of taking a picture, hence being a curse for ones who are brilliantly talented in making beautiful pictures without needing PS.

To conclude, I will say that most of us rely on PS to a significant extent. And most of us have defined our own limits to the extent of post processing permissible. But somehow, I still sit here wondering, hoping for a satisfactory answer (or maybe just an intelligent heated discussion) to the question… How much IS too much?

Related posts:

1. 100 STEPS TO IYP – Post Processing
2. Establishing a Post-Processing Routine
3. Guest Post

Isn’t that such a great idea?  I love exploring peoples dream jobs, hearing about what they’d like to do, how they’d like to capture it, it’s so incredible.  Like this one for example:

Walls, the way we separate ourselves

submitted by mogmismo 

 

We have been building walls for as long as we could pile rock on rock, to separate ourselves from our neighbours. All these barriers fail. I will photograph these attempts at separation and how as human beings, not nations, we overcome.

 

 

Humans spend our time separating ourselves from each other, by finding our differences. We build barriers between ourselves to define differences. Sometimes we even build walls out of fear. But we are not all that different, and a hand reaching across a barrier is sometimes all it takes to bring peoples together.

Traveling to places, both ancient and modern, such Hadrians wall in Scotland, to the US/Mexico border, Palestine/Israel’s Security Fence an the remnants of the Berlin Wall and the Korean DMZ zone, I’d like to document how we have tried to separate ourselves, and how we overcome this separation to become united in our humanity.

Have you submitted your dream assignment?  Do you have one?

Related posts:

1. Poll – Your Dream Photography Vacation
2. Photographer in the News: Paul Tumason
3. Photographers in the News: Photo Booth