D300

 The photo below is 3200 taken with a d300- no flash. no bad. I cant wait to see what the d3 does

the real test- this is 6400- no flash. Its beats any other camera I’ve had.

D3 and D300

all I have to say is wow

XSHOT

this looks kind of fun.  This is for all those folks that like to take photos of yourself.

go here www.xshotpix.com

here is the press release they sent in

(Santa Barbara, California) - It’s a product
that is really extending the number of ways consumers can shoot
photos and videos. We’ve all seen people with their arms
awkwardly extended trying to take a photo or shoot a video and
include themselves in the shot.  The XShot is a cleverly
designed telescopic rod that attaches to any compact digital
camera or hand-held video camera and allows photographers and
videographers to be a part of the memories they capture.

“People no longer have to rely on arm extensions or passing
strangers to take their pictures,” says Michael Daoud,
co-founder of XShot, LLC. “Photographers and videographers can
now be a part of the memory and get a great image without a
tripod assembly.”

How Does XShot Work?
Simply connect any digital compact camera to the XShot adapter using the built-in thumb screw and adjust to the desired angle. Engage the self-timer, extend the XShot, aim and shoot. The XShot provides over 3 feet of reach, which is enough extension to include as many as 5 people in a shot. This patented pending product is made of high quality stainless steel, closes to nine inches, weighs 3.9 ounces and neatly fits into a pocket.

The idea for the XShot came to Michael Daoud while vacationing
in Paris and visiting the famous Louvre Museum in Paris. “I
tried to capture a photo of my wife and I with the Louvre in the
background,” he says, “but because the camera was only at arm’s
length and so close to our faces, only a small part of the
Louvre Museum was in the picture.”  Daoud realized that if he
could extend his arm a little longer he could take much better
pictures. That when he came up with the idea of a telescopic arm
that could hold the camera and be extended to take a full
picture of the subjects and the background.  And so was born the
XShot.

Beyond the independent traveler, the XShot is also gaining quick
popularity from those who use the many social networking sites
online. Due to its versatility and special effects for
self-portraits and video diaries, the XShot has captured the
attention of YouTube and MySpace audiences. One such effect is
achieved with the XShot when the camera is placed in video mode
and the user spins in place 360 degrees. When played back, the
video appears three-dimensional and the subject seems to be
standing still while the background revolves. “Many people have
commented that it resembles a special effect used in Hollywood
films,” John Stump, co-founder of XShot said.

D3 and D300

Im getting excited about the new Nikon cameras coming out. The key to the camera is shooting in high ISO settings. I’ve seen photos shot from highschool football games and they look great. Here are a couple photos that are posted on the Nikon website.

Click Here to see photos

Multimedia Shooter

MULTIMEDIA SHOOTER
This is a very cool site for those wanting to find out more about all the different areas.

Copy those Files

Computers are becoming overloaded with thousands of images that have never been printed or put on a CD or DVD.
Be sure to back up those files by copying them before a hard drive crashes or a camera flash card becomes corrupt and loses all of those precious moments.
If you’re like me, every couple weeks your hard drive on your laptop or computer runs out of space with images and word documents.

1. Always back your files with two copies. It’s recommended to burn a copy to CD or DVD and then copy the same files to a hard drive (external or internal). Always check the disks to make sure that the data is readable before you erase the files on your computer. DVDs hold up to six times more data than recordable CDs.
2. Store the CDs or DVDs in a safe place so that you will always have them in case of theft, heat or dampness.
3. When you get a new computer or hard drive, always copy over the files so that they can be updated with the new technology.
4. Copy images to Web sites such as www.shutterfly.com. You can upload as much as you want and always have a copy that you can share with friends and family.

Camera Tips

Buy several memory cards for your camera just in case you have problems with one while your taking photos — you can always put in another card to finish the job. It’s recommended to buy several smaller memory cards (maybe two or three 1 gigabyte cards).
Always shoot your photos with the highest quality possible. With most cameras, this would be the fine setting. It’s better to have a large file and be able to get a high quality enlargement. If you shoot with a smaller file such as basic or normal, the enlargement only may look good as a 4-by-6 or 5-by-7 when you really wanted an 8-by-10-inch photograph.
Questions? visit http://amnewsphoto.wordpress.com/

Lighting for basketball

I’ve been asked so many times lately about lighting gyms during the basketball season. He’s what I use

 

Bogen / Manfrotto Justin Spring Clamp with Flash Shoe -I use 2 (for the same basket on both sides of the stands)

 

Nikon SB-800 Speedlight- I use 2 on the justin clamp

 

Pocket-Wizard Plus II Transceiver/Relay Radio Slave - Combined Transmitter and Receiver- I use 3 (1 on the camera, the other 2 attached to the sb-800)

 

PC-1 Miniphone to PC Cable- These come with the remotes (attach them to the flash and remotes)

 

-now only hope that high schoolers don’t mess with the flashes.

This depends on the gym.  but I usually set the 800’s on manual power at 1/4- try a few test frames.

My big problem is to keep everything together when you pack up.  Put all the cords in the same place-I’m pretty bad when it comes to not keeping stuf in the same place.

 

Crazy World

 Check out this article

This makes me kinda sick.  I hate articles out there that are “How to be a wedding photographer in 2 weeks”  How to be a photojournalist”

JPG vs. RAW

good tips on file types from G. Eric Matthews
Professor and chair of Physics

People are always asking what should I shoot JPG or RAW? maybe this link will help.

Here’s the first paragraph

JPG is optimized for photographs and similar continuous tone images that contain many, many colors. It can achieve astounding compression ratios even while maintaining very high image quality. GIF compression is unkind to such images. JPG works by analyzing images and discarding kinds of information that the eye is least likely to notice. It stores information as 24 bit color. Important: the degree of compression of JPG is adjustable. At moderate compression levels of photographic images, it is very difficult for the eye to discern any difference from the original, even at extreme magnification. Compression factors of more than 20 are often quite acceptable. Better graphics programs, such as Paint Shop Pro and Photoshop, allow you to view the image quality and file size as a function of compression level, so that you can conveniently choose the balance between quality and file size.

RAW is an image output option available on some digital cameras. Though lossless, it is a factor of three of four smaller than TIFF files of the same image. The disadvantage is that there is a different RAW format for each manufacturer, and so you may have to use the manufacturer’s software to view the images. (Some graphics applications can read some manufacturer’s RAW formats.)

ISO help

(Taken from digicamhelp)

Auto ISO mode

All consumer digital cameras have an Auto ISO mode. The camera automatically selects the sensitivity, known as ISO, according to the level of light in a scene. The user has no control over which ISO number is used.

In bright light a lower ISO will be selected. In low light an higher ISO number will be selected.

Auto High ISO Mode

Some digital cameras have an Auto High ISO mode, which is primarily used in very low and difficult lighting. The camera selects ISO number higher than Auto ISO mode, usually ISO 400 and above.

Higher ISO means faster shutter speeds

When a higher ISO is selected, shutter speeds are faster. Use of faster shutter speeds helps prevent blurred images due to camera shake. Using high ISO numbers also allows you to turn off the flash when shooting in dark areas.

Higher ISO means more image “noise”

Keep in mind that the higher ISO, the more noise will appear in images. That’s why many photographers, in order to prevent noise, prefer to set ISO manually and select low ISO numbers even if they must use a tripod to prevent camera shake. Still, an photo with noise is better than no photo at all.

Image noise will be higher when using Auto High ISO mode than using Auto ISO mode.