It's sad but unsurprising that Kodak appears headed for bankruptcy protection. And that should be a cautionary tale for camera industry powers that might think themselves better off.

Kodak, a technology titan from an earlier industrial age, has been struggling financially for years as digital photography killed Kodak's former cash cow, film. Bankruptcy protection, as reported yesterday in the Wall Street Journal, could open the door to some otherwise difficult options such as evading its pension obligations.

But fundamentally, it's hard to see Kodak surviving except as a shadow of its former self. Some technology bright spots--digital … Read more

You've opened the box, charged the battery, and oohed and aahed over your shiny new toy. Now what?

Scan your manual No, you don't have to read the whole thing, just the important stuff. In the beginning somewhere there will be a diagram showing you the parts of the camera. That's the really important stuff. Then turn to the index, providing the manual has one (there are some utterly heinous examples of manualcraft that don't include an index); if there isn't, use the table of contents instead. Run down the index or TOC, and look at the page in the manual for every term you don't understand. … Read more

Managing your photos--a lot easier than you think.

What a surprising number of people don't realize is that every device these days pops up as a drive on your system, and that you can drag and drop your files onto your computer--even your phone. (And to those of you saying "everybody knows that already!" trust me; they don't.)

Commit to downloading First, you have to make the decision--and stick to it--that you'll download (or upload) all your photos and videos within a day or so of taking them. It's a good idea to get … Read more

Have you been looking for the right photo editing tool and photo management tool, but don't want to pay a hefty price you might find in other products like the Adobe Photoshop? If so, Corel provides an alternative option for those users, who are looking to do semi-serious photo editing without paying the big bucks.

Corel PaintShop Pro X4 gives passionate photographers more to love with hundreds of photo-editing features, a streamlined workspace, new pro-level effects and one-click sharing. Retouch photos faster. Create the perfectly exposed image or achieve a surreal, artistic effect with the HDR module. Remove distractions … Read more

The successor to the full-frame Nikon D700 and Canon's follow-on to the EOS 5D Mark II were widely expected to put in an appearance of some sort during 2011. They didn't.

It appears as if the D800 will be a 36-megapixel camera that will launch in early 2012. What Canon's prosumer follow-on (5D Mark III?) will look like and when it will debut is anyone's guess. The combination of the Japanese earthquake/tsunami and Thailand flood tragedies contributed to significant delays throughout the photographic industry.

Other cameras were announced but are still not widely available, apparently … Read more

Adobe Systems last night updated Lightroom, its software for editing and cataloging photos, with support for the latest batch of small, high-end cameras.

Supported in Lightroom 3.6--along with its close cousin, Photoshop's Camera Raw 6.6 plug-in, are the Nikon 1 V1 and J1; the Panasonic GX-1; the Samsung NX5 and NX200, and Sony's NEX-7. All those models are of a newer category, compact cameras with interchangeable lenses.

More conventional compact cameras also are supported, including Canon's new S100, Fujifilm's FinePix X10, Ricoh GR Digital IV, and the superzoom Leica V-LUX 3.

Lightroom can accommodate … Read more

When describing Phase One's IQ180-based camera system, there are plenty of superlatives you could pick.

High resolution is one choice: the sensor captures 80-megapixel photos measuring 10,328 by 7,760 pixels.

Expensive is another obvious candidate: the IQ180 image sensor costs $43,990. Adding in the 645DF camera body and Schneider-Kreuznach's 80mm LS lens bumps the price to $47,990.

But the one that intrigued me the most was outstanding color.

Over two weeks shooting with the IQ180 and 645DF medium-format camera body, I was consistently impressed with the depth and subtlety of its images' color. As often as not it was the color, not the high resolution, that made me want to dive into the photos (having a high-gamut display helps a lot) and print posters. Skin tones look more alive and natural, and I found myself shooting to capture color much more than I usually do. … Read more

Here's one of those tips that's so obvious, you'll be surprised you missed it.

With iOS 5 utilizing the volume-up button for the camera shutter, iPhotography seriously improved, as previously tapping the screen to activate the shutter would often render blurry photos.

Then yesterday, one of my favorite food photographers tweeted her brilliant discovery: you can also use your headset volume-up button to capture a photo.

Just launch your iPhone's camera, ready your shot, and click the volume up button to snap the photo. If you have a Bluetooth headset with volume control, it'll likely … Read more

Sure, you could buy an expensive new camera to improve your photos.

But here's what I like about a small new company called Modahaus: its accessories let you take better photos with the camera you already have.

The company popped up in June with a compact, relatively affordable set of tabletop studio products. And this week, it launched a another accessory, the Steady Stand 200 for taking photos looking straight down, in particular for those taking shots with an iPhone.

The products aren't going to make it any easier to capture your daughter's quinceanera or the company's holiday party. But for those who want to take photos of stationary objects for reasons of art, archiving, or e-commerce, the Steady Stand looks solid. … Read more