PMA07

Sigma's compact DP1 gets some exposure

Japanese camera and lens maker Sigma began showing off its DP1 digital camera, a compact model using the unusual Foveon image sensor.

Each pixel in a Foveon sensor can detect red, green and blue light, a different approach compared to most "Bayer pattern" sensors that have a checkerboard of pixels that only capture a single color. The Foveon sensors have been used earlier in Sigma's SLR cameras.

The camera image has a resolution of 4.7 megapixels, but each pixel has all three colors; most cameras have only one color and extrapolate values for the others.

The … Read more

Pentax 'pancake' lens to hit full-stack status

Pentax's emphasis on compact SLR cameras and lenses yielded its "pancake" lenses, tiny lenses so thin they can be mistaken for the camera body cap that's put on just to keep the dust out.

The Japanese camera maker has released three such models, but it began showing a fourth here at the Photo Marketing Association trade show.

The new lens is a 35mm F/2.8 macro, said John Carlson, imaging systems product manager, in an interview here. He declined to offer details on price, availability date, or how closely the macro lens will be able … Read more

Sony shows new SLRs, expands lens range

LAS VEGAS--The ability to change lenses is one of the chief advantages of SLR cameras, and Sony is trying hard to build out that part of its SLR line. The company already has introduced 21 lenses, and it plans to sell more than five new lenses this year, the company said here at the Photo Marketing Association trade show.

At a news conference Thursday, Sony described three of the lenses in some detail--a 24-70mm F/2.8, a 70-300mm F/4.5-5.6 and an 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3. But at its booth, it showed eight new models.

The … Read more

A different approach to GPS-enabled cameras

Photography's essential use of GPS differs from the typical GPS application in one significant way: You don't need it to tell you where you are, only where you've been. Why does this distinction matter? Because the former requires far more real-time horsepower and precision than the latter does. For digital photography, that translates into the difference between bulky, expensive power-draining solutions or small-footprint, cheap, energy-efficient ones.

At least, that's the thinking behind NXP Software's swGPS technology, and I think it has a lot of merit. With the swGPS software embedded in a camera along with … Read more

Jeepers! BetterLight's 416-megapixel camera

LAS VEGAS--Maybe BetterLight's 384-megapixel Super 8K-HS scanning camera is just too wimpy for you.

Well, you're in luck, because the San Carlos, Calif.-based company announced a new high-end model, the Super 10K-HS, that offers 416-megapixel images.

The company's products are geared for professionals with demanding needs in areas such as landscape or catalog photography. The new Super 10K-HS, announced Thursday here at the Photo Marketing Association trade show, is intended in particular for reproducing artwork or museum artifacts such as scrolls.

Technically, BetterLight doesn't sell cameras, but rather camera "backs" that attach to … Read more

Call a Sherpa: Sigma's 200-500mm lens

LAS VEGAS--When it comes to SLR cameras, there are big lenses with a long focal length, there are fast lenses with a wide aperture to gather lots of light, and flexible lenses with a wide zoom range.

Squeezing all three into the same lens is tough, but Tokyo-based lens maker Sigma has done just that with a model with a 200-500mm zoom range. It's got a wide aperture, F/2.8, for taking higher-speed shots.

But there's a catch: the lens weighs 40 kilograms, or about 88 pounds.

The company is showing off a prototype here at the … Read more

Olympus shows off next-gen top-end SLR

LAS VEGAS--Olympus began showing off its next-generation top-end SLR Thursday, a successor to the E-1.

Olympus has been short on details other than to say the camera will ship this year. In addition, the company said the new model would be rugged and weatherproof for the demanding conditions of professional photographers.

The camera prototype was on display at the Photo Marketing Association trade show here. It featured a main camera body and a detachable grip for taking vertically oriented shots and--if other manufacturers' products are anything to go by--for housing more batteries.

Panasonic's rugged SD card camcorder

Earlier, we reported on the Panasonic SDR-S10, an SD card camcorder the company claimed was the smallest on the market. Unfortunately, details were sparse. Fortunately, we finally got the full scoop on the little camcorder.

Panasonic officially announced the SDR-S10 at PMA 2007. The SDR-S10 is a compact, rugged, affordable SD card camcorder that can handle both drops and splashes. The S10 measures just 1.5 inches thick and weighs just 6.4 ounces, making it at least one of the smallest and lightest camcorders we've seen so far. It's shockproof for drops up to four feet, and … Read more

Sony camera cuts the cord

Wi-Fi? Pffft. Sony's late to the wireless photography party, but it bypasses the hot spot in favor of the connected home. Its Cyber-shot DSC-G1 integrates DLNA--Digital Living Network Alliance--wireless connectivity, a superset of Wi-Fi that adds interdevice recognition. So far, though, there aren't many DLNA-enabled devices.

Besides, with its 921,000-pixel, 3.5-inch LCD screen, the G1 is practically a TV (in contrast, the usual camera LCD has about 220,000 pixels). Two gigabytes of internal memory make it possible to carry your whole photo library around with you for display on that huge LCD.

The G1 … Read more