Accessories, News, Photography Accessories, News, Photography

Canon's much awaited 200-400mm f/4 telezoom with built-in 1.4x extender announced

Here is the press release:MELVILLE, N.Y., May 14, 2013 – Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, today announced a dynamic new super-telephoto zoom lens, the EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4x. Designed for use with all Canon EOS Digital SLR cameras, the new L-series lens has an integrated 1.4x focal length extender and high-performance Image Stabilization technology, offering exceptional shooting flexibility and range, ideal for sports or wildlife photography.

The new EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4x zoom lens features an optically matched built-in 1.4x extender that increases the maximum focal length to 560mm, simultaneously preserving image quality and enabling the seamless capture of distant, moving subjects. With a simple switch, photographers can easily increase zoom range, which is extremely useful when it's difficult to change lenses quickly, and helps protect delicate equipment like a DSLR camera's image sensor in environments with dust, high humidity or other extreme environmental factors.Peter Read Miller, an award-winning sports photographer and Canon Explorer of Light, recently used the new lens while shooting various worldwide sporting competitions."I had the opportunity recently to use Canon's new 200-400 lens at a number of sporting events," said Miller. "I found it to be incredibly versatile, replacing several different prime lenses that I would usually carry. The zoom allows me to control my framing; the autofocus has speed equal to or faster than most fixed focal length telephoto lenses and the ability to engage the 1.4 extender without taking my eye away from the camera is a unique feature not found in any other telephoto lens available today."To help deliver beautiful, soft, image backgrounds, the lens features a 9-blade circular aperture. The lens also utilizes inner focusing, ring USM, a high-speed CPU and optimized AF algorithms for fast and accurate autofocusing. Quiet and smooth focus shifts - essential for filmmaking - are made possible with Canon's Power Focus mode.Using advanced optical materials such as fluorite crystal and UD glass, the new lens provides excellent correction of chromatic aberration throughout the entire zoom range, and delivers high-quality images with high levels of resolution, color fidelity and contrast. With three image stabilization modes, (standard, panning, and during exposure only) and stabilization effective up to four shutter speed steps, the new EF 200-400mm lens provides excellent results for a wide range of subjects and shooting scenarios. The new lens also includes dust- and water-resistant construction designed for extended usage under harsh conditions."The EF 200-400 along with the Canon EOS-1D X camera body is my new 'go-to' combination for shooting sports," concluded Miller.The EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4x zoom lens is expected to be available at the end of May for an estimated retail price of $11,799.00.Hunt's Photo and Video is taking pre-orders for this lens.  Call 800-221-1830 or click here to pre-order on their web site.

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Accessories, News Accessories, News

Mirrorless Movers™

 

Think Tank Photo just announced their first camera bag collection for Mirrorless cameras, the Mirrorless Movers™.  The Mirrorless Movers come in four sizes that range in size from the Mirrorless Mover 5, which fits one small size mirrorless body with a small telephoto or pancake lens attached, up to the Mirrorless Mover 30i, which fits one medium to large size mirrorless body plus two to four lenses and an iPad.As is their design philosophy, Think Tank placed a premium on quality.  The new bags utilize metal hardware instead of plastic buckles, and only high quality fabrics, YKK zippers and a new, magnetic closure.  In the words of their president and lead designer Doug Murdoch, “The Mirrorless Movers offer photographers quality in their camera bags worthy of their investment in these sophisticated, expensive camera systems.”When you click on this special link you will receive free gear with all orders of $50 or more and free shipping on all orders if you order by May 31, 2013.Click HereThe four sizes are:

  • The Mirrorless Mover 5 fits one small size mirrorless body with a small telephoto or pancake lens attached. It is sized for the Canon EOS–M, Leica D–Lux, Nikon 1 series, Olympus E–PM2, E–PL5, EP–3, Panasonic GF3, Sony NEX–C3, or similar sized bodies.
  • The Mirrorless Mover 10 fits one medium size mirrorless body plus one to two lenses and additional accessories. It is sized for the Leica V–Lux, Olympus OM–D E–M5, Panasonic G3, GF5, GH2, Samsung NX5, NX11, NX210, Sony NEX–5, NEX–6, NEX–7, or similar sized/smaller bodies.
  • The Mirrorless Mover 20 fits one medium size mirrorless body plus two to three lenses and additional accessories. It is sized for the Leica V–Lux, Olympus OM–D E–M5, Panasonic G3, GF5, GH2, Samsung NX5, NX11, NX210, Sony NEX–5, NEX–6, NEX–7, or similar sized/smaller bodies.
  • The Mirrorless Mover 30i fits one medium to large size mirrorless body plus two to four lenses, iPad, and additional accessories or a small–size DSLR and one to three small telephoto lenses or primes. It is sized for the Fuji X–Pro 1, Leica M8, Panasonic GH3 or similar sized/smaller bodies. Small DSLRs: Canon Rebel, Nikon D3200/D5200, Sony SLT–A55/A37 or similar sized bodies.
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News, Photographs, Photography, Workshops News, Photographs, Photography, Workshops

When it all comes together

I have visions of scenes and locations that I want but have to wait till it all comes together.  On the very last day of the Smoky Mountain Workshop we had planned to go to the Foothills Parkway for sunrise.  When I woke up I saw signs of some fog which would make for some very nice images along the parkway but feelings were tugging at me and I wanted to go to Cades Cove in the hope of getting my one image of Sparks Lane.   The group agreed to the change in planes and we headed out to Cades Cove.  Half way there all the fog was gone, it was too late to turn around so I decided to to continue and take my chances.  Arriving at the gates before they opened, I saw that the fog was there - a big thumbs-up.The rest of the story is in the image.  The light in the trees, the dogwood in the foreground, the fog along the tree line and the sunrise colors on the mountains - my dreams had come true it was all there as I had hoped to capture one day.  Please do click on the image for an enlarged version.

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Photography Photography

eBook - Photography Locations of Southern Maine

A dear friend and photographer has spent months photographing and documenting photogenic locations the counties of Cumberland and York, Maine

 The ebook contains 70 locations, many unique and rarely photographed.The book is worth more than its price.  Each location is documented with GPS coordinates, physical addresses and location images captured by Ranjay.The ebook is reasonably priced at $19.95. Here is the link to the purchase the ebook and plan your next trip to Southern Maine counties of York & Cumberland to these great hidden spots for your photography!Buy 

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Photography Photography

No CS7 - Adobe Introduces CC

Adobe expects all their customers to switch to the subscription based service and will allow everybody who currently owns a license to CS3 and up to subscribe to Creative Cloud for $29.95 per month for limited time. It will also offer similar price reductions to users who just bought stand-alone products like Photoshop.CS6 is the last version of the Creative Suite applications that will be available as perpetual stand alone licenses. For nay of the new features and enhancements you must subscribe to suites or individual products in Creative Cloud.  The suite is priced at $49.99 and individual products at $19.99 monthly.Click here to see the new features is Photoshop CC.Not sure if this is a good move on Adobe's part but we will have to wait and see if their plans succeed.

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Photography Photography

Smoky Mountains - Seeing the Light, Literally

I had taken a few participants from my workshop to the Primitive Baptist Church off the Cades Cove loop road.  We photographed the interior and exterior, great shots looking out at the dogwood blossoms through the church windows.  All in all the morning was great.  The light was getting harsh and the scenes contrasty so we decided to head back.  As i was leaving the church I noticed a streak of sunshine coming through between the main door and its frame.  The streak was hitting the floor and the back of the second last bench at the junction of the bench and the wall.  It looked like someone had lit a lamp in the perfect spot.  The angles, the light and the triangulation of lines augmented with the tones of old wood had to be captured.  As this is but a fleeting moment, I was so lucky to be there.Click on the image for a larger view. Your thoughts and comments would be appreciated. 

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Educational, Flowers, Photographs, Photography, Workshops Educational, Flowers, Photographs, Photography, Workshops

Smoky Mountain - Wild Flowers and Landscape Workshop

7 Days in the Smoky Mountains and Cades Cove - pure thrill.  The incredible light, superb lush green of fresh spring leaves, beautiful wild flowers and dogwood trees that were exceptional.  Rivers and streams flowing pristine water, moss covered rocks and the occasional mist made for some great photography.  The participants were fantastic and we all had a lot of fun.  Yes, days were long 4:30 AM wake-up and late evening bedtimes were worth it - every bit of it.Here are a few comments (Audio) from some of the wonderful participants.  Click on the links to listen:ArmandLoisNanMany images were captured - this is one of my favorites.  Captured on the last day - Sparks Lane - all to ourselves and just two other photographers.  Most photographers are under the impression that Cades Cove is closed on Friday - not true, not in the spring. This image is from the night before.       

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Educational, Motion, Photography, Product Reviews, Tips, Workshops Educational, Motion, Photography, Product Reviews, Tips, Workshops

The Genie Motion Control Device

Syrp, a New Zealand company, was very kind and shipped me one of their motion control devices, that I am featuring in my upcoming book.  The time-lapse sequence above, was captured using the Genie in Time-Lapse mode with the Clouds preset modified for my way of capturing.I love the simplicity of this unit.  It is easy and a charm to use.I also did a review of the Genie that you can read - click on this link GENIE Review.Please contact me if you need more information or would like to get your and on one.

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News, Photography, Product Reviews, Tips News, Photography, Product Reviews, Tips

The Impressive Feisol Carbon Fibre Ball-Head

I had done a review of the Feisol Carbon Fiber Tripod and the The FEISOL CB-50DC Carbon fiber Ball-Head a while back  Click here for the review. This lightweight ball-head continues to impress me. It is a light yet very well constructed Arca Swiss compatible ball head designed for general purpose use.

My unit is now mounted on my Dynamic Precession cart atop the 6 foot rail and performs really well. As most of these rails are belt and stepper motor driven it is best to keep the overall weight as low as possible. Here is where this head is perfect.

The carbon fibre construction is impressive. The locking mechanism is based on dual calipers. One dual caliper is used to lock the ball while the other is used to lock the base plate. Each caliper is operated by a rotating knob. A third flatter knob is used to maintain tension on the ball preventing any accidental flopping of mounted equipment.Hunts Photo is conducting a one week "shiv verma | photography" special for all Feisol Products.  Discounts and free shipping  are available through April 14, 2013.

 

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Photography Photography

Nikon - firmware updates

Nikon has has released a number of  firmware updates for their DSLRs. The D600 and D800, D4, D3, D3s, D3x, D7000 and D3200 are all upgradable. In addition to support for the 800mm lens the D600 and 800 cameras will realize improvements in continuous autofocus and tracking.  The D600 will now be able to provide 100% video scene coverage via HDMI output.All firmware updates are available for download from http://http://support.nikonusa.com  

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Photography Photography

Wacom's new Cintiq 13HD

This is such great news.  Wacom has had the most awesome pen displays and now a 13 inch model.  What can be better for flexibility.   Work with it on your lap or desktop.It has many of the features of it big brothers the 22D and 24HD like customizable ExpressKeys, the Rocker Ring, and the Home Button for easy shortcut access.The screen is a high res 1920 x 1080 LED display with nearly a 180° (178 to be picky)  viewing angle and renders 16.7 million colors.The stand can be detached and adjustable to three different working angles or use it flat on your lap or desktop.It comes with a new Pro Pen in a care with 9 nibs.  It has 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity and tilt recognition.Slated for availability in April at $999Click here for more info.

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ISO 3200, Night Photography, Noise Reduction, Photography, Stacked Image ISO 3200, Night Photography, Noise Reduction, Photography, Stacked Image

While waiting for the Aurora

Saturday March 16, 2013 - Predictions for a great Aurora Borealis were excellent.  The solar activity promised the Aurora to display all the way South in Massachusetts.  Being a big fans of this phenomenon my wife and I made reservations at  an inn in Caribou, Maine.  7 1/2 hours later we were scouting out for good locations.  The skies were clear as can be and the excitement escalating.  We had dinner and drove out to the planned location.  To cut a long story short, 14 degree temperatures were not going to stop us from photographing the Aurora.  5 hours later it is 3:00 and there is no sign of the event.  We packed up and went back to the hotel.  BIG MISTAKE - 4:30 the lights turned on and by 5:00 AM some of the most spectacular images were being captured but the lucky photographers while we slept soundly.While waiting I decided to take some short time lapses.  Did one with the camera pointed at Polaris. This was a short 20 minute capture resulting in few seconds of video.  The individual images were then stacked to create a star-trail.Here is the video:stars1The stack looks great - the glow in the lower half is light pollution from some homes and towers in the distance.  Click on the image for a larger view. 

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Accessories, News, Photography, Tips Accessories, News, Photography, Tips

My favorite sling straps for my cameras.

If you never tried a sliding sling strap, you are in for a wonderful experience.  We are all familiar with sling straps on camera bags and some back packs.  Sling straps are worn diagonally across your body to move the weight of your gear from your neck to your shoulder – resulting in a significant improvement in comfort.  Sliding Sling Straps differ from sling straps in one important feature.  Sliding sling straps have a fitting that slides along the strap.  The fitting in turn connects to your camera.  That means that the camera, which is attached to the fitting, can be brought up smoothly to your eye without pulling your clothing – the strap, which is a loop, does not need to move!Sliding slings trace back to 1885 where the slider was connected to a rifle http://www.rollanet.org/~stacyw/us_1885_carbine_sling.htm.  The first commercial application that I found for cameras dates back to 2004.  The product (still available), called simply “The Strap” is sold by a company called Leicagoodies, http://www.leicagoodies.com/strap.html.  This sliding sling uses a detachable connector attached to a split ring which slides along 1” wide loop strap.There have been many embodiments of the sliding sling strap for cameras since 2004.  The most popular are the Black Rapid straps and the California Sun Bounce Straps.  Many smaller companies also produced sling straps.  In 2007, Black Rapid applied for a patent on the sling strap.  The patent was granted in November 2011.  Black Rapid immediately moved to eliminate competitive products that used the sling concept for cameras.  A letter notifying infringement of a patent and threatening legal action was sent from the president of Black Rapid to the manufactures of sliding sling straps and to camera dealers who sold competitive product.  One manufacturer immediately stopped production of their strap; others modified their design to avoid an expensive patent infringement law suit.A relative newcomer, BosStrap, dropped the original design and took a different approach and completely different strap. Introduced in June 2012, the BosStrap Generation 3 Sliding Sling Strap is truly “unlike anything else” as BosStrap claims.  I recently had an opportunity to try them and used two of them on my two 7D and 5D MkIII bodies while doing my workshops in Iceland.This product really is different from others.  Careful engineering resulted in an elegant, functional design.  To begin with, BosStrap uses a unique, double lock, patent pending attachment to the camera.  This USA made product is different from other sling straps in that it attaches to the left strap lug on the camera, not to the tripod socket as virtually all other sling straps do.  When hanging from the left strap lug, the camera rests in a much more natural way with the lens directed downward and backward allowing your camera nestle against you with your hip between the front of the pentaprism and the top of the lens.  Hanging in this position tends to stabilize the camera when walking, yet keeps the camera grip at your hand for instant access.When you want to move to a tripod, you simply release the Generation 3 Tail strap from the slider.  You do not need to unscrew anything from the camera, and you can continue to wear the light-weight sling strap without the camera.BosStrap has completely freed the camera’s tripod threaded socket from a strap connector.  Your tripod mounting plate never needs to be removed from your camera.  BosStrap claims that Nikon and Canon do not recommend carrying the inverted weight of the camera and lens by the tripod socket because of the possibility of internal seals being stressed in a way they were not designed for.   There is also concern about the ability of the tripod socket to carry the inverted weight.You won’t find a shoulder pad on a BosStrap.  I was skeptical about this lack of cushioning at first, but after trying it with my Canon bodies, I was convinced that the 1-1/2” wide strap really offers the same comfort that a bulky pad would provide.  BosStrap works with an L-bracket too.I like to do street photography and have the need for a lot of flexibility and be inconspicuous.  With a BosStrap, I can conceal my camera under my open jacket and not have a large lump from a shoulder pad showing.  My camera is partially concealed under my jacket until needed - very unobtrusive and it is an excellent theft deterrent.  An added benefit is that the strap can be wrapped around the lens when putting your camera back in the bag.A BosStrap is simply an efficiently engineered product that does precisely what it is supposed to do – provide very quick accessibility and support your camera in a comfortable, safe manner.  Most important they are very reasonably priced.  You can get them directly from Boss Strap, LLC  or one of the many stores they have listed on their site.You can a;sp order them from Hunts Photo Video at http://www.huntsphotoandvideo.com

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