Interesting finds on eBay; Nikon 2000mm f/11 Reflex Nikkor

Further to our NASA specced 'blad story for sale by exotic camera specialist and retailer Photo-Arsenal, I happened on this rarity while perusing their site on eBay. I've never seen one for sale before (it's on for a reasonable $20K), but I did get a chance to play with one once, courtesy of Nikon back in '79 or '80. As a visitor to the annual Olympia (or was it the Islington Design Centre?) photo event in London*, I wasn't the only one able to peer through the Nikon EM they had attached to it.

Parellels Comes To The iPhone and iPad

Parallels Mobile is an application that allows to control Parallels Desktop for Mac with an Apple mobile device, including iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Parallels Mobile allows you to connect to Parallels Desktop running on a remote Mac via the Internet or local network and work with the virtual machines installed on it. With Parallels Mobile, you have full control over your virtual machines. You can remotely start, stop, suspend, and pause a virtual machine. When a virtual machine is running, Parallels Mobile gives you mouse and keyboard control over it and shows in real time everything that happens on your virtual machine desktop. In other words, you can work with a virtual machine running on a remote Mac the same way as if you were sitting at your desk at home or in the office. Parallels Mobile is free and it can be downloaded from the App Store, right here.

If you're a Mac user and running the newly released Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac, now you have a great system with this Mobile version that will allow you to access any vitrual Windows computer running on a Mac that's using Parallels Desktop 6. The Desktop version of this application will cost you a hefty $80 but the mobile version is free.

To read the complete pdf set up gide for Parallels Mobile, click here to download it.

NASA Hassleblad For Sale - Same Color As A Tonka Truck

EBay seller Photo-arsenal-worldwide is flogging this mint-in-package NASA Hasselblad camera; bidding now stands at nearly $34,000 but is accepting offers......

Click here to place your bid!

Black Magic by Pogus Caesar - A Book of Photographs

A book of photographs by Pogus Caesar celebrating Britain's iconic black musicians is to be published next month. The book features evocative, nostalgic and largely unpublished images of musical legends like Stevie Wonder, Grace Jones and Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry.

Most of Caesar’s photography is based around his home city of Birmingham, documenting a spectrum of well-known personalities and recording significant events including the Handsworth riots, Birmingham tornado and the regeneration of the Bullring.

Cameo

Photographic Portrait Prize 2010 Shortlist

Four photographers have been shortlisted for the £12,000 Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize, the major international photography award. Firmly established as the leading showcase for new talent in portrait photography, the prize is sponsored by international law firm Taylor Wessing.
The Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2010 will showcase the work of some of the most talented emerging young photographers, alongside that of established professionals, photography students and gifted amateurs. Selected anonymously from an open competition, the diversity of styles reflects the international mix of entrants as well as the range of approaches to the portrait genre, encompassing editorial, advertising and fine art images. The judges have selected 60 portraits for the exhibition from nearly 6,000 submissions entered by 2,401 photographers. The exhibition will run from 11 November 2010 through to 20 February 2011 at the National Portrait Gallery, London.
As well as the first-prize winner and three runners-up, the exhibition will feature the ELLE Commission. For the second year running, ELLE magazine will commission a photographer selected for the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize exhibition to shoot a feature story. The ELLE Commission was judged by the fashion magazine's editor-in-chief, Lorraine Candy, together with the art director, Tom Meredith, and picture editor, Hannah Ridley.
With its substantial prize fund and high-profile exhibition and tour, the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize continues the Gallery's long tradition of championing the very best contemporary portrait photography. The following four photographers have been shortlisted for the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2010:

Jeffrey Stockbridge for Tic Tac and Tootsie (twin sisters Carroll and Shelly McKean) from the series Nowhere but Here

Jeffrey Stockbridge, born 1982 in Woodbine, Maryland, moved to Philadelphia to study photography at Drexel University in 2002. Stockbridge's shortlisted photograph is of Tic Tac and Tootsie, 20-year-old twin sisters Carroll and Shelly McKean taken in Kensington, North Philadelphia. The twin sisters, who live on the street and suffer from insomnia, are both addicted to Xanex and have resorted to prostitution to supply their habit. Stockbridge says: ‘Enduring unthinkable pain on a daily basis, the sisters are both incredibly strong and weak at the same time. Caught in the grip of their addiction, they do whatever it takes to survive, except for getting clean.' Upon graduating in 2005, Stockbridge was placed as runner-up in the New York Times Magazine's ‘Capture the Times' photography competition for his series on abandoned houses in Philadelphia, titled Occupied. He has exhibited widely in the US since graduation and received many grants and awards for his projects documenting urban blight in Philadelphia.

Nikon mark production of 55 millionth Nikkor lens

Nikon D3x with 5cm f/2 second version & 'tick-marked' first version (right) from 1959

Nikon announced today that production of Nikkor lenses has exceeded 55 million units since the company started making lenses for the Nikon F SLR back in 1959. The milestone was achieved in August 2010. Nikon's first SLR lens delivered with the eye-level model F was the so-called "tick-marked" Nikkor-S 5cm f2 (pictured above right).
Before that, Nikkor was a trade-name to be found on the lenses of their own rangefinder cameras, but also that of rivals such as Canon and Leica. Indeed, the first Canon camera was largely made by Nikon, certainly all of the optical components, including the rangefinder and the lenses, as that's what Nikon specialised in.
As a subsidiary of Mitsubishi, one of the largest shipbuilders in Japan, Nippon Kogaku KK (Japan Optical Co, Ltd), as Nikon was then known as, was the main supplier of optical ordinance to the Imperial Japanese Navy).
According to a translator friend of mine living in Japan, the approximate English translation of "Nikkor" is sunlight, there's no exact translation.

For more information see the translated press release here.

Just in case you're wondering why the 'tick-marked' lens (notice the short lines or 'ticks', by the aperture and distance scales) isn't attached to the D3x in the above, it's because it doesn't fit! The Nikon F mount used to sit proud of the body, it doesn't now, so the first 'tick-marked" versions (2.8, 3.5, 5, 10.5 and 13.5cm) with their wide aperture ring and thus deeply recessed claw mount prevent the lens from attaching. You can see just how recessed it is in the above picture. The still very early second (and onwards) versions do fit, thanks to their modified aperture ring.

Nikon make leaked D7000, lenses and SB700 official

After a number of recent leaks on the inter-web, Nikon has today officially announced the D7000, new AF-S 35mm f/1.4G, refreshed the AF-S 200mm f/2G VR (with VR II and Nano Crystal coat) and rolled out a new SB-700 flash. Introduced initially as a replacement to the D90, my own opinion is that the D7000 will eventually replace the D300s as the semi-pro APS-C format DSLR (the D7000 has a particularly advanced spec), leaving way for new pro-level FX (full-frame) cameras. Few pros use APS-C crop DSLRs these days, as evidenced by Nikon's rush to add FX lenses.

Detailed information on the new camera and lenses can be found here.

The big news apart from the metal body, 100 percent viewfinder coverage and 16.2MP CMOS sensor is the HD movie mode. Besides now recording up to 20 mins using H.264 AVC it boasts 1080(24p), which should be attractive to pro film-makers, though at the optional 25fps / 30fps settings resolution drops to 720p. The price is attractive too at £1100 / 1303 Euros, including tax, body only. The lens to get is not the 18-105mm VR, which is available in the kit option, but the recently updated 18-200mm VR II.

Kodak rolls out Professional Portra 400 colour neg

Remember film? No, well maybe not. Kodak hasn't quite let go though, if this press release is anything to go by. They're claiming their new Professional Portra 400 is the world's finest grain 400 speed colour negative film out there. Available from November in 35 mm, 120/220, and 4x5 sheet format, Portra 400 is intended for wedding, portrait and fashion photographers, in case you couldn't guess from the name. There's no word on pricing, but it makes feel like dusting off my quaint F5 and maybe trying out that new AF-S 85mm f/1.4G. I'll have to see if Nikon (and Kodak) are feeling generous.

Olympus Statement 'All Cameras Will Be Mirrorless in the future'

News just in via 43Rumors, confirms what we have been thinking for some time, apparently, Mark Thackara, UK Product Manager for Olympus, spoke with Amateur Photographer magazine and said this “We will continue to do these [Four Thirds cameras] until micro cameras can do what other products can,” and “All cameras will be mirrorless in the future.”

A spokesperson from Olympus Europe, Franziska Jorke, went on to say, the autofocus and burst rate of DSLRs as still being superior to Micro Four Thirds models, along with the optical viewfinders. Jorke predicted that the concept of a camera ‘will change in 5-10 years’. However, in a bid to reassure photo enthusiasts, she said there will always be an Olympus camera body available – whether a DSLR or another type of camera altogether – to allow users to benefit from current Four Thirds lenses.

Written by: Joanne Carter

RED One Mysterium X cameras now widely available

Today is a good day, if you've been waiting to get your hands on RED's next generation Mysterium X camera. It is now widely available for purchase after originally being released only to exisiting RED One owners seven months ago, as an upgrade.

The camera uses a typical P/L mount for lenses and has full pro connections through mini XLR, HD-SDI, Genlock and timecode ports. It revolves around a modular system that can add a CompactFlash card module, specialized viewfinders and stands, and other extras to customize it to a particular form of moviemaking. Videos are still produced in the native Redcode format used in Apple's Final Cut Studio and other pro editing apps.

 

 

The RED One MX costs $25,000 for the body so you need to be serious about this bad boy. Payment needs a 10 percent deposit and is backlogged by seven to 10 days due to demand. Old models using the original Mysterium sensor aren't available except for those who already have a deposit down and intend to continue through the process.

This is what you get when you place your deposit:

Camera body
P/L Mount including BODY CAP
Accessories: (1) SD CARD, (1) mini-BNC to DIN 1.0/2.3 cable, (1) mini-XLR to mini-XLR cable, (1) mini-XLR to XLR adaptor, and BOLT SET
Highly recommend that a CF MODULE is purchased along with each RED ONE

To place your deposit - click here

Lenses

RED PRO T1.8 PRIME SET (I):

Includes: 25mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, 100mm
Uses standard PL mount included with RED ONE
Imperial lens measurement version
RED PRO 300mm can be purchased for $4000 (normally $5950) if purchased and delivered on the same order as a RED PRO PRIME SET. The $1950 credit will be calculated at time of order invoicing for RED PRO PRIME SET and RED PRO 300mm
Existing owners of the RED PRO 300mm or original RED 300mm will receive a $1000 credit at time of order invoicing for RED PRO PRIME SET

To order this fine set of lenses for $19,000 - click here

Written by: Joanne Carter

At Last, New Canon G12 Brings HD Video Option

We've been waiting for this feature for a long time, and at last Canon have done it, albeit with 720p/24 HD video (the same as the Nikon  P7000). Other than that, things are pretty rudimentary, such a 10 megapixel CCD sensor, 5x lens with teleconverter, DIGIC 4 processor, and 2.8-inch 461k-dot articulated LCD (remaining the same as the now defunct G11). The difference though is that you now get new Canon's Hybrid IS system from the S95 for better macro performance, along with a new HDR mode and front command-dial. It'll be $499 when it hits in early October.

Check the price of the Canon PowerShot G12 (Amazon US).

Mirror, Mirror, Where Are You? Samsung NX100 Mirrorless Camera

The successor to last year's NX10, now offering a sleeker body, 14.6 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, a 3-inch VGA AMOLED display, an ISO range of 100 to 3200 (with a boost mode hitting 6400), 720p movie recording (H.264), SD / SDHC card slot, optional geo-tagging with GPS10 module and 'Sound Picture' mode that allows users to record audio when a photo is taken.
The new i-Function lens system really interesting though, it features a dedicated 'i-Function' button that allows users to scroll through manual settings, and a focus ring which is used to change parameters for each setting. Users can toggle between shutter speed, aperture, EV, WB, and ISO by simply using the i-Function button and ring on the lens.
With a variety of lenses for the NX100 planned, including a 60mm macro, 18-200mm telephoto, 20mm wide-angle pancake and a 20-50mm compact zoom, we can't wait to give it a try out.

Olympus make E-5 official

Not much has changed over the original (three-year old) E-3 but there's a slight increase in pixel count to 12MP, a less aggressive AA filter, which should mean better micro-contrast (and according to Olympus is superior to both the EOS 7D and D300), a new image processor, and mono 720p 30fps HD movie clips. Fortunately, it has a stereo mic socket, and the 3-inch LCD is a big improvement too, with 921k dot resolution. For more information, please see the press release below.

Tarnished Earth - Powerful Street Gallery of Photographs - Opens Tomorrow - 09/14/10

The stark images tell the story of how Canada’s Boreal Forest is being destroyed by a rush to extract oil from the tar sands which lie just below its surface. ‘Tarnished Earth’ is being staged by The Co-operative, in conjunction with WWF-UK and Greenpeace, as part of its Toxic Fuels campaign. The images contrast the destruction caused by the oil extraction with the Boreal’s pristine wilderness and the traditional way of life of the indigenous First Nation Cree.

Survival expert Ray Mears is due to attend the exhibition to show his support for the Toxic Fuels. Also attending will be Chief Al Lameman who is leader of the Beaver Lake Cree First Nation, a campaigner for improved living conditions on the reserve.

The exhibition is Free to view and is planning to run for four weeks.

To see more images from the exhibition - click here

Aerial view of the oily surface of the Mildred Lake tailings pond adjacent to the Syncrude upgrader north of Fort McMurray. The striking images will show how Canada’s magnificent boreal forest is being destroyed by the rush to extract oil from the tar sands just below the surface.

All Photographs: Jiri Rezac/Greenpeace

Cut in Half

Vast areas of forest are cleared. Paul Monaghan, head of sustainability at the Co-operative, said: 'We recognise the power of art to motivate people to take action and drive change, and we are confident that Tarnished Earth will help raise awareness of the massive environmental damage being caused by the exploitation of Canadian tar sands.' The Co-operative is staging the exhibition in conjunction with WWF-UK and Greenpeace.

Aerial view of the Syncrude Aurora tar sands mine in the boreal forest north of Fort McMurray

Drawing The Line

Drawing the line: activists call the destruction of the boreal forest one of the world's worst ecological disasters.

First Full Image Of Olympus E-5

43rumors.com wasted no time in getting this image out. The E-5 will be released tomorrow but for now we will all have to contend with this image, the first one of the complete camera, to date. Looking very similar to the Olympus E-3, so no great surprises there.

Spec

- Weather-proof (Magnesium) body
- 12.1Megapixel sensor (The same Olympus PEN sensor)
- ISO 100 – 6400 in 1/3 or 1 EV steps
- AVI Motion JPEG(30fps) HD (720)
- 6fps
- it can take a picture with sound.
- mono mic with stereo external microphone input
- 3 inch LCD with 920.000 dots resolution
- 11 points full-twin cross AF sensor (phase-difference detection system)
- 11 area multiple AF (contrast detection system)
- CF and SD dual slot
- Built-in wireless flash

Written by Joanne Carter

Olympus E-5 Uses Same Panasonic 12 MP Sensor, as used in the PEN

Latest update regarding the Olympus E-5, according to 43Rumors, is that the E-5 will not use the 12MPX sensor as previously rumored but the same 12 MP sensor as used for the PEN. 43Rumors go on to say that 'Olympus prefer that sensor to the new Panasonic 16 MP - presumably the GH2'

The E-5 is also expected to be slightly cheaper than the $1699 of the E-3 when that was launched in October 2007. At least we will know fro sure very soon as the E-5 should be unveiled tomorrow, September 14.

NASA Commons - 50 Years of Photographs - A New Archive

An incredible archive of images from NASA, known as NASA Commons pertains to demonstrate just how far space exploration has come. The images are brilliant, historically speaking as well as photographically. NASA describe the archive as "an opportunity for the public to participate in the process of discovery." It focuses on key figures in the agency's development, such as astronaut John Glenn, photographed below entering Friendship 7 to begin his historic flight as well as a briefing given by Major Rocco Petrone to President John F. Kennedy during a tour of Blockhouse 34 at the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex.

To see the full NASA Commons archive - click here

Friendship 7

Collection: NASA Image of the Day Gallery
Title: Friendship 7

Description: On Feb. 20, 1962 at 9:47 am EST, John Glenn launched from Cape Canaveral's Launch Complex 14 to become the first American to orbit the Earth. In this image, Glenn enters his Friendship 7 capsule with assistance from technicians to begin his historic flight. Glenn rejoined NASA in 1998 as a member of the STS-95 Discovery crew. This 9-day mission, from Oct. 29-Nov. 7, supported a variety of research payloads including deployment of the Hubble Space Telescope Orbital Systems Test Platform and investigations on space flight and the aging process. Image Credit: NASA

JFK Tour of KSC

Collection: NASA Great Images in Nasa Collection
Title: JFK Tour of KSC

Full Description: A briefing is given by Major Rocco Petrone to President John F. Kennedy during a tour of Blockhouse 34 at the Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex.

Date: 9/11/1962

Spiro Agnew and Lyndon Johnson Watch the Apollo 11 Liftoff

Collection: NASA Great Images in Nasa Collection
Title: Spiro Agnew and Lyndon Johnson Watch the Apollo 11 Liftoff

Full Description: Vice President Spiro Agnew and former President Lyndon B. Johnson view the liftoff of Apollo 11 from pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center at 9:32 am EDT on July 16, 1969.

Date: 07/16/1969
NASA Center: Kennedy Space Center

Mercury -- February 1962

Collection: Spacesuit and Spacewalk History Image Gallery
Title: Mercury -- February 1962

Description: Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr., NASA flight surgeon William Douglas and equipment specialist Joseph W. Schmidt leave crew quarters prior to the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission. Glenn is in his pressure suit and is carrying the portable ventilation unit.

Viking 1 Launch

Collection: NASA Great Images in Nasa Collection
Title: Viking 1 Launch

Full Description: Viking 1 was launched by a Titan/Centaur rocket from Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 5:22 p.m. EDT to begin a half-billion mile, 11-month journey through space to explore Mars. The 4-ton spacecraft went into orbit around the red planet in mid-1976.

Date: 8/20/1975

Written by: Joanne Carter

Mirrorless 22MP Canon EIS Camera Rumored

Chinese whispers have been busy this weekend, apparently reporting on a new high-end Canon range, EIS. Apparently using an Electro Image System. With HD video recording at 1080p at 30/24/25 fps. ISO from 100-6400 that can be increased to 25-25600.

With two lens kits available, a 12-75 f2.8-4.0 IS Macro and 75-300 f3.5-5.6 IS, in addition with the full lens choices including a 5mm F4 fisheye, 8-25mm F4 wide-angle zoom, 14mm F2 pancake, 25mm F1.2 pancake, 45mm F1.5 pancake, and 65mm F2.0 Macro.
It's also been said it will have an LCD touchscreen, dual SD memory card slot, and work with EF lenses via an EF - EIS adapter. Wow, this would be fantastic if brought to fruitution.
Written by: Joanne Carter
Chinese Source

UPDATE: According to the Google translation, the back-illuminated CMOS sensor is 18x12mm, exactly a quarter (1/4) the area of a full-frame 35mm sensor, and close to the micro Four Thirds format of 17.3x13mm. But, I reckon this is a hoax. Why is there a pentaprism, if it's supposed to be a "mirrorless" camera?

Panasonic's Ideas For Life - Announce AF105 Micro Four Thirds Camcorder - Interchangeable Lense Not Included

The AF105 otherwise known as AF100 in Europe is the first camcorder in the world to offer a Four-Thirds sized sensor, and in addition provides 1080/60i or 1080/30p AVCHD video recording skills. "Cinema" lenses can also be fitted on via an extra adapter. Video is recorded in AVCHD format. The PH mode for professional high quality video with a bit rate of 24Mbps 1 is also supported. Two SD card slots allow relay recording from one SD (SD / SDHC / SDXC) card to another to give large recording capacity of up to 12 hours 2 in PH mode or 48 hours 2 in HE mode.

The price is set at ¥837,900 (about $9,960) and launch is expected this December 2010.

Micro Four Thirds lens mount

Diversified Micro Four Thirds single-lens still camera lenses can be used for shooting video. The adapter mount allows 35mm film camera lenses or prime lenses to be attached to make possible a wide variety of visual expressiveness from each lens particular tone.

Four Thirds type MOS sensor

Equipped with a Four Thirds type MOS sensor for an imaging area* almost the same as that of 35mm film. Use of film lenses allows easy recording of filmic tone video with a shallow depth of field.

Detachable Handle And Grip

The professional camera recorder design with grip, handle, large-sized high quality view finder (1.14cm (0.45 inches) / 1.226 million dot equivalent [852 x 480 x 3 (RGB)]) on a lightweight / compact body, along with a 16:9 color LCD panel (8.76cm (3.45 inches) / 921,000 dot (1920 x 480)), supports smooth camera operation. The handle and grip are detachable for diverse peripherals and applications.

Additional Features

Internal ND filter: 1/4, 1/16, 1/64 or Off (rotary switch).
Focus-assist function: edge coloration, focus bar display.
DRS (Dynamic Range Stretch): automatically reduces compression of black or blown highlights in high contrast scenes.
Thumbnail viewing, clip deletion and SD card to SD card copying and meta-data recording functions.
Pre-rec and Interval rec functions.
Relay recording: Relay recording from one SD card to another without interrupt.
WFM display function: the wave form of the video being recorded is easily displayed on an LCD monitor.
Shot mark function: the useful shot mark function allows marking of clips as good, bad or others.
User buttons: three user buttons allow high-frequency functions to be performed with a single push.
Audio volumes: allows manual adjustment of audio inputs (2 ch).
Video output (pin jack x 1), HD/SD SDI output (BNC x 1), HDMI output (HDMI Type A x 1).
USB 2.0 (Type B) allows connection to PC/Mac.
XLR audio inputs (XLR x 2, Line/Mike selectable, +48V compatible), Internal microphone (stereo).
Audio outputs (RCA x 2), Headphone (stereo mini jack x 1 (3.5mm diameter)).
Camera Remote (super mini jack x 1; zoom, S/S, mini jack x 1; focus, iris).1; focus, iris).

More Information, click here

Written by Joanne Carter

Sleeping Beauties - War Torn US Paratroopers Asleep - A 9/11 Fitting Tribute?

On this day nine years ago the world was shocked to the very core with the 9/11 atrocities and yet still the soldiers continue 'our' war on terror.

In a somewhat reality check of the continuing madness of the world, Tim Hetherington, born in Liverpool, UK, who studied literature at Oxford University and later returned to college to study photojournalism and is now based in New York and is a contributing photographer for Vanity Fair magazine; spent 15 months between 2007 and 2008 along with reporter Sebastian Junger, shadowing Battle Company's Second Platoon, part of the Second Battalion of the US army's 503rd Infantry Regiment.

The journalists compiled their work into a documentary, Restrepo, and a book of photography, Infidel, both released next month, illustrating how they shared food, patrols and sleeping quarters with the soldiers. The longer the reporters stayed, the deeper their vista became. They discovered that these child-like dreamers could also weep over lost colleagues or explain to local villagers why they had wounded their children in a way that demonstrates more than the stereotypical muscle bound killing machines.

'Infidel' will be on show at Host Gallery, London EC1 from 20 September to 15 October, hostgallery.co.uk; the book will be published by Chris Boot on 7 October, priced £25. The documentary, 'Restrepo', goes on general release in the UK on 8 October 2010.

For More Images Click Here

Kelso, from Battle Company's 2nd Platoon, in the Korengal Valley

Specialist Luke Nevala

Mace