Entries Tagged 'camera' ↓
View original post found on Wired: Gadget Lab authored by Charlie Sorrel
May 15th, 2009 — camera
Sofortbild is the second cheap alternative to a Nikon product we have seen this week. It is a piece of software with which to tether your Nikon DSLR, and it’s free. Why shoot tethered? There are lots of reasons, including the ability to remote control the camera and to almost instantly display your pictures on the big screen as you take them.
Sofortbild (which translates roughly as Instant Picture) doesn’t offer all the features of Nikon’s Camera Control software, but it adds a few things you won’t find in Nikon’s version, such as shooting a bracketed range of pictures and generating an HDR (high dynamic range) image from them. There is also GPS support and a rather nice HUD-style panel to show the metadata. In fact, the entire application wins in terms of interface — Nikon’s software products seem to be designed with a real hatred for the user.
You don’t get to use live view, which is a shame — it’s nice to see a live, full screen feed from the camera, and you can’t control as much as you can with the Nikon software, but it’s free, and Nikon Capture Control cost $180. That alone makes it worth a download.
Product page [Sofortbild]
View original post found on Gizmodo authored by Jason Chen
March 2nd, 2009 — camera, fun
Someone sent a video camera on a seven-and-a-half minute ride on a sushi conveyer belt, capturing amused and surprised eaters as they discover that they’re the subject of someone’s weird tentacle-eating video.
The fun almost stops when some lady in the kitchen gets uppity, but luckily enough the sushi chefs put it back on track and back to its owner. Is a sushi place the only place with a conveyer belt? I can’t think of any other restaurant type that does this. I would like to see more, though.
If you’re looking for a more surreal trip around a sushi belt, here you go. [Boing Boing]
View original post found on Smashing Magazine Feed authored by Vailancio Rodrigues
November 16th, 2008 — camera
Tilt-shift photography is a creative and unique type of photography in which the camera is manipulated so that a life-sized location or subject looks like a miniature-scale model. Below we present 50 beautiful examples of tilt-shift photography. All examples are linked to their sources. We strongly encourage you to explore other works of the photographers we’ve featured in this post.
To add good miniature effect to your photographs, shoot subjects from a high angle (especially from the air). It creates the illusion of looking down at a miniature model. A camera equipped with a tilt-shift lens, which simulates a shallow depth of field, is essentially all you need to start.
You may also want to take a look at the following related posts:
50 Amazing Examples of Tilt-Shift Photography
Vincent Laforet
Baldheretic
www.tiltshiftphotography.net
Christopher Chan
Sydney Apple Store Miniature; Fake tilt shift effect applied to a 3xp HDR.
Vesuviano – Nicola De Pisapia
Model of a model of reality. Vietri sul mare (SA) Italy.
Pattagon
Hanna María & Arnar
Sir Hsu
Tiltshiftphotography.net
Lachlan Sear
Automatt
B Tal
Dutchb0y
Eric Lafforgue
Tilt-Shift Photography: It’s A Small World After All
Timmy Toucan
Therealjasonruff
Hamish Grant
darktiger
roevin
Ender079
FoxyMcSlick
patrix
wumpiewoo
marin g
tHE PypEr
Andrew James
Gérard Pétremand
Wmandra
B Tal
Angusleonard
www.cityshrinker.com
Jeangenie
Tarkka
Shawn S. Ide
Kurtis Perry
Vladimir.d
Envios
MCMLXXV
oseillo
On the photo: Barcelona, Spain.
Toshio
Timothy Schenck
unknown
Tilt-Shift Videos
Beached from Keith Loutit
Time-Lapse video of Tamarama Beach, Sydney.
Bathtub III from Keith Loutit
Time-Lapse video of Sydney Harbor with tilt-Shift.
Bathtub II from Keith Loutit
Time-Lapse video at Sydney with tilt-Shift.
From Julien Vignali
Time Lapse video with Tilt-Shift.
Harrowdown Hill from Beggars
From Mrjerz
Multnomah Falls in Miniature from Andrew Curtis
Time-Lapse video at Multnomah Falls.
Monde liliputien (illusion d’optique) Uploaded by kronsilds
You can find further videos in a Metafilter round-up of tiltshift videos.
How To Make Fake Miniature Tilt-Shift Photos?
To add good miniature effect to your photographs, shoot subjects from a high angle (especially from the air). It creates the illusion of looking down at a miniature model. A camera equipped with a tilt-shift lens, which simulates a shallow depth of field, is essentially all you need to start.
Resources:
And if you don’t have specialized equipment, you can make use of Adobe Photoshop or any other image-editing software. Manipulate the focus in such a way that it gives the image the effect of having been shot with a macro lens. Secondly, increase the saturation and contrast in a way that the color looks like bright paint on a miniature model.
Resources:
Sources and Resources
Here you’ll find links to further articles and related Area for further articles and related resources:
Related posts
Please also consider our previous posts:
About the author
Vailancio Rodrigues maintains a blog of his own, Technology Tips, which provides reviews, tips and tricks for various gadgets.
(al)
View original post found on Wired: Gadget Lab authored by Jose Fermoso
November 13th, 2008 — camera
Maybe we can finally believe the hype. Jim Jannard is formally announcing his customizable digital video and still camera RED system today that aims to take on DSLRs and further push the boundaries of video quality.
But the hypemaster couldn’t help himself with only one announcement. Oh no. He had to go out and give us a prototype of a RED 3D camera (see pic below), giving the 3D movement another boost of juice (albeit a vaporware-ish one) that suggests that technology will be legitimate and mainstream within a few years.
After taking a quick look at the specs of RED’s DSMC, we can say that the system is, above all, ridiculously ambitious. You have to build up the camera from the ‘brain’ of the system (named ‘Scarlet’ and the super high-end ‘EPIC’), built with camera sensors that range from 2/3 of an inch to a huge 6×17-cm. That sensor’s bigger than my apartment.
But probably the most interesting idea about this system is its easily customizable design. If a bigger sensor is released in the future (or if the prices come down), you don’t need to trash your video camera — you just upgrade it with a new sensor. That’s not a bad way to sell a system that could set as many records for its price as for its number of pixels in a sensor.
The Scarlet will come with several lens mount options and will be able
to shoot 3K @120fps (with still pictures at 4.9 megapixels) all the way
up to 6K @30fps (at 9.4 megapixels). They’ll be priced as low as $2,500
but most likely will go over ten big ones for the better rigs.
The EPIC sensors will shoot from 5K @100fps (with still pictures at
13.8 megapixels) to 9K @50fps (at 65 megapixels), and the price range
will range from $28,000 to over $45,000 when they are released in the Spring next year.
Jannard is also promising an unfathomable 261-megapixel sensor for the rig within two years. We’ll believe that one until we see it, or until Guillermo Del Toro comes out of his cave and says he’ll use that camera to shoot The Hobbit.
RED isn’t the only company to integrate HD video and digital pictures
into one rig. One of the true innovations of the year so far came up
when the Canon 5D Mark II built-in the ability to shoot 1080p HD video. Other companies are obviously looking into integrating video into their DSLRs to not fall behind and to take advantage of the improved optics.
So far, the early word on all RED cameras has been that they are
slightly unstable and quite a bit unfinished. But the video quality is
really the key, and most early examples have been special and (almost)
worthy of that hype.
See also:
View original post found on Smashing Magazine Feed authored by Jacob Gube
October 20th, 2008 — camera
Saving repetitive tasks as Photoshop actions can save you a lot of time, allowing you to automate your work and improve workflow efficiency. A Photoshop action is a recording of a sequence of commands and operations that you can save and access later on.
We’ve searched for the best downloadable Photoshop actions that can help you improve your workflow and perform complex techniques with the push of a button. In this collection, you’ll find more than 350 free hand-picked Photoshop actions that you can use to speed up your graphics creation.
Note: It’s important to check the license of each action set you download and use.
Quick Introduction to Photoshop Actions
For those unfamiliar with Photoshop actions, they’re simply pre-recorded tasks that you can save and reuse anytime. Photoshop actions commonly have an .atn file extension. Installing a Photoshop action for more recent versions of Photoshop is easy: simply drag the .atn file onto the Actions palette or place it directly inside your Adobe Photoshop\Presets\Photoshop Actions folder. For a more comprehensive discussion of Photoshop actions, check out this complete guide to Photoshop actions.
Image Effects and Graphic Creation Actions
Cross-processing ATN
Simulate the Cross-processing (Xpro) photography technique using this Photoshop action.
1 action – Download
Lomo
Give your images a “Lomo” look and feel with this excellent Photoshop action.
1 action – Download
Lomo Cross-processing
This Photoshop action is a combination of two popular photography effects: Lomo and Cross-processing.
1 action – Download
Polaroid Generator
Automatically frame an image in a Polaroid border with this set of Photoshop actions.
5 actions - Download
Hand-Colored Vintage Photo
This is a handy Photoshop action set for giving images aged, dirty effects.
4 actions – Download
Vintage
Aly’s Vintage action set is a nice collection of six vintage image effects that you can use on modern digital photos.
6 Actions – Download
Vintage Wash
Give your images an old, vintage effect with this set of ten different actions.
10 actions – Download
Old Parchment
Easily create aged paper with this free Photoshop action.
1 action – Download
Simple Stamp Generator
Automatically create a stamp graphic with this action.
1 action – Download
Pseudo HDR
Mimic the “HDR” photo effect without having to use multiple exposures of the subject.
1 action – Download
HDR For Dummies
Here’s another easy-to-use Photoshop action set for giving photos the “HDR” effect.
3 actions – Download
IR Actions
Give your photos the popular infrared effect using Dave’s IR Photoshop action.
1 action – Download
IR Effect
Here is another method for faking the infrared photographic effect using a Photoshop action.
1 action – Download
Photo Effect Action
This Photoshop action can be used for grunge designs.
1 action - Download
Comics Photoshop Action
Give your image a comic book look and feel using this Photoshop action.
1 action - Download
Retro Love
Achieve a retro-colored image effect using the Retro Love action.
1 action – Download
Soften Skin Effect
Smoothen skin and remove blemishes with the Soften Skin Effect action.
1 action – Download
Burnt Edges Vignette
This action gives your photos burnt and high-key effects (available for low- and high-resolution images, see the “Try Me”-section).
4 actions – Download site, check the “Try Me”-section
Edge Effects
This set of actions allows you to give your images different types of edge effects.
8 actions – Download
B & Big Picture
Create a three-dimensional collage effect using one source image with the B & Big Picture action.
4 actions – Download
Photo Enhancement and Processing Actions
Black and White Photoshop Actions
This is a set of useful actions for processing black and white images.
8 actions – Download
TLR B&W Toning
TLR B&W Toning is a large action set for enhancing and processing black and white images.
30 actions – Download
Photoshop Postwork Actions
Here is a ton of excellent post-work Photoshop actions.
25 actions – Download
TLR Sharpening Toolkit
This is a useful Photoshop action pack for sharpening RGB, CMYK and monochrome photos.
33 actions – Download
TLR Tone Enhance
Enhance the tone and color of your images using this Photoshop action set.
30 actions – Download
Color Enhancing Actions
Here is a variety of actions, such as “colorboost,” “softlight,” and “contrastboost.”
10 actions – Download
Photoshop Color Actions
A nice collection of color actions to process and enhance your photographs.
10 actions – Download
Cross Coloring Tools
Here is a set of actions for dark, mid-range, and light cross-coloring of image tone.
4 actions – Download
Image Enhancing PS Actions
These are ten brilliant image-enhancing Photoshop actions.
10 actions – Download
Watermark Photoshop Action
Automate the watermarking of your images with this set of Photoshop actions.
9 actions – Download
Photographers Toolkit
A wonderful set of actions for photographers to enhance photos.
9 actions – Download
Assorted Sets of Actions
Photoshop Actions – 53
This is the 53rd set of Photoshop actions by =night-fate of deviantART.
9 actions – Download
Productions Action
This is a set of useful actions that will simplify your workflow for common Photoshop tasks.
20 actions - Download
Photoshop Automator Actions
This is one of the biggest sets of useful actions to cut down on repetitive tasks such as watermarking images, scaling images, and fitting images in the canvas. You need to register before being able to download the set.
90 actions – Download
Photography Action Set
This is an excellent collection of popular photo effects, such as HDR, Lomo, Velvia, Xpro and more.
8 actions – Download
Rather Large Set of Actions
This is a large collection of useful Photoshop actions.
40 actions – Download
Photoshop Actions – 62
Another beautiful set of assorted Photoshop actions by =night-fate.
8 actions – Download
About the Author
Jacob Gube is a Web developer/designer and author of Six Revisions, a blog on Web development and design. If you want to connect with the author, you can follow him on Twitter. (al)
View original post found on Wired: Gadget Lab authored by Charlie Sorrel
October 10th, 2008 — camera
Ron Henry is a man who has clearly spent too much time in front of the mirror, muttering to himself “You talkin’ to me?”. Check out his kick-ass, quick-draw camera technique:
What’s Ron so excited about? The R-Strap, a fast-access camera support. Instead of wearing your camera like a big nerd-necklace, the R-Strap lets you sling it across your shoulder. Because the strap hooks onto the tripod mount on the bottom, the camera is right-side-up when you get it to your eye.
There’s more. Ron’s company, Black Rapid, also sells a screw-in clip for the tripod bush on your camera or lens — if you have a quick-release mounting plate for your tripod which has a D-ring, you won’t need this. The basic models is adjustable and has the plastic stopper which ensures the camera stays on your hip when you’re done, and there are two more: The RS-2 – with extra pockets – and the RS-3 Camo, which is patterned to contrast with regular, everyday clothes.
The straps start at around $50. But we came to this post by way of Lifehacker, which points to a DIY version made from an old laptop-bag shoulder strap, a luggage tag and a screw. I liked the idea, but I already have a strap from an old camera bag, and my camera is already sporting the requisite D-ring from my tripod. Why not make my own?
The hardest part was rummaging through the junk drawer. I dug out the strap which has two plastic clips, one on each end. The real R-Strap has two, but it makes no difference other than that the R-Strap hook is on a swivel mount. As you can see below, the D-ring on the tripod mount is easily big enough to cope.
That’s it. The strap holds the camera on my hip, ready to go. I like how it seems to stick out less than slinging the camera over a shoulder with a regular two-point strap. Another advantage is that, if you get the length right, you can use the strap to steady the camera — pull the camera against the strap and it will tighten as you look at the LCD screen, stopping the wobbles. If you’re using a non live-view DSLR, hooking your right elbow into the strap will push it down and shorten it enough to tighten it as you bring the camera up to your eye.
I’ll certainly be making a v 2.0 version — my camera bag needs its strap back and I’d prefer a thinner one anyway. See how well it works in this quick video, complete with cheesy camera-shutter sound effects found as found in the original, and authentic De Niro-style gunplay.
Product page [Black Rapid via Lifehacker]
DIY R-Strap [Instructables]
View original post found on Gizmodo authored by Mark Wilson
September 30th, 2008 — camera
When you hear about a camera that’s the size of a trailer, you figure it’s a novelty used by a struggling artist looking to make a name. But watching this clip that explores the giant photography of John Chiara, you realize he’s not just a salesman exhibiting a clown camera. He’s an artist who painstakingly sets up a shot that’s balanced with car lifts, controls the exposure by placing his hand over parts of the lens and then develops the film in a sewage pipe. And the results are pretty extraordinary. This clip documents Chiara’s complete process and it runs about 7 worthwhile minutes. Load it up when you’ve got the time. [via Neatorama]
View original post found on Gizmodo authored by Mark Wilson
August 18th, 2008 — camera
Before Gizmodo, I worked in the bowels of the broadcast industry for a number of years. I was either shooting video or cutting video every day, all day. And while Final Cut Pro and Adobe After Effects were both tools I used with some proficiency on a daily basis, I’ve never seen a post production demo as incredible as this clip from the University of Washington.
Essentially, you shoot some crappy, low-rez video of a still scene. You then reshoot the same scene with a digital camera (with higher resolution). Software can automagically combine these images to upconvert the video AND fix problems in the image— all while compensating for 3D space. Make sense? The remarkable demo will clarify things a bit:
What’s especially notable is that the software can fill in the nasty bits of the scene despite the videographer/photographer rotating their view (you see this as they shoot around the tree) and despite any lens differences (the software can compensate for different lens sizes/distortions).
Also, note that many details from the source video are retained (the glass reflections in the statue shot may be the best example), which means that the photograph’s information isn’t the only information we see in the composite image.
I’m not quite convinced that the entire process is quite as automatic as the students would make it, but the technology is extremely promising all the same. And at this point, it should only be a matter of time before we see the idea work its way into our favorite post production products. [Project Page via bbGadgets]
View original post found on Wired: Gadget Lab authored by Charlie Sorrel
August 14th, 2008 — camera, iPhone
The popularity of photography has exploded because of digital cameras. It’s easier and cheaper to take and share thousands of pictures, and if you choose a known brand, it’s almost impossible to buy a bad camera. But one thing that has suffered is the actual knowledge of the amateur photographer (and from the forums I read, a lot of pros have an embarrassing lack, too).
When you bought an old time manual SLR, there were no automatic modes (those that existed were often worse than useless, easily fooled by simple lighting conditions). You had no choice but to learn about light. You needed to know that 1/500 sec at ƒ8 lets in the same amount of light as 1/250 sec at ƒ16. You had to manually focus before a shot. And if you wanted to remove red-eye, you bought a black sharpie.
Now, I’m all for auto-everything. My cameras scarcely come out of auto mode, although I tweak the recommended settings. But, fancy as they are, a camera is still a box with a hole in the front, and understanding the fundamentals will make you a better photographer. Which is where Photocalc comes in. The $3 iPhone app will help you with all the calculations that the old-hands do in their heads. What’s in there?
First, there is a tool to teach you about exposure reciprocation, the rule that if you open the aperture one stop, you need to quicken the shutter speed one stop to achieve the same exposure. This is baked into my head, but I remember it was tricky to learn.
Second, and way more useful, is the depth-of-field calculator. Depth of field is the amount of your picture that will be in acceptable focus. If you focus on a subject, the depth-of-field means that there will be a little area behind and in front of that subject that is also sharp. And the size of that zone depends on the aperture that you are using. A wide open hole in the lens means that the background will be blurred, while a small hole means almost front to back sharpness (this is why pinhole cameras work).
But how do you know how big this area is? Well, older lenses had a scale on the lens barrel to show you. Now you need a calculator, and Photocalc does that. Tell it what camera you have, how long your lens, how far away your subject is and what aperture you are using and it will tell you the depth of field limits, and will give you the hyperfocal distance. Clunkier than lens barrel markings, but still dead handy.
Next, there is a flash calculator. In the olden days, this was all done with math tables printed on the back of the strobe. Now the flash does it all for you. But if you want to kick it old-school, Photocalc will do all the heavy lifting for you. You lock any one of the five values as the one you wish to know and supply the other variables. It’s quick and simple, especially if your brain is frazzled and you just need to know the aperture now, dammit.
Next up, and an amazing resource for the n00b, is the reference section. There’s a full glossary of technical terms, a page that tells you the sunrise and sunset times today (using the iPhone’s location features), a table for using Ansel Adams’ Zone System (don’t ask), a full rundown of the properties of different films (if anyone still uses them), a list of filters and a guide to the “Sunny 16 Rule”.
In all, this little app is a great pocket guide. The interface could use some help — entering values into the calculators is a little clunky — but as a learning tool for newcomers and as a reference for old pros, it’s certainly worth the three bucks.
Product page [iTunes]
Product page [Adair]
View original post found on Boing Boing authored by Cory Doctorow
June 13th, 2008 — camera
Alexey Titarenko’s “City of Shadows” is a series of haunting, gorgeous long-exposure shots of street-scenes in St Petersburg, Russia. The long exposure-times turn the people in the shots into ghosts and suggestions of motion.
Link
(Thanks, Marilyn!)
