Interesting Forbes interview with Stephan Schulz, head of professional photo at Leica, about how the camera maker is reinventing the medium format market on its own terms. Remember Leica’s S-System, launched in December 2009, is a newcomer in this market that requires a different type of camera than photojournalists do who use the 35mm Leica […]
You think you own your own photographs? Dreaming. Think again. The U.K. government has decided that others should be able to confiscate and exploit your property without your knowledge, permission or payment to you. This despite the fact that many a professional photographer’s income comes from licensing if images. For many, it’s their livelihood. Now […]
Never rest on your laurels. Look at Apple. They kept on relying for too long on their cash cow, the iPhone. Now all indices are pointing southwards. Stock is worth nearly half of its high in 2011. Not that the share price reflects reality, but despite revolutionary innovations they failed to stay ahead of the […]
It’s all over the news, one of the terrorists’s already dead and chances are that by the time you read these lines his fugitive brother identified as 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has already met his maker as well — or is at least in custody. But there’s a part of the story that might be of […]
Too much reality: A young filmmaker is believed to have frozen to death while making a documentary about sleeping rough on the streets as he tried to impress television bosses. Young Englishman Lee Halpin planned to spend this week on the streets of Newcastle experiencing and filming what life is like for those who are […]
No doubt, this is soon gonna be one of the world’s probably most photographed panoramas again — the stunning view from the observation deck of New York’s One World Trade Center, reaching some 400 meters or 1,250 feet into the sky. Once completed, the skyscraper formerly called Freedom Tower will be the tallest structure in […]
Dream camera? Right, this sounds too good to be true. A Japanese startup company partially financed by Chinese (!) venture capital today announced a dream come true for any photographer: “Digilusion,” a newcomer still fighting for the right to the company name and Web domain, released a widely ignored statement claiming to revive the long-held […]
Ever wondered if the photos showing Hugo Chávez lying in state were real? Well for a man who fought cancer for two years he looked remarkably healthy in death. With full cheeks and no obvious loss of hair, cancer looks like a walk in the park. We all know for better that this is not […]
The photo of a naked girl fleeing from a napalm cloud is one of the classic symbols of the Vietnam War. A historian analyses the image-related connotations and criticizes the media. Should a photographer — or any journalist for that — help victims of atrocities while trying to perform his or her duty of reporting? […]
I’m getting reports from readers and trusted sources in various parts of the world that the Leica M Typ 240 arrives in stores worldwide. That’s ahead of expected schedule! Well done Leica. Looks like February 28, 2013, is the official Leica M D-Day with Leica boutiques, stores and dealers around the globe receiving first batches […]
The ultimate binary pixel sensor may be a step closer to reality. Rambus, a major intellectual property company, announced what may eventually be licensed to sensor and/or camera makers: binary pixels. Binary pixel technology produces professional quality images by capturing details in the full spectrum of a scene — from brightest highlights to the darkest […]
Oh precious good old innocent times when one still could speak one’s mind without filters. Political correctness goes overboard these days — even in photography matters. Everything seems to be politically incorrect — or racist. Even the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2013 issue. That’s “sex and stereotypes,” slanders Jezebel. Really? Prude Sports Illustrated is accused of […]
You might have heard: shares of Nikon, Japan’s third-biggest camera-maker, plunged the most since 1985 in Tokyo trading after the company cut its profit forecast because of slowing demand in Europe and falling prices. Numbers reported by Bloomberg don’t lie. They give a strong message: get with the program or get left in the dust. […]
42 years ago today, two of our generation’s greatest photojournalists died in Laos. AP photojournalist Henri Huet and LIFE magazine’s Larry Burrows were killed at the Vietnam-Laos border near Ben Het, where they were waiting for a chance to cover South Vietnamese forces attacking the Ho Chi Minh Trail inside Laos. They were killed along […]
Good things take time! Further and higher quality Leica M Typ 240 full resolution DNG and JPEG sample images are safely stored on a hard drive, but I’m not yet able to publish them. Appreciate your understanding. Rest assured, things are looking good — and meanwhile Jono Slack publishes the first official sample gallery! Enjoy. […]
All entries for the Leica Oskar Barnack Award 2013 must be made via the online Application Form between January 15th and March 1st, 2013. The Leica Oskar Barnack Award competition is open to professional photographers only. To take part, participants must send in a series of photographs taken in 2012 or 2013 or long-term projects […]
This is the shortest post ever on THEME, but a great many of you are eagerly awaiting the first true real official Leica M (M240) JPEG and DNG sample images. Still too early and the few maverick samples available on the Net are of rather poor quality — which probably has more to do with […]
Photography is, in many ways, like a sport. Many photographers feel themselves judged by their gear. Photographers are not generally known as the most socially engaged people who are also concerned about environmental issues. They’re rather busy with themselves, and if one witnesses an accident or crisis, one is rather not there to help, but […]
Photography has seen many focusing methods. Now guess what, we’re heading back to the basics! First there were fixed lenses with fixed focus, soon the rangefinder-type of focusing where you’re basically given a second (smaller) image of the scene, and your goal is turn the focus ring until the two images match up for the […]
Cameras and lenses individually assembled and tested by hand in a clean room. Hand-made cameras so to say. That’s what sets Leica apart from the rest. At a price, as we all know, but here’s an interesting video report by Bloomberg’s Nejra Cehic on a visit to Leica headquarters in Solms, Germany, giving some interesting […]
Good things are on the way. In the first part of this short video you’ll see a short hands-on introduction of the Samsung Galaxy Camera running on the latest OS Android Jelly Bean. Second part brings an intro of Sony’s first compact zoom for NEX cameras. Sony is obviously listening to criticism on the size […]
Crucifix, your brand new CMOS camera looks already old again. German Fraunhofer Institute just announced an ultra-sensitive CMOS sensor that can read individual photos within a few picoseconds, yielding high quality images even in extremely low light situations — because each and every single photon counts. As we all know, in imaging every single photon […]
You might want to check out this new and quite unique camera comparison site: Digital Camera Database. It allows you to visually compare detailed sensor info (sensor surface area, pixel pitch, pixel density, etc.) for more than 3,200 digital cameras. Probably something that’s quite handy for not only pixel peepers and might even tip the […]
If you’re into different cultures and continents, this is a great visual journey back in time: Visualizing China, a British-funded project to allow users to explore and enhance more than 8,000 digitized images of photographs of China taken between 1850 and 1950. It’s a tool for researchers, students and photographers alike who are not only […]
By BENGT NYMAN Hasselblad becomes a fashion accessory. Is this a sign of all out madness or a strike of genius? I learned as a young, aspiring entrepreneur that if you have an idea or a new product, think not that you can make a company out of ONE product, but rather be prepared to […]
Today, probably more more photos are taken each day with a mobile phone than a camera. Some of the establishment’s snobbish disdainfulness for these casual snapshooters, however, can be like spitting in one’s own face. Let’s be honest, those mobile imaging warriors who upload and share their images instantly produce some superb quality. So this […]
So Olympus and Sony tie up and work together: After months of speculation the papers are signed. Sony buys a substantial 50 billion yen ($644 million) stake in Olympus, the rival digital camera maker disgraced by an accounting scandal last year. With the capital tie-up, Sony will effectively become Olympus’s biggest shareholder. The two companies […]
Should have entered the CCTV business years ago. Those cameras sell! Now cops even set up cameras that watch the cameras that watch you. London, with more video cameras than any other urban area in the world, has more than 400,000 CCTV cameras installed, that’s about one camera for every 14 people. Crime-happy Bangkok will […]
Right down my alley – well I’m not talking price, but Leica and Fujifilm better listen up (forget sleeping CaNikon): Photoprice.ca leaks a head-on Leica competitor, a compact Sony mirrorless full-frame, the RX1, to be announced shortly. Beautified by a Zeiss Sonnar 35mm F2 with a copper-colored lens ring (see image further below), this camera […]
Biennial Photokina 2012’s around the corner. From September 18 to 23 photography world’s latest and greatest gear and trends will be on display in Cologne. What to expect? Canon The 46MP mega megapixel 3D X? A slightly safer bet: 7D Mark II. But wouldn’t the astonishing, just released 7D firmware update undermine 7D2 sales? Additionally, […]
