Megapixeltag:blog.megapixel.net,2007-12-11:/blog//82008-07-03T21:36:14ZA digital camera junkie's look at photography and related technologies.Movable Type Publishing Platform 4.01Nikon muscle compact in wings?tag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.81742008-07-03T21:19:25Z2008-07-03T21:36:14Z Buzz mongers can be a fickle lot. Leading up to the release this week of Nikon's new full-frame D700 DSLR, they couldn't speculate enough about that camera. But as soon as it became a reality, they dashed elsewhere. That...John Mello
Buzz mongers can be a fickle lot. Leading up to the release this week of Nikon's new full-frame D700 DSLR, they couldn't speculate enough about that camera. But as soon as it became a reality, they dashed elsewhere. That...
Serif expands American beachheadtag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.81612008-07-02T21:20:39Z2008-07-02T21:40:37Z If you've ever searched for economically-priced software that does more just get the job done, then chances are you've run into Serif. The UK-based applications shop has been selling its wares in Europe for years and although its products...John Mello
If you've ever searched for economically-priced software that does more just get the job done, then chances are you've run into Serif. The UK-based applications shop has been selling its wares in Europe for years and although its products...
Nikon launches 12MP $3K full-frame DSLRtag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.81472008-07-01T21:19:31Z2008-07-01T21:25:46Z What's been buzz fodder for weeks finally became an entrée today when Nikon announced its new D700 digital SLR. The new 12.1 megapixel model has an FX-format sensor measuring 23.9 x 36 millimeters. By comparison, a 35mm film camera...John Mello
What's been buzz fodder for weeks finally became an entrée today when Nikon announced its new D700 digital SLR. The new 12.1 megapixel model has an FX-format sensor measuring 23.9 x 36 millimeters. By comparison, a 35mm film camera...
Quasi loupe for DSC displaystag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.81372008-06-30T21:49:20Z2008-07-01T20:24:40Z If you find yourself squinting at even a three-inch display on your digital camera, you may want to consider a new product announced today by Uniden. It's a 3x magnifier for DSC LCDs. The UNX-8507 slips over a three-inch...John Mello
If you find yourself squinting at even a three-inch display on your digital camera, you may want to consider a new product announced today by Uniden. It's a 3x magnifier for DSC LCDs. The UNX-8507 slips over a three-inch...
Turkish photogs face 20-percent camera price hiketag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.81062008-06-26T15:55:53Z2008-06-26T16:44:55ZTurkey's English-language daily Today's Zaman reports that digital cameras and camcorders in that country will cost 20 percent more as of July 1, thanks to the addition of image-recording devices to the Private Consumption Tax roll--more specifically, the list of...Eric Grevstad
Turkey's English-language daily Today's Zaman reports that digital cameras and camcorders in that country will cost 20 percent more as of July 1, thanks to the addition of image-recording devices to the Private Consumption Tax roll--more specifically, the list of...
Ricoh upgrades wide-angle compacttag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80932008-06-25T15:54:16Z2008-06-26T14:33:52ZLast year's model was called the Caplio GX100, but Ricoh has shortened its successor's name to just GX200. While it climbs from 10 to 12 megapixels, the new compact keeps the Caplio's wide-angle (35mm film equivalent of 24mm to 72mm),...Eric Grevstad
Last year's model was called the Caplio GX100, but Ricoh has shortened its successor's name to just GX200. While it climbs from 10 to 12 megapixels, the new compact keeps the Caplio's wide-angle (35mm film equivalent of 24mm to 72mm),...
Canon offers Aussies new entry-level DSLRtag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80922008-06-25T14:19:57Z2008-06-25T15:28:25ZAccording to Canon Australia, 43 percent of people intending to buy a digital camera are considering a digital SLR instead of a compact model. The new Canon EOS 1000D--successor to the EOS 400D, which the company brags "set the benchmark...Eric Grevstad
According to Canon Australia, 43 percent of people intending to buy a digital camera are considering a digital SLR instead of a compact model. The new Canon EOS 1000D--successor to the EOS 400D, which the company brags "set the benchmark...
Kodak, Motorola team up on 5-megapixel multimedia phonetag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80792008-06-23T20:14:17Z2008-06-25T15:27:05ZAt a press event in Beijing today, Motorola unveiled the Motozine ZN5, the company's first in a series of multimedia-optimized devices for content consumption and creation buffs. A joint effort of Motorola and Eastman Kodak, the 4-ounce smartphone features a...Eric Grevstad
At a press event in Beijing today, Motorola unveiled the Motozine ZN5, the company's first in a series of multimedia-optimized devices for content consumption and creation buffs. A joint effort of Motorola and Eastman Kodak, the 4-ounce smartphone features a...
DSLR prices slipping in Europetag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80702008-06-20T22:14:22Z2008-06-20T22:20:49Z The average selling price for digital SLR cameras across Europe, the Middle East and Asia has dropped 1.6% in the past 10 weeks, according to UK-based market research firm Futuresource. "Our price tracking system shows that some of the...John Mello
The average selling price for digital SLR cameras across Europe, the Middle East and Asia has dropped 1.6% in the past 10 weeks, according to UK-based market research firm Futuresource. "Our price tracking system shows that some of the...
Consumers want more than printing from printerstag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80612008-06-19T21:49:02Z2008-06-19T21:56:02Z Multifunctional photo-centric devices represent the highest growth area in the US photo printer market, according to a study released this week by InfoTrends, a marketing research firm located in Weymouth, Mass. For the vast majority of consumers, the study...John Mello
Multifunctional photo-centric devices represent the highest growth area in the US photo printer market, according to a study released this week by InfoTrends, a marketing research firm located in Weymouth, Mass. For the vast majority of consumers, the study...
Best everywhere cameratag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80562008-06-19T15:55:30Z2008-06-19T16:00:19Z As much as I love my DSLR, I don't take it with me every time I leave my home because of its size. Judging from conversations that I've had with many folks, that seems to be a common conundrum....John Mello
As much as I love my DSLR, I don't take it with me every time I leave my home because of its size. Judging from conversations that I've had with many folks, that seems to be a common conundrum....
Sony Ericsson rolls out 8MP camera phonetag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80332008-06-17T22:16:38Z2008-06-17T22:22:41ZSony Ericsson tightened the screws today on makers of low-end digital cameras with a new mobile phone that boasts an 8.1 megapixel digital camera and a Xenon flash that doubles as a video light. The C905, which was announced in...John Mello
Sony Ericsson tightened the screws today on makers of low-end digital cameras with a new mobile phone that boasts an 8.1 megapixel digital camera and a Xenon flash that doubles as a video light. The C905, which was announced in...
Leopard editor shuns palettestag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80172008-06-16T22:14:51Z2008-06-16T22:21:45Z Despite its many foibles, the Windows World has one indisputable advantage over denizens of the Apple Sphere: greater software variety. That's not to say that the software available to Macintosh users isn't great, there's just more of it in...John Mello
Despite its many foibles, the Windows World has one indisputable advantage over denizens of the Apple Sphere: greater software variety. That's not to say that the software available to Macintosh users isn't great, there's just more of it in...
Hands On Review: Andrea Mosaictag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.80072008-06-15T17:36:16Z2008-06-15T17:53:50Z Just as inkjet printers create images with patterns or dots, mosaic artists create their images with bits of colored glass or tile. While most of us don't have the skills to craft mosaics from glass or tile, we do...John Mello
Just as inkjet printers create images with patterns or dots, mosaic artists create their images with bits of colored glass or tile. While most of us don't have the skills to craft mosaics from glass or tile, we do...
In the find section, you click a button labeled Find Tiles. That gives you several choices.
You can create a new collection. That lets choose a folder of images to be used for creating the mosaic. If the folder has subfolders with pictures in them, they will also be incorporated into the final product.
You can load collections that you've previously created.
If you change the content of a collection, there is an Update button to keep the collection up to date.
Typically the program chooses the placement of images within the mosaic based on color values, but by clicking the Black & White button, the application will use grayscale values for placement. The final mosaic will still be in color but where pictures appear will be based on black-and-white values.
The application will also extract frames from an AVI movie, save them as still images in a folder and use them as a collection for creating a mosaic.
A number of photo utilities are also available in this section of the software. They allow you to analyze mask files, examine what your images will look like in various compression ratios, turn wallpaper files into tiles, de-interlace images and clip the borders of a photo to conform to the aspect ratio of a mosaic.
If you open the Andrea Mosaic folder in the Windows Program Files directory, you'll see five versions of the software. Each is tailored for photos with different aspect ratios.
For generic images, there is AndreaMosaic, which uses a 4:3 ratio.
AndreaMosaic Portrait is designed for photos with a vertical orientation and has a 3:4 ratio.
For photo collections clipped from movie frames, there is AndreaMosaic Cinescope, which uses a 16:9 ratio.
AndreaMosaic NTSC is written for working with frames captured from TV shows or with a video camera. Its ratio is 3:2.
Finally there's AndreaMosaic Square which uses a ratio of 1:1.
In the parameters section, you tell the program how to shape your mosaic.
You determine the width of your project. It can be from 2000 to 5000 pixels. For computer wallpaper, 2000 pixels is fine; 4000 pixels is good for a 15- inch high-quality print.
You choose the number of tiles you want in each row of your mosaic. The more tiles per row, the closer the mosaic will look to the root photograph. However, the more tiles there are, the smaller they will be and the more difficult they will be to discern in the mosaic.
You can place a black line around each tile--although I really don't see the point in doing that. Parameters for the line are one to five pixels.
You define the distance between duplicated tiles. The closer you allow the software to place duplicate tiles, the truer the mosaic will be to the root photo, but it will also be more monotonous because the tile selection will lack variety.
You can offset some of the monotony created by duplicate tiles by defining how many times a tile can be duplicated.
You choose the degree to which the program modifies tiles. Some modification is recommended to improve the overall mosaic effect.
You pick the algorithm by which the tiles will be stitched together. There's a standard algorithm, as well as algorithms for flipping tiles horizontally and vertically and picking them based on maximum color difference rather than average color difference.
If you're working with movie frames, you can define the distance between frames that are made into tiles.
You select the output quality of the mosaic created by the program and choose whether or not you want a text report containing detailed information about the mosaic. You can also create a Web page of the mosaic with a hyperlink for each of its tiles to their original image locations in the collection used to create the mosaic.
In the final section of the interface, you choose an image or images to be turned into a mosaic. After completing that step, you click Create the Mosaic's [sic] and a mosaic made from your photographs will be created and written as a JPG fie in the directory where your root image or images reside.
Andrea Mosaic is a nifty program and one worth experimenting with. And if you like it, you should send a few shekels to the program's author to thank him for his efforts.]]>
ACDsee unwraps Photo Editor 2008tag:blog.megapixel.net,2008:/blog//8.79942008-06-12T23:51:44Z2008-06-12T23:58:13Z Photo editing programs come in many flavors. At the professional end of the category, you have applications like Adobe Photoshop. Then there are semipro offerings like Adobe Elements and Corel Paint Shop Pro. And then there's ACDsee Photo Editor...John Mello
Photo editing programs come in many flavors. At the professional end of the category, you have applications like Adobe Photoshop. Then there are semipro offerings like Adobe Elements and Corel Paint Shop Pro. And then there's ACDsee Photo Editor...
