Category Archives: Cameras

CAPTURE 2020 – A Nikon Concept

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You may remember a month or so back I posted a couple of essays speculating on the future of digital camera design. I suggested that the traditional SLR shape might adopt some of the characteristics of medium format bodies as they adapt to shooting video. Well nikonrumors.com has posted the work of designer Marc Levinson, who seems to have been thinking along the same lines in imagining a future “Nikon D4x”.

I’m not quite sure how I feel about the hand brick (grip), but other concept shots show how it might help in hand held video work.

MY AFTERNOON WITH A LEICA M9

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A small dream came true for me today. I got to spend some quality time shooting a Leica M9.

Leica spent much of the 20th century earning a reputation as one of the finest camera makers. A relatively small operation, their precision, build quality, and top lenses won them devoted fans, including Henri Cartier-Bresson (go to MoMA!). For a long time, all the company had to do to keep that reputation was make slight refinements. Then digital photography hit. Lacking the vast resources of a Nikon or Canon, Leica had to work fast to partner with other companies (such as Kodak and Panasonic) to move into a future of sensors and software. There were a few hiccups moving from the film based M7 to the first digital M8, necessitating a rapid replacement with the M8.2. But the M9 represents Leica finally coming into their own on the digital playing field. Its quality has been praised almost universally, and for someone like me, it is a design object worth lusting over. Its $7000 price tag makes my few hours of shooting akin to sampling a bottle of Louis XIII or the like. It’s not an experience most of us can expect to have regularly.

So how did I get to spend an afternoon with an M9, and what was it like to shoot it? Continue reading →

THE ROUNDUP – 5/11/10 – Classic Cars, Canonets, Charles Busch, and Croissants

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MERCEDES-BENZ: I was daydreaming about what I’d do if I ever had the means to purchase a proper car, and I thought, wouldn’t it be fun to restore an old classic? The Aston Martin DB5 of James Bond fame has always caused my heart to race, but it is far out of reach for all but the super rich. Classic Jaguars are of course wonderful, and an old E-Type would be amazing. Yet, while I usually hate the design of modern Mercedes-Benz, I recently discovered these two classics, the Mercedes 300SL and its little brother the 190SL, and I’m in love.

pic via this forum.

pic via…

The 300SL is legendary. Its gull-wing doors were one of the most inspired design touches in all of automotive history. This makes it a rare and expensive find for the collector today. However the 190SL was the 300′s little brother, and while less powerful, and lacking the gull-wing doors, its elegant shape still leaves me pining for a top-down drive along California 1 with a picnic basket and a dream. More imporantly, the 190SL is accessible. It can be found for the price of an average new car, or less depending on the amount of work it needs. There are clubs of enthusiasts who restore them, and provide resources and advice on the process. Have a look at this bit of sex on wheels! In a decision that I suppose we can only blame on the 70′s, shortly after these two classics, Mercedes decreed that all future designs should look like a box, and most Mercedes were hideous square shapes for the next two decades. Continue reading →

ON THE GO – Polaroid Gallery

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POLAROID GALLERY, originally uploaded by atlanticplace.

I’m at the new IMPOSSIBLE PROJECT Gallery in NYC. I’m about to blow all my savings on film. Oy…

– Sent from my Palm Pre

HOW LARGE CAN I PRINT?

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My deepening interest in photography has left me oft wond’ring what kind of equipment I’d really need to achieve the end results I dream about. In my research, I’ve encountered all kinds of wildly contradictory opinions over how much resolution you need to print at a certain size. Is 12MP enough? What does Medium Format get me?

After speaking to some photographers with real world experience in the matter, I discovered West Coast Imaging, which has a sterling reputation as the place to have your serious material printed/scanned/finished.

Their website has this incredibly useful chart, which I will henceforth use as my reference for printing.

View this chart with more detail and references at this link.

The projects I have in my head may require some prints up to 4 feet square. Thus I can see that medium format film should tackle that job, and a 16mp+ DSLR will be perfectly fine for my other work. I hope you find this useful!