DP Idaho Bob is all excited about the new Arriflex Alexa, and you should be too!
THE DOWNEASTER ALEXA ( via @artege )
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Tag Archives: Cameras
A LITTLE LESS IMPOSSIBLE
The Impossible Project just announced the release of their 600 series instant film! That means it’s the correct size for my camera, so I bought a pack!
POLAROID IN THE HOUSE!
UPDATE: IT WORKS! MY GOD IT WORKS! YESSSSSSSSS!
I totally loaded the film pack and it totally spat out the dark slide and made that awesome “ka-cherrrrrrrrrrrrggrrrrrr-whirrr-zip” sound! MY GOOD GOODNESS IT WORKS!
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I just got my first pack of Polaroid in from Unique Photo in Jersey. I can’t wait to load it up and test it tomorrow night. I’ve only got 10 shots since it’s all I can afford at the moment, but wow. I really hope this stuff makes a comeback.
– Sent from my Palm Pre
CAPTURE 2020 – Part “the end.”
It would seem that life has abridged my blogging, and my prior-promised essays concerning image capture will have to be consolidated. Thus, I present my thoughts concerning the next 10 years in video, camera design, social network integration, and the like. May you find herein something worth considering.
For the indy filmmaker, shooting HD video was prohibitively expensive 5 years ago. Film students like myself were salivating over developments like the Viper Filmstream, Sony F-900, and Panasonic Varicam, digging through articles about color-space and frame rates.
The heads of a thousand film students collectively exploded when RED entered the scene in 2006. The child of Oakley (yes, the sunglasses) founder Jim Jannard, Red Digital Cinema Camera Company set out to re-write the rules on what an image capture device could do or be. The release of RED ONE in 2007 was only the beginning of a nearly impossibly ambitious string of announcements, which aimed to leapfrog all competition. Continue reading
THE ROUNDUP – 2/23/10
Here’s a roundup of some of the interesting events I’ve followed in the last week or so:
Happy Birthday Kuro-Chan! Today marks Akira Kurosawa’s 100th birthday. He has long been at the top of my list of favorite directors, and so if you have a moment this week, kick back and revisit The Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, Ran, Ikiru, or any of his films really. There will be something interesting to pick out in all.
Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution: I’ve blogged about this program before, and it’s finally premiered! Chef Jamie Oliver visits the unhealthiest town in America and attempts to reform their school lunch program and teach basic food skills. Visit the website to watch the first episode. Continue reading
THE IMPOSSIBLE PROJECT – Victory!
UPDATE: The Impossible Project has announced that their first batch of Polaroid compatible instant film will go on sale in the UK this week! See Engadget for details.
My friend Idaho Bob has pointed me to the fact that The Impossible Project, dedicated to the rebirth of Instant Photography, will be holding a NYC Press Event tomorrow, March 22nd. They write:
DELAY
It is not for nothing that Alexander was called the Great, Ivan the Terrible and our Project the Impossible. Bringing back Instant Film and saving analog Instant Photography from extinction is not a breeze – it is rather like constantly scraping past an adventurous abyss and breaking down barriers.
The latter has currently to be done at our factory in Enschede, where an unexpected surprise of impossibility within production occured on the weekend of February 6th. This undesireable fact is now forcing us to reschedule our timetable – the NYC press event on 22nd February has to be postponed. The Project leader’s Florian Kaps and André Bosman give themselves one more month to cope with the Impossible. On March 22nd 2010 they will disclose whether or not their Impossible Project will be possible.
Stay tuned.
Here’s hoping for a major victory. I love cheap/instant/lo-fi photography and can’t wait to shoot real Polaroids again. In some of my readings of Ansel Adams, he goes into detail about the history and importance of “Land” cameras, Edwin Land, and it’s influence on large format photography.
CAPTURE 2020 – PART 2 – ISO (Impossible Situations Overcome)
ISO – IMPOSSIBLE SITUATIONS OVERCOME
Nikon and Canon have recently made tradeoffs in resolution for low-light performance. The D3s could have been 18 or 24mp, but instead they refined the existing 12mp sensor. Canon actually reduced the resolution of the sensor between their G10 and G11 to improve the low-light performance. They have taken a break it seems, from the megapixel cold war, to improve other aspects of camera function.
Let’s imagine a shooting scenario with the help of this chart. You are out camping with your family, and you wish to take pictures of your children stargazing. A film shooter, by and large, is limited to 3200 ISO, and only with a significant penalty in grain. To shoot a scene illuminated only by full moonlight with ISO 1600 film, you would need to make a 2 second exposure at f/2. Not quite fast enough to capture any action. Continue reading
CAPTURE 2020 – On the Future of Image Capture (Part 1 of x)
What will you be taking pictures with in 10 years?
In the first part of an as yet un-numbered series, we speculate on what 10 more years of evolution in image capture technology may bring.
WHERE WE’VE BEEN
The First Mobile Device
I would like to posit that the camera was the first “mobile device”. The only other contender I can think of would be the pocket or wrist watch (the influence of which we mustn’t underestimate. Think of how the course of history was changed by people showing up on time!) But the camera was the first mechanical, engineered gadget that you could carry anywhere, and which could be used to affect the perception of your environment and improve communication. It also carried with it a magical air. You could stop time! Freeze a moment. Steal a soul?
Yet in the century and a half since cameras became practical and portable, their fundamental means of operation has remained the same. There are some things that cannot change about cameras. One apparently still needs a lens, some sort of capture and storage medium, and a basic human interface. Continue reading
PENTAX 645D – Medium Format Accessibility
I often need reminding that I needn’t limit my creativity because I don’t possess the fanciest tools.
While the big guns like Hasselblad and PhaseONE continue the climb to the top of Megapixel Mountain, budget minded photographers have been looking for solutions to step up to the higher resolution and dynamic range offered by medium format sensors without the price of a BMW. Just a used BMW.
Pentax used to make excellent medium format film cameras. I like the idea of a Pentax resurgence. That white K-x is a sexy piece of kit, and all reviews point to it being a real performer (if only it didn’t shoot video in Motion Jpeg…). A few months ago I took in a show by Nick Brandt, who traveled Africa for years with his Pentax 67II and somewhat unconventional techniques, to capture the golden portraits you see here. All the post was done digitally, but the character of the Pentax remains.
It seems like the company hopes to reclaim this territory with the soon to be released Pentax 645D. Its big boxy tank of a design clearly looks back at the old film 645′s, and its under $10,000 price brings it into the realm of possible, especially for someone willing to scout cheap used lenses. It is a smart move by the company to leverage its history and past success to push its future, as we’ve seen Olympus do with the PEN. Come to think of it, a leapfrog compact/mirrorless product by Pentax would be a smart move about now as well.