Visualization: Blog

Lenovo unveils ThinkPad W700 laptop geared to pro photographers

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:03:30 GMT

Lenovo unveils ThinkPad W700 laptop geared to pro photographers
Monday, August 11, 2008 | by Rob Galbraith

Lenovo today has unveiled the ThinkPad W700, a widescreen 17 inch Windows laptop that has been developed expressly for the working digital photographer. In addition to CPU options that include Intel's new mobile quad core processor, a maximum of 8GB of RAM, up to three internal hard drives (two if you don't want to forsake the optical disc drive) and top-end Nvidia Quadro FX 3700M graphics, the W700 features an integrated screen calibrator and mini Wacom tablet plus both SD and CompactFlash card slots.

Full article at the following link

Rob Galbraith DPI: Lenovo unveils ThinkPad W700 laptop geared to pro photographers

Camera stabilizer for less than a £1

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:56:54 GMT

Don't be a slave to your tripod. Build this stabilizer and see how much better you photos and video can be. Get professional results. This instructional video shows you how to build your own stabilizer in 5 minutes for less than £1. It is super light weight and folds up small enough to fit in your pocket. With this stabilizer, you can hand-hold your camera with shutter speeds at least 3 stops slower than without. It works just as well with video cameras.

Nikon | Imaging Products | Nikon D700

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:26:27 GMT

Nikon D700

Nikon, Inc. today introduced the new D700 digital SLR camera featuring a 12.1-effective megapixel Nikon FX-format sensor that measures 23.9 x 36mm, which is nearly identical to the size of 35mm film. Benefiting from Nikon’s legacy of imaging technology innovation, the D700 offers both advanced and professional photographers stunning image quality, accurate color reproduction and revolutionary low light performance.

Nikon FX-format performance combined with superior mobility and functional versatility

Main Features

Nikon's original FX-format CMOS image sensor with 36.0 (H) x 23.9 (V) mm image size; 12.1 effective megapixels
Superior picture quality throughout a wide ISO sensitivity range of ISO 200 to 6400; can be set to ISO-equivalent 25,600
Incorporates Nikon's original EXPEED digital image processing concept
Continuous shooting speed is up to 5 frames per second with the included Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e, and up to 8 frames per second when using the optional Multi-Power Battery Pack MB-D10 and Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL4a/4 or eight AA-size batteries
Nikon's original Scene Recognition System, utilizing the 1,005-pixel RGB sensor, greatly improves autofocus, auto exposure and auto white balance performance
Active D-Lighting automatically compensates highlights or shadows while you shoot, creating images with natural contrast ? even in difficult lighting
Picture Control System for image finishing optimized to match individual preferences
3D Color Matrix Metering II for ideal exposures in almost any lighting situation
Multi-CAM 3500FX autofocus sensor module featuring 51 AF points offers fast, efficient and precise autofocus
Two Live View modes enable shooting while confirming subjects in the LCD monitor
3-inch LCD with 920,000-dot (VGA) resolution and a 170° ultra-wide viewing angle
Built-in flash with 24mm lens coverage and Nikon’s dependable i-TTL flash control
Magnesium alloy used for the exterior cover, rear body and mirror box reduces weight and provides rugged durability
Optional Multi-Power Battery Pack MB-D10 extends shooting capability, enhances stability, and provides the further shooting potential of added controls
Support for the Wireless Transmitter WT-4/4A (optional) enables direct cable-free image transfer to a compatible computer
Included Nikon ViewNX software makes browsing and organizing your images easy
Optional photo-editing software, Capture NX 2 allows users quick and easy photo editing

Nikon | Imaging Products | Nikon D700

Run Your Car On Water | Convert Your Car To Use Water As Fuel | Hydrogen Fuel Car

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:28:11 GMT

Can this be true visit the link below to see the video

Would You Like To Know How You Can Easily Convert Your Car To Run On Water and Gas Today To Double Your Gas Mileage and Save Thousands Of Dollars On Fuel Costs?

Are you sick and tired of rising gas prices? Would you like to stop paying for expensive gas and save over 50% on fuel costs at the same time as helping the environment by running a vehicle with cleaner emissions?

Running your car on water will save you thousands of dollars every year in fuel costs, whilst significantly improving your vehicles fuel efficiency.

Our do-it-yourself conversion guide is easy to follow with step-by-step instructions and extremely affordable! Get set up today for less than $100!

Works on gas or diesel powered cars, trucks, vans and SUV's

Will enable your vehicle to become at least 50% more fuel efficient

Boost performance whilst producing cleaner emissions

Receive IRS refunds owed to you by law for using green technology in your vehicle!

Works anywhere in the world

100% safe/legal - guaranteed!

Works with plain tap water

Get set up for the cheapest, best value price.

Enjoy incredible fuel savings.

This conversion is very easy to install and remove, it does not void your vehicle warranty in any way and best of all, you don't need to know anything about cars, everything you need to know is covered in simple, step-by-step format with diagrams to get you set up in no time at all.

Run Your Car On Water | Convert Your Car To Use Water As Fuel | Hydrogen Fuel Car

Live Labs Seadragon on Surface

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 08:13:33 GMT

You have got to watch the video below. Stick with it though, as its a bit jumpy

GBM Shortcut: Live Labs Seadragon on Surface
- Rob Bushway
I'm in Redmond for some meetings with Microsoft's Surface team, and we had an informal meet and greet last night. During that time, we got to get our hands on the Surface and see some pretty cool stuff, one item in particular had not previously been seen outside the Surface team - Live Labs Seadragon running on a Surface. These pictures are gigapixel in size, and just watch how seamlessly they are manipulated, scattered about, zoomed, etc. We also have some fun with another demo app towards the end, with Slashgear's Vincent Nguyen face. I gotta tell you, this Surface stuff goes way beyond multi-touch. It is a whole different paradigm in computing, and the Surface team is leading this pioneering effort.

GottaBeMobile - GBM Shortcut: Live Labs Seadragon on Surface - Tablet PC & UMPC News & Video Reviews, and Tablet PC / UMPC Forums

About time! - Support grows for universal power adapter

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 15:29:16 GMT

Startup Green Plug's smart power technology could help the environment by eliminating the need to ship a power adapter with every electronics device
For full article click link below

Support grows for universal power adapter | InfoWorld | News | 2008-06-16 | By James Niccolai, IDG News Service

BBC Money Programme Special - Bill Gates: How a Geek Changed the World.

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 13:50:42 GMT

Earlier this year Bill Gates was in the UK for his final trip in his full time role at Microsoft. In July, Bill will make the transition to spend more of his time at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation while remaining as Chairman at Microsoft. In preparation for this transition,, the BBC presenter Fiona Bruce and the Money Programme film crew traveled with Bill throughout his day in the UK to prepare for a BBC Money Programme Special - Bill Gates: How a Geek Changed the World.

This specially extended one hour programme will be aired on this Friday 7–8pm 20^th June on BBC2.

The programme is set up to tell the definitive story of Bill Gates and Microsoft, including views from friends, colleagues and critics. It will look in more detail at some of the most important episodes and turning points in the company’s history right up to date, including the recent bid for Yahoo! and an examination of the challenges currently facing Microsoft, as well as Bill’s future work with the Foundation.

Schneier on Security: The War on Photography

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 08:29:21 GMT

This is an interesting article from Bruce Schneier blog, who is an internationally renowned security technologist and author. Described by The Economist as a "security guru," he is best known as a refreshingly candid and lucid security critic and commentator.

June 05, 2008

The War on Photography

What is it with photographers these days? Are they really all terrorists, or does everyone just think they are?
Since 9/11, there has been an increasing war on photography. Photographers have been harassed, questioned, detained, arrested or worse, and declared to be unwelcome. We've been repeatedly told to watch out for photographers, especially suspicious ones. Clearly any terrorist is going to first photograph his target, so vigilance is required.
Except that it's nonsense. The 9/11 terrorists didn't photograph anything. Nor did the London transport bombers, the Madrid subway bombers, or the liquid bombers arrested in 2006. Timothy McVeigh didn't photograph the Oklahoma City Federal Building. The Unabomber didn't photograph anything; neither did shoe-bomber Richard Reid. Photographs aren't being found amongst the papers of Palestinian suicide bombers. The IRA wasn't known for its photography. Even those manufactured terrorist plots that the US government likes to talk about -- the Ft. Dix terrorists, the JFK airport bombers, the Miami 7, the Lackawanna 6 -- no photography.
Given that real terrorists, and even wannabe terrorists, don't seem to photograph anything, why is it such pervasive conventional wisdom that terrorists photograph their targets? Why are our fears so great that we have no choice but to be suspicious of any photographer?
Because it's a movie-plot threat.
Click the link below for the full article

Schneier on Security: The War on Photography

Imagine - BBC1, Tuesday 10th June

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:38:58 GMT

Annie Leibovitz: Life Through A Lens

When asked what a photographer's life is about, the subject of this film replies that it is 'a life looking through a lens'. She should know: Annie Leibovitz has been looking at all kinds of life through her lens for the last 30 years.
Viewers who haven't heard her name will certainly have seen her pictures: from a naked and pregnant Demi Moore to Bette Midler on a bed of roses; from Bruce Springsteen's famous pose in front of the American flag, to a naked John Lennon curled up and vulnerable next to a distant-looking Yoko Ono, Leibovitz's images are instantly recognisable.

If you miss this episode, catch up on BBC iPlayer http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/

BBC - Imagine

Smile, You're On Camera: Eye-Fi Card Catches Thief | Gadget Lab from Wired.com

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 08:41:41 GMT

Smile, You're On Camera: Eye-Fi Card Catches Thief

By Charlie Sorrel June 06, 2008 |

Here's a new use for the Eye-Fi wireless SD card that we hadn't considered: A virtual private eye. Eye-Fi user Alison DeLauzon lost $1,000 worth of photo gear while on holiday in Florida.
The Eye-Fi SD card, once plugged into your camera, hooks up to the Internet and sends your photos to either an online sharing site or directly back to your home machine. In this case it was the latter, and the hapless thief not only sent the precious vacation shots back to Alison's computer, but -- according to the email we received from Gadget Lab reader Joe Volat -- "pictures [of] the thieves proudly displaying Alison's lifted camera equipment."
"I opened up the Eye-Fi manager on the computer and, lo and behold, there are the guys that stole our cameras," DeLauzon told Reuters.
This is certainly not the first time that technology has foiled a foolish felon: remember the tattooed man who fell afoul of the auto uploading FlickBooth? But in this case, the thief was extra unlucky. The current generation of Eye-Fi cards need to be preconfigured for each hotspot they access.
In this case, the thief was unlucky enough to stumble across an access point with the exact same SSID and lack of password as one of Alison's regular haunts. We're guessing it was an unsecured hot spot with the default SSID.

Smile, You're On Camera: Eye-Fi Card Catches Thief | Gadget Lab from Wired.com

Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson

Thu, 29 May 2008 10:39:31 GMT

Having taken a few days of recently, I manage to catch up on some reading. One of the books was Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. When I first started to read it you say to yourself "I already know that", but if stay with it and actually read all of the words of this book then you'll discover many little gems of info that will help you to be more creative in your photography.

The exercises in the book changed my view of the world and hopefully my photography will get better in the process.

Microsoft makes a 216megapixel camera

Thu, 29 May 2008 10:10:50 GMT

The UltraCamX, a large Format Digital Aerial Camera, uses CCD technology, employing 7.2 micrometer pixels thus achieving an even larger image format at 14,430 x 9,420 pixels without sacrificing radiometric performance.
UltraScan 5000
A highly automated photogrammetric scanner designed and field-tested by photogrammetrists, producing digital images of un-compromising quality.
UltraMap Workflow Software System
A complete and integrated photogrammetric workflow for UltraCam images, with a flexible and scalable distributed system for managing and processing vast amounts of UltraCam data.

Microsoft Ultracam Home

WorldWide Telescope

Wed, 14 May 2008 08:25:14 GMT

Microsoft has launched WorldWide Telescope, a free application that enables users to navigate the universe and view celestial objects through the lenses of the world's best observatories
What is WWT?
The WorldWide Telescope (WWT) is a Web 2.0 visualization software environment that enables your computer to function as a virtual telescope—bringing together imagery from the best ground and space-based telescopes in the world for a seamless exploration of the universe.
Choose from a growing number of guided tours of the sky by astronomers and educators from some of the most famous observatories and planetariums in the country. Feel free at any time to pause the tour, explore on your own (with multiple information sources for objects at your fingertips), and rejoin the tour where you left off. Join Harvard Astronomer Alyssa Goodman on a journey showing how dust in the Milky Way Galaxy condenses into stars and planets. Take a tour with University of Chicago Cosmologist Mike Gladders two billion years into the past to see a gravitational lens bending the light from galaxies allowing you to see billions more years into the past.
WorldWide Telescope is created with the Microsoft® high performance Visual Experience Engine™ and allows seamless panning and zooming around the night sky, planets, and image environments. View the sky from multiple wavelenghts: See the x-ray view of the sky and zoom into bright radiation clouds, and then crossfade into the visible light view and discover the cloud remnants of a supernova explosion from a thousand years ago. Switch to the Hydrogen Alpha view to see the distribution and illumination of massive primordial hydrogen cloud structures lit up by the high energy radiation coming from nearby stars in the Milky Way. These are just two of many different ways to reveal the hidden structures in the universe with the WorldWide Telescope. Seamlessly pan and zoom from aerial views of the Moon and selected planets, as well as see their precise positions in the sky from any location on Earth and any time in the past or future with the Microsoft Visual Experience Engine.
WWT is a single rich application portal that blends terabytes of images, information, and stories from multiple sources over the Internet into a seamless, immersive, rich media experience. Kids of all ages will feel empowered to explore and understand the universe with its simple and powerful user interface.
Microsoft Research is dedicating WorldWide Telescope to the memory of Jim Gray and is releasing WWT as a free resource to the astronomy and education communities with the hope that it will inspire and empower people to explore and understand the universe like never before.

WorldWide Telescope

DNG Codec - Adobe Labs

Tue, 13 May 2008 08:42:01 GMT

DNG Codec

From Adobe Labs

Welcome to the Adobe® DNG Codec release candidate on Adobe Labs. The DNG Codec provides a method for Windows Vista users to view DNG files in the Windows Explorer and Photo Gallery. The ‘release candidate’ label applied to this technology indicates that the codec includes all of the intended features and is well tested but will not be released as a finished product until the community is able to help ensure that a larger set of hardware and software configurations are used with the Codec.
For more information on the DNG format, please visit the DNG pages on Adobe.com

System Requirements

Microsoft Windows Vista (This codec is not compatible with the Windows Vista 64-bit platform)

Download and Installation

Download the DNG Codec
Double click the downloaded dngcodec_r1_051208.msi file
Follow the on-screen installation instructions
The DNG Codec may require that you restart your computer before use

Release Notes

Please provide feedback on your experience with the DNG Codec on the Adobe User to User forums
The DNG Codec will move from a release candidate to a shipping version once sufficient feedback is received
Additional information about the Windows Vista codec system can be found on the Microsoft web site

Retrieved from "http://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/DNG_Codec"

DNG Codec - Adobe Labs

The best selling digital photography book

Mon, 12 May 2008 18:47:25 GMT

Peachpit Press announced that The Digital Photography Book Vol. 1 by Scott Kelby is the best-selling book on digital photography ever, having sold over a quarter-million copies so far. Congratulations to Scott for the tremendous success of this volume.

Microsoft Pro Photo: Geotagging Goes Mainstream

Fri, 02 May 2008 07:59:33 GMT

What does it mean to say, "Find your photos?" Traditionally that meant literally just finding where particular photos reside on your computer (or a physical location back when film was king). But with new tools and advanced technology, finding your photos can mean finding not just the photos themselves, but finding the exact location where you took a photo. This, in turn, will make it even easier to search for the photos themselves later. Microsoft Pro Photo Tools, a free download available at the Microsoft Pro Photo Web site, enables you to apply location information to your photos so you can always know exactly where they were captured.

It gets even better though. Leveraging the power of Windows Live Local, Pro Photo Tools will then determine the location name information for the photos based on the GPS coordinates. This allows you to have more meaningful location information attached to your photos, which is especially helpful when you want to later search or images based on their specific location. Full article at the link below

Microsoft Pro Photo: Geotagging Goes Mainstream

'CSI' sleuths out Microsoft's latest technology - USATODAY.com

Thu, 01 May 2008 08:30:02 GMT

'CSI' sleuths out Microsoft's latest technology
The Microsoft technology behind the scenes:
Photosynth. Stitches together a large collection of photos and turns them into 3-D images, viewable from any angle. Due out by year's end. Preview at labs.live.com/photosynth/default.html
HD View. Still in the labs, this imaging technology is kind of like Photosynth on steroids. research.microsoft.com/ivm/HDView/HDabout.htm
Microsoft Surface. Interactive tabletop computers recently made their commercial debut in some AT&T stores. Microsoft.com/surface
Orb motion-based controller in futuristic bedroom on Microsoft Home website uses OLED (organic light emitting display) technology to change the artwork, video clips and Web pages shown on the wall. Considered five to 10 years out.

Enlarge
By Randy Tepper, CBS

By Edward C. Baig, USA TODAY
A guidance counselor at a Manhattan prep school is murdered while the prom is taking place in the gymnasium.
Forensic scientists for the New York police attempt to recreate the crime scene by uploading hundreds of camera phone thumbnail photos snapped at the dance onto a computer.
STORY: Toddlers coming of digital age
The PC screen fills up in a concentric square pattern, revealing a wide shot of the gym at the center. Investigators can manipulate the images to show close-ups of the scene from every angle.
This episode of the CBS crime drama CSI: NY, scheduled to run Wednesday night, is fiction. But the technology at its core, Microsoft's Photosynth software, is real. It analyzes scores of images for similarities and stitches them into a three-dimensional reconstruction.

'CSI' sleuths out Microsoft's latest technology - USATODAY.com

Pictures taken at just the right angle..

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 09:18:57 GMT

I don't know the source of these photos so cannot apply any credits, but thought they were worth a post.

FORTUNE: Microsoft Surface: consumer version in 2011?

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 16:00:06 GMT

Microsoft Surface: consumer version in 2011?

Microsoft Surface is a tabletop computer that’s controlled by physical touch instead of a mouse or keyboard. Image: Microsoft
Microsoft’s tabletop computer could appear in homes in three years or less, the executive in charge of its development said this week.
Since unveiling the Microsoft Surface product last year, the company has gotten plenty of feedback from businesses and enthusiasts who want to get their hands on the technology, said Tom Gibbons, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s (MSFT) Specialized Devices and Applications business. And Gibbons said he feels confident that the touch-based computer could be affordable enough for consumers in three years or less. “In the three-year time window, we absolutely see how to get there,” Gibbons said. “If we can beat that, we’ll try to beat that.”

FORTUNE: Big Tech Microsoft Surface: consumer version in 2011?

http://www.microsoft.com/surface/index.html

Follow up to Adobe releases Photoshop Express for the web, make sure your happy with this clause in the T&C's

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:53:48 GMT

8. Use of Your Content.

Adobe does not claim ownership of Your Content. However, with respect to Your Content that you submit or make available for inclusion on publicly accessible areas of the Services, you grant Adobe a worldwide, royalty-free, nonexclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, and fully sublicensable license to use, distribute, derive revenue or other remuneration from, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, publicly perform and publicly display such Content (in whole or in part) and to incorporate such Content into other Materials or works in any format or medium now known or later developed.

Adobe releases Photoshop Express for the web

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 15:38:49 GMT

I haven’t tried it yet but I thought the group mind find this interesting.

No, it’s not a Photoshop replacement, but it is a remarkably well designed basic photo-editing and sharing application.

No layers here, no fancy pants masking. But for 95% of your photos, it offers pretty much all you need to fix ‘em up, and it does it with style.

Whether adjusting exposure, white balance, or hue, touching up blemishes, or distorting your image, Photoshop Express provides an easy slider and thumbnails to give you an instant preview of your image at various settings.

So what does it cost? It’s free

http://www.photoshop.com/express/landing.html

The 75th Anniversary of NIKKOR Lenses

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 18:30:38 GMT

The 75th Anniversary of NIKKOR Lenses

Tokyo – Nikon Corporation is pleased to announce the 75th anniversary of NIKKOR camera lenses, since the first lens was introduced in 1933. To commemorate this anniversary, we are renewing our commitment to provide NIKKOR lenses that feature advanced functions and superior optical performance. And at the same time, we will introduce several activities to further improve awareness of the NIKKOR brand.

Nikon | News : The 75th Anniversary of NIKKOR Lenses

Build your own camera over the Easter break

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 10:43:35 GMT

Time to chuck out your DSLR, here's a blast from the past. Corbis are offering pinhole cameras available to download for free from their website and build yourself, in classic Blue Peter style.

Stock photography, footage, rights: Corbis ReadyCam

Joe McNally: The Moment it Clicks

Sun, 16 Mar 2008 19:59:53 GMT

"What you see on these pages is not about a particular place, people, time or cause. It’s not about one type of picture or another. It’s not about sportsmen or fashion models or war or politics or the news of the day.
It’s about being a photographer."

Joe McNally: The Moment it Clicks

Photo industry braces for another revolution | Underexposed - CNET News.com

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 10:24:22 GMT

Photo industry braces for another revolution

Think of it as digital photography 2.0.
In the last decade, photography has been transformed by one revolution, the near-total replacement of analog film cameras by digital image sensors. Now researchers and companies are starting to stretch their wings by taking advantage of what a computer can do with sensor data either within the camera or on a full-fledged PC.
Some elements of this new era, which researchers often call computational photography, are refinements of existing technology. For example, some cameras can wait to take the photo only when subjects are smiling and not blinking, in effect placing the shutter release button in the hands of the subjects rather than the photographer.
But more dramatic changes could shift the definition of a camera more dramatically. One major area of research, for example, uses computational processing to create a 3D representation of a scene rather than just the two dimensions of traditional photography.

For the full article follow the link below

Photo industry braces for another revolution | Underexposed - CNET News.com

Sigma 200-500mm Ultra-Telephoto Zoom

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 15:22:43 GMT

So the Sigma 200-500mm f/2.8 APO EX DG Ultra-Telephoto Zoom Lens for has been released. As much as I like wildlife photography lugging a 15kg lens around along with £16,000 price tag doesn't appeal, so here are couple of other uses

I bought this coffee thermos, and I’m not happy

Are the rockets included?

For full specs click here

Announcing Big Snap Search

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 16:00:28 GMT

When you use BigSnapSearch.com for all your everyday searches you will also see two cards at the top of the page – if the cards match you win, simple. What’s even more amazing is that you can win a prize an hour, 24 hours a day for 8 weeks. Of course you can search as much as you like to improve your chances of winning

Excellent overview of using a flash

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:57:39 GMT

After viewing the video below, your next stop is Strobist "Lighting 101"

Video from http://www.pduncan.com/

New York Institute of Photography - Special Report: How to Photograph the Lunar Eclipse

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 10:15:13 GMT

Special Report: How to Photograph the Lunar Eclipse

Weather permitting, on Wednesday February 20, 2008 in the U.S., (Thursday, February 21 in the rest of the world) a total eclipse of

the Moon will be visible in most of North America, all of South America as well as Western Europe and portions of North Africa. This is an exciting event for astronomers and it can provide great picture opportunities to photographers as well. Photographing the moon is relatively easy compared to other celestial bodies, because it's relatively close to the earth.

The tips that follow will show you how to photograph the moon under normal circumstances, or under eclipse conditions.
We'll start with how to photograph the full moon itself, and then give you specific tips for photographing a lunar eclipse. Hopefully the weather will cooperate as the next total lunar eclipse is not until December 2010. Fortunately, there will be several partial eclipses before that, the next one is on August 16, 2008.
Click the link below for full detials

New York Institute of Photography - Special Report: How to Photograph the Lunar Eclipse

Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 15:38:19 GMT

What is the Worldwide Pinhole Photography day?

This is an international event created to promote and celebrate the art of pinhole photography.

When is the Worldwide Pinhole Photography day?

The next Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day is on Sunday, April 27, 2008.

To find out how you can become a part of WPPD, How to Participate.
How to Make your camera on the Support page.

Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day

The application you didn't know you had....

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 15:17:16 GMT

I have blogged before about Windows Movie Maker, but here's a great tutorial from ephotozine on how to create a slide show with Windows Movie Maker.....

Windows XP and Windows Vista comes with a program called Windows Movie Maker that most photographers may not have realised could be a useful tool. Peter Bargh shows you how it can be used as great tool for creating fun slide shows.

Creating a slide show with Windows Movie Maker

Find the cheapest prices in the UK

Thu, 07 Feb 2008 20:11:47 GMT

Find the UK's cheapest prices for Digital SLRs, lenses, accessories and memory cards. The site even lists discount codes for several vendors

Camera Price Buster

Windows Vista Help: Optimise Windows Vista for better performance

Fri, 01 Feb 2008 14:30:59 GMT

Applies to all editions of Windows Vista.

Delete programs you never use
Limit how many programs load at startup
Defragment your hard drive
Clean up your hard disk
Run fewer programs at the same time
Turn off visual effects
Restart regularly
Add more memory
Check for viruses and spyware
Check your computer’s speed
Disable services you don’t need
Don’t settle for slow

No matter how fast or shiny computers might be when they are new, they all seem to get slower over time. That state-of-the-art PC you bought last year might not feel like such a screamer after you install a dozen programs, load it with antispyware and antivirus tools, and download untold amounts of junk from the Internet. The slowdown might happen so gradually you hardly notice it, until one day you’re trying to open a program or file and wonder, "What happened to my poor PC?"

Whatever the cause, there are a lot of ways to help speed up Windows and make your PC work better—even without upgrading your hardware. Here are some tips to help you optimise Windows Vista for faster performance.

Click the link below for more detail.

Windows Vista Help: Optimise Windows Vista for better performance

10 little known Photoshop CS2 Camera Raw Tips

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 14:27:13 GMT

By Scott Kelby, Editor, Photoshop User magazine

Sometimes in life, it's the little things that really matter, and I guess that's why I really get a kick out of some of the little Photoshop tips that seem to fly under the radar. These are the ones that don't get lots of press, but can make a big difference in your everyday workflow, and the more time you save during production, the more time you have to be creative (which is infinitely more fun)! So, here's a list of 10 of my favourite little known tips for using Photoshop CS2's Camera Raw:

10 little known Photoshop CS2 Camera Raw Tips

"Quantum of Solace"

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 14:17:58 GMT

As a Bond fan, I am defiantly looking forward to the next release.

The official plot summary Quantum of Solace (Bond 22)

"Quantum of Solace" to be released in November 2008 continues the high octane adventures of James Bond (Daniel Craig) in "Casino Royale."
Betrayed by Vesper, the woman he loved, 007 fights the urge to make his latest mission personal. Pursuing his determination to uncover the truth, Bond and M (Judi Dench) interrogate Mr White (Jesper Christensen) who reveals the organisation which blackmailed Vesper is far more complex and dangerous than anyone had imagined.
Forensic intelligence links an Mi6 traitor to a bank account in Haiti where a case of mistaken identity introduces Bond to the beautiful but feisty Camille (Olga Kurylenko), a woman who has her own vendetta. Camille leads Bond straight to Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), a ruthless business man and major force within the mysterious organisation.
On a mission that leads him to Austria, Italy and South America, Bond discovers that Greene, conspiring to take total control of one of the world's most important natural resources, is forging a deal with the exiled General Medrano (Joaquin Cosio). Using his associates in the organisation, and manipulating his powerful contacts within the CIA and the British government, Greene promises to overthrow the existing regime in a Latin American country, giving the General control of the country in exchange for a seemingly barren piece of land.
In a minefield of treachery, murder and deceit, Bond allies with old friends in a battle to uncover the truth. As he gets closer to finding the man responsible for the betrayal of Vesper, 007 must keep one step ahead of the CIA, the terrorists and even M, to unravel Greene's sinister plan and stop his organisation.

It's arrived...

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 15:25:38 GMT

Well I finally got my my Mini this week after a short delay over the Xmas period, and I am loving every minute of it. As I said in an earlier post I enjoyed my first Cooper S, but I have to say the R56 model is superb. As always when you buy a Mini you get in a quandary as there are just so may combinations you choose from; the accessories, the colours options, through to the wheels, in fact I think there are a possible 15million choices. Anyway until it's finally delivered your never quite sure of the final look. But I am delighted and now looking forward to the weekend and racking up a few miles.

Cooper S 1.6 Lightning Blue with White Roof & Sports Stripes

Don't let the bad weather put you off..

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:27:34 GMT

Rainsleeve

NEW Protection for SLRs and lenses in bad weather

Protects your gear from dust and inclement weather
Designed for handheld or tripod-mounted use
Unique eyepiece opening adapts to most viewfinders for viewing through the lens- not plastic!
Camera & lens controls are easily visible and operable through the RAINSLEEVET
Fits lenses measuring up to 7" (17.8 cm) in diameter & up to 18" (45.7 cm) in length
Drawstring lens opening offers easy access and a snug fit
Includes two Rainsleeves per pack for £4.95

Available from Warehouse Express

Slide Show

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:22:19 GMT

Slide.Show is an open source Silverlight 1.0 control for publishing highly-customisable photo slideshows on the Web.

Full Information http://www.codeplex.com/SlideShow

Eye-Fi

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 10:36:46 GMT

The Eye-Fi Card is a wireless memory card. It automatically uploads pictures from your digital camera to your PC or Mac and to your favourite photo sharing, printing, blogging or social networking site

Currently this is only available as an SD card, but there is an adaptor for CF cards, however nobody seems to to want to commit to how good this is.

DP Review has posted and in depth overview.

Microsoft Pro Photo Shoot

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 09:25:33 GMT

Microsoft Pro Photo Shoot is a new software add-in for Microsoft Office Outlook that allows photographers to add details of the client and equipment for a photo shoot to an appointment. The tool runs on Vista and XP and supports both Office 2003 and Office 2007. This allows photographers to leverage the power of Outlook when managing their photography.

You can read a little more about the tool and how to use it in this article:

http://www.microsoft.com/prophoto/articles/lens.aspx

Click here to download Pro Photo Shoot

Creating Panoramic Pictures the easy way

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 08:52:36 GMT

Just use the Windows Live Photo Gallery.

See the demo

Click here to download Windows Live Photo Gallery:

Problems with wireless in your home?

Thu, 03 Jan 2008 13:23:41 GMT

Devolo dLAN Wireless Access Point

The dLAN Wireless extender offers the advantages of both dLAN and WLAN in a single device. With transfer rates of up to 85 Mbit/s via dLAN and up to 54 Mbit/s via WLAN, the handy adapter enables wireless surfing in every room of the house. The combination of the two network technologies enables the dLAN Wireless extender to create a complete network within your own four walls with no limits caused by inaccessible places.

For more information

7" Digital TV Photo Frame

Thu, 03 Jan 2008 13:04:23 GMT

Welcome to 2008, so lets start with this little beauty...

Introducing the Elonex Digital TV Picture Frame. An innovative convergence product that will enhance the home, kitchen, bedroom, caravan, car, workshop, office or anywhere that people want entertaining.

This pioneering product combines the functionality of a Digital Picture Frame with a Digital TV and MP3 player. You can use the 7” LCD screen to view snaps or videos from your digital camera, watch Freeview TV in digital clarity, as well as play MP3s through the integrated stereo speakers.

Elonex Direct

NORAD’s (North American Aerospace Defense Command) - Where's Santa?

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 12:03:47 GMT

Just re-posting from last year as it's great fun for your children.

NORAD’s (North American Aerospace Defense Command) annual tracking of Santa's path around the globe began in1955 after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co ran a store advertisement for children to call Santa on a special "hotline" but inadvertently misprinted telephone number. Instead of Santa, the phone number put kids through NORAD. The Director or of Operations, Colonel Harry Shoup realized what had happened, and had his staff check radar data to see if there was any indication of Santa making his way south from the North Pole and this is how it has become a tradition that NORAD tracks Santa.

If you want to track Santa this year go to www.noradsanta.org

Change happens all time

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 11:52:11 GMT

Want some insight into world changes then view this PowerPoint presentation entitled "shifthappens" it's quite scary. Although its a 25mb download it's worth it. If you don't have PowerPoint you can download the viewer from here

The Presentation - "shifthappens"

ElfYourself™ :

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 11:32:31 GMT

Missed the post then Elf yourself and send an electronic card. Just good fun and you can add up to four elves.

ElfYourself™ :

One to watch Top Gear | TG on BBC2

Sat, 01 Dec 2007 21:35:32 GMT

On this Sunday's Top Gear, we've got a man who can drive an F1 car very fast, and a man who, well, can't.

The man who can is Lewis Hamilton. You might have heard of him. The McLaren star joins Jeremy in the TG studio to discuss his first season in Formula One and, more importantly, straps himself into our old Suzuki Liana to see how he measures up against Mansell, Hill and the rest of the F1 drivers who have taken to our test track.

Top Gear
Read what TGTV's Andy Wilman thought of Lewis
Click through our behind-the-scenes gallery

Top Gear | TG on BBC2